Can any of our French colleagues (or anyone else) point me in the direction of Roman marching camps excavated in France? Besides the camps at Alesia and Gergovie, I know only Mauchamp (Berry au Bac). Are there other good examples?
(I have not seen M. Reddé, L'Architecture de la Gaule romaine (2006), which is obviously a major drawback!)
Well, not a Roman marching camp, but a legionary camp with a 'side-camp': Mirebeau. See R. Goguey and M. Reddé, Le camp légionnaire de Mirebeau, Mainz, 1995. (RGZM Monographien 36)
Greets,
Hans
Thanks, Hans -- Mirebeau, I know about. But we seem to have lots of marching camps cropping up in Germany, to go with the hundreds in Britain. But none in France?
REDDE, M. et alii, 2006: Les fortifications militaires. L'architecture de la Gaule Romaine. DAF 10 has the following:
Estissac 13.4 ha.
Neuville-sur-Vannes, 12 ha.
Petange 12 ha.
I also scanned through L'armée romaine en Gaule. Paris, 1996. They have half a dozen normal forts in France (in addition to the legionary fortresses) from the Imperial period and the following Caesarian camps:
Mauchamp
Catelis
Vendeuil-Caply
Folleville
Chaussee Triancourt
Thanks for having a look, Jens.
Quote:Mauchamp
Catelis
Vendeuil-Caply
Folleville
Chaussee Triancourt
Mauchamp, I knew. Catelis, I think, is the same as Vendeuil-Caply, and looks rather peculiar -- apart from its bizarre shape, there are no gateways! La Chausée-Tirancourt is pretty odd, too. I'd be happier if there had been some excavation to confirm a Roman origin! That leaves Folleville, which I'd forgotten about. At least it looks Roman. I wonder if there has been any excavation there.
Quote:Estissac 13.4 ha.
Neuville-sur-Vannes, 12 ha.
Petange 12 ha.
I didn't know any of these, Jens. So I owe you a karma, if the system is ever reinstated!
As far as I can tell, Estissac (unexcavated) has been suggested as a camp of Aetius (versus Attila)! And at Neuville-sur-Vannes (aka Bréviaire), a v-shaped ditch was confirmed but undated. And I can find nothing on Petange.
It looks as if our French colleagues have been neglecting their Roman military heritage!
You may also want to check
G. Rapsaet-Charlier, Gallia Belgica et Germania Inferior. Vingt-cinq années de recherches historiques et archéologiques, in : ANRW II 4 (1975).
P. 52/53 lists a few sites. It is available on googlebooks.
Quote:It is available on googlebooks.
Thanks, Jens. But I must be doing something wrong. I can't seem to find it there.
But Reddé's articles probably supercede anything she says (her paper was published in 1975).
Try this:
[url:6a4breq3]http://books.google.de/books?id=JUBkfuu5lpcC&pg=PA52&lpg=PA52&dq=camps+campagne+romain&source=bl&ots=cQrGscf698&sig=n9hJuVkealujj-E5gGbduUWksrg&hl=de&ei=PGG3Sq6NCISX_Qb8j9HcDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
Many thanks. I must use German Google in future!
Just for the record, here Mme. Raepsaet-Charlier is citing the aerial photography carried out by Roger Agache in the 1960s. I wonder if any of these sites have ever been proved to be Caesarian.