Colonia

Unlike the next type of city, the Municipium with its local Laws and Local Government, the Coloniae were full Roman Institutions following Roman Law with full Roman Citizenship.
Coloniae were also military instruments to place friendly cities in unfriendly territory.

Roman Colonies
- ‘Coloniae Civium Romanorum’ or ‘Coloniae Maritimae’
- Small towns of 300 Families with Full Roman Citizen Rights and their own Senate.
Colonies
- ‘Coloniae Latinae’
- Military Forts in enemy Territory with much larger populations.
- The Citizens were not Roman Citizens but Citizens of an Independent State.

This Required Three Magistrates (Triumviri) to be elected.
The chosen population, voluntary or not, traveled in a large group together to the new area and then set about building walls and Buildings.

The Tribunes proposed Bills to start a Colonia.
The new Colonia were agricultural towns rather than urban settlements.
In 121 BCE, Carthage (in Tunisia) was re-founded as a Colonia.
In 118 BCE Narbonne (Narbo Martius in southern France) was founded as a Colonia.
During the first century BCE, Military Leaders began to found Coloniae to settle the veterans of their victorious Armies. In 80 BCE Sulla resettled his veterans in Pompeii.

About 400 towns and cities became Coloniae during the Empire.
The Colonia was an exhibition of Roman Civilisation, Culture and Lifestyle in conquered lands.
It displayed Citizens Rights, Elections, impressive Public Buildings and Temples dedicated to the Roman State Religion and Roman Gods.
Starting under Julius Caesar, Coloniae were founded in the newly acquired provinces of the Roman Empire.
Examples are, 43 BCE Lugdunum or Lyon in France, 44 BCE Augusta Raurica or Augst in Switzerland and in 50 CE Colonia Claudia Ara Agippinensium or Cologne in Germany.