#augst

Augusta Raurica

Augusta Raurica is a former Roman colony and city located on the Rhine River some 11 km (7 miles) east of the modern Swiss city of Basel, in between the towns of Kaiseraugst and Augst. Founded by Lucius Munatius Plancus (90 BCE - 15 BCE) around 44-43 BCE, Augusta Raurica is the oldest Roman colony constructed along the Rhine. The colony grew quickly into a city and by c. 200 CE, Augusta Raurica had between 10,000-20,000 inhabitants in its short-lived heyday. Despite its rapid growth in just three centuries, constant attacks by the Alemanni, an earthquake around 250 CE, and continued political unrest in Roman Rhaetia caused the majority of Augusta Raurica's population to abandon their city.

Celtic Origins & Roman Foundation

The area in and around Augusta Raurica had been settled by a Celtic tribe commonly referred to as the "Raurici" by historians. Before the Romans entered the region, the Raurici built a Celtic oppidum and settled close to the Rhine River. This tribe along with the Helvetii and others attempted to settle lands in eastern France at the beginning of Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars (58-50 BCE). They were defeated by Julius Caesar at the Battle of Bibracte in what is present-day France in 58 BCE, and they relocated back east towards what is present-day Switzerland. Julius Caesar's success in the Gallic Wars ensured that areas on the southern and western bank of the Rhine would come under Roman supremacy.

Victory against the Raetians in 16-15 BCE helped Augustus Caesar secure control over all of what is present-day Switzerland.

Lucius Munatius Plancus founded Augusta Raurica c. 44-43 BCE, however, effective colonization was delayed due to the protracted conflict resulting from the civil wars and foreign conflicts following the assassination of Julius Caesar. The brief military campaigns of Aulus Terentius Varro Murena (d. 24 BCE) against the Raetians in 16-15 BCE helped Augustus Caesar secure control over all of what is present-day Switzerland. Roman colonization at Augusta Raurica thus dates from c. 15 BCE, during the reign of Augustus Caesar (r. 27 BCE - 14 CE). The colony was named in honor of the Roman emperor; the Romans built the city with wood from nearby forests on a plateau near the town of Augst and within close proximity of the Rhine River.

Founded in the 1st century by Lucius Munatius Plancus (which sounds a bit like a joke name but he also founded what is now Lyon), the Roman city of Augusta Raurica had all the amenities you'd expect: a drama theatre, temples, a gladiatorial amphitheatre, baths by the Rhine, and, in the 4th century, a Christian church.