page_title: Illyrians
section_title: Roman Empire
hierarchical_section_title: Illyrians / History / Roman Empire
caption_attribution_description: English: Queen Teuta of the Ardieai orders the Roman ambassadors to be killed Français&#160;: La reine Teuta d'Illyrie ordonne que les ambassadeurs romains soient tués.
context_page_description: The Illyrians were a group of Indo-European tribes, who inhabited the western Balkans in classical antiquity. They formed one of the three main groups of Indo-European populations in the Balkans prior to 2000 BC, along with Thracians and Greeks.
  The territory the Illyrians inhabited came to be known as Illyria to later Greek and Roman authors, who identified a territory that corresponds to most of Albania, Montenegro, Kosovo, much of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, western and central Serbia and some parts of Slovenia between the Adriatic Sea in the west, the Drava river in the north, the Morava river in the east and the mouth of the Aoos river in the south. The first account of Illyrian peoples dates back to the 6th century BC, in the works of the ancient Greek writer Hecataeus of Miletus.
  The name "Illyrians," as applied by the ancient Greeks to their northern neighbors, may have referred to a broad, ill-defined group of peoples. The Illyrian tribes never collectively identified as "Illyrians," and it is unlikely that they used any collective nomenclature at all.
context_section_description: Prior to the Roman conquest of Illyria, the Roman Republic had started expanding its power and territory across the Adriatic Sea. The Romans came nevertheless into a series of conflicts with the Illyrians, equally known as the Illyrian Wars, beginning in 229 BC until 168 BC as the Romans defeated Gentius at Scodra.
  The Roman province of Illyricum or Illyris Romana or Illyris Barbara or Illyria Barbara replaced most of the region of Illyria. It stretched from the Drilon river in modern Albania to Istria (Croatia) in the west and to the Sava river (between Bosnia and Herzegovina and northern Croatia) in the north. Salona (Solin near modern Split in Croatia) functioned as its capital. The regions which it included changed through the centuries though a great part of ancient Illyria remained part of Illyricum as a province while south Illyria became Epirus Nova.
  The Great Illyrian Uprising took place in the Roman province of Illyricum in the 1st century AD, in which an alliance of native peoples revolted against the Romans. The main ancient source that describes this military conflict is Velleius Paterculus, which was incorporated into the second book of "Roman History". Another ancient source about it is the biography of Octavius Augustus by Pliny the Elder. The two leaders of uprising were Bato the Breucian and Bato the Daesitiate.
  After 9 AD, the remnants of Illyrian tribes moved to new coastal cities and larger and more capable civitates.
  The prefecture of Illyricum was established in the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire), existing between 376 and the 7th century.
caption: Queen Teuta of the Ardieai orders the Roman ambassadors to be killed – painted by Augustyn Mirys
exif: {}