Gaul

Gaul (Lugdunum)

Gaul was the Roman name for a broad region of western Europe covering modern France, Belgium, Luxembourg and neighbouring lands; the coordinates here point to Lugdunum (modern Lyon), capital of the province of Gallia Lugdunensis. Inhabited by Celtic peoples, it saw Greek settlement at Massalia (Marseille), Roman conquest of the south by 121 BCE, and Julius Caesar's subjugation of the rest between 58 and 51 BCE. The Stoic Posidonius travelled there and recorded observations of the Celts, and the satirist Lucian later lectured in Gaul. Christianity took root early: some 48 Christians were martyred at Lugdunum in 177, after which the church there grew under Bishop Irenaeus. From the late fifth century Gaul came under Frankish rule.