The Gallic Empire is the modern name for a breakaway state that held Gaul, Britain and for a time Spain from about AD 260 to 274. Its rulers copied Roman government and saw themselves as Roman. Aurelian brought it back into the empire.
Key takeaways
- The Gallic Empire lasted from AD 260 to 274 and began under Postumus, a Roman commander who was proclaimed ruler in the west.
- It covered Gaul and Britain and, at times, Spain, but our map draws all of them as part of one Roman Empire.
- Our outline for AD 211 puts Britannia, Gallia Lugdunensis and Hispania Tarraconensis inside the empire, before the split.
- Aurelian ended it in AD 274, and the name is used by modern historians, not the people who lived under it.
How the Gallic Empire works
The Gallic Empire is the name modern historians use for a western part of the Roman world that broke away from central rule between AD 260 and 274 [1]. It began under Postumus, who set up the state in AD 260 and ruled until his own troops killed him in 269 [1]. At its largest it took in Germania, Gaul and Britannia, and Spain for a time, though Spain's loyalty was unsteady [1]. Its capital was probably Cologne first and later Trier [1].
The breakaway happened during the crisis of the third century, when Rome was losing emperors and battles at the same time. The Persians had captured the emperor Valerian in AD 260, and the empire's centre was weak [2].
The name needs care. No surviving coin or inscription uses a name for the state, and "Gallic Empire" is a label from modern historiography [1]. Its institutions copied those of Rome. Two consuls were elected each year, and it had its own praetorian guard [1]. It did not try to take Italy or to depose the emperor in Rome, and Postumus presented himself as a defender of Roman interests [1]. In that sense it was less a separate country than a rival Roman government that held the west.
Aurelian ended it. After he brought the east back, he defeated the last ruler of the Gallic state, Tetricus, at Châlons in AD 274 [1]. Some accounts say Tetricus offered to give up beforehand, though that detail may be later propaganda [1]. The empire was reunited by the end of that year [2].
An example from our data
The map does not draw the Gallic Empire: it shows one Roman outline. But you can see which lands it covered. At AD 211, a few decades before the split, the outline holds Britannia (annexed AD 43, area 170,292 km²), Gallia Lugdunensis (area 158,160 km²) and Hispania Tarraconensis (area 389,610 km²). Province outlines on the map are those of AD 200, so they show the units that existed before the split.
In today's terms, France had up to 100% of its land inside the empire, between 133 BC and AD 565 on the slider, with 728 Roman places in the Pleiades gazetteer. Those first and last dates are slider dates, not the real years of conquest or loss.
The thing people get wrong
Many people imagine the Gallic Empire as a separate nation, with its own name and flag. It was not. It had no known name of its own, and its rulers acted as Roman emperors who happened to control only part of the empire [1]. The dates of the Gallic Empire are also easily muddled with the Palmyrene one in the east, which was a separate revolt that happened at about the same time. Both ended under Aurelian.
Frequently asked questions
When was the Gallic Empire?
From AD 260 to AD 274. The start year is sometimes given as 259, but most scholars favour 260.
Does the map show the Gallic Empire?
No. The map draws the whole Roman Empire as one outline and has no layer for breakaway states.
What lands did the Gallic Empire hold?
Gaul and Britain, plus Germania and for a time parts of Spain. Our France page shows up to 100% of France inside the empire at its largest.
Sources
- Gallic Empire, Wikipedia.
- Crisis of the Third Century, Wikipedia.
- Every figure from our own map is worked out from the datasets on the data sources page (checked against Ancient World Mapping Center outlines and Pleiades).