Fréjus on the French Riviera looks like a typical Provencal town. A quaint medieval center, the mandatory yacht harbor and long, yellow sand beaches. The place is full of buzzing, small restaurants and happy holiday makers. It is difficult to imagine a more peaceful place.
Fréjus, Place de la Cathédrale, on a hot Summer Day
2’000 years ago, when it was called Forum Julium, it was Rome’s largest naval base in the western Mediterranean. Second only to Ostia, the Imperial capital’s harbor at the mouth of the Tiber River. Julius Caesar had picked this little-known place on the Ligurian coast as his naval base after the campaign in Gallia. It was a time of wars. The Gallic tribes were defeated but the war with the native Iberians continued. Peace was "enforced" by Roman Legions. It would take decades until Gaul and Iberia would feel like and become Roman.
An Artists Impression of how Forum Julium founded by Julius Caesar in 49 BC looked like
These were also the final years of the Roman Republic. Caesar’s accumulation of power met resistance in Rome. Opposition formed, which eventually led to his assassination (44 BC) and the civil war between Rome’s future emperor Augustus and his rival Marc Anthony. August defeated Marc Anthony at the Battle of Actium (near Greek Lefkada) where the two fleets met in 31 BC. Victorious, he brought Marc Anthony’s galleys to Forum Julium. They were repaired and maintained - just in case they were needed again.
Another Artistic Impression of Forum Julium's Port During its Heydays
Always wondered why Caesar made Forum Julium his main harbor. It was not a major intersection. Genoa or Marseille were better located. Legend has it that Caesar wanted to punish Marseille for its support of Pompeii, his arch rival. But he could have exiled Marseille’s ruling men and replaced them with people loyal to him. I would have been a cheaper solution than building a new harbor in 49 BC.
The 2'000 Years old Roman Lighthouse is now surrounded by Wheat Fields
Marseille was an arid place surrounded by shrubs though. It had a perfect port and was ideal as an entrepot and place to trade but not as location for building and maintaining ships. Genoa was too hemmed in by its hills. Forum Julium was ideal though. It had a good harbor, plenty of fresh water, was surrounded by arable land that could support a large garrison and had high quality forests in the vicinity. It was chosen for waging war. Also, Forum Julium was well placed to keep the lines of communication open between Caesar in Rome and his loyal legions in Gaul. As long as the passage along the Ligurian coast was in his hands, he could always bring them to Italy.
Forum Julium (centre) was shown as Military Town on the Tabula Peutingeriana
Recent archeological findings and systematic scanning of Fréjus’ fields with modern tools give us a good idea of how large Forum Julium was. Adjacent to it, about 1.5 km to the south-west, was a large naval garrison. It was only discovered a few years ago. Forum Julium was so important that it became the capital of Gallia Narbonnensis, the wealthy Roman province of Southern France . A 40 km long aqueduct supplied the town with water from the Alps, the Amphitheatre could sit 12’000 visitors.
The 40 km long Roman Aqueduct on a Gravure from 1658
Could not find out how many people lived there during Roman times but the number was significant. Under Emperor Tiberius, Augustus’ successor, the town was further expanded. The light houses, the amphitheatre, the aqueduct and the bath houses were all built during his reign. It was the place where the veterans of the VIII Legion were settled.
The Naval Garrison had about the Size of a Legion's Military Camp
Forum Julium remained a military town though. After decades of civil wars, the Pax Augusta secured peace for the following 200 years. The Mediterranean became the Roman Mare Nostrum (our sea). A big fleet was not needed any longer. Forum Julium lost importance. Its good harbor was opened for commercial use and remained in good shape for several centuries. But when it started silting from the rivers Argens und Reyran to the west, there was no money to keep it open.
Fréjus with the Coast Line during Roman Time
On the Cassini Map, made for French King Louis XIV in the 17th century, the former Roman harbor has disappeared. It was still wetland though. In 1860, the municipal council decided to drainage it. Since then it is agricultural land. Luckily, it was never opened for urban development. The site of the old harbor is clearly visible today - with its Roman light house.
On the Cassini Map from 1672, the Roman Harbor has all but disappeared
We will do the change over in Fréjus thus have plenty of time to explore the Roman ruins and imaging what a bustling town this was 2’000 years ago. There are lots of other interesting stories to tell about Frejus but they will be featured in another blog.
The Entrance to the Roman Baths is to the right