Noviodunum ad Istrum was a Roman city that developed around the legionary fortress and naval port near the present town of Isaccea. It was in the Roman province of Moesia and was the headquarters of the Roman Danube fleet (Classis Flavia Moesica) located on the lower Danube and, from the 4th century AD,[3] the headquarters of the Legio I Iovia (Scythica).[4]
| Noviodunum | |
|---|---|
 Wall section of the fort. | |
  Location within Romania | |
| Alternative name(s) | Noviodunum ad Istrum |
| Known also as | Castra of Isaccea |
| Attested by | |
| Place in the Roman world | |
| Province | Moesia |
| Administrative unit | Moesia Inferior |
| Directly connected to | |
| Structure | |
| — Stone structure — | |
| Stationed military units | |
| — Legions — | |
| — Classis — | |
| Moesica | |
| Location | |
| Coordinates | 45°16′12″N 28°29′30″E / 45.27000°N 28.49167°E |
| Place name | La pontonul vechi |
| Town | Isaccea |
| County | Tulcea |
| Country |  Romania |
| Reference | |
| RO-LMI | TL-I-s-A-05804[2] |
| RO-RAN | 159696.05[2] |
| Site notes | |
| Recognition |  National Historical Monument |
| Discovery year | 1955[2] |
| Condition | Ruined |
| Website | www |
From 46 AD the fortress was part of the Moesian Limes frontier defensive system on the Danube. In Late Antiquity the Imperial Road from Marcianopolis ended here.
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History
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Noviodunum passed under Roman control with the annexation of Thrace in 46 AD and then being attached to the Roman province of Moesia.
The strategic position of the fort allowed the Romans to supervise and control the border of the entire Moesian Limes along this section of the Danube.
It became the main port of Classis Flavia Moesica[5] and a military centre of the region under Domitian, and after the conquest of Dacia by Trajan. Some vexillationes of Legio V Macedonica were detached here,[6] at least until the reign of Marcus Aurelius. Then followed vexillationes of Legio I Italica.[7]
The civil settlement became a municipium during the late second century.
It was probably destroyed during the second half of the 3rd century during the period of heavy invasions of Goths and Heruli. Under Diocletian (r. 284–305), Legio I Iovia was created and based here.[8]
It was rebuilt during the reign of Constantine the Great (after 324) during the military campaigns and placed under the command of the Dux Scythiae.[9]
In 369 Emperor Valens crossed the Danube from Noviodunum and fought the Battle of Noviodunum against Athanaric and the Tervingi,[10] in which Valens was victorious and took the title Gothicus Maximus.
Between 434 and 441 the city with its naval base was occupied by the Huns and then went back under Roman rule to be part of the Byzantine Empire.
The city survived until the 7th century.
The area has been subject to recent excavations, which have highlighted its importance.
The site
editThe area enclosed by walls is about 9 ha divided into two distinct enclosures, at least before the 4th century, consiting of the headquarters of the Danube Fleet, and the walled city from the late 2nd century.[11] A second civil settlement of at least 7 ha depending on the military garrison would be inside the three huge earth ramparts.[12]
In the 1990s three towers on the southern curtain wall were revealed; a fan shaped tower on the corner, a U shaped tower and the Large Tower, one of the largest towers ever built by the Romans. These towers connected by the curtain, almost 3 m wide, extend for 80 m.[13]
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ Istoria Bizantului - Limesul dunarean in vremea lui Constantin cel Mare
- ^ a b c "Situl arheologic de la Isaccea - "Noviodunum - La Pontonul Vechi"". National Archaeological Record of Romania (RAN). ran.cimec.ro. 2009-09-10. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
- ^ Teodor, Alexandra & Teodor, Eugen & Florea, Mihai & Popescu, Mircea. (2011). Noviodunum Roman Fortress. A Survey on a City Wall Section. ISPRS - International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences. XXXVIII-5/W16. 10.5194/isprsarchives-XXXVIII-5-W16-499-2011 p 499
- ^ "Legio I Iovia - Livius". www.livius.org. Retrieved 2020-08-06.
- ^ AE 1962, 166; IScM-5, 283a-e; AE 1961, 120 e AE 1950, 175 speaking about an liburna armata.
- ^ IScM-5, 284.
- ^ IScM-5, 271.
- ^ AE 1974, 568
- ^ IScM-5, 285; Notitia Dignitatum, Oriens, XXXIX.
- ^ Kienast, Dietmar; Eck, Werner; Heil, Matthäus [1990]. Römische Kaisertabelle: Grundzüge einer römischen Kaiserchronologie (in German) (6 ed.). Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft. ISBN 978-3-534-26724-8.(excerpts at)
- ^ Aparaschivei, D, 2010 – Oraşele romane de la Dunărea Inferioară (sec. I-III p. Chr.), Ed. Universităţii Al. I. Cuza, Iaşi
- ^ Ştefan, Al.-S. 1973. Noviodunum. Studiu de foto-interpretare arheologică, Buletinul Monumentelor Istorice, XLII, pp. 3-14.
- ^ Lockyear, K., T. Sly and A. Popescu with contributions from Mihaela Ciausescu, Clive Orton, Jane Sidell and Robin Symonds (2006-2007). 'The Noviodunum Archaeological Project 2000-2004: results and conclusions from the pilot seasons.' Peuce, New Series, 3-4, pp. 121-158
References
edit- Barnea, Ion. Dinogetia et Noviodunum, deux villes byzantines du Bas-Danube RESEE, 9, 1971, 3, 343-362.
- Baumann, Victor Henrich. Atti del IV Convegno di Studi italo-romeno, Bari, 2004, 113-132
- Golvin, Jean Claude. I Romani e il Mediterraneo. Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato. Roma, 2008. ISBN 978-88-240-1142-6
- Reddé, Michael. Mare nostrum - les infrastructures, le dispositif et l'histoire de la marine militaire sous l'empire romain. Ecole Française de Rome. Parigi, 1986. ISBN 978-2-7283-0114-0
- Saddington, Denis B.. Classes. The Evolution of the Roman Imperial Fleets in Paul Erdkamp (a cura di), "A Companion to the Roman Army", Blackwell Publishing, 2007. ISBN 978-1-4051-2153-8
- Starr, Chester G.. The Roman Imperial Navy: 31 B.C.-A.D. 324. 2nd. edition. Cornell University Press, 1960. ISBN 978-0-89005-544-1
External links
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Media related to Noviodunum (castra) at Wikimedia Commons- Roman castra from Romania - Google Maps / Earth
