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population, composed of natives (of Gallic origin) and foreigners (mostly merchants), relied upon the
military for protection but also felt secure behind the walls that surrounded Aquileia. The military
presence had two general effects on the populace. First, the cult of the Eastern deity Mithras became
popular, and second, peace was maintained for so long during the imperial era that the defenses of the
city were allowed to deteriorate.
In May of 238 A.D., Aquileia, loyal to Rome and supportive of the joint emperors proclaimed by the
Senate, BALBINUS and PUPIENUS, closed its gates to MAXIMINUS I. Resolved to invade Italy to
regain his throne, Maximinus placed Aquileia under siege by his entire army. The city responded by
building hasty defenses and by repairing its wall; food was abundant. Maximinus failed to take Aquileia,
and his losses, coupled with the sinking morale of his troops, brought about a mutiny. On May 10, 238,
he was murdered with his son. Herodian described the siege and the city's preparations in some detail.
With a population of nearly half a million, Aquileia remained an economic force on the Adriatic, but in
452, Attila the Hun burned the city to the ground, and malaria struck down the survivors. The city was
rebuilt and rose once again to its original prominence, but it was recorded that, during the Hun terror,
many residents fled to the Venetian lagoons - the site of modern Venice.
¤ AQUITANIA The original home of a Gallic people known as the Aquitani. Composed of many tribes,
loosely confederated, Aquitania stretched from Garumna, or Garonne, along the Bay of Biscay, down to the
Pyrenees. The Aquitani were more similar to the Iberians than to their Celtic neighbors, but they were
extremely fierce in war. See also G ALLI A.
¤ ARABIA
The peninsula situated between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean; an axe-shaped region
divided into three sections in
early eras: Arabia Deserta, a vast ocean of sand and stifling heat; Arabia
Felix, comprising deserts but also including a fertile strip of land along its western seacoast; and Arabia
Petraea, which became a Roman province of the same name.
The NABATAEANS possessed a considerable territory in the north, centered on Petra. Their kingdom
became integral to the trade conducted between the Egypt-Palestine area and the Far Eastern kingdoms.
Caravans carried spices, gums and gems back and forth to India, and fabulous wealth was mistakenly
believed to reside in Arabia, especially in Arabia Felix. Sailing vessels from Egypt, trading with India via
the Red Sea, broke the Arabian trade monopoly, but the chieftains of the main Arabia Felix tribes, the
Sabaeans, did what they could to preserve trade routes by land and by sea and give credence to the stories
of riches.