After Rome, all Roads Led to Aquileia
Since Aquileia was the starting point for travel into the northeast regions toward the Alps, it grew into an important center for trade. Many Roman roads converged there and a substantial river port grew for transporting goods north and southward by way of the sea.
The Veneto region was linked to the Roman world by means of two major roads: the Via Postumia, built in 148 BC, which joined Genoa with Aquileia, and the Via Annia, built in 731 BC by the Praetor Titus Annius Rufus, which ran from Atria (Adria) and followed the curve of the Adriatic coast as far as Aquileia, an ancient town of Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about 6 miles from the sea, on the river Natiso (Natisone), the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times.
Aquileia was founded by the Romans in 181 B.C. as a colony not far from the site where, two years before, Gaulish invaders had attempted to settle along the Natissa River, on land south of the Julian Alps but about 8 miles north of the lagoons which later became Venice. The colony was led by two men of consular and one of praetorian rank, and 3000 pedites formed the bulk of the settlers.
Apparently named from a indigenous world Akylis, the colony of Aquileia served as a frontier fortress at the north-east corner of transpadane Italy and was intended to protect the Veneti, faithful Roman allies, during the Illyrian Wars (229 B.C. and 219 B.C.) and to act as a buttress to check the advance of other warlike people, such as the hostile tribes of Carni and Istri (Histri).
The colony was established with Latin rights by the triumvirate of Publius Scipio Nasica, Caius Flaminius, and Lucius Manlius Acidinus, two of whom were of consular and one of prætorian rank. They led 3000 pedites (infantry), mainly from Samnium, who with their families formed the bulk of the settlers and were soon supplemented by native Veneti. It is likely that Aquileia had been a center of Venetia even before the coming of the Romans. And Aquileia’s strategic military position also served to promote the Venetic trade in amber imported from the Baltic.
In 175 or 173 B.C., Aquileia was probably connected by road with Bononia (Bologna), a town whose importance was assured by its position on the Via Æmilia, by which it was connected in 187 B.C. with Ariminum (Rimini) and Placentia (Piacenza), and on the road to Arretium (Arezzo) that was constructed in the same year, while another road was built, perhaps in 175 B.C., to Aquileia. it was subsequently connected with Genua (Genova) in 148 B.C. by the Via Postumia, which ran through Cremona, Bedriacum (Calvatone) and Altinum (Altino), 15 km. southeast of Tarvisium (Treviso) on the edge of the lagoons of Venice, joining the first-mentioned road at Concordia with the construction of the Via Annia (131 B.C.), which passed through Altinum (Altino) linking Atria (Adria) with Aquileia. The construction of the Via Popilia from Ariminum (Rimini) to Ad Portum near Altinum (Altino) in 132 B.C. improved the communications still further.
In 169 B.C., 1500 more Latin colonists with their families were settled there as a reinforcement to the garrison. The discovery of the gold fields near the modern Klagenfurt in 150 (or 130?) B.C. (Strabo iv. 208) brought it into notice, and it soon became a place of importance, not only owing to its strategic position, but as a centre of trade, especially in agricultural products. It also had, in later times at least, considerable brickfields.
The original Latin colony became a municipium probably in 89 or 90 B.C. Citizens were ascribed to the Roman tribe Velina. The customs boundary of Italy was close by in Cicero’s day. It was plundered by the Iapydes under Augustus, but, in the period of peace which followed, was able to develop its resources. Augustus visited it during the Pannonian wars in 12‑10 B.C. and it was the birthplace of Tiberius’ son by Julia, in the latter year.
After its beginnings as a frontier fortress, Aquileia evolved into a naval station and, probably, the seat of the corrector Venetiarum et Histriae, the tenth region of Rome. Aquileia was the starting-point of several important roads leading to the north-eastern portion of the empire – the Via Iulia Augusta by Iulium Carnicum to Veldidena (Wilten, near Innsbruck), from which branched off the road into Noricum, leading by Virunum (Klagenfurt) to Lauricum (Lorch) on the Danube, the road into Pannonia, leading to Æmona (Ljubljana) and Sirmium (Mitrowitz / Sremska Mitrovica), the road to Tarsatica (near Fiume) and Siscia (Sissek), and that to Tergeste (Trieste) and the Istrian coast.
A mint was established in Aquileia, the coins of which are very numerous, and the bishop obtained the rank of patriarch. It had an imperial palace in which the emperors after the time of Diocletian frequently resided; and the city often played a part in the struggles between the rulers of the 4th century A.D. At the end of the century, Ausonius enumerated it as the ninth among the great cities of the world, placing Rome, Mediolanum and Capua before it, and called it "moenibus et portu celeberrima." In 452 A.D., however, it was destroyed by Attila. In the ninth century, the city became part of Charlemagne’s empire, and regained some influence and wealth in the eleventh century which culminated in the building of a cathedral that was consecrated in 1031. Aquileia eventually lost its authority to other up-and-coming dioceses before the city was destroyed in an earthquake in 1348.
Nowadays Aquileia is a small country village with one bar, a church and four butchers. The greater part of the village is occupied by an open air museum with excavations of the road. Hardly anything else remains, except that the main road from Trieste to Pula is still called the Via Flavia.
www.istrianet.org/istria/archeology/roman/roads/veneto-en…
Via Gemina
The first Roman road in Istria, Via Gemina was the road linking Aquileia to Æmona (Ljubljana). It went from Aquileia to Tergeste (Trieste) and through the Karst (Carso) region into Carniola, passing near or through the modern settlements of Materija, Obrov, Lipa and Klana – from where, near Flumen (Rijeka / (Fiume), it descended towards Trsat (Tersatto) to continue along the Dalmatian coast. It was known from 10th century onwards as strata ungarorum. Ad Pirum (Hrušica) was one of the stations on the Via Gemina from Aquileia to Æmona.
Going down towards the river, Via Gemina meets the huge River Port that extends for more than 300 metres and with its ramps, steps and quays that are still visible. The colonnade that was part of the Eastern portico can still be seen today.
Posted by quadralectics on 2018-06-16 19:31:08
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