A Tour of the Great Roman Cities
Colonia Claudia (Cologne)
Governors, if you are called on to take responsibility for Colonia Claudia, you should remember your duty to the Empire and accept that not every assignment can be as desirable as Pompeii. Though Colonia Claudia is a place no Roman wants to go, it is an important city for the Empire.
Colonia Claudia is on the far side of the Rhine River that divides Gaul from Germany. It is the capital of our holdings in Germany, Germania Inferior. Not only is the city’s location inauspicious, the circumstances of its establishment are equally troubling to any good Roman.
The city was originally established just before the reign of Augustus by the Ubii tribe of Germans who were a client of the Romans. Eventually the city became an important base for the two legions that were operating in Germany during the time of Augustus and Tiberius. The general Germanicus, brother of Tiberius and father of Caligula the mad Emperor, was stationed in Colonia Claudia during his German campaigns. It was here that his daughter Agrippina the younger, sister of the mad Caligula, was born. After the death of Caligula, Agrippina was eventually wed to the Emperor Claudius, her uncle. She convinced him to elevate Colonia Claudia to the status of full Roman city with the full name Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensis which means colony of Claudius and the altar of Agrippina. It is called Colonia Claudia for short.
No city that is so closely associated with Caligula and his family can be a good city. But, its location makes Colonia Claudia an important city. Colonia Claudia is on the far side of the Rhine and so is important for pacifying the German tribes when they get out of hand. The Rhine is a large, broad river and it can take time to move troops across it. Maintaining legions on that side of the Rhine makes it easier to protect both Gaul and Italy from the Germans.
Of course, this means living close to the squalor that the Germans themselves live in. Fortunately Colonia Claudia has one of the largest aqueducts in the Empire, so you can be assured that though the neighboring Germans have butter and grease in their hair, the Romans of Colonia Claudia live as civilized people among the barbarians.
Massilia (Marseille)
Governors, the city of Massilia lies in Gaul on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Even though the city lies in Gaul it was founded by colonists from the Greek city of Phocaea approximately 150 years after the founding of Rome (600 BC).
The Greeks of Massilia quickly came to terms with the neighboring Gauls and established a very prosperous trading city. Massilia came to trade with the Gauls, the Carthaginians and even the early Romans. Over time, Massilia became a powerful city in the western Mediterranean, even establishing her own colonies along Gaul and Spain.
This eventually brought Massilia into conflict with Carthage who also had cities in this region. Massilia and Rome eventually came together as natural allies, united by their common enemy the Carthaginians. Because of Massilia’s loyalty to Rome through the centuries, the city remained a free independent city even after Gaul became a province.
Unfortunately, though, Massilia backed Pompey the Great against the Divine Julius during the Civil Wars. This forced Caesar to take and destroy the city. Fortunately, Massilia is naturally blessed in its location, so the city quickly recovered.
Though Massilia is nearly as old as Syracuse, it doesn’t have the rich cultural history that Syracuse does. As a strong sea-faring people, the Massilians focused mainly on trade. Indeed, the greatest contribution to learning was the writings of the explorer Pytheas who explored the land of the Britons and Germans nearly 250 years before the Divine Julius landed in Britain (330 BC). Indeed, I have read Pytheas’ writings and highly recommend them for their strange tales though one must question the truth of them they are so fantastic.
