Via Agrippa

Via Agrippa, is any stretch of the network of Roman roads in Gaul that was built in the last century BCE by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, to whom Octavian entrusted the reorganization of the Gauls. In all, the Romans built 21,000 kilometres (13,000 mi) of roads in Gaul.

Agrippa's project

Agrippa's network radiated from a hub at the new strategic site of Lugdunum (Lyon). Strabo indicated the directions,¹ which were identified by Pierre Gros:²

• a route towards the Atlantic, from Lugdunum/Lyon towards Saintes
• a route towards the North Sea, via Reims, Beauvais and Amiens
• a route towards the Rhine, via Langres, Trier and Cologne
• and a route towards the south, to Marseille.

Though the detailed routes taken by the various stretches of the Via Agrippa are well settled on the ground, the dates of construction are still debated: in 39-38 BCE, according to the authors of the Guide romain antique;³ 22-21 BCE, according to Pierre Gros;⁴ or between 16 and 13 BCE, according to Paul Petit.⁵

The southern route

An ancient salt road passed to the mouths of the , keeping to the lower slopes of the hills to avoid the river's sometimes swampy . Under the impetus of Augustus, Agrippa paved a route that lay closer to the river, passing through the important Roman cities of , , , , , , interspersed with relay stations () where a change of horses was maintained for official couriers. This route was augmented by the along the right bank of the Rhône.