tribal confederation · Italy
Insubres
Origins
Livy says Celts led by Bellovesus crossed the Alps around 600 BCE and founded Mediolanum, the later Milan, on land already called Insubrian. Archaeology shows the local Golasecca culture, which already spoke a Celtic language, Lepontic, absorbing larger Gaulish migrations in the 5th and 4th centuries BCE.
Rule and society
The Insubres formed a tribal state with Mediolanum as a central place, ruled by warrior aristocrats and kings. They lived in villages and fortified centres, farmed the rich plain and minted silver coins imitating those of Massalia. They often led the Cisalpine Gauls in war, joining the Boii against Rome in 225 BCE.
Decline and legacy
Rome defeated them at Telamon in 225 BCE and at Clastidium in 222 BCE, and took Mediolanum. They backed Hannibal, but after defeats in 196 and 194 BCE they accepted a treaty. Their land was gradually Romanised, gaining Latin and then full citizenship in the 1st century BCE.
On the connections map
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- Insubres was conquered by Roman Republic222 BCE – 194 BCE
Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Insubres. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/insubres
- MLA
- “Insubres.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/insubres. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Insubres.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/insubres.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Insubres’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/insubres (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻