The history of the city of Cologne, volume 1: Cologne in the age of the romans

History of a city within the Imperium Romanum

Werner Eck, Cologne
(2004)

The first volume of the “great” Cologne city history could also be called: From the Germanic forests to the luxury metropolis – this covers, in short, the development from the conquest of Gaul in the first century BC to the emergence of the Oppidum Ubiorum settlement and the founding of the Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium in the first century AD.

Something new is emerging in this part of the Roman Empire: a big city! A city that had everything that made Rome great up to the 4th century: a lot of the military, an efficient administration, an upper class that lived in great prosperity, skilled craftsmen who not only produce everyday objects, but also luxury goods such as precious glass vessels, traders who bring in goods from all over the known world, plus many builders, workers and slaves. With the withdrawal of the army in the 5th century, Roman rule came to an end and the city subsides – but does not vanish. The buildings remain, the city wall will protect the residents for centuries, and people who call themselves “Christians” already lived among them in late antiquity.

Most of the images in this volume are from the author’s personal archive. Therefore, they do not feature in the database “Kulturelles Erbe Köln”. However, you will find plenty of meaningful image material if you search for “location Cologne” with a chronological restriction to antiquity and late antiquity.