Hadrian's Consolidation - reboot
- Thread starter Hecatee
- Start date
Near Mediolanum, April 178
Hecatee
Donor
Near Mediolanum, April 178
Marcus Aurelius, Imperator, felt all of his 56 years as he rode his horse toward Mediolanum, the next step on his tour of the empire. Around him a small army of praetorians, dignitaries and servants moved in an organized way. The trip had only begun a few days ago, although its preparation had started many months before.
The Emperor wanted to see his empire one last time. He knew he would not be able to do a new trip around all of its borders, given his age. The empire was peaceful, growing steadily richer no major issue needed his attention and so he could take this opportunity to plan for the future and introduce his heir to the local elites of all the provinces and help smooth the transition of power.
Avidius Cassius was riding next to his adoptive father. Ten years younger than Marcus Aurelius, he had already travelled extensively and led forces at war, including during the Germanic war of nine years before. He’d also been sent on a number of missions to ensure the implementation of the new laws organizing the empire that had been decreed four years before, in fact he’d been in Africa Proconsularis when he’d been summoned back to Rome for this trip.
The tour was to take the imperial entourage through the Alps to Octodurus and then up to Lugdunum, from where they’d follow the Rhodanus for a while before going to Augustodunum and then Lutetia. There a fleet would take them down the Sequana river and across the oceanus britannicus to visit Britannia and the wall garrison.
The ships would bring them to Londinium, and from there they’d go by land to Lindum, then to the bases at Eboracum and Luguvalium, before going to the wall and the battlefield of Alaunia Civitas. It would then be time to meet again with the fleet that would be waiting for them at Pons Aelius, ready for the next part of the journey.
For the Emperor had decided to take a dangerous way back to the mainland : crossing to the allied barbarian lands of Frisia and the territory of the Cherusci, he would sail up the Rhenus and stop in Lupia to confer with their king, also inspecting the legionary bases in Noviomagus, Castra Vetera and Bonna on the way.
He would then visit the new provinces and see how they had evolved in the years since their conquest, Augustodunum Germanicum, Buccula and Ad Marcomani Confluens being his main destinations, before taking ships on the Danuvius and stopping in Carnuntum, Brigetio, and Aquincum where he’d take the road to Arx Cubitus, the first garrison on the Tisia river. He’d then visit Porolissum and Napoca, where he expected to spend winter and celebrate the Saturnalia, before going to Transmontes where ships would carry him to Troesmis.
From there he’d reach the Euxine sea where the Euxine fleet would carry him to the bosphoran kingdom of Sauramates II, making him the first roman emperor to ever visit the vassal kingdom. Stopping at Tyras, at the mouth of the river of the same name, and at Olbia on the Hypanis, he’d then go to Chersonnesos before crossing to Asia Minor, landing in Trapezus and visiting the troops in Satala, which would provide him with a strong escort to Vagharshapad where he’d meet the Armenian king.
From there he intended to visit Arsamosata and the base at Melitene before he’d revisit his old battlegounds : Edessa, Antiocheia Mygdonia, Singara, Hatra and Ctesiphon were all on his itinerary, as was the garrison on the sinus persicus.
He’d then cross the desert to Palmyra, going through Emesa and Bostra, Gerasa and Petra from where he’d turn west toward Pelusium and Alexandria where the fleet would carry him to Gortyna in Crete, Cyrene, Leptis Magna and Carthago.
From there he intended to emulate the divine Hadrianus and visit the troops at Lambaesis before going to Caesarea where ships would carry him to Tingis before taking him to Hispania : from Gades he’d visit Hispalis, Italica, and go west to Felicitas Iulia before going north to Brigantium and Castra Legionis. Crossing the mountains he would then go to Burdigala and sail up the Garumna river and the canal to Narbo, where he’d take the road back to Italy trough Nemausus, Aquae Sextiae and Cemenelum.
This tour was as much a celebration of his twenty years of rule as a way to tighten the bonds of the provinces with the empire, meeting the local elites outside of Rome and seeing how the lands were managed. Of course he knew that senators would make the trip back from Rome to their family’s provinces, but it would be very different from what he was seeing in the capital…
Marcus Aurelius, Imperator, felt all of his 56 years as he rode his horse toward Mediolanum, the next step on his tour of the empire. Around him a small army of praetorians, dignitaries and servants moved in an organized way. The trip had only begun a few days ago, although its preparation had started many months before.
The Emperor wanted to see his empire one last time. He knew he would not be able to do a new trip around all of its borders, given his age. The empire was peaceful, growing steadily richer no major issue needed his attention and so he could take this opportunity to plan for the future and introduce his heir to the local elites of all the provinces and help smooth the transition of power.
Avidius Cassius was riding next to his adoptive father. Ten years younger than Marcus Aurelius, he had already travelled extensively and led forces at war, including during the Germanic war of nine years before. He’d also been sent on a number of missions to ensure the implementation of the new laws organizing the empire that had been decreed four years before, in fact he’d been in Africa Proconsularis when he’d been summoned back to Rome for this trip.
The tour was to take the imperial entourage through the Alps to Octodurus and then up to Lugdunum, from where they’d follow the Rhodanus for a while before going to Augustodunum and then Lutetia. There a fleet would take them down the Sequana river and across the oceanus britannicus to visit Britannia and the wall garrison.
The ships would bring them to Londinium, and from there they’d go by land to Lindum, then to the bases at Eboracum and Luguvalium, before going to the wall and the battlefield of Alaunia Civitas. It would then be time to meet again with the fleet that would be waiting for them at Pons Aelius, ready for the next part of the journey.
For the Emperor had decided to take a dangerous way back to the mainland : crossing to the allied barbarian lands of Frisia and the territory of the Cherusci, he would sail up the Rhenus and stop in Lupia to confer with their king, also inspecting the legionary bases in Noviomagus, Castra Vetera and Bonna on the way.
He would then visit the new provinces and see how they had evolved in the years since their conquest, Augustodunum Germanicum, Buccula and Ad Marcomani Confluens being his main destinations, before taking ships on the Danuvius and stopping in Carnuntum, Brigetio, and Aquincum where he’d take the road to Arx Cubitus, the first garrison on the Tisia river. He’d then visit Porolissum and Napoca, where he expected to spend winter and celebrate the Saturnalia, before going to Transmontes where ships would carry him to Troesmis.
From there he’d reach the Euxine sea where the Euxine fleet would carry him to the bosphoran kingdom of Sauramates II, making him the first roman emperor to ever visit the vassal kingdom. Stopping at Tyras, at the mouth of the river of the same name, and at Olbia on the Hypanis, he’d then go to Chersonnesos before crossing to Asia Minor, landing in Trapezus and visiting the troops in Satala, which would provide him with a strong escort to Vagharshapad where he’d meet the Armenian king.
From there he intended to visit Arsamosata and the base at Melitene before he’d revisit his old battlegounds : Edessa, Antiocheia Mygdonia, Singara, Hatra and Ctesiphon were all on his itinerary, as was the garrison on the sinus persicus.
He’d then cross the desert to Palmyra, going through Emesa and Bostra, Gerasa and Petra from where he’d turn west toward Pelusium and Alexandria where the fleet would carry him to Gortyna in Crete, Cyrene, Leptis Magna and Carthago.
From there he intended to emulate the divine Hadrianus and visit the troops at Lambaesis before going to Caesarea where ships would carry him to Tingis before taking him to Hispania : from Gades he’d visit Hispalis, Italica, and go west to Felicitas Iulia before going north to Brigantium and Castra Legionis. Crossing the mountains he would then go to Burdigala and sail up the Garumna river and the canal to Narbo, where he’d take the road back to Italy trough Nemausus, Aquae Sextiae and Cemenelum.
This tour was as much a celebration of his twenty years of rule as a way to tighten the bonds of the provinces with the empire, meeting the local elites outside of Rome and seeing how the lands were managed. Of course he knew that senators would make the trip back from Rome to their family’s provinces, but it would be very different from what he was seeing in the capital…
I said it before and I will say it again: I LOVE your story! You can feel and see all the time you spend doing research, the commitment pour in checking all the details, and then you give us chapter like this, that even without battle, show all the care you put in this story by showing the evolution of your characters... For a lover, like me, of the Roman Empire this is one, if not, the best story about it I ever read!!! Amazing job man!!! And again Merry Christmas Everyone, to you and your family \ (^o^) /\ (^o^) /\ (^o^) /
Hecatee
Donor
One died (food poisoning I presume) but the four other are doing well, they are with the Emperor and will leave him at Alexandria where they'll start the trip back home
Alaunia Civitas, Caledonia, early Augustus 178
Hecatee
Donor
Alaunia Civitas, Caledonia, early Augustus 178
It had been nine years since the battle of Alaunia Civitas had marked the defeat of the barbarian invasion from beyond the wall. The event had truly changed the destiny of the town. The imperial largesses that had been conferred on it after the victory had allowed for the building of new public structures as well as the construction of a true wall to protect it, which had led to many local civilians moving in.
The town had gone from a few hundred inhabitants to almost three thousand, making it the de facto capital of the region. No other place had as many people in the same place except for the great legionary bases, and they were not nearby… It also allowed for a number of tradesmen to see their business flourish, with a number of smiths and potter taking residence in Alaunia.
This boon had not meant that the particularities of the town had been forgotten : the houses still had similar plans, with the walled gardens still used to grow vegetables that supplemented the food bought from the nearby peasants, yet all were now built from bricks as that industry had proved its worth during the siege.
But on this day, unusually sunny, the town bustled with even more people than normal as the Emperor himself had arrived to visit the site of the famous battle. Veterans of the battle, a few from the military units and many more from the civilian militia, made him an honor guard, their bows in hand, and escorted him to the forum where the rest of the population awaited him.
All around was an air of festivity, with many stalls in the street selling food and drinks to the trong that had come to the town in order to see the Emperor before he left the island. In some places musicians played their instruments while people singed or danced in the squares or at the crossroads, goaded by the rhythms of the flutes and tibia uticularis that were so common in the area.
As elsewhere since the beginning of the imperial journey, secretaries of the imperial entourage took note of the local songs and of the music, as well as information on other details, asking questions from the local. Marcus Aurelius had ordered them to prepare a new encyclopedia of the habits of the people of the empire, based on direct observation. He hoped it would be more precise than Pliny’s book, because he felt the imperial administration needed more precise information to better detect understand how policies might impact a given region as well as better detect changes indicative of progression or regression of the imperial influence. He felt it particularly important for the border regions, for a region too barbarian in its behaviour would be more prone to siding with an invader sharing the same culture. All of Argentocoxos of the Maetae’s soldiers had not been born on the other side of the wall…
It had been nine years since the battle of Alaunia Civitas had marked the defeat of the barbarian invasion from beyond the wall. The event had truly changed the destiny of the town. The imperial largesses that had been conferred on it after the victory had allowed for the building of new public structures as well as the construction of a true wall to protect it, which had led to many local civilians moving in.
The town had gone from a few hundred inhabitants to almost three thousand, making it the de facto capital of the region. No other place had as many people in the same place except for the great legionary bases, and they were not nearby… It also allowed for a number of tradesmen to see their business flourish, with a number of smiths and potter taking residence in Alaunia.
This boon had not meant that the particularities of the town had been forgotten : the houses still had similar plans, with the walled gardens still used to grow vegetables that supplemented the food bought from the nearby peasants, yet all were now built from bricks as that industry had proved its worth during the siege.
But on this day, unusually sunny, the town bustled with even more people than normal as the Emperor himself had arrived to visit the site of the famous battle. Veterans of the battle, a few from the military units and many more from the civilian militia, made him an honor guard, their bows in hand, and escorted him to the forum where the rest of the population awaited him.
All around was an air of festivity, with many stalls in the street selling food and drinks to the trong that had come to the town in order to see the Emperor before he left the island. In some places musicians played their instruments while people singed or danced in the squares or at the crossroads, goaded by the rhythms of the flutes and tibia uticularis that were so common in the area.
As elsewhere since the beginning of the imperial journey, secretaries of the imperial entourage took note of the local songs and of the music, as well as information on other details, asking questions from the local. Marcus Aurelius had ordered them to prepare a new encyclopedia of the habits of the people of the empire, based on direct observation. He hoped it would be more precise than Pliny’s book, because he felt the imperial administration needed more precise information to better detect understand how policies might impact a given region as well as better detect changes indicative of progression or regression of the imperial influence. He felt it particularly important for the border regions, for a region too barbarian in its behaviour would be more prone to siding with an invader sharing the same culture. All of Argentocoxos of the Maetae’s soldiers had not been born on the other side of the wall…
Hecatee
Donor
The "constitution" mean that Avidius already has designated a successor, he designated a youth when he was appointed Caesar and that youth has been in training since then (like Marcus Aurelius himself was selected by Hadrian's successor on Hadrian's recommendation). Also the laws clearly forbid the designation of a family heir, and Avidius Cassius has not attempted to circumvent the law.
Imperial camp, Lupia, Cherusci kingdom, Germania, mid-september 178
Hecatee
Donor
Imperial camp, Lupia, Cherusci kingdom, Germania, mid-september 178
In a matter of days a small hill near the cheruscian capital of Lupia had become a little Rome. Situated alongside the river Lupia, the town had always carried the same name in the roman archives, although the locals had their own name for it, something properly barbarous looking like Thomhamme if the imperial translator had transcribed it correctly…
The Cherusci had not controlled the land for long, it was a result of the last war when they had crushed the Marsi tribe and conquered the area. The localization of Lupia had been chosen both to impress on the defeated Catti that the land was now Cherusci, their former vassal’s, and to facilitate communication with the Romans, who had helped conquer the area.
In fact the city was the second one the Romans called Lupia, for the former capital of the tribe had had the same name despite not being on the river Lupia, something that was rather confusing to some of the older officers.
But right now Lupia and the massive hall of the king of the Cherusci was no longer the largest or more impressive town of the area. In less than a week a force of legionaries and auxiliaries had erected a large camp at the heart of which stood a large purple tent. No hostility was displayed on either side as this was a diplomatic mission, but the emperor would have been a fool had he not had a camp built in the middle of the germanic territory : treason was still a possibility, or simply a murder attempt by a disgruntled Chatti.
And so the imperial fast displayed itself in this mobile court : the tent was made of leather died a dark shade of purple but inside it was serican silks in a wide array of colours, coffers made of precious woods, beds and chairs made of finely worked bronze, splendid silvered chandeliers laid on a floor of marble panels that decorated a number of rooms.
Marcus Aurelius had wanted to impress, and impress it would… It had required no less than ten barges to bring all the equipment for this tent to the camp, and a hundred slaves had worked to erect it in time for the arrival of the emperor.
Yet it had been done without problems and on schedule as the team had been properly warned by the new signals towers built alongside the Rhine in the last eight years : the telegraph had warned them as soon as the emperor had arrived at the mouth of the Rhine, two weeks ago, giving them the time to implement the pre-planned procedure that had also be agreed upon with the Cherusci.
Two cohors of the XXX legion Ulpia Victrix had in fact arrived in Lupia earlier in the summer and had prepared the terrain of the camp, cutting the trees and building terraces on the hill that added to the monumentality of the tent and paving part of the terrain so that dirt would not soil the emperor’s feets. The use of scrappers, which the legion’s engineer had seen of the site of a future canal when he’d been in the area of Narbo a few years before, had greatly helped prepare the ground : the soldiers had built small stone walls and filed the ground behind them with scrapped soil to make the terrasse in record time.
The arrival of the imperial baggage and it's escort of a further two auxiliary cohors had then transformed the hill from a succession of mostly empty terraces to a full camp with tents enough for a legion and the imperial court.
When the emperor had arrived in Castra Vetera he’d been escorted by four other centuries alongside his praetorian guard, two from the legion and two auxiliary units, a formidable force but also less than it could be, a clear sign of the emperor’s strength and confidence despite the fact that the Cherusci were the tribe of the loathsome traitor Arminius, who had caused such grief to the divine Augustus.
But Marcus Aurelius also knew that the cherusci king’s position was not as secure as it seemed : while his victories had given him a lot of prestige, his control on the Chatti land was still somewhat shaky, while other leaders were not happy at being once more allied to Rome after their tribe had almost been destroyed in the time of the divine Tiberius.
Also the Romans had three legions in striking distance of the Cherusci lands, alongside many auxiliaries that made a total of fifty thousand seasoned warriors that could be called against the Cherusci, with at least ten to twenty thousand more ready to intervene as reinforcements in less than a month, something the tribe knew and understood well.
In a matter of days a small hill near the cheruscian capital of Lupia had become a little Rome. Situated alongside the river Lupia, the town had always carried the same name in the roman archives, although the locals had their own name for it, something properly barbarous looking like Thomhamme if the imperial translator had transcribed it correctly…
The Cherusci had not controlled the land for long, it was a result of the last war when they had crushed the Marsi tribe and conquered the area. The localization of Lupia had been chosen both to impress on the defeated Catti that the land was now Cherusci, their former vassal’s, and to facilitate communication with the Romans, who had helped conquer the area.
In fact the city was the second one the Romans called Lupia, for the former capital of the tribe had had the same name despite not being on the river Lupia, something that was rather confusing to some of the older officers.
But right now Lupia and the massive hall of the king of the Cherusci was no longer the largest or more impressive town of the area. In less than a week a force of legionaries and auxiliaries had erected a large camp at the heart of which stood a large purple tent. No hostility was displayed on either side as this was a diplomatic mission, but the emperor would have been a fool had he not had a camp built in the middle of the germanic territory : treason was still a possibility, or simply a murder attempt by a disgruntled Chatti.
And so the imperial fast displayed itself in this mobile court : the tent was made of leather died a dark shade of purple but inside it was serican silks in a wide array of colours, coffers made of precious woods, beds and chairs made of finely worked bronze, splendid silvered chandeliers laid on a floor of marble panels that decorated a number of rooms.
Marcus Aurelius had wanted to impress, and impress it would… It had required no less than ten barges to bring all the equipment for this tent to the camp, and a hundred slaves had worked to erect it in time for the arrival of the emperor.
Yet it had been done without problems and on schedule as the team had been properly warned by the new signals towers built alongside the Rhine in the last eight years : the telegraph had warned them as soon as the emperor had arrived at the mouth of the Rhine, two weeks ago, giving them the time to implement the pre-planned procedure that had also be agreed upon with the Cherusci.
Two cohors of the XXX legion Ulpia Victrix had in fact arrived in Lupia earlier in the summer and had prepared the terrain of the camp, cutting the trees and building terraces on the hill that added to the monumentality of the tent and paving part of the terrain so that dirt would not soil the emperor’s feets. The use of scrappers, which the legion’s engineer had seen of the site of a future canal when he’d been in the area of Narbo a few years before, had greatly helped prepare the ground : the soldiers had built small stone walls and filed the ground behind them with scrapped soil to make the terrasse in record time.
The arrival of the imperial baggage and it's escort of a further two auxiliary cohors had then transformed the hill from a succession of mostly empty terraces to a full camp with tents enough for a legion and the imperial court.
When the emperor had arrived in Castra Vetera he’d been escorted by four other centuries alongside his praetorian guard, two from the legion and two auxiliary units, a formidable force but also less than it could be, a clear sign of the emperor’s strength and confidence despite the fact that the Cherusci were the tribe of the loathsome traitor Arminius, who had caused such grief to the divine Augustus.
But Marcus Aurelius also knew that the cherusci king’s position was not as secure as it seemed : while his victories had given him a lot of prestige, his control on the Chatti land was still somewhat shaky, while other leaders were not happy at being once more allied to Rome after their tribe had almost been destroyed in the time of the divine Tiberius.
Also the Romans had three legions in striking distance of the Cherusci lands, alongside many auxiliaries that made a total of fifty thousand seasoned warriors that could be called against the Cherusci, with at least ten to twenty thousand more ready to intervene as reinforcements in less than a month, something the tribe knew and understood well.
Been reading this thread the last couple of days and am absolutely loving it.
Looked up this canal, and not to toot my own horn, but if they can build a 240 km canal that needs locks, they can build a 190 km canal across the Suez without locks.
This map is incredible! Can you PM me the original high definition file?
EDIT: I see that Hecatee has posted it later on.
How about purple dye as a trade commidity?
There are some nearby goods that would definitely be valuable to the Chinese. Arabian incence, Ethiopian coffee, and German amber. The Romans can simply play middle man to the Chinese with regards to amber, but if they want to control the coffee and insence trade that means expansion. Another argument for a Suez canal.
EDIT #2: No need to double post
Those spices were produced in Ethiopia, were they not? Yet more reason to expand down the Red Sea.
Shouldn't the Kushan Empire be expanding westward into the Iranian plateau at this point? The Parthians completely collapsed due to the near complete destruction of their aristocracy, over all loses in the war with Rome, and the ravages of Small Pox. This plague should have burned out by now, but the political situation is no doubt anarchic. This offers the Kushan an oppurtunity to reverse the course of history which had them conquered by the Sassanids, and have them instead expand into Persia until the nomads come down a century from now.
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