Vicus Mülfort

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The Vicus Mülfort was a civil Roman settlement (lat. Vicus ) in the northern area of ​​today's Mönchengladbach district of Odenkirchen . It originated in the middle of the 1st century and was completely destroyed by the Franks in 274 AD. Mülfort is considered to be the first larger settlement in what is now Mönchengladbach's urban area.

The Roman village of Mülfort

Overview map of the Vicus Mülfort (1st - 3rd century AD)
Surroundings of the Vicus Mülfort (1st - 3rd century AD)

The area near Mülfort was explored by the Romans in the middle of the last century BC. This is evidenced by the graves of a Roman warrior and a woman. A double-edged iron sword and a wooden shield with iron fittings were discovered in the graves. The man with the sword may have been a local spy from the Germanic tribe of the Ubier , who were resettled from the right bank of the Rhine to the left by the Romans who were friends with them. The motive for founding Mülfort was the construction of an important road connection from the Maas , south of Roermond , to Neuss ( Novaesium ), one of the first Roman camps on the Rhine . The street was built in 20 BC. Chr. Later, probably important Roman roads from Cologne ( Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium ) and detours Xanten ( Colonia Ulpia Traiana ) to the on this strategically important bottleneck Niers and the swampy impenetrable terrain off used by the Rhine and Meuse.

The exact place of the ford (crossing) over the Niers is unknown. According to the latest findings, a location in the immediate vicinity of today's bridge is assumed. Roman bank fortifications were found there, which can be traced back to it.

The large former Celtic settlement area on the Niers between Wanlo and Rheydt Castle

It is important to note that a large number of Celts lived here even before the Roman road was built and the Roman vicus was founded. Apparently the narrow point of the Niers and the somewhat hilly, quite fertile land east of the Niers were an ideal settlement point for the Celts . In the immediate vicinity of the vicus, a little to the south, there are a large number of Celtic traces of settlement in 2008, from the period 350 to 150 BC. Were found. Another very important find was made in 2013, two kilometers north on the Niers, near Rheydt Castle . Traces of settlement up to 13,000 years old, from the Paleolithic and more recent epochs to Roman times, were made there. Together with other finds in Wanlo , Wickrathberg , Sasserath, Mülfort, Giesenkirchen and Rheydt Castle, one can speak of a very dense settlement area of ​​the Celts, east of the Niers.

It can be assumed that until 19/18 BC The Celtic Eburones lived in the vicinity of the vicus. Some finds in the vicinity of the vicus as well as two Celtic settlements in neighboring Giesenkirchen indicate this. In contrast, the Celtic finds, a few kilometers to the northwest, in the Hardter Forest, are attributed to the Celtic tribe of the Usipeters . It is not known whether the Eburons have always lived here.

Vicus Mülfort (≈50 AD to 352 AD)

The Latin name for this vicus has not been passed down. As a rule, a small vicus did not have a significant name.

One of three surviving Roman brick stamps from Mülfort

Presumably, Mülfort was an important rest and horse changing station in terms of traffic. Traders and, above all, craftsmen lived here. Pottery, fortified granaries and three consecration monuments to the Roman god Jupiter ( Jupiter giant columns ) were found in Mülfort. In the area around Mülfort there were some farms ( Villa rustica ), but they had to struggle with the sandy soil of the area. All this served to supply both the population and the Roman soldiers on the Rhine. Pottery products from Mülfort were discovered in finds in Heinsberg, Erkelenz and Wachtendonk.

Since the destruction of the Celts , who lived mainly on the left bank of the Rhine as far as Belgium and in the Eifel, in the area of ​​the Vicus Mülfort , who lived around 19/18 BC BC Germanic tribe of the Ubier settled by the Romans under Agrippa . They had concluded a peace treaty with Caesar and were moved from their actual settlement area on the right bank of the Rhine (Germania magna), which stretched from the Sieg over the Lahn to the lower Main, to the area on the left bank of the Rhine (Germania inferior) around Gelduba (today Krefeld-Gellep -Stratum) and Tolbiacum (today Zülpich ) were relocated.

In the 2nd century AD, the street village was about a kilometer long and several hundred people lived there.

There were numerous farms in the immediate vicinity of the vicus. In the 2nd century one speaks of 50 farms. Remnants of Roman farms were found in today's Rheydt in the vicinity of Oberhydener Strasse, Keplerstrasse, Wilhelm-Strauss-Strasse and Geneickener Strasse as well as in Genhülsen, Giesenkirchen and Beckrath. Spelled wheat such as emmer, einkorn and spelled as well as seed wheat were grown there. There were also rye and barley as well as legumes such as peas, lentils and broad beans. In the pastures, the cattle were the main sources of food for the people in the area. In addition, only in autumn was the pig on the plate of the Romans. Sheep were kept for their wool and for milk and cheese production.

At the end of the 2nd century, the entire Roman Empire suffered from an economic crisis, including Germania inferior and the Vicus Mülfort. It got smaller and was only 400 meters long. The climate on the Lower Rhine deteriorated and the sandy soils on the Lower Rhine became increasingly sterile.

Mülfort was attacked by the Franks in 274 AD. All settlement areas and all farms, not only in the area around Mülfort, but almost everywhere on the Lower Rhine, were overrun, plundered and destroyed by the Franks.

In the years that followed, attempts were still made to set up individual farms in the area around Mülfort, but at the latest in AD 352, the Romans were finally expelled from Mülfort and the entire Germania inferior area by the second Frankish invasion.

The area was probably no longer inhabited for several centuries. It was not until 800 AD that a Saxon colony emerged under Charlemagne a few kilometers south of Mülfort near Odenkirchen-Sasserrath, as well as today's Mönchengladbach in the vicinity of the Abbey mountain on the Gladbach river.

Roman road links

Several important road connections ran through Mülfort over the years. From here the Romans could go from Neuss ( Novaesium ) towards Melick an der Roer (Mederiacum) and further on the western side of the Maas to Maastricht and Tongeren . In this way, troops and goods could get relatively safely from Roman Galien to the Roman camps on the Rhine. The road connection was 6 to 7.5 meters wide, paved with sand and had a moat on both sides. Remains of the Roman road construction have been found in Geistenbeck, Hockstein, Rheindahlen, Beeck and Arsbeck.

Furthermore, one suspects further road connections:

  • To Nijmegen: Via Dülken (Villa rustica), Breyell, Venlo ( Sablones ) over the Maas to Blerick (Blariacum) and then on the Roman road from Maastricht to Nijmegen ( Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum )
  • To Xanten: Via Viersen (Villa rustica), Wankum , Pont (Vicus, near Geldern), Sonsbeck to Xanten (Colonia Ulpia Traiana) and the neighboring Roman camp Vetera II or (more probably) via Rheindahlen-Broich or Rickelrath, Leloh, Dülken (Villa rustica)
  • To Cologne: Via Jüchen (Several Villa rustica), Grevenbroich ( Elfgen ), Stommeln, Pulheim to Cologne (Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium)
  • To Jülich: Via Hochneukirch (Villa rustica), Titz to Jülich ( Iuliacum )

Traces of Roman times

Locals immediately think of the high-rise settlement Römerbrunnen when they hear the term "Römer in Mönchengladbach", but in reality it was only on the eastern edge of the Vicus Mülfort and apart from an imitation of a Roman fountain that stands in front of one of the high-rise buildings, has nothing to do with the historical conditions Has. It looks different in Mülfort, in the vicinity of Dorfstraße and Altmülfort. Here the street name “Am Römerlager ” indicates a Roman military camp, which the vicus never was. Archaeologists have made numerous Roman finds in the vicinity of these streets. The road "Grüner Weg" a little south of Mülfort, which today looks like a Landwehr, was probably part of the important Roman road to Neuss. The small asphalt dirt road "Beller Feld" or "Eickeshecker Weg" should be the Roman road towards Cologne. How exactly the Roman roads ran is unfortunately not entirely clear, apart from a few places in Mülfort and individual finds in Giesenkirchen, Rheindahlen and Hockstein. Visible finds and references cannot be recognized in Mülfort.

Historical significance of the Vicus Mülfort

The ground monument "Roman Vicus Mülfort" is important for the history of Mönchengladbach as well as for the Lower Rhine region. The vicus represents an outstanding type of Roman, village-like settlement that is rare in the Rhineland.

See also

literature

  • Clive Bridger: Small but still findable. Five gems from the Lower Rhine. In: Archeology in the Rhineland 2006. Cologne 2007, pp. 124–126.
  • Christina Erkelenz: The Roman necropolis of the vicus Mönchengladbach Rheydt-Mülfort. VML Vlg Marie Leidorf, Rhaden / Westphalia 2012.
  • Dieter Hupka: The Roman settlement finds, commercial remains and road findings in Mönchengladbach-Mülfort. Dissertation, University of Cologne, Cologne 2015. ( digitized version )
  • Wolfgang Löhr (Ed.): Loca Desiderata, Mönchengladbacher Stadtgeschichte . tape 1 . Rhineland publishing and operating company of the Rhineland Regional Association, Brauweiler Abbey, Pulheim 1994, ISBN 3-7927-1375-6 .
  • Wolfgang Löhr (ed.): Small Mönchengladbach city history . Pustet, Regensburg, Regensburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-7917-2226-9 .
  • Landschaftsverband Rheinland (Ed.): Bodendenkmalblatt MG 057, local archive no. 1895 195 . 2007.
  • Claus Weber: Roman pottery kilns in Mönchengladbach-Mülfort. In: Archeology in the Rhineland 1992 . Cologne 1993, pp. 63-65.
  • Ursula Maier-Weber, Claus Weber: excavation in the museum. News from the Roman burial ground in Mülfort. In: Archeology in the Rhineland 1994 . Cologne 1995, pp. 80-83.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f Michael Gechter: Mönchengladbach in Roman times . In: Wolfgang Löhr (Ed.): Loca Desiderata, Mönchengladbacher Stadtgeschichte . tape 1 . Rhineland publishing and operating company of the Rhineland Regional Association, Brauweiler Abbey, Pulheim 1994, ISBN 3-7927-1375-6 , p. 257-258 .
  2. ↑ Wolfgang Löhr (Ed.): Small Mönchengladbach City History . Pustet, Regensburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-7917-2226-9 , pp. 14 .
  3. ↑ a b Wolfgang Löhr (Ed.): Small Mönchengladbach City History . Pustet, Regensburg 2009, Regensburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-7917-2226-9 , pp. 15 .
  4. ↑ Landschaftsverband Rheinland (Ed.): Bodendenkmalblatt MG 057, local archive no. 1895 195 . 2007.
  5. ↑ Spectacular finds at Rheydt Castle . Rheinische Post
  6. ↑ Michael Gechter: Mönchengladbach in Roman times . In: Wolfgang Löhr (Ed.): Loca Desiderata, Mönchengladbacher Stadtgeschichte . tape 1 . Rhineland publishing and operating company of the Rhineland Regional Association, Brauweiler Abbey, Pulheim 1994, ISBN 3-7927-1375-6 , p. 236 .
  7. ↑ a b c Landschaftsverband Rheinland (Ed.): Bodendenkmalblatt MG 057, local archive no. 1895 195 . 2007.
  8. ↑ Michael Gechter: Mönchengladbach in Roman times . In: Wolfgang Löhr (Ed.): Loca Desiderata, Mönchengladbacher Stadtgeschichte . tape 1 . Rhineland publishing and operating company of the Rhineland Regional Association, Brauweiler Abbey, Pulheim 1994, ISBN 3-7927-1375-6 , p. 254 .
  9. ↑ Michael Gechter: Mönchengladbach in Roman times . In: Wolfgang Löhr (Ed.): Loca Desiderata, Mönchengladbacher Stadtgeschichte . tape 1 . Rhineland publishing and operating company of the Rhineland Regional Association, Brauweiler Abbey, Pulheim 1994, ISBN 3-7927-1375-6 , p. 248-249 .
  10. ↑ Michael Gechter: Mönchengladbach in Roman times . In: Wolfgang Löhr (Ed.): Loca Desiderata, Mönchengladbacher Stadtgeschichte . tape 1 . Rhineland publishing and operating company of the Rhineland Regional Association, Brauweiler Abbey, Pulheim 1994, ISBN 3-7927-1375-6 , p. 247 .

Coordinates: 51 ° 8 '59.93 "  N , 6 ° 27' 28.98"  E