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3.ThearchaeologyandhistoryofEast-CentralEurope...
foughtbytheHellenisticstates,successorstothemonarchyofAlexanderIII
theGreat,betweenRomeanditsadversaries,andbetweenthosevyingfor
absoluteruleintheRomanstate,whichbythefirstcenturyBChadbecomethe
unquestionedhegemonicleaderintheregion.Inthiscontextwecannamee.g.,
sixSyrianwars(274-168BC),threePunicwars(264-148BC),threeMacedonian
wars(215-168BC),theWaroftheAlliesandthecivilwarsofthefinalRoman
Republic(91-31BC).
ThehistoricalevidenceforthesituationintheMediterraneanhinterland,
intheregionslyingmoretothenorth,ismuchmorelimited.Around300BC,
muchofthewesternandcentralEuropewasdominatedbytheCelts,established
duringthatageintoday’sFranceandwesternGermany(Gaul),partsofthe
IberianPeninsula,innorthernItaly(CisalpineGaul),thelandsontheUpperand
theMiddleDanube,andthegreaterportionofBritainandIreland.Duringthe
firsthalfofthethirdcenturyBC,theCeltsconductedraidsandinvasionsinfor
exampletheBalkans,reachingevenasfarasGreece.Othergroupsmadetheirway
toAsiaMinor,wheretheysettledinaregionlaternamedGalatia.TheseCelts,
whoalternatedbetweennegotiatingwithandwarringagainstHellenisticrulers
ultimatelylosttheirindependenceonlyin25BC,whenGalatiabecameaRoman
province.InthewesternMediterranean,theCeltsgraduallylostgroundtothe
Romans,towhomtheywereknownasGauls.TheprotractedstruggleoftheCelts
withtheRomansincludede.g.theWarswithGaulsandEtruscans(285-282BC),
theWarwithGauls(225-200BC),andcontemporaneously,theSecondPunic
War(218-201BC),whentheCeltswerealliesoftheCarthaginians,thebattlesof
Placentia(194BC)andofMutina(193BC)foughtwiththeBoiilivinginnorthern
Italy,theFirstandtheSecondCeltiberianWars(18-197BCand154-133BC)and
finally,theGallicWars(59-51BC)ofJuliusCaesar.Asaresultoftheseconflicts,
byapproximately50BCtheRomanshaddefeatedtheCeltsestablishedinnorthern
Italy,ontheIberianPeninsulaandinGaul.
FromtheMediterraneanperspective,theGermanictribesinhabitedremote
landsbeyondtheCeltsthus,ifonlyforthisprosaicreasoninformationabout
theminclassicalwrittensourcesearlierthanfirstcenturyBCismuchmore
scantythaninthecaseoftheCelts.InthethirdandthesecondcenturyBC,at
leasttwoeventsofsomesignificancefortheGreeksandtheRomans,involving
tribesrecognizedasGermanic,tookplace.Thefirstoftheseevents,themigration
oftheBastarnaeandScirii,wasmentionedearlierwhendiscussingtheoriginof
thePrzeworskculture.Thesetribesduringinthesecondhalfofthethirdcentury
BCmovedintothelandsonthenortherncoastoftheBlackSeaintheimmediate
neighbourhoodoftheGreekcolonies.Thesecondeventisthemigrationofthe
CimbriandtheTeutones.TheCimbri,mostlylikelyaGermanictribe,were
joinedbytheTeutones,aGermanicorpossiblyaCelticpeople;aftersettingoff
fromJutlandaround120BCtheypassedthroughthelandsontheElbeRiver,
SilesiaandMoravia,makingfortheSouth,andnext,fortheWest.In113BCthey
defeatedtheRomansintheBattleofNoreia,startingtheCimbrianWar,which
