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How comes Normandy is different from others french areas ethnically speaking ?
We should go back in history to track from where Norman people comes.
Normandy is a big land of 30 100km². The land as we know it today was created and legit from 10th century when Rollon signed the Saint-Clair sur Epte treaty with the Frankish Kingdom.
What Normandy was before his legit creation in 911 ?
I- Iron Age in Normandy : Celtics roots
Long barrow in Colombiers-sur-Seulles, Calvados, Basse-Normandie, France. Neolithic. 5th millennium BC.
For centuries celts were strongly present in Normandy and as you can notice their tribes were not the same as other Gaul's tribes to begin with.
Before the Roman Empire came to take over Gaul there were Gallic tribes in the actual place of France. Then Normandy place was populated by several celtic tribes from West to North.
As you can see on this map, Normandy was populated by several Celtics tribes and themselves actually from 3 different celtic areas :
1-Armorican Gaul (pink) for the main part from West to East.
-Unelles
Living in the Cotentin, north of western Normandy. Lead by their chief Viridovix during the Roman Conquest, they were around 3000 soldiers. They finally were defeated around 57 BC. They were part of the alliance to help Alesia and Vecingetorix.
-Baïocasses
Living in the Western part of Normandy (called Bessin) they were neighboors of Unelles. Their name means "curly blond haired people". Julius Caesar does not mention the Baiocasses in his commentaries on the Gallic Wars of the 50s BC, but they are listed in the Notitia dignitatum and are probably the same people Pliny calls Bodiocasses.
-Viducasses
That tribe was neighboor of Baïocasses and living in western Central Normandy. The names means "wooden hair".
-Lexoviens
They were living in Central Normandy and their name might be a reference to the celtic god Lug, their name meaning "Lug Tribe", those who pray Lug or protected by Lug. They were exchanging with mediterrannean people pewter and plumb against oil and wine.
2-Celtic Gaul, Lyon area (green) for the southern eastern part.
-Aulerques (Eburovices)
Neighboors of Lexoviens and other celtic tribes, they were allied with Lexoviens and Unelles against Roman Empire, following the leader Viridovix.
3-Belgian Gaul (yellow) for the northern part above the Seine.
-Calètes
They were a celtic tribe in Northern Normandy, they gave their name to the current area "Pays de Caux". Their name means "hard". They fought with the Belgium coalition Gaul against Romans with 10 000 men. In 52 BC they sent to Vercingétorix 20 000 men to help Alesia.
-Véliocasses
They were neighboor of Calètes tribe in Northern Normandy. Their name seems related to their "curly hair" and "Vélio" possibily meaning "the best or modest". They were part of Beligium Coalition against Romans too and sent around 10 000 men to them. To help Alésia they sent 3000 men. They were the tribe who founded the current city of Rouen (Rotamagus).
Presence of Calètes : local coin , IIth or Ith century BC.
Gallic Helmet in Northern Normandy, Amfreville-sous-les-Monts, IVth century BC. (bronze, iron, gold, enamel).
II-Roman Empire and Roman presence in Normandy (from ~50 BC til ~450).
Once Romans defeated the last rebellous Celtic tribes in Normandy they started since 27 BC their policy of urbanization (building roads, forums, roman baths, theaters, etc).
Agriculture in the region provided wheat and linen, according to Pliny the Elder.
Today the last remains of Roman presence in Normandy is mainly found in the site of Lillebone (Northern Normandy) and Vieux (Central Normandy).
1- Lillebonne : Juliobona site.
Lillebonne is located on the north banks of the Seine River. From the Ith to the IIIth centuries AD the town, then called Juliobona by the Romans – a homage to Julius Cesar, was a prosperous supply base on the channel between Gaul and Britannia. The Romans abandoned the town towards the end of the third century when it was invaded by barbarians. The amphitheatre-theatre is the most prominent, but not the only Roman feature of the town today. The museum opposite has an extensive collection of artefacts excavated around the town.
That theatre could welcome 5000 persons for gladiator fights, dramas, chase of animals... The town was rich thanks to commerce between Brittania and Paris until the IVth century when Rotamagus (Rouen today) became more important in the area.
2- Vieux la Romaine : Aregenua site.
Vieux la Romaine is located in central Normandy.
During the 1st century AD, Aregenua (Vieux-la-Romaine) became the capital of the Viducasse tribe. Situated at the crossroads of two Roman roads, running north-south and east-west, it became an important commercial staging town. Aregenua and Juliobona (present-day Lillebonne in Upper Normandy) are the only two capital towns in Gallo-Roman Normandy that did not become Medieval towns.
3- Celtic remains in countryside and Gallo-romance period.
The roman presence was mainly in town where they ruled the areas while the countryside of Normandy was remaining celtic by traditions as we find for example fanums which were little gallo-roman temples of indigenous tradition.
Beside the settlement of Romans in three towns (Juliobona, Vieux-la-Romaine and Rotamagus) their presence was not massive in Normandy. All the rest of the area was still traditionnally and strongly Celtic according to the fact we didn't find roman proof of settlements elsewhere except rarely in some little towns. Artefacts are mainly found in those towns where rich Gallo-roman villas have been built.
The roman stategy was to build a roman town in each Celtic tribe area in order to rule around. The assimilation was pretty fast though thanks to the fact indigenous population had rights to rule once they obtained roman citizenship. The best of them could even access to the Senate in Rome at the moment. The latin language is adopted and local population can start to rule local affairs since they totally adopt the roman culture, language and citizenship.
By the way, druids were banned but still local population could have temples and pray their own gods. The celtic paganism was tolerated by Romans in Normandy. The assimilation by relion and architecture left today some mix between Roman gods and Celtic gods overthere in decoration and sculptures but also in presence of the fanums.
At the moment Normandy is federated area part of Roman Empire, belonging mostly to the France territory we know today.
SOURCES :
Part I
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hallstatt_LaTene.png
-http://antique.mrugala.net/Celte/Peuples%20celtes.htm
-https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fileeuples_gaulois.jpg?uselang=fr
-http://www.patrimoine-normand.com/index-fiche-30426.html
-https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Colombiers-sur-Seulles_tumulus_2.jpg?uselang=fr
-https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casque_celtique#Le_casque_d.27Amfreville-sous-les-Monts
-https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unelles
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baiocasses
-https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viducasses
-https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexoviens
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eburovices
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caletes
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veliocasses
-https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bronze_au_cheavl_et_%C3%A0_la_rouelle_frapp%C 3%A9_par_les_L%C3%A9xoviens.jpg?uselang=fr
-https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hemistatere_Eburovices.jpg?uselang=fr
-https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cal%C3%A8tes_(Pays_de_Caux)_H%C3%A9mistat%C3% A8re_%E2%80%9Cau_sanglier_aurige%E2%80%9D.jpg?usel ang=fr
-http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/normandie/1-des-celtes-aux-normands/
Part II
-L'histoire dans l'histoire de 96 à 912 après J-C. Olivier Petit.
-https://archaeology-travel.com/france/archaeological-sites-in-normandy/
-http://www.laurentvdbk.fr/2016/09/le-theatre-romain-de-lillebonne.html
-https://archaeology-travel.com/france/vieux-la-romaine-aregenua/
-https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fanum_d%27Oisseau_le_Petit.jpg?uselang=fr
-http://www.cndp.fr/archive-musagora/gaulois/regions/normandie.htm
-http://www.histoire-normandie.fr/la-normandie-gallo-romaine
-http://mapio.net/pic/p-12483790/
-http://his.nicolas.free.fr/Panorama/PagePanorama.php?mnemo=FinEmpire
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