It was the year 58 B.C. when Roman general Gaius Julius Caesar marched his legions into Gaul. He was walking into a world little known him and his people, but that was on the edge of history for millenia: Celtic Europe. These lands weren’t urbanised in the sense of Mediterranean cities of that time but were nonetheless well developed and very well connected through large hillfort that we know by the name Caesar gave to them: oppida. These formed the centres of religion, administration, production and power. But, from 58 B.C. onwards, these urban centres of Gallic society became the theatre of Caesar’s wars. New archaeological research, however, shows that not all oppida were destroyed, lost or abandoned. Some seemed to have been resettled, renewed or even partially rebuilt, while others would be completely re-invented. So what happened to these Gallic oppida, and what can their ruins still tell us today? Music by Max H. and Alon Peretz. Licensed through artlist.io: -Discovering The Lost City, Max H. -Dense, Alon Peretz -The Destiny, Max H. -Back Home, Max H. Special thanks to Google Earth Studio for the creation of footage using their engine. If you want to learn more and delve deeper into the subject, check out the following articles: - R. Golosetti, ‘Cult Places at Former Oppida in South-East Gaul: Questions of Memory, Tradition and Identity’, Oxford Journal of Archaeology 36:3 (2017), 287-305. - T. Moore, ‘Beyond Iron-Age ‘Towns’: Examining Oppida as Examples of Low-Density Urbanism’, Oxford Journal of Archaeology 36:2 (2017), 171-195. If you enjoyed this video, consider liking and subscribing to A Life in Ruins. #Documentary #Roman #History #Ancient #Celtic #Oppida

• published: 29 Sep 2021
• views: 11961