In celebration of its 20th anniversary, the Inrap, a French public institution responsible for archaeological research, held its annual conference on October 14, 2022, at the Senate. The conference, titled Archaeology and Territories, explored how local territories and political spaces in France were shaped from the Neolithic period through the Middle Ages. This event marked a unique approach to understanding how ancient societies organized their landscapes and governance structures. Laurence Tranoy, a teacher-researcher in Roman history at the University of La Rochelle, presented on the integration of Gaul—modern-day France—into the Roman Empire. She explained that this process, which occurred just before the beginning of the common era, involved a comprehensive political spatial development program. This initiative, which had already been implemented in the southern regions a century earlier, redefined existing landscapes according to new Roman criteria. Mapping territories was not merely a technical exercise but a strategic effort that reshaped how regions were governed and understood. Tranoy highlighted how this mapping process led to lasting organizational structures that are still visible today. The conference emphasized areas of interest for archaeology, such as the concept of borders and the expansion of territories into maritime regions, whether ancient or newly established. These topics reveal how ancient societies interacted with their environments and how these interactions influenced long-term political and social development. Laurence Tranoy is also a member of the Littoral, Environment and Societies (LIENSs) UMR 7266 laboratory and an affiliated researcher at the Archaeology and Archaeometry (ArAr) UMR 5138 laboratory. She leads archaeological programs in both France and Tunisia and is actively involved in research on ancient urbanism and port spaces. Her work contributes to a deeper understanding of how historical societies shaped their physical and political landscapes.