Tongeren: Roman Road to Tienen

Tongeren — the first and oldest city in Belgium. Founded by the Romans around 10 BC, it was burned down by the Batavians half a century later, only to rise again, proudly rebuilt. Tongeren became the illustrious capital of the civitas Tungrorum, the administrative district of the region, where the Mediterranean influence of Rome was undeniable: a flourishing villa landscape, a magnificent aqueduct, grand temples and bathhouses, and markets brimming with exotic goods.

Even today, the Romans are never far away in Tongeren-Borgloon. Most hotspots are just minutes apart. Along your journey, you can encounter traces of the once important Roman road to Tienen at Overwinden and Neerwinden.

The Roman Road to Tienen

In Roman times, Tongeren was the centre of an extensive road network that connected the city with major hubs such as Bavay, Cologne, and Reims. In addition to these main highways, there were secondary routes that opened up the civitas Tungrorum. One of these was the road to Tienen, which ran through the Haspengouw landscape toward Asse and Elewijt, and from there connected to routes leading to the coast and the hinterland of Gaul.

The highway to Tienen had a typical Roman construction: a solid foundation of stones and rubble, finished with a hardened top layer and flanked by ditches for drainage. Although this road was less monumental than the famous Bavay–Cologne route, it played an important role in local mobility.

Archaeological traces of the route have been found at Overwinden and Neerwinden, where the road is still visible as a raised strip in the landscape. In other places, the route lives on in perfectly straight field roads and property boundaries.

The Tongeren–Tienen highway testifies not only to Roman engineering, but also to the way in which infrastructure structured the economic and cultural development of the countryside!

An Immersive Change to the Roman Walk, 2027

The story of Tongeren doesn’t end here. In 2027, the Roman city walk of Tongeren will receive a multidimensional upgrade as part of the VIA VIA project. The Roman hotspots on it will be enhanced with reconstructions and immersive storytelling. You will get an even clearer sense of the Roman road and the Roman city of Tongeren, and you will also be invited to visit the aqueduct, the Plinius springs, the Gallo-Roman temple, and other local sites. Through an app, you will see what the streets of Atuatuca Tungrorum, the capital that is now Tongeren, looked like in the second century. Your guide? An AI character from the glory days of Roman Tongeren.

Are you ready for a stroll through the past?

“We cross a modern aqueduct and reach the edge of the city. Atuatuca Tungrorum. I have dreamed of visiting the only city in the region for so long. It does not disappoint. So many colours and scents. So many sounds. Barking dogs, shouting people, the rattling carts of traders like us. The streets overflow with delights. The finest fabrics. Exotic fruits and woods. Bottles and flasks. Oil from the south. Meat, bread, and perfumes. Two women argue loudly in a language I do not understand. Men in open doorways beckon passers-by inside. The sweet aroma of a bathhouse mingles with the stench of boiling animal bones for glue. I am ecstatic and despondent at the same time. For how can we sell our wares in this place? Here, in this city that already has everything?” – Ammulva Iucunda