Antiquity of Aisne

The Aisne was one of the eighty-three departments created in 1790. It consisted of territories resulting from the Île-de-France (Laonnois, Soissonnais, Noyonnais, Valois) and from the Picardy (Thiérache, Vermandois).

We will speak here, for the Antiquité, of the area included/understood within the current geographical limits of this department.

The Roman conquest

Before the arrival of the Roman , four tribes occupied the current territory of the department:

the Rèmes in the East,
the Suessions in the South and the Center,
the Viromanduens in Western North,
the Aduatiques in North East.

These four tribes, as the majority of the tribes Gaulois are, lived in a state of independence from/to each other. Informed of the Roman activities in Gaulle, these people did not react initially. One needed the arrival of Jules César for their border and the imminent threat of the enemy so that these people link themselves. Thus during the winter of the year -57 a vast coalition gathering all the people of the north of Gaules (except for the Rèmes which preferred to be combined in César) was born.

Strong of almost 300 000 men, this coalition is started under the orders of Galba, chief of Suessions. They invaded the country of the Rèmes, made the seat of Bibrax, Oppidum cut off located from the Colline from the Old man-Laon close to Saint-Thomas, with a dozen kilometers in the south-east of Laon. César came to the rescue from its allies and forced the lifting of the seat with hardly 80 000 men under his command.

The Gallic coalition flew in glare and each people returned on his grounds to be held to with it on the defensive not without being itself beforehand assured a mutual support in the event of attack the Romans. On his side, Jules César benefitted from what resembled a rout disorganized to advance in enemy territory and to arrive in front of Noviodunum (Soissons), capital of Suessions which was taken and subjected.

Continuing on its impetus, Jules César imposed his law on the Bellovaques not without fighting and went then against the Viromanduens combined for the cironstance and according to the prior agreements to the Nerviens. The battle take place on the edges of the Sambre or the Saddle (the question is always discussed) and the Romans had to face a keen resistance their adversaries before overcoming them.

Meanwhile, the Aduatiques had gotten under way to support the defense of Viromanduens and Nerviens. They had not arrived yet that they learned the Roman victory and decided to make half-turn to join their capital Aduat (certain sources claim that Aduatiques never got under way to support their allies).

In their turn, the Aduatiques were besieged and overcome. Before Gaulle is not completely pacified, the tribes occupying the current territory of the Aisne took again the weapons twice.

In -54, the victory of Ambiorix, chief of the Éburons, on two lieutenants of Jules César, Julius Sabinus and Cotta, encouraged the Aduatiques to be raised against the occupant. A second coalition had been born but it was quickly reduced to nothing thanks to the rapid intervention of Jules César which beat Ambiorix. This victory brought back the calm one, at least seemingly because it of it was nothing.

In -52, following the massacre of the Carnutes which was an element release, all the Gallic chiefs met in Bibracte to organize a general rising against the Romans. Appointment that the Suessions did not miss, the Aduatiques and the Viromanduens; the Rèmes being the only absent ones from their alliance with the Romans.

This rising does not succeed. Vercingétorix was demolishes and even if the tribes which occupied the areas of the current department of Aisne still fought a year with the Bellovaques, they had to capitulate in their turn and to fall, them also, under the Roman domination.

Under the Roman domination

It was necessary a few years before Gaulle become Roman is not organized in provinces. That was done in the first years of the reign of Auguste, in -27. Gaulle is then divided into three provinces: the Gaulle Aquitaine, the Lyons Gaulle and the Gaulle Belgium, in which the area that we study here was included/understood.

The fate of the people which had opposed or combined Rome was variable, but all had to be organized in the shape of a city pérégrine, with a chief town. Thus the city of the Rèmes, allied indéfectible of the Romans for a long time, preserved his independence theoretically and had the title of " friend of the people romain" ; its chief town, located out of the department of Aisne, was Durocortorum (Rheims). The city of the Suessions was known as " libre" , but subjected to a tax; its chief town was Augusta Suessionum (Soissons). The city of the Viromanduens was mercenary (i.e. subjected to the payment of a tribute); its chief town was Augusta Viromanduorum (Saint-Quentin). In fact, these particular statuses, useful to divide the Gallic ones and thus to ensure a better control, were gradually reduced to a value symbolic system, more especially as the essential difference remained that which separated the cities pérégrines from the cities of Latin right and the cities of Roman law (most favoured during the Roman High-Empire).

The tribes of the area, after having opposed a savage resistance at the time of the War of Gaules, adopted and assimilated rather easily the customs and habits as well as the laws of their winners. It is what one calls the process of romanisation: the populations of the cities of Rèmes, Suessions and Viromanduens gradually adopted Roman civilization (what does not mean that they servilely copied the lifestyle of the Romans), not materialized in particular by the Roman law, the Latin language, the practice of the writing, the pertaining to worship practices of Mediterranean type (with local divinities sometimes), the urban lifestyle.

Dioclétien reorganized the Empire in order to manage to manage it and face the various threats as well internal as external. It divided the territory into Diocèse S and in Province S. the department formed then part of the Belgium Second, one of the eight provinces of the Diocèse of Gaules. The capital of the province was baptized Augusta Remorum (Rheims), while Saint-Quentin probably lost its statute of chief town of city of Viromanduens to the profit of Vermand.

The occupation of space undergoes deep changes starting from the medium of IIIe century, at the same time under the influence of internal changes and external interventions. Certain agglomerations strongly declined (Saint-Quentin, Vervins…), but the territory remained emphasized, in particular by great rural fields (villae), like that of Filed in the valley of Vesle. In second half of IVe century, one observes the presence of a Germanic population to the service of Rome: the necropoles of Vermand, inter alia, delivered the many ones and rich burials containing of the objects of Germanic origin.

The penetration of Christianity was slow; few historical elements attest it before the Early middle ages, even if the local churches wanted to later affirm their seniority through the accounts hagiographic of the lives of Quentin saint or saint Crepin and holy Crépinien. The Christians gradually formed three groups which were at the origin of the Diocèses of Rheims, of Soissons and Noyon (initially fixed at Vermand jusque' with the Life century probably). The church of Laon was not formed and had a particular bishop only later (see also the article Catholic church in France ).

The last official representative of the Roman Empire in the area, Syagrius, was demolishes by the Francs saliens ordered by Clovis and Ragnacaire. Soissons and all the area fell to the hands the Francs… A new page was turned and, with this new page, a new time began for the area (see the article Aisne with the Middle Ages ).

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