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Gallia Narbonensis (Narbonese Gaul) was a Roman province
Roman province

In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of the Italia ....
 located in what is now Languedoc
Languedoc

Languedoc is a former province of France, now continued in the modern-day List of regions in France of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyr?n?es in the south of France, and whose capital city was Toulouse, now in Midi-Pyr?n?es....
 and Provence
Provence

Provence is a region of southeastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative regions of France of Provence-Alpes-C?te d'Azur....
, in southern France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
. Narbonese Gaul "lay between the Alps, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Cévennes Mountains. It comprised what is now southeastern France."

ad previously been known as Gallia Transalpina (Transalpine Gaul).






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Gallia Narbonensis (Narbonese Gaul) was a Roman province
Roman province

In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of the Italia ....
 located in what is now Languedoc
Languedoc

Languedoc is a former province of France, now continued in the modern-day List of regions in France of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyr?n?es in the south of France, and whose capital city was Toulouse, now in Midi-Pyr?n?es....
 and Provence
Provence

Provence is a region of southeastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative regions of France of Provence-Alpes-C?te d'Azur....
, in southern France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
. Narbonese Gaul "lay between the Alps, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Cévennes Mountains. It comprised what is now southeastern France."

Names

It had previously been known as Gallia Transalpina (Transalpine Gaul). The province of Gallia Transalpina was later renamed Gallia Narbonensis, after its capital the Roman colony of Narbo Martius (Narbonne
Narbonne

Narbonne is a commune in France in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon r?gion in France. It lies from Paris in the Aude d?partement in France, of which it is a sous-pr?fecture....
), which was founded on the coast in 118 BC. The Romans called it Provincia Nostra ("our province") or simply Provincia ("the province"), being the first significant permanent conquest outside the Italian peninsula. The name has survived in the modern French
French language

French is a Romance language spoken around the world by around 80 million people as first language, by 190 million as second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired tongue, with significant speakers in 54 countries....
 name of the region, Provence
Provence

Provence is a region of southeastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative regions of France of Provence-Alpes-C?te d'Azur....
, now a région
Region

Region is a geographical term that is used in various ways among the different branches of geography. In general, a region is a medium-scale area of land or water, smaller than the whole areas of interest , and larger than a specific site A region may be seen as a collection of smaller units or as one part of a larger whole ....
 of France.

Founding

By the mid-second century BC, Rome was trading heavily with the town of Massalia
Marseille

"Marseille" is the second-largest city of France and forms the third-largest aire urbaine, after those of Paris and Lyon, with a population recorded to be 1,516,340 at the 1999 census and estimated to be 1,605,000 in 2007....
 (modern Marseille) just north of Italy. Massalia was a Greek colony that by this point was centuries old and quite prosperous. Rome entered into an alliance with Massalia, by which it agreed to protect the town in exchange for a small strip of land that it wanted in order to build a road from Italy to Spain, to assist in troop transport. The Massalians, for their part, cared more for their economic prosperity than they did their territorial integrity. In this strip of land, the Romans founded the town of Narbonne, which turned out to be a major trading competitor with Massalia. It was from this that what was then the province of Transalpine Gaul was founded.

Later History


Bordering directly on Italy
Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
, control of the province gave the Roman state several advantages, such as control of the land route between Italy and the Iberian peninsula
Iberian Peninsula

The Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France....
; a buffer against attacks on Italy by tribes from Gaul
Gaul

Gaul is the name used for the region of Western Europe comprising part of present day northern Italy, France, Belgium, western Switzerland and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River Rhine....
; and control of the lucrative trade routes of the Rhone
Rhône River

The Rhone, or the Rh?ne is one of the major rivers of Europe, originating in Switzerland and running from there through the south-eastern corner of France....
 valley, over which commercial goods flowed between Gaul and the trading center of Massalia. It was from the capital of Narbonne that Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar

'Gaius Julius Caesar' , July 13, 100 BC ? March 15, 44 BC,) was a Roman Republic military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
 began his Gallic Wars].

The area became a Roman province
Roman province

In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of the Italia ....
 in 121 BC, originally under the name of Gallia Transalpina (Transalpine Gaul). This name was chosen to distinguish it from Cisalpine Gaul
Cisalpine Gaul

Cisalpine Gaul was the Roman name for a geographical area , in the territory of modern-day northern Italy , inhabited by the Celts. Sometimes referred to as Gallia Citerior , Provincia Ariminum, or Gallia Togata ....
. Transalpine means "the far side of the Alps
Alps

The Alps is the name for one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east; through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany; to France in the west....
", while Cisalpine means "this side of the Alps". Cisalpine Gaul was on the east of the Alps range, in what is now northern Italy and parts of France; while Transalpine Gaul was to the west, in what is now south-east France. Together, the regions made up the region of Gaul
Gaul

Gaul is the name used for the region of Western Europe comprising part of present day northern Italy, France, Belgium, western Switzerland and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River Rhine....
, which was called Gallia by the Romans.

At one point, Narbonese Gaul and Transalpine Gaul were governed as separate territories - when the Second Triumvirate
Second Triumvirate

The Second Triumvirate is the name historians give to the official political alliance of Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus , Marcus Aemilius Lepidus , and Mark Antony, formed on 26 November 43 BC with the enactment of the Lex Titia, the adoption of which marked the end of the Roman Republic....
 was formed, Lepidus
Marcus Aemilius Lepidus (triumvir)

Marcus Aemilius Lepidus ,born ca 90 BC died 13 BC, was a patrician Ancient Rome politician of the 1st century BC who rose to become a member of the Second Triumvirate and Pontifex Maximus....
 was given responsibility for Narbonese Gaul and Spain, while Antony was given Cisalpine
Cisalpine Gaul

Cisalpine Gaul was the Roman name for a geographical area , in the territory of modern-day northern Italy , inhabited by the Celts. Sometimes referred to as Gallia Citerior , Provincia Ariminum, or Gallia Togata ....
 and Transalpine Gaul.