allegiance to Severus. Albinus then considered invading Italy, but Severus had prepared for this by reinforcing the garrisons of the Alpine passes. Not wishing to risk the losses or the delay that forcing the passes would cause, Albinus was deterred. In the winter of 196–197, Severus gathered his forces along the Danube and marched into Gaul, where, much to his surprise, he found that Albinus' forces were about as strong as his own. The two armies first clashed at Tinurtium (Tournus), where Severus had the better day but was unable to obtain the decisive victory he needed. The battle Albinus's army fell back to Lugdunum; Severus followed, and on 19 February 197, the massive and ultimately decisive battle finally commenced. The exact details are as vague as the exact numbers involved. However, we do know both sides were roughly evenly matched and it was therefore a bloody and drawn-out affair lasting over two days (it was rare for battles of this time to last longer than a few hours). The tide shifted many times during the course of the battle, with the outcome hanging in the balance. It seems Severus had the edge in cavalry, which swung the battle in his favour for the final time. Exhausted and bloodied, Albinus's army was crushed. Aftermath Historian Michael Kulikowski states that Albinus fled into Lugdunum where he took his own life. Severus had Albinus' body stripped and beheaded. He rode over the headless corpse with his horse in front of his victorious troops. Severus sent Albinus's head back to Rome as a warning. He had Albinus's body and those of his wife and sons thrown into the Rhone River. Lucius Novius Rufus, who had supported Albinus, was killed. Severus also had 29 senators who supported Albinus executed. In Lugdunum itself, Severus remodelled the Imperial cult sanctuary to celebrate his dominance and humiliate Albinus' provincial supporters. According to Duncan Fishwick, the reformed Imperial rites at Lugdunum resembled those due a master from his slaves. At some point after this battle, the province of Britain was broken up into Upper and Lower halves ( & ). Roman forces in Britannia were also severely weakened, which would lead to incursions, uprisings, and a withdrawal of Rome from the Antonine Wall south to Hadrian's Wall. It was while quelling one of these uprisings that Severus himself would die near Eboracum on 4 February 211, only weeks