Part 3

The Apennines join the Alps in the country of Piedmont south of the Po; at first their character is indefinite, but soon their own peculiarities and a marked difference from the Alps are developed. In ancient times they were, no doubt, a vast woody range from one end of Italy to the other, whereas the greater part is now barren. In the territory of Genoa, where I have seen them, in the neighbourhood of Florence and in the Romagna, with which I am intimately acquainted, and in fact from the frontiers of Modena and Lucca, they present a very sad aspect, for they are utterly barren, and there is something wild, desolate, and terrific about them. During summer, there is no snow on any of those heights; in May it is often seen, though it is but very little: still, however, the mountains are very high, especially on the frontiers of Florence and Bologna. During winter, storms are of very common occurrence, and no man can find his way through them on account of the snow; the description which Livy gives of the storms in those parts is certainly not much exaggerated. I have passed those mountains in fair weather, and when I reached the right height, I perceived at once that I was in the region of storms. The passage of Hannibal with his army across that mountain during a snow-storm must certainly have been terrible, nor can we wonder that the Goths of Radagaisus perished there in winter: I think I have found out the district where this happened. Towards Umbria the mountains become considerably lower; they there form a thoroughly beautiful country, the air on the heights is healthy, and chesnut forests again make their appearance. The mountains then run through Umbria in a south-eastern direction across the country of Camarina into the Abruzzi, and their height again increases immensely, so that perpetual snow is said to be found on mount Majella and some others; but this snow must be limited to the ravines. Winter there commences very early; at Rome the top of mount Leonessa is seen covered with snow even at the beginning of November, and frequently continues there till April. This is the highest ridge in Italy, and about it we have to look for the most ancient seats of the Sabines. Thence the mountains extend into Samnium, and one branch runs towards mount Garganus. Farther south, the mountains lose their excessive height, and are again, up to their top, covered with wood, either chesnuts or other trees that are useful to man. The mountains there are comparatively of a moderate size, and are exposed to the full influence of a southern climate, especially in Lucania, and in their continuation extend into Bruttium down to the peninsula which physically belongs to Sicily. The last extremity, which ought no longer to be called Apennines, for it neither belongs to them in a geological point of view, nor do the mountains run in the same direction—I allude to the mountain between Lucania and the isthmus—is the Sila, the large Bruttian range of mountains covered with fir forests, where the Romans had their large establishments for the manufacture of tar, and whence they derived their timber for ship-building.

These general remarks about the mountains may suffice for the present: I shall enter more into detail, as occasions occur, and now pass on to the rivers.

The PADUS, the _fluviorum rex Eridanus_, has none of the characteristics of a southern river; it has the same natural features as the Waal and the Leck in the Netherlands, for it is muddy, and as it has been so long shut in between embankments, its bed is so high, that the surface of its waters is from fifteen to twenty feet above the level of the surrounding country. The whole basin of the Po, and of the rivers emptying themselves into it, was originally a vast bay of the sea, which was gradually confined to these rivers; it is a “river-marsh,” as the people in Dithmarsh would say. How many thousands of years may this process have lasted! At the time when the mouth of the Po was far above the point where it now is, a succession of downs had been formed from the neighbourhood of Rimini as far as the innermost corner of the Adriatic, or as far as Aquileia and Trieste, just as in the Kurische and Frische Nehrung in Prussia, and as was formerly the case along the coast from Calais to Jutland. Behind these downs there was a vast inland lagune which became gradually filled up; in the neighbourhood of Venice the filling up is prevented only by artificial means. These hillocks of sand are now called _lido_; such a one exists near Venice, and upon it depends the safety of the city during high floods. Ravenna was in antiquity a city like Venice, built upon islands and stakes; but the space gained in the course of 2000 years scarcely amounts to eight miles. All the rivers descending from the Apennines on the south of the Po empty themselves into it, and all those which flow from the north on the east of the lake of Garda discharge their waters into the lagunes: they all have their share in extending the coast. The most important of these rivers will be mentioned, when I come to speak of the countries to which they belong.

In central Italy, the TIBER is the king of rivers. The orthography _Thybris_ must be ancient, as it was also adopted by the Greek writers. The Tiber is indeed the most renowned river in the world, but it is by no means beautiful; its waters are very muddy and rapid and of a disagreeable appearance; navigation is difficult, and consequently not frequent, and the country about the river is much exposed to inundation. There can scarcely be a more unpleasing sight than that of the Tiber at Rome. Its tributaries are the _Anio_ (now _Teverone_, even in antiquity called _Tiburnus_), the _Nera_ or _Nar_ (a Sabine word signifying sulphur, which is contained in its waters), and a number of small streams without particular names; it also receives supplies of water from lake Velinus.

The ARNO is the principal river of Tuscany; it is smaller but incomparably more beautiful than the Tiber, especially in the neighbourhood of Florence. I think I have first discovered its extremely remarkable history, partly by my own observations, and partly from the excellent chronicle of Florence. It originally consisted of three distinct rivers. At its mouth the sea formed an estuary, and as the water of those marshes was carried into the sea by a small river in the neighbourhood of Pisa, the inhabitants considerably widened it by making drains through the marshes, and thus carrying the waters into the river. The middle part was a large lake covering the ground now occupied by Florence: the rock Gonfalina formed a barrier against it, but being cut through, an outlet was formed towards the lower Anio, as has been observed even by Villani. The large ancient basin of this lake may still be recognised, and the walls of Fiesole still show how high it was.[1] The third part, now the upper Arno, was formed in the ante-Roman period in the neighbourhood of La’ncisa, likewise by cutting a canal through a rock for the purpose of making an outlet for the water which formerly flowed partly towards the Tiber, and partly formed another lake. In this manner, the most excellent country, with the most wonderful natural beauties, has been almost entirely recovered by human ingenuity.

The LIRIS, on the frontier between central and southern Italy, is mentioned under the name of the _Garigliano_ as early as the ninth century. It flows down from the Apennines as a beautiful mountain-torrent in the neighbourhood of Arpinum and Sora, but near its mouth it deserves the name of _quietus amnis_, at least under ordinary circumstances; for during the changes of the seasons, its current is often very strong.

The VULTURNUS was no doubt so called from an ancient Oscan or Samnite word _vultur_, signifying a mountain. The east-wind which is known at Rome under the name of _Vulturnus_, probably also derives its name from a Samnite mountain, for it has no reference to the river.

The other rivers in the west, which discharge their waters into the Tyrrhenian sea, are insignificant. I may, however, mention the _Silarus_, which forms the northern, and the _Laus_, which forms the southern boundary of Lucania.

The AUFIDUS, now Ofanto, is the only large river in southern Italy, which empties itself into the Adriatic; it is still, when swollen, very rapid and raging, as it is described by Horace. Its fall is greatest near the Apennines; it is not a fine river, and its waters are muddy with lime.

The seas surrounding Italy are: in the west, the _mare inferum_, Τυρσηνικὴ θάλασσα, extending from the Ligurian gulf to Sicily; it is called _mare Tyrrhenicum_ or _Tuscum_ only by Roman poets and by those who affect to write learnedly. The Romans certainly did not call the Adriatic _mare Hadriaticum_, but _mare superum_; the Greeks sometimes call it Ἰόνιος κόλπος. The sea in the south-east of Italy had no special name among the Romans, but the Greeks call it Ἰόνιος θάλασσα.

The bays of Tarentum and Liguria are sufficiently described by their names.

Let us now proceed to the divisions of Italy. I shall first speak of the most ancient ones, which arose with and through the nations themselves. They are very variable, and I am afraid it will not be possible to make their relations quite clear without being very minute.

In the earliest times, Italy may be conceived somewhat in the following manner: southern Italy, from the line I have already mentioned as running from mount Garganus across the country as far as the coast of Latium, is the country of the Itali, who appear there as different tribes and under different names. To the north of that line we have the country of the Opicans, next that of the Sabellians, and to the north of them we have the Umbrians; it is possible, that at the same early period the Etruscans, who had come from the north, may have dwelt there, while the whole coast on both sides, from Pisa as far as the Adriatic gulf, was occupied by Pelasgian tribes. This form of Italy is the most ancient of which we have any knowledge; we have nothing more definite during the historical ages. In passing on to the time which we call the end of regal power, or the beginning of the consulship, we find in the south the Greek settlements scattered in an almost unbroken line from Tarentum to Posidonia, in Apulia and Calabria, while Neapolis and Cumae occur in Campania. The Oenotrian tribes are partly allied with, and partly dependent on, those Greek colonies. The Oscans at that time probably extended into Calabria, and occupied Apulia, Samnium, and Campania; the Volscians and Aequians belonged to them. Whether these Oscan tribes were in any way akin to the Pelasgians, is a question which it is difficult to answer, though it is clear, that afterwards they became mixed and amalgamated with them; for in Latium, for example, Oscans and Pelasgians lived together. Next to them follow the Sabellian tribes from the frontiers of Apulia, viz., the Picentians, Pelignians, Marrucinians, Vestinians, Marsians, Frentanians, Sabines, etc., and they extend down to Rome. The country north of them was occupied by the Umbrians, inhabiting an extensive territory, though they were already a declining people, having been broken by the Etruscans. These Etruscans were then already in full possession of the country as far as the neighbourhood of Rome, and on the other side they extended to the very summits of the Alps in Raetia, and the Alpine tribes in the district of Graubündten belonged to them: they were a great and mighty nation, occupying the whole of the north of Italy. The north-east was inhabited by the Veneti, and in the north-west the Ligurians extended as far as the Ticinus. But then the Gauls invaded Italy, crushed some of the Ligurian tribes, overpowered and annihilated the Etruscans on the Po, with the exception of a few places, such as Mantua and Verona; they even advanced into Picenum, and ruled over many tribes which were not expelled by them. All those who were able to offer resistance remained, but all the others were extirpated; wherever the Gauls appeared, they changed the country which they did not occupy for themselves into a wilderness, and forests arose where formerly agriculture had been flourishing. Hence, when subsequently the Romans extended their dominion in those parts, they found the country a desert, and as such it is described even by Polybius.

I shall not here enter into a description of the condition of Italy, which was the result of the Roman conquest, for I should have to repeat the same afterwards in giving you an account of the separate countries: even a general outline would render it necessary to enter into great detail. We shall at once pass on to the seventh century, as the period of regular organisation, when the Sempronian laws completely fixed the boundaries of Italy. Italy then extended as far as Ariminum, and on the other side as far as the river Macra. The country north of those points was in ordinary life called _Gallia Cispadana_, but it did not form a province by itself, in the sense of a country regularly governed by propraetors or proconsuls. Before the time of Augustus, and even during the first years of his reign, Gallia Transpadana and Venetia were not included in Italy, but were under a military administration, sometimes united with Illyricum and sometimes with Gaul in the wider sense of the name. Augustus first joined that country politically to Italy, as it had long since become Latinised by the extraordinary influx of Romans from Latium. This is quite surprising. The use of the Latin language seems to have become universal with extraordinary rapidity, and sometimes even in the short space of a single generation. It is remarkable how quickly such a change takes place, while afterwards there occurred a stand-still, and no further extension took place. In France the Latin language had spread so rapidly in consequence of the Roman conquest, that, even at the time when Pliny wrote, it generally prevailed in Provence as far as Lyons, and the Gallic language had disappeared. From Sulpicius Severus and the ecclesiastical fathers, we see that in the fifth century the Romanic was the vernacular tongue in Gaul and not Celtic. This was the case from Provence to Armorica, and during the period of the Frankish kings the boundaries of the Romanic language were undoubtedly the same as they are at present, and for centuries the language of Lower Britany has not lost a single village. I do not mean to say, that the Celtic was everywhere else quite extinct, but it was spoken very little, just as in some villages of Lusatia, Wendish is spoken, of which the inhabitants of the towns do not understand a word. Augustus, then, extended Italy in this manner, because the northern parts had either already become Latinised, or showed every symptom of soon becoming so.

Augustus divided Italy into eleven regions, and afterwards, in the third century of our era, probably under Severus, this number was increased to fifteen. Pliny has made the former the basis of his description, but the latter is not found quite complete in any ancient author. A knowledge of these divisions is of great importance in history, in order to understand the notices of ancient writers, especially of the “Scriptores Historiae Augustae.”

The regions of Augustus are:—1. _Latium_ and _Campania_, from the Tiber to the Silarus, on the frontier of Lucania. 2. _Southern Samnium_, _Beneventum_, the country of the _Hirpini_, _Apulia_ and _Calabria_. 3. _Lucania_ and _Bruttium_. 4. _Northern Samnium_ and the country of the _Marsians_, _Marrucinians_, _Pelignians_, and _Vestinians_. 5. _Picenum._ 6. _Umbria._ 7. _Etruria_, a name which remained customary until the second century; but from that time and especially during the third century, it was always called _Tuscia_, as _Tusci_ was always the name of the inhabitants. Tuscia occurs neither in Cicero, nor in Livy, nor in Ennius, nor in Cato. But in the reign of Constantine no scholar ought to speak of Etruria. These are things which serve as hints to him who understands them to indicate the time at which anything is written, and which are stumbling blocks to those who are ignorant of them. When at Rome, I had made such progress in these matters, that in looking at a ruin, I could immediately discern to what century it belonged, and in like manner a practised eye can, even without any statement of time or place, discover whether coins are Thracian or Cilician and whether they belong to the period before or after Alexander. Historical blunders are quite as bad as grammatical ones; they are not indeed illogical, but they grate upon well-trained ears and feelings, and create uneasiness. 8. _Ariminum_, the legations of Urbino, Ferrara, and Romagna. 9. _Liguria_, the country south of the river Po, from the borders of Etruria as far as the Alps. 10. _Venetia_, and 11. _Regio transpadana_, from the Lago di Garda to the Alps.

If we were to understand the later division into provinces according to this scheme, we should misplace Liguria, for example, entirely, for that country contained nothing of what had previously been comprised under the same name. This later division, as I said before, was made in the third century, probably in the reign of Severus. Paulus Diaconus furnishes the best ground-work of this division, although he is very confused, not enumerating the regions in any definite order. The fifteen regions, according to his statement, are:—1. _Venetia et Histria_, as far as the Benacus or Lago di Garda. 2. _Liguria_, the same country which was formerly called Transpadana, from the Lago di Garda to the foot of the Swiss Alps near mount St. Bernard; it was, therefore, on the north of the Po, and only a small corner of it belonged to ancient Liguria. In this sense we find the name used in the Codex Theodosianus and in Procopius. Two _limites_ above Italy were then regarded as parts of Italy, which in the time of Augustus did not yet belong to it, viz., 3. _Raetia prima_, and 4. _Raetia secunda_; but their boundaries are not mentioned anywhere. 5. _Alpis Cottia_, or _Alpes Cottiae_, the ancient Liguria proper as far as the frontiers of Tuscia; the name is transferred from the Cottian Alps in the neighbourhood of mount Cenis and Susa to the whole of ancient Liguria. 6. _Tuscia et Umbria_ (in the official style, for otherwise people then wrote Thuscia). Thuscia is Tuscany, and the part of Umbria, which was then called Umbria in a narrower sense, embraced Assisi, Spello, Foligno, etc. 7. _Campania Aurelia._ Campania comprises the whole region which Augustus called _Latium et Campania_, extending from the Tiber to the Silarus. Hence the modern name of _Campagna di Roma_, of which traces occur even in the writers of the western empire, as in the expressions, _Campania Romana_, _Campania Romae_; in Servius we read: _Gabii quondam oppidum Campaniae_, but this passage occurs in one of those books (from the end of the fourth to the beginning of the twelfth), of which it can be proved, that their present form belongs to a much later time; the substance was composed in the fourth century, but the form probably arose in the eighth century in the grammatical school of Ravenna.

One hundred miles around Rome, the _provinciae suburbicariae_, must be distinguished from Thuscia and Campania; they did not belong to the regions, but were under the praefectus urbi, whence _Thuscia suburbicaria_, subsequently the _Patrimonium D. Petri_, and _Campania suburbicaria_ were opposed to _Campania Aurelia_, that is, the Campagna di Lavoro. The name _Aurelia_ has not been understood by the few scholars who have treated of this period; and wherever the name was found, the strangest emendations have been attempted, because it was believed that it was not the name of a province; but express testimony that it was a province occurs in Boëthius and others. 8. _Lucania et Brittia._ We must adhere to this corrupt ancient mode of spelling _Brittia_, for so it occurs in MSS., in subscriptions, in the “Scriptores rei Agrariae,” in the “Notitia imperii” and elsewhere.

Our guide now passes on to the Alpes Penninae. Wallis must, probably, be regarded as a region, and also Aosta and Ivrea under the name of 9. _Alpes Penninae_; Paulus Diaconus, however, calls them _Apenninae_, and applies the name to some country of central Italy; but it can be proved that such a province never existed. 10. _Aemilia_, between a part of the Alpes Cottiae and Liguria, from Piacenza to Bologna. 11. _Flaminia_, that is, Romagna, Ferrara, Pesaro, or the maritime district as far as the Marca Ancona. 12. _Picenus_ (masculine, supply _ager_), the Marca Ancona with some adjoining Sabellian districts. 13. _Valeria_, extending from Tibur over the country of the Marsians, Pelignians, and perhaps, also, the Marrucinians; this province is sometimes politically united with Picenus, for Alba, the capital of Valeria, is also called, in the imperial rescripts, _Alba in Piceno_. 14. _Samnium_, and 15. _Apulia et Calabria_. Then come the islands Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica.

These provinces must be remembered in order to understand the history; if a person does not know them, he cannot understand the new and differently used names in Procopius and others. The names Aemilia, Valeria, Flaminia, and Aurelia, were taken from the roads which bore them; Flaminia is the district which Augustus had left without a name, perhaps the _regio Ariminensis_. The Via Flaminia ran from Rome to Ariminum, and was thence continued under the same name; and Scaurus afterwards continued it as far as Piacenza under the name Aemilia. The Via Valeria led into the interior; its originator is unknown, but it was perhaps Messalla, for in the elegy of Tibullus on him, he is praised for having made roads; earlier writers do not mention this road. Connected with this subject is one of the most pleasing recollections of my life: I had just been reading that elegy, when I was informed that a cross-road had been discovered, unquestionably the same which is described by Tibullus; the part of it which is laid open is preserved as beautifully, as if it had been completed only this year. It is a road running through the midst of Tivoli, and its pavement is so perfectly preserved that the stones have scarcely removed the breadth of a knife’s back from one another; the Romans built for eternity, and succeeded where the destructive hands of barbarians did not interfere. The Aurelia must likewise have been a road, though not a very ancient one, but probably made by M. Aurelius, or else the name of the Via Domitiana was changed, in order to obliterate the hateful recollection. Domitian raised splendid structures, but the hatred with which he was looked upon, transferred many of them to others, as his Forum was transferred to Nerva.

If we arrange the before-mentioned fifteen provinces, we first have, in the north of the territory of Rome, _Thuscia_, in the south _Aurelia_, and between them _Valeria_: on the other side, beginning in the south, we have _Lucania et Brittia_, _Samnium_, _Picenus_, and behind Samnium _Apulia et Calabria_; in the north, _Flaminia_, _Aemilia_; then from the sea-coast the _Alpis Cottia_, including Genoa and Piedmont, _Liguria_, _Alpes Penninae_, _Venetia et Istria_, and beyond Italy the two _Raetiae_.

The Codex Theodosianus contains an expression which is so peculiar, that even the great Jacobus Gothofredus mistook it; we there read that some laws were promulgated _per Italiam et Alpes_. _Italia_ here does not denote the whole peninsula, but only Lombardy, while _Alpes_ signifies the Cottian and Pennine Alps and the two Raetiae.

We shall now take up Italy according to its various countries, beginning with

LATIUM,