Pannonia

In the Early Iron Age, Transdanubia was inhabited by the Pannonians, a subgroup of the Illyrians, and the Great Hungarian Plain by peoples of Scythic culture. The Celts invaded in the Late Iron Age. Gallo-Roman historian Pompeius Trogus tells us that the Celts met with heavy resistance from the locals and couldn't overrun the southern part of Transdanubia. Some tribes advanced as far as Delphi, with the Scordisci settling in Syrmia (279 BC) upon forced to withdraw. The Celts founded many villages. Those that held prominent economic significance developed into oppida.[13] As part of a new migration wave at the end of the 2nd century BC, the Boii left Northern Italy and established themselves as an important power at the Danube.[14]

Pannonia was connected to the Italian Peninsula by trade since the 2nd millennium BC. Amber from Jutland and East Prussia arrived to there through Transdanubia. Later in the 1st millennium BC, industrial products of the Veneti and Etruscans, and from the Este culture were brought here.[15] The Celtic invasion broke trade between the inhabitants of Italy and the Germanic peoples through Transdanubia. There was no big rupture with the inhabitants of Transdanubia, however. Aes signatum ingots were in use in Pannonia as long as the 1st century BC.[15] Independent tribes minted their own coins with the faces of their leaders. These were at first modeled on Macedonian, and later Roman currency.[13] For one and a half century prior to the Roman invasion, the Celts and the Romans were in stable trade relations. Roman merchants brought industrial products in exchange for slaves and raw materials.[16]

The strengthening of the empire necessarily led to the annexation of new territories.[17] This process was slow but enthused by the ideology of Pax Romana.[18] In the aftermath of the Second Punic War, Rome solidified control over the southern part of Illyria and looked to link it up with Northern Italy by land. This goal required expansion toward modern-day Hungary.[19] In 183 BC, the Senate established the colonia of Aquileia to make Pannonia economically closer. Later, the rich Aquileian lords played a big part in the region's economy.[20] The hazard caused by the tribe of the Scordisci was an important reason for the conquest of the area.[18] Besides pillaging, their incursions slowed the seizure of the Balkans.[17] The Dardani and Thracians posed similar threats.[18] The Macedonians urged them to raid Pannonia and Perseus reached an alliance with them.[18] The Scordisci, in alliance with the Dalmatae were in armed conflict with the Romans as early as 156 BC and 119 BC. In both wars, the Romans failed to take Siscia (now Sisak, Croatia), which laid in a key position.[14] After these setbacks, Rome turned instead towards Noricum which had both iron and silver mines.[21] During the Mithridatic Wars, Mithridates VI Eupator planned to cross Pannonia to attack Italy.[22]

Roman expansion here paused for a time and holdings at the Danube were lost in the turmoil caused by the Social War. Other problems, such as the population shift related to the Cimbri and the strong resistance of the Iapydes kept back the advancement of this relatively less important front line.[19] In the early 1st century BC, the Dacians emerged as a new dominant power. While their hold on the area between the Danube and the Tisza was loose, they had considerable influence in the territories beyond.[22] In 88 BC, Scipio Asiaticus (consul 83 BC) defeated the Scordisci so badly that they retreated to the eastern part of Syrmia.[23][24] Taking advantage of this, the Dacian king Burebista vanquished them, and subsequently the Boii and the Taurisci too. Thanks to the ebb of these entities, several local tribes regained their independence and influence.[25][24] Curio Burbuleius's army reached the Danube probably through the Morava Valley.[18] But even during the life of Julius Caesar, the conquest of Gaul came first and the unruly Dalmatae couldn't be dealt with due to the conflict with Pompey the Great.[26]

In 7 AD, the Great Illyrian Revolt erupted as the subdued population of Illyricum rose up against Roman rule. The rebels were eventually defeated after a hard-fought campaign lasting 2 years led by Germanicus and future-emperor Tiberius.[35]

In 8 AD, Illyricum was divided into Dalmatia (initially called Illyricum Superius) and Pannonia (initially Illyricum Inferius).[29]

The foremost objective of Rome in the region continued to be the conclusion of the barbarian conflicts. Plautius Silvanus moved as many as 100,000 barbarians from Pannonia to Moesia. During the significant governorship of Tampius Flavianus, Roman currency began to circle in the Barbaricum and the first stage of the consolidation of the Central Danubian limes took place. Also, 50,000 barbarians may have been settled inside and the province's administration may have been organized.[36]

Due to the proximity of hostile barbarian tribes, many fortifications were built on the border and large number of legionaries and auxiliaries were stationed in the region.[35]

Some time between the years 102 and 107, between the first and second Dacian wars, Trajan divided the province into Pannonia Superior (western part with the capital Carnuntum), and Pannonia Inferior (eastern part with the capitals in Aquincum and Sirmium[37]). According to Ptolemy, these divisions were separated by a line drawn from Arrabona in the north to Servitium in the south; later, the boundary was placed further east. The whole country was sometimes called the Pannonias (Pannoniae).

The province of Pannonia was threatened from the east by the Scythic Sarmatians. During the conquest of Transdanubia, Sarmatian peoples, most notably the Iazyges occupied the Danube–Tisza Interfluve, vassallizing the Dacian-Celtic elements in the area and trading with both the Romans and other Celts. This was beneficial for the Roman Empire because the Sarmatians counterbalanced Dacia. Nonetheless, their looting campaigns through the frozen Danube[38] resulted in large amounts of soldiers being drawn to that segment of the border in the 180s. In the 190s, guard posts, bridgeheads, earth forts and later stone forts were constructed at Aquincum, Albertfalva, Nagytétény, Adony, Százhalombatta, Dunaújváros and other settlements.[39]

The one and a half century of relative peacefulness in the province was ended by an invasion of the Marcomanni, Quadi and Iazyges during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. The struggle was made even more difficult by the ravaging Antonine Plague, in which the emperor himself died at Vindobona, Pannonia Superior.[40] Marcus Aurelius constructed the limes.[41]

After Marcus Aurelius, Commodus continued to fight along the limes, but governed the empire negligently. External attacks made possible Septimius Severus's ascension to the throne, who was governor of Pannonia Superior. Thanks to this soldier-emperor, peace returned for half a century. After the fall of the Severan dynasty, internal and external conflict restarted. The ambient barbarian peoples were able to penetrate in multiple parts of the border. In 260 Roxolani invaded the province.[41]

Pannonia Superior was under the consular legate, who had formerly administered the single province, and had three legions under his control. Pannonia Inferior was at first under a praetorian legate with a single legion as the garrison; after Marcus Aurelius, it was under a consular legate, but still with only one legion. The frontier on the Danube was protected by the establishment of the two colonies Aelia Mursia and Aelia Aquincum by Hadrian.

Under Diocletian, a fourfold division of the country was made:

• Pannonia Prima in the northwest, with its capital in Savaria, it included Pannonia Superior and the major part of Central Pannonia between the Raba and Drava,
• Pannonia Valeria in the northeast, with its capital in Sopianae, it comprised the remainder of Central Pannonia between the Raba, Drava and Danube,
• Pannonia Savia in the southwest, with its capital in Siscia,
• Pannonia Secunda in the southeast, with its capital in Sirmium

Diocletian also moved parts of today's Slovenia out of Pannonia and incorporated them in Noricum. In 324 AD, Constantine I enlarged the borders of Roman Pannonia to the east, annexing the plains of what is now eastern Hungary, northern Serbia and western Romania up to the limes that he created: the Devil's Dykes.

In the 4th-5th century, one of the dioceses of the Roman Empire was known as the Diocese of Pannonia. It had its capital in Sirmium and included all four provinces that were formed from historical Pannonia, as well as the provinces of Dalmatia, Noricum Mediterraneum and Noricum Ripense.

• 
  Pannonia in the 1st century
• 
  Pannonia in the 2nd century
• 
  Pannonia in the 4th century
• 
  Pannonia with Constantine I "limes" in 330 AD

In the 4th century, the Romans (especially under Valentinian I) fortified the villas and relocated barbarians to the border regions. In 358 they won a great victory over the Sarmatians, but raids didn't stop. In 401 the Visigoths fled to the province from the Huns, and the border guarding peoples fled to Italia from them, but were beaten by Uldin in exchange for the transferring of Eastern Pannonia. In 433 Rome completely handed over the territory to Attila for the subjugation of the Burgundians attacking Gaul.[42]

Slavery held a less important role in Pannonia's economy than in earlier established provinces. Rich civilians had domestic slaves do the housework while soldiers who had been awarded with land had their slaves cultivate it. Slaves worked in workshops primarily in western cities for rich industrialist.[17] In Aquincum, they were freed in a short time.[38]