Allobroges in the context of "Vienne, Isère"

Cularo was the name of the Gallic city which evolved into modern Grenoble. It was renamed Gratianopolis in 381 to honor Roman emperor Gratian.

The earliest remaining reference to what is now Grenoble dates back to a July 43 BC letter written by Munatius Plancus to Cicero. The small town founded by the Allobroges Gallic people was at that time called Cularo. In 292, the western emperor Maximian elevated the town to the rank of Civitas, "city", and ordered the construction of defensive walls which both protected the urban area and marked its higher status. Their vestiges are now a landmark of this era.

The Gaesatae or Gaesati (Latin Gaesati, Greek Γαισάται) were a group of Gallic mercenary warriors who lived in the Alps and near the river Rhône in the 3rd century BC. They fought against the Roman Republic at the Battle of Telamon in 225 BC, and later in 221 BC.

Polybius and Plutarch describe the Gaesatae as mercenaries called in from Transalpine regions by the Insubres and the Boii, who enticed them with promises of considerable plunder. They disappear from historical accounts after the campaigns in Cisalpine Gaul, around the time the Allobroges begin to appear in the records. Although no ancient author establishes a direct link between the two groups, some scholars have postulated that the Allobroges may be identified as descendants of Gaesatae.