Livy stated in his history that the Raetians were of Etruscan origin. This belief was supported by historians Niebuhr and Mommsen centuries later. A tradition reported by Justin and Pliny the Elder claimed they were a group driven into the mountains by invading Gauls. They took their name from an eponymous leader called Raetus. By the time Romans knew the land, Celtic tribes held much of it. These Celts had amalgamated so completely with original inhabitants that later Raetians appeared as a Celtic people. Non-Celtic tribes like the Euganei settled among them. Polybius mentioned the Raetians incidentally in his histories. They retained independence until subjugation occurred in 15 BC.
Conquest And Administration
Tiberius and Drusus subjugated the region in 15 BC. At first Raetia formed a distinct province separate from other territories. Towards the end of the 1st century AD Vindelicia joined it. Tacitus wrote about Augusta Vindelicorum as a colony of the province. The whole area remained under a military prefect initially. Later governance shifted to a procurator. No standing army quartered there until the 2nd century AD. Protection relied on native troops and militia forces. During Marcus Aurelius reign, Legio III Italica commander governed the region. This legion based itself in Castra Regina by 179 AD.Geography And Infrastructure
The northern border during Augustus and Tiberius reigns was the River Danube. Later the Limes Germanicus marked the boundary stretching 166 km north of the Danube. Two great lines of Roman roads traversed the land. Via Claudia Augusta led from Verona across Reschen Pass to Fern Pass then to Augsburg. Another route went from Brigantium on Lake Constance through Chur and Chiavenna to Milan. Chief towns included Tridentum and Curia excluding Vindelicia districts. The Rätikon mountain range derives its name directly from Raetia. Modern regions covered eastern Switzerland southern Germany Vorarlberg Tyrol and part of northern Lombardy.