ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the origins and contours of such a political reality by drawing on geography, texts, regional archaeological records, together with numismatic evidence and epigraphy. The identity of this geographical territory, a separate zone whether east or north of the Iberian Peninsula, appears to confirm the abiding role of Narbonne as a regional centre and capital of a distinct political entity. For the territories of Gaul under Visigothic control, the division is tantalising because it includes a demarcation of all bishoprics in the province. Controversies usually focused mainly on disputes about religious boundaries inside Spain. Recent regional archaeological studies lend support to the extent of such a regnum orientalis. The work of Schneider in the last decade has highlighted a spectrum of settlements ranging from hill-top fortifications to more varied agglomerations perhaps with a more independent economic and political function.
