Tolosa was founded for several reasons. First of all, it held the role of keeping the local inhabitants under control. These people of Gaul were often very rebellious towards Roman life. Tolosa was not alone in this role. Other Roman cities such as Valencia were also founded to suppress rebellious indigenous tribes.
The second reason for founding Tolosa was to show off Roman presence in the area.
Tolosa was deep into the uncivilized parts of Gaul. The idea behind building the
city was to help the Galois learn to accept the Roman way of life. Again other
Roman cities were founded like Tolosa to allow neighboring cultures to adapt to
a Roman lifestyle. These cities were dispersed in other ends of the empire such
as in Turkey, Africa and Britannia.
Finally, it held a significant economic role to the empire.
Tolosa was the
crossroads for the commerce of certain important products. Its job was to
control and manage the wheat, grain, and wine that were grown in the area.
The
exact location was chosen because it had the advantage of being near a large
ford on a river accessible for transportation both north and south. Roman cities
were often built through economic growth and Tolosa represents one perfect
example.
This model is a recreation of what was found during excavation in Toulouse from the Roman era.
Institut Catholique. Toulouse, France.