Transcript The Decline of the Hallsatt

Ancient Literary Sources
TH E A R R I V A L O F THE C EL TS
I N TH E SO UTH A N D THE EA ST
A N D HO W THE G R EEKS A N D
R O M A N S S A W TH E M
class website
 www.courseweb.uottawa.ca\CLT3140
Migrations
 Between the 5th and the 3rd centuries BC, migrations






carried the Celts from central |Europe across the
Alps into
Italy
Along the Danube river
Carpathian mountains
Ukrainian steppes
SE to the Balkans, Greece and Anatolia (Turkey).
Small groups even reached Egypt.
Danube River
Migrations
 During that time the Celts earned a reputation for
savagery in war. It is also the time when Greek and
Roman writers comment on this ‘new’ people.
 They became the most widespread group of peoples
in Europe.
 The traditional story told by the Roman historian
Livy (Titus Livius) explains how the king of the
Bituriges sent his two nephews Bellovesus and
Segovesus to find new homelands.
 Bellovesus and his followers went to Italy, and
Segovesus went to the south of Germany.
Migrations
 The migrations into Italy probably lasted between





c450BC and 400BC.
Later the Romans knew the whole area of Celtic
settlement in Italy as Cisalpine Gaul (Cisalpina
Gallia).
Most of the migrants came from:
Marne-Moselle region
Central, estern Gaul (Senones, Cenomani, Lingones)
SE Gaul and beyond (Boii).
Migrations
 According to the Roman historian the Celtic peoples
who took part in these two major waves of migration
were the following:
 Bituriges, Arverni, Senones, Aedui, Ambari,
Carnutes, Aulerci.
Gaulish tribes
Migrations
 Many of the Etruscan villages that the Celts overran
were assimilated into La Tene Celtic culture in
language and customs.
 This period c391BC also marks the very first
contacts between the Romans and the Celts. A
failed diplomatic mission by the Romans who tried
to mediate between the Senones and the Etruscans
led to armed conflict between the Celts (Senones)
and the Romans and Etruscans. And led to death of a
Celtic chieftain.
Etruscans and Celts
Migrations- the Sack of Rome c390BC
 This in turn led to retaliatory action by the Celts who




headed with great speed down the Tiber river valley
to Rome. (July 390 or 386BC).
Rome had been abandoned by all bu the sick and old,
Rome was sacked by the Celts.
They remained for seven months.
The Gauls were persuaded to leave after paying a
huge ransom in gold.
Brennus: “vae victis” !
Migrations
 It has been argued that by weakening the
Etruscans, the Gauls had made it easier for
the Romans to become masters of Italy.
 The Romans built a city wall in 378BC to defend
themselves from the Gauls.
 Finally there was a peace-treaty between the Romans
and the Gauls of the north in 334BC.
 Fear of the Gauls always remained amongst
the Romans, and they bore a grudge against
them that would last 300 years.
Migrations-the east
 Celtic migrations into eastern Europe began early in the




fourth century (c380BC).
By 300BC a loose confederation of Celtic tribes moved
into the Balkans and attacked the local peoples known as
the Illyrians, Triballi and Paionians
Although we have little written evidence for this
migration from Roman or Greek writers, it is clear
from the archaeology that the Celts followed the
Danube river as it flowed towards the SE.
Thus, we find evidence of Celtic settlements in today’s
Slovenia, Serbia and Hungary.
Local peoples most likely adopted La Tene culture.
Danube River (in red)
Celts in the east
 Possibly some of those going as far as today’s
Ukraine were no more than warbands, although a
Celtic (La Tene) cemetary has been found near
Chernobyl.
 Some placenames suggest the presence of Gauls:
Gallitsyja and Galich).
 They may have wanted to raid the Greek settlements
on the Black Sea. (coins).
 A 3rd century inscription from Olbia (Nikolayev,
Ukraine) records the threat of Galatian (Gaulish,
Celtic) attacks.
Alexander and the Celts
 During the advance of the La Tene Celts towards the
eastern parts of Europe, Alexander the Great came
into contact with a group of la Tene ambassadors in
335BC.
 This was during his expedition across the Danube.
 These Celts are supposed to have been in residence
along the shores of the Ionic Gulf, and were probably
an offshoot of the Celtic influx into Italy.
Alexander and the Celts
 When the same ambassadors discussed a treaty with
Alexander, they admitted fear of nothing, except
perhaps that the sky should fall, and Alexander
thought that they merely vainglorious.
 They were declaring themselves free from fear of
him.
 The Celts certainly were frightened of such
manifestations of natural power as thunderstorms,
because they thought that they might presage the
end of the world. Delphi.
Celts in the East
 A short time later in 323BC, the Greek historian
Arrian tells us that a delegation of Celts came to
Babylon along with representatives of other peoples
where Alexander was present.
 This was the first time that Macedonians had seen
Celtic war-equipment and armour.
 Perhaps they had come to survey the prospects of
raids in that part of the world.
Celts in Greece
 Later, Celtic raiders turned their sights towards
Macedonia (Greece).
 Several attempts were made to enter Greece; one
attack led by Bolgios in 281BC.
 A more serious attempt took place in 279BC
under Brennus.
Celts in Greece
 The Celts were not used to defensive warfare which
allowed the Greeks to take cover in walled cities.
 The Greeks tried to stop the Celts at the famous Pass
of Thermopylai.
 After scattering the Greek forces, the Celts continued
under the leadership of Brennus as far as Delphi. The
Celts were interested in raiding, and many Greek
cities had their treasures stored there.
Delphi
Celts in Greece
 Greek sources for this story tended to explain the
defeat of the Celts in Delphi through a mixture of
fantasy and meteorological confusion. (earthquakes,
snow-storms, rock-falls).
 Brennus’ army eventually settled on the Black Sea in
today’s Bulgaria. (Commontorios)
 Another group made for the Balkans (probably
joining other Celts there) under the leadership of
Bathanatos, and they founded the new
tribe/people/touta known as the Scordisci.
Celts of Belgrade
 Their main centre became Singidunum
(modern Belgrade).
 The Scordisci who have left considerable
archaeological remains became a force to be
reckoned with raiding both Macedonia and Greece.
 Another group of warriors found their way to Egypt
were they became cleruchs (sleepers= reservists).
 At the end of the 2nd century Bc (c120BC) there were
soldiers with Celtic names in the garrison of
Hermopolis in Middle Egypt.
The edge of Singidunum today
Celts in Anatolia
 Some of the large contingent who refused to join the
expedition into Greece had continued on to Thrace
(north of Greece).
 They were the Tectosages, Trocmi and the
Tolistobogii. Half of them were women and children,
no doubt seeking places to settle and less interested
in raiding (like Brennos).
 They were invited into Anatolia (278-7BC). Their
men would help the local king to defend the area.
Anatolia (with Galatia)
Celts in Anatolia
 The area of Celtic settlement there was called Galatia
(the land of the Gauls).
 St Jerome in the 4th century AD stated that the
Galatians spoke the same Celtic language as the
Gauls.
 They evolved a separate form of self-government.
Their national shrine was called the Drunemeton
(oak-grove).
 The local tetrarchs were assisted by a judge possibly
a druid.
The end of the migrations
 By the end of the third century (c 220BC) the period




of Celtic migration had mainly finished.
In Italy they were already in retreat following the
battle of Telemon.
If there were migrations they tended to take place
within the Celtic world itself.
Caesar mentions the migration of the Helvetii to new
lands.
There were movements of peoples to southern
Britain from northern gaul at this time.
The End of the Migrations
 These were mainly Belgae who went to Britain
c100BC.
 Possibly contingents from the Parisii tribe in Gaul
relocated to northern Britain at about the same time.
They kept the tribal name (Parisi-sic).
 Another tribe found both in Gaul and Britain are the
Atrebates and Belgae.
 Some movement from Celtic Britain to Ireland
(Ivernia) seems possibel with duplication of names:
Dumnonii, Brigantes (N Britain) in particular.
Ancient literary Sources
 When speaking of the ‘barbarian’ peoples of ancient
Europe, and especially the ‘Celts’, the written records
highlight and illuminate the world of these peoples.
 Virtually everything we know about the Iron-Age
Celts depends (outside of the archaeology) on the
writings of the Greeks and then later the Romans.
Ancient literary Sources
 The written heritance of the Celts is only to be found
in a few hundred inscriptions written in Gaul
(ancient France), Spain and northern Italy.
 The first testimony of the Celts can be traced to the
6th century, mentioned as they are by Hecataeus in
about 500BC. It is possible that he knew the Celts
living inland from Massalia.
Ancient literary Sources
 Avienus, the poet, can be dated to the sixth century
BC, he cites the Celts as being enemies of the
Ligurians based further west.
 Probably at this time no special attention was given
to the Keltoi, since they were seen as just another
ethnic group north of the Mediterrean.
 Herodotus who was working about 400BC
mentions (perhaps based on Hecataeus) that the
river Danube has its source in the territory inhabited
by the Celts.
Ancient literary Sources
 This territory he says extended as far as the shores of
the ocean to the west, and into Spain.
 He mentions a city called Pyrene (on the Danube). It
is probably no coincidence that by following his
directions we arrive in the centre of the western part
of the Hallstatt culture.
 Certainly because of trade the Mediterraneans know
of the Celts in the 6th century.
 However, Herodotus does not provide us with
ethnographical information about the Celts.
Ancient literary Sources
 Until the 5th century then, the Celts were seemingly
only a number of tribes on the fringes of the Greek
world.
 The end of the Hallstatt and the beginning of the La
Tene meant that information about the Celts became
better known by the end of the 5th century with Celtic
settlements in the Po Valley (Italy).
 News of the sack of Rome by Gauls in 390BC reached
the Greek historians.
Ancient literary Sources
 From at least the 4th century BC the Celts had thus
acquired a reputation for being brave and extremely
aggressive warriors, and were employed by
Etruscans, Carthaginians, and the western Greeks.
 Xenophon mentions that Celtic and Spanish
mercenaries were used as an expeditionary force to
the aid of the Spartans in 371BC.
 This is the first testimony of the presence of
Celts on the Greek mainland.
Ancient literary Sources
 As a result we find the first attempts at
ethnographical description in works by Greek
authors of the 4th century BC.
 Plato describes them as bellicose, but also as
excessive drinkers of wine (Nomoi).
 Aristotle also praises their temerity and rigid
discipline to which they were subjected from
childhood onward. (Politica), and refers to them as
examples of the greatest courage.
Ancient literary Sources
 Theopompus mentions that there were Celts in
Illyria and the historian Ephorus mentions them as
being inhabitants of western Europe, and
emphasizes their military valour and absolute
fearlessness. They calmly awaited hightide on the
sea’s edge, thus losing more lives than in war.
 He also mentions the good relations between them
and the Greeks (Massalia).
Ancient literary Sources
 Unfortunately the account of Phytheas who sailed
around Gaul, Britain and Northern Europe has not
survived, but he was much quoted by later writers.
 By 380BC the Celts mercenaries were already
fighting in Dalmatia, in Ptolemy’s Greek Histories
we hear how Alexander the Great in the thick of his
campaign in the Balkans was approached by a
delegation of Celts (somewhere in Slovenia).
 Their famous boast that they feared nothing in the
world except that the sky might fall down.
Ancient literary Sources
 Unfortunately apart from a few passages by Polybius,
the entire history of the Hellenistic period, like the
ethnography and geography has been lost (eg the
Geographika by Eratosthenes).
 As well as the 13 volumes by Demetrios of
Byzantium about the movement of the Celts in Asia.
 And the epic poem by Simonides of Magnesia (late
3rd century) about the war between King Antiochus
and the Galatians.
Ancient literary Sources
 In general the image we have of the Celts from the
Hellenistic period was built up in a context of wars
and constant fear of brutal aggression.
 Geographically by this time they were viewed as
inhabitants of western Europe, but also of central
Europe and north as far as the land of the Scythians.
The Germanic tribes beyond the Celtic belt were
largely unknown in the Mediterranean. If they were
regarded as anything they were regarded as Celts as
well.
Ancient literary Sources
 The first written contacts between the Celts and Romans
are largely lost. Such evidence as we have is sometimes
recorded in the work of the Roman historian Livy. He
mentions in particular the attack on Rome and the duel
between Titus Manlius Torquatus and a Gaul.
 Much information for this period can be found in the
Greek historian Polybius who has very interesting
ethnographical descriptions of the Celts of
northern Italy, as well as a grandiose description of the
battle of Telamon and the gaesatae (mercenaries) of
225BC.
Ancient literary Sources
 Polybius provides us with concise but useful
descriptions of the Celtic hierarchical system.
 The great Roman scholar of the next stage when
Rome waged war against the Arverni and created
Gallia Narbonensis in the late 2nd century BC, was
Posidonius.
 He was a great ethnographer and
philosopher (c135-50BC).
 Large excerpts of his ethnographical descriptions of
the Celts remain.
Ancient literary Sources
 He knew the Celts from his travels and he spoke of
them from first hand experience.as well as the
information in his accounts we also have the
descriptions provided in the works of Strabo and
Diodorus .
 Posidonius was very good on detail. He describes
their receptive and courageous temperament, their
frankness and a certain arrogance.
 Their love of ornament, their obsession with honour.
Ancient literary Sources
 Their beliefs in an afterlife, their excitabilty, their
priests and their bards who sang of the feats of the
kings and lords.
 He also mentions their cult of the head.
 Posidonius’s account remains the most detail in an
antiquity of the Celts of the 1st century BC.
 In his work the archaeological finds of the late La
Tene period come to life.
Ancient literary Sources
 Cicero as well mentions in one of his philosophical
works his meeting with the druid Divitiacus of the
Aedui people of eastern Gaul and their discussions
about Celtic belief.
 During the last half of the 1st century BC Julius
Caesar fought his campaign againt the Gauls
leading to their defeat and the integration of Gaul
into the new Roman empire.
Ancient literary Sources
 In his memoires of the campaign Caesar gives
copious information about the Gauls during this last
stage in La Tene civilisation.
 Caesar was an expert on Gaul and in his writings we
have a high level of ethnographical expertise. He may
well have used a lot of Posidonius but this is not
certain.Caesar concentrates on three aspects:
politics, society and religion.