Gallia Belgica

Province Description

This Gallic region was the arena for many of Caesar's campaigns in the mid first century BCE. Under Augustus in 27 BCE, Gaul was divided into three provinces, the most northerly of which was Gallia Belgica. The provincial capital was Durocortorum/Reims. In the west, Gallia Belgica extended to the North Sea, in the east and south the provincial boundaries met those of the provinces of Lower Germany, Upper Germany and Gallia Lugdunensis. In the central and western parts of the province lay the eastern curve of the Paris basin into which the Oise and Marne rivers flowed and met the Seine. The main rivers of the northern regions were the Schelde and Meuse, both of which ultimately emptied into the North Sea. The eastern and northeastern regions of the province were rugged and mountainous, due to the Argonne, Ardennes and Eifel ranges, although the slopes in the Moselle valley were suitable for vineyards and were exploited for this purpose. The Champagne region, in the central part of the province, was characterized by light, chalky and fertile soils, but the areas north and west of this in Picardie and Hainaut were even more fertile and covered in a heavier, loess-like soil. Extensive cereal production is attested for these regions, and the production of woolen textiles was another important basis of the economy. Under Diocletian in the late third century CE, the province was divided into two parts, Belgica Prima in the east, with its capital in Trier, and Belgica Secunda in the west, with its capital at Reims.

Places

• Gallia Belgica (Pleiades:981511)
• Gallia Belgica (province) (TGN:6000727)