Enterprising Character of the Gauls.
I. THERE are peoples whose existence in the past only reveals itself by
certain brilliant apparitions, unequivocal proofs of an energy which had
been previously unknown. During the interval their history is involved
in obscurity, and they resemble those long-silent volcanoes, which we
should take to be extinct but for the eruptions which, at periods far
apart, occur and expose to view the fire which smoulders in their bosom.
Such had been the Gauls.
The accounts of their ancient expeditions bear witness to an
organisation already powerful, and to an ardent spirit of enterprise.
Not to speak of migrations which date back perhaps nine or ten centuries
before our era, we see, at the moment when Rome was beginning to aim at
greatness, the Celts spreading themselves beyond their frontiers. In the
time of Tarquin the Elder (Years of Rome, 138 to 176), two expeditions
started from Celtic Gaul: one proceeded across the Rhine and Southern
Germany, to descend upon Illyria and Pannonia (now Western Hungary);
the other, scaling the Alps, established itself in Italy, in the country
lying between those mountains and the Po.[1] The invaders soon
transferred themselves to the right bank of that river, and nearly the
whole of the territory comprised between the Alps and the Apennines took
the name of Cisalpine Gaul. More than two centuries afterwards, the
descendants of those Gauls marched upon Rome, and burnt it all but the
Capitol.[2] Still a century later (475), we see new bands issuing from
Gaul, reaching Thrace by the valley of the Danube,[3] ravaging Northern
Greece, and bringing back to Toulouse the gold plundered from the Temple
of Delphi.[4] Others, arriving at Byzantium,[5] pass into Asia,
establish their dominion over the whole region on this side Mount
Taurus, since called Gallo-Græcia, or Galatia, and maintain in it a
sort of military feudalism until the time of the war of Antiochus.[6]
These facts, obscure as they may be in history, prove the spirit of
adventure and the warlike genius of the Gaulish race, which thus, in
fact, inspired a general terror. During nearly two centuries, from 364
to 531, Rome struggled against the Cisalpine Gauls, and more than once
the defeat of her armies placed her existence in danger. It was, as it
were, foot by foot that the Romans effected the conquest of Northern
Italy, strengthening it as they proceeded by the establishment of
colonies.
Let us here give a recapitulation of the principal wars against the
Gauls, Cisalpine and Transalpine, ich have already been spoken of in the
first volume of the present work. In 531 the Romans took the offensive,
crossed the Po, and subjugated a great part of the Cisalpine. But hardly
had the north of Italy been placed under the supremacy of the Republic,
when Hannibal’s invasion (536) caused anew an insurrection of the
inhabitants of those countries, who helped to increase the numbers of
his army; and even when that great captain was obliged to quit Italy,
they continued to defend their independence during thirty-four years.
The struggle, renewed in 554, ended only in 588, for we will not take
into account the partial insurrections which followed. During this time,
Rome had not only to combat the Cisalpines, assisted by the Gauls from
beyond the Alps, but also to make war upon the men of their race in Asia
(565) and in Illyria. In this last-mentioned province the colony of
Aquileia was founded (571), and several wild tribes of Liguria, who held
the defiles of the Alps, were subjugated (588).
Wars of the Romans beyond the Alps.
II. In 600, the Romans, called to the assistance of the Greek town of
Marseilles, which was attacked by the Oxybii and the Deciates, Ligurian
tribes of the Maritime Alps,[7] for the first time carried their arms
to the other side of the Alps. They followed the course of the Corniche,
and crossed the Var; but it took, according to Strabo, a struggle of
eighty years before they obtained from the Ligures an extent of twelve
stadia (2·22 kils.), a narrow passage on the coast of the sea, to enable
them to pass through Gaul into Spain.[8] Nevertheless, the legions
pushed their encroachments between the Rhone and the Alps. The conquered
territory was given to the people of Marseilles, who soon, attacked
again by the peoples of the Maritime Alps, implored a second time the
support of Rome. In 629, the Consul M. Fulvius Flaccus was sent against
the Salluvii; and, three years afterwards,[9] the proconsul C. Sextius
Calvinus drove them back far from the sea-coast, and founded the town of
Aix (Aquæ Sextiæ).[10]
The Romans, by protecting the people of Marseilles, had extended their
dominion on the coast; by contracting other alliances, they penetrated
into the interior. The Ædui were at war with the Allobroges and the
Arverni. The proconsul Cn. Domitius Ahenobarbus united with the former,
and defeated the Allobroges, in 633, at Vindalium, on the Sorgue
(Sulgas), not far from the Rhone. Subsequently, Q. Fabius Maximus,
grandson of Paulus Æmilius, gained, at the confluence of the Isère and
the Rhone, a decisive victory over the Allobroges, and over Bituitus,
king of the Arverni. By this success Q. Fabius gained the surname of
Allobrogicus.[11] The Arverni pretended to be descendants of the
Trojans, and boasted a common origin with the Romans;[12] they remained
independent, but their dominion, which extended from the banks of the
Rhine to the neighbourhood of Narbonne and Marseilles, was limited to
their ancient territory. The Ruteni, who had been their allies against
Fabius, obtained similarly the condition of not being subjected to the
Roman power, and were exempted from all tribute.[13]
In 636, the Consul Q. Marcius Rex founded the colony of Narbo Marcius,
which gave its name to the Roman province called Narbonensis.[14]
The movement which had long thrust the peoples of the north towards the
south had slackened during several centuries, but in the seventh century
of the foundation of Rome it seems to have re-commenced with greater
intensity than ever. The Cimbri and the Teutones,[15] after ravaging
Noricum and Illyria, and defeating the army of Papirius Carbo sent to
protect Italy (641), had marched across Rhætia, and penetrated by the
valley of the Rhine to the country of the Helvetii. They drew with them
a part of that people, spread into Gaul, and for several years carried
there terror and desolation. The Belgæ alone offered a vigorous
resistance. Rome, to protect her province, sent against them, or against
the tribes of the Helvetii, their allies, five generals, who were
successively vanquished: the Consul M. Junius Silanus, in 645; M.
Aurelius Scaurus, in 646; L. Cassius Longinus, in 647;[16] lastly, in
the year 649, the proconsul Q. Servilius Cæpio[17] and Cn. Manlius
Maximus. The two last each lost his army.[18] The very existence of Rome
was threatened.
Marius, by the victories gained at Aix over the Teutones (652), and at
the Campi Raudii, not far from the Adige, over the Cimbri (653),
destroyed the barbarians and saved Italy.
The ancients often confounded the Gauls with the Cimbri and Teutones;
sprung from a common origin, these peoples formed, as it were, the
rear-guard of the great army of invasion which, at an unknown epoch, had
brought the Celts into Gaul from the shores of the Black Sea.
Sallust[19] ascribes to the Gauls the defeats of Q. Cæpio and Cn.
Manlius, and Cicero[20] designates under the same name the barbarians
who were destroyed by Marius. The fact is that all the peoples of the
north were always ready to unite in the same effort when it was proposed
to throw themselves upon the south of Europe.
From 653 to 684, the Romans, occupied with intestine wars, dreamt not of
increasing their power beyond the Alps; and, when internal peace was
restored, their generals, such as Sylla, Metellus Creticus, Lucullus,
and Pompey, preferred the easy and lucrative conquests of the East. The
vanquished peoples were abandoned by the Senate to the exactions of
governors, which explains the readiness with which the deputies of the
Allobroges entered, in 691, into Catiline’s conspiracy; fear led them to
denounce the plot, but they experienced no gratitude for their
revelations.[21]
The Allobroges rose, seized the town of Vienne,[22] which was devoted to
the Romans, and surprised, in 693, Manlius Lentinus, lieutenant of C.
Pomptinus, governor of the Narbonnese. Nevertheless, some time after,
the latter finally defeated and subdued them. “Until the time of Cæsar,”
says Cicero, “our generals were satisfied with repelling the Gauls,
thinking more of putting a stop to their aggressions than of carrying
the war among them. Marius himself did not penetrate to their towns and
homes, but confined himself to opposing a barrier to these torrents of
peoples which were inundating Italy. C. Pomptinus, who suppressed the
war raised by the Allobroges, rested after his victory. Cæsar alone
resolved to subject Gaul to our dominion.”[23]
Continual Pre-occupation of the Romans in regard to the
Gauls.
III. It results from this summary of facts that the constant thought of
the Romans was, during several centuries, to resist the Celtic peoples
established on either side of the Alps. Ancient authors proclaim aloud
the fear which held Rome constantly on the watch. “The Romans,” says
Sallust, “had then, as in our days, the opinion that all other peoples
must yield to their courage; but that with the Gauls it was no longer
for glory, but for safety, that they had to fight.”[24] On his part,
Cicero expresses himself thus: “From the beginning of our Republic, all
our wise men have looked upon Gaul as the most redoubtable enemy of
Rome. But the strength and multitude of those peoples had prevented us
until now from combating them all.”[25]
In 694, it will be remembered, rumours of an invasion of the Helvetii
prevailed at Rome. All political pre-occupation ceased at once, and
resort was had to the exceptional measures adopted under such
circumstances.[26] In fact, as a principle, whenever a war against the
Gauls was imminent, a dictator was immediately nominated, and a levy en
masse ordered. From that time no one was exempted from military
service; and, as a provision against an attack of those barbarians, a
special treasure had been deposited in the Capitol, which it was
forbidden to touch except in that eventuality.[27] Accordingly, when, in
705, Cæsar seized upon it, he replied to the protests of the tribunes
that, since Gaul was subjugated, this treasure had become useless.[28]
War against the peoples beyond the Alps was thus, for Rome, the
consequence of a long antagonism, which must necessarily end in a
desperate struggle, and the ruin of one of the two adversaries. This
explains, at the same time, both Cæsar’s ardour and the enthusiasm
excited by his successes. Wars undertaken in accord with the traditional
sentiment of a country have alone the privilege of moving deeply the
fibre of the people, and the importance of a victory is measured by the
greatness of the disaster which would have followed a defeat. Since the
fall of Carthage, the conquests in Spain, in Africa, in Syria, in Asia,
and in Greece, enlarged the Republic, but did not consolidate it, and a
check in those different parts of the world would have diminished the
power of Rome without compromising it. With the peoples of the North, on
the contrary, her existence was at stake, and upon her reverses equally
as upon her successes depended the triumph of barbarism or civilisation.
If Cæsar had been vanquished by the Helvetii or the Germans, who can say
what would have become of Rome, assailed by the numberless hordes of the
North rushing eagerly upon Italy?
And thus no war excited the public feeling so intensely as that of Gaul.
Though Pompey had carried the Roman eagles to the shores of the Caspian
Sea, and, by the tributes he had imposed on the vanquished, doubled the
revenues of the State, his triumphs had only obtained ten days of
thanksgivings. The Senate decreed fifteen,[29] and even twenty,[30] for
Cæsar’s victories, and, in honour of them, the people offered sacrifices
during sixty days.[31]
When, therefore, Suetonius ascribes the inspiration of the campaigns of
this great man to the mere desire of enriching himself with plunder, he
is false to history and to good sense, and assigns the most vulgar
motive to a noble design. When other historians ascribe to Cæsar the
sole intention of seeking in Gaul a means of rising to the supreme power
by civil war, they show, as we have remarked elsewhere, a distorted
view; they judge events by their final result, instead of calmly
estimating the causes which have produced them.
The sequel of this history will prove that all the responsibility of the
civil war belongs not to Cæsar, but to Pompey. And although the former
had his eyes incessantly fixed on his enemies at Rome, none the less for
that he pursued his conquests, without making them subordinate to his
personal interests. If he had sought only his own elevation in his
military successes, he would have followed an entirely opposite course.
We should not have seen him sustain during eight years a desperate
struggle, and incur the risks of enterprises such as those of Great
Britain and Germany. After his first campaigns, he need only have
returned to Rome to profit by the advantages he had acquired; for, as
Cicero says,[32] “he had already done enough for his glory, if he had
not done enough for the Republic;” and the same orator adds: “Why would
Cæsar himself remain in his province, if it were not to deliver to the
Roman people complete a work which was already nearly finished? Is he
retained by the agreeableness of the country, by the beauty of the
towns, by the politeness and amenity of the individuals and peoples, by
the lust of victory, by the desire of extending the limits of our
empire? Is there anything more uncultivated than those countries, ruder
than those towns, more ferocious than those peoples, and more admirable
than the multiplicity of Cæsar’s victories? Can he find limits farther
off than the ocean? Would his return to his country offend either the
people who sent him or the Senate which has loaded him with honours?
Would his absence increase the desire we have to see him? Would it not
rather contribute, through lapse of time, to make people forget him, and
to cause the laurels to fade which he had gathered in the midst of the
greatest perils? If, then, there any who love not Cæsar, it is not their
policy to obtain his recall from his province, because that would be to
recall him to glory, to triumph, to the congratulations and supreme
honours of the Senate, to the favour of the equestrian order, to the
affection of the people.”[33]
Thus, after the end of 698, he might have led his army back into Italy,
claimed triumph, and obtained power, without having to seize upon it, as
Sylla, Marius, Cinna, and even Crassus and Pompey, had done.
If Cæsar had accepted the government of Gaul with the sole aim of having
an army devoted to his designs, it must be admitted that so experienced
a general would have taken, to commence a civil war, the simplest of the
measures suggested by prudence: instead of separating himself from his
army, he would have kept it with him, or, at least, brought it near to
Italy, and distributed it in such a manner that he could re-assemble it
quickly; he would have preserved, from the immense booty taken in Gaul,
sums sufficient to supply the expenses of the war. Cæsar, on the
contrary, as we shall see in the sequel, sends first to Pompey, without
hesitation, two legions which are required from him under the pretext of
the expedition against the Parthians. He undertakes to disband his
troops if Pompey will do the same, and he arrives at Ravenna at the head
of a single legion, leaving the others beyond the Alps, distributed from
the Sambre as far as the Saône.[34] He keeps within the limit of his
government without making any preparation which indicates hostile
intentions,[35] wishing, as Hirtius says, to settle the quarrel by
justice rather than by arms.[36] In fact, he has collected so little
money in the military chest, that his soldiers club together to procure
him the sums necessary for his enterprise, and that all voluntarily
renounce their pay.[37] Cæsar offers Pompey an unconditional
reconciliation, and it is only when he sees his advances rejected, and
his adversaries meditating his ruin, that he boldly faces the forces of
the Senate, and passes the Rubicon. It was not, then, the supreme power
which Cæsar went into Gaul to seek, but the pure and elevated glory
which arises from a national war, made in the traditional interest of
the country.
Plan followed in the Relation of the War in Gaul.
IV. In reproducing in the following chapters the relation of the war in
Gaul, we have borne in mind the words of Cicero. “Cæsar,” he says, “has
written memoirs worthy of great praise. Deprived of all oratorical art,
his style, like a handsome body stripped of clothing, presents itself
naked, upright, and graceful. In his desire to furnish materials to
future historians, he has, perhaps, done a thing agreeable to the little
minds who will be tempted to load these natural graces with frivolous
ornaments; but he has for ever deprived men of sense of the desire of
writing, for nothing is more agreeable in history than a correct and
luminous brevity.”[38] Hirtius, on his part, expresses himself in the
following terms: “These memoirs enjoy an approval so general, that Cæsar
has much more taken from others than given to them the power of writing
the history of the events which they recount. We have still more reasons
than all others for admiring it, for others know only how correct and
accurate this book is; we know the facility and rapidity with which it
was composed.”[39]
If we would act upon the advice of these writers, we must digress as
little as possible from the “Commentaries,” but without restricting
ourselves to a literal translation. We have, then, adopted the narrative
of Cæsar, though sometimes changing the order of the matter: we have
abridged passages where there was a prodigality of details, and
developed those which required elucidation. In order to indicate in a
more precise manner the localities which witnessed so many battles, we
have employed the modern names, especially in cases where ancient
geography did not furnish corresponding names.
The investigation of the battle-fields and siege operations has led to
the discovery of visible and certain traces of the Roman entrenchments.
The reader, by comparing the plans of the excavations with the text,
will be convinced of the rigorous accuracy of Cæsar in describing the
countries he passed over, and the works he caused to be executed.
(See Plate I.)
Geographical Description.
I. TRANSALPINE Gaul had for its boundaries the ocean, the Pyrenees, the
Mediterranean, the Alps, and the Rhine. This portion of Europe, so well
marked out by nature, comprised what is now France, nearly the whole of
Switzerland, the Rhine Provinces, Belgium, and the south of Holland. It
had the form of an irregular pentagon, and the country of the Carnutes
(the Orléanais) was considered to be its centre.[40]
An uninterrupted chain of heights divided Gaul, as it divides modern
France, from north to south, into two parts. This line commences at the
Monts Corbières, at the foot of the Eastern Pyrenees, is continued by
the Southern Cévennes and by the mountains of the Vivarais, Lyonnais,
and Beaujolais (called the Northern Cévennes), and declines continually
with the mountains of the Charolais and the Côte-d’Or, until it reaches
the plateau of Langres; after quitting this plateau, it leaves to the
east the Monts Faucilles, which unite it to the Vosges, and, inclining
towards the north-west, it follows, across the mountains of the Meuse,
the western crests of the Argonne and the Ardennes, and terminates, in
decreasing undulations, towards Cape Griz-Nez, in the Pas-de-Calais.
This long and tortuous ridge, more or less interrupted, which may be
called the backbone of the country, is the great line of the watershed.
It separates two slopes. On the eastern slope flow the Rhine and the
Rhone, in opposite directions, the first towards the Northern Sea, the
second towards the Mediterranean; on the western slope rise the Seine,
the Loire, and the Garonne, which go to throw themselves into the ocean.
These rivers flow at the bottom of vast basins, the bounds of which, as
is well known, are indicated by the lines of elevations connecting the
sources of all the tributaries of the principal stream.
The basin of the Rhine is separated from that of the Rhone by the Monts
Faucilles, the southern extremity of the Vosges, called Le trouée de
Belfort, the Jura, the Jorat (the heights which surround the Lake of
Geneva on the north), and the lofty chain of the Helvetic Alps. In its
upper part, it embraces nearly all Switzerland, of which the Rhine forms
the northern boundary, in its course, from east to west, from the Lake
of Constance to Bâle. Near this town the river turns abruptly towards
the north. The basin widens, limited to the east by the mountains which
separate it from the Danube and the Weser; to the west, by the northern
part of the great line of watershed (the mountains of the Meuse, the
Argonne, and the western Ardennes). It is intersected, from Mayence to
Bonn, by chains nearly parallel to the course of the river, which
separate its tributaries. From Bonn to the point where the Rhine divides
into two arms, the basin opens still more; it is flat, and has no
longer a definite boundary. The southern arm bore already, in the time
of Cæsar, the name of Waal (Vahalis), and united with the Meuse[41]
below Nimeguen. To the west of the basin of the Rhine, the Scheldt forms
a secondary basin.
The basin of the Rhone, in which is comprised that of the Saône, is
sharply bounded on the north by the southern extremity of the Vosges and
the Monts Faucilles; on the west, by the plateau of Langres, the
Côte-d’Or, and the Cévennes; on the east, by the Jura, the Jorat, and
the Alps. The Rhone crosses the Valais and the Lake of Geneva, follows
an irregular course as far as Lyons, and runs thence from north to south
to the Mediterranean. Among the most important of its secondary basins,
we may reckon those of the Aude, the Hérault, and the Var.
The three great basins of the western slope are comprised between the
line of watershed of Gaul and the ocean. They are separated from each
other by two chains branching from this line, and running from the
south-east to the north-west. The basin of the Seine, which includes
that of the Somme, is separated from the basin of the Loire by a line of
heights which branches from the Côte-d’Or under the name of the
mountains of the Morvan, and is continued by the very low hills of Le
Perche to the extremity of Normandy. A series of heights, extending from
north to south, from the hills of Le Perche to Nantes, enclose the basin
of the Loire to the west, and leave outside the secondary basins of
Brittany.
The basin of the Loire is separated from that of the Garonne by a long
chain starting from Mont Lozère, comprising the mountains of Auvergne,
those of the Limousin, the hills of Poitou, and the plateau of Gatine,
and ending in flat country towards the coasts of La Vendée.
The basin of the Garonne, situated to the south of that of the Loire,
extends to the Pyrenees. It comprises the secondary basins of the Adour
and the Charente.
The vast country we have thus described is protected on the north, west,
and south by two seas, and by the Pyrenees. On the east, where it is
exposed to invasions, Nature, not satisfied with the defences she had
given it in the Rhine and the Alps, has further retrenched it behind
three groups of interior mountains—first, the Vosges; second, the Jura;
third, the mountains of Forez, the mountains of Auvergne, and the
Cévennes.
The Vosges run parallel to the Rhine, and are like a rampart in the rear
of that river.
The Jura, separated from the Vosges by the Gap (trouée) of Belfort,
rises like a barrier in the interval left between the Rhine and the
Rhone, preventing, as far as Lyons, the waters of this latter river from
uniting with those of the Saône.
The Cévennes and the mountains of Auvergne and Forez form, in the
southern centre of Gaul, a sort of citadel, of which the Rhone might be
considered as the advanced fosse. The ridges of this group of mountains
start from a common centre, take opposite directions, and form the
valleys whence flow, to the north, the Allier and the Loire; to the
west, the Dordogne, the Lot, the Aveyron, and the Tarn; to the south,
the Ardèche, the Gard, and the Hérault.
The valleys, watered by navigable rivers, presented—thanks to the
fruitfulness of their soil and to their easy access—natural ways of
communication, favourable both to commerce and to war. To the north, the
valley of the Meuse; to the east, the valley of the Rhine, conducting to
that of the Saône, and thence to that of the Rhone, were the grand
routes which armies followed to invade the south. Strabo, therefore,
remarks justly that Sequania (Franche-Comté) has always been the road
of the Germanic invasions from Gaul into Italy.[42] From east to west
the principal chain of the watershed might easily be crossed in its less
elevated parts, such as the plateau of Langres and the mountains of
Charolais, which have since furnished a passage to the Central Canal.
Lastly, to penetrate from Italy into Gaul, the great lines of invasion
were the valley of the Rhone and the valley of the Garonne, by which the
mountainous mass of the Cévennes, Auvergne, and Forez is turned.
Gaul presented the same contrast of climates which we observe between
the north and south of France. While the Roman province enjoyed a mild
temperature and an extreme fertility,[43] the central and northern part
was covered with vast forests, which rendered the climate colder than it
is at present;[44] yet the centre produced in abundance wheat, rye,
millet, and barley.[45] The greatest of all these forests was that of
the Ardennes. It extended, beginning from the Rhine, over a space of two
hundred miles, on one side to the frontier of the Remi, crossing the
country of the Treviri; and, on another side, to the Scheldt, across the
country of the Nervii.[46] The “Commentaries” speak also of forests
existing among the Carnutes,[47] in the neighbourhood of the Saône,[48]
among the Menapii[49] and the Morini,[50] and among the Eburones.[51] In
the north the breeding of cattle was the principal occupation,[52] and
the pastures of Belgic Gaul produced a race of excellent horses.[53] In
the centre and in the south the richness of the soil was augmented by
productive mines of gold, silver, copper, iron, and lead.[54]
The country was, without any doubt, intersected by carriage roads, since
the Gauls possessed a great number of all sorts of wagons,[55] since
there still remain traces of Celtic roads, and since Cæsar makes known
the existence of bridges on the Aisne,[56] the Rhone,[57] the Loire,[58]
the Allier,[59] and the Seine.[60]
It is difficult to ascertain exactly the number of the population; yet
we may presume, from the contingents furnished by the different states,
that it amounted to more than seven millions of souls.[61]
Political Divisions.
II. Gaul, according to Cæsar, was divided into three great regions,
distinct by language, manners, and laws: to the north, Belgic Gaul,
between the Seine, the Marne, and the Rhine; in the centre, Celtic Gaul,
between the Garonne and the Seine, extending from the ocean to the Alps,
and comprising Helvetia; to the south, Aquitaine, between the Garonne
and the Pyrenees.[62] (See Plate 2.) We must, nevertheless, comprise
in Gaul the Roman province, or the Narbonnese, which began at Geneva, on
the left bank of the Rhone, and extended in the south as far as
Toulouse. It answered, as nearly as possible, to the limits of the
countries known in modern times as Savoy, Dauphiné, Provence, Lower
Languedoc, and Roussillon. The populations who inhabited it were of
different origins: there were found there Aquitanians, Belgæ, Ligures,
Celts, who had all long undergone the influence of Greek civilisation,
and especially establishments founded by the Phocæans on the coasts of
the Mediterranean.[63]
These three great regions were subdivided into many states, called
civitates—an expression which, in the “Commentaries,” is synonymous
with nations[64]—that is, each of these states had its organisation
and its own government. Among the peoples mentioned by Cæsar, we may
reckon twenty-seven in Belgic Gaul, forty-three in Celtic, and twelve in
Aquitaine: in all, eighty-two in Gaul proper, and seven in the
Narbonnese. Other authors, admitting, no doubt, smaller subdivisions,
carry this number to three or four hundred;[65] but it appears that
under Tiberius there were only sixty-four states in Gaul.[66] Perhaps,
in this number, they reckoned only the sovereign, and not the dependent,
states.
1. Belgic Gaul. The Belgæ were considered more warlike than the other
Gauls,[67] because, strangers to the civilisation of the Roman province
and hostile to commerce, they had not experienced the effeminating
influence of luxury. Proud of having escaped the Gaulish enervation,
they claimed with arrogance an origin which united them with the Germans
their neighbours, with whom, nevertheless, they were continually at
war.[68] They boasted of having defended their territory against the
Cimbri and the Teutones, at the time of the invasion of Gaul. The memory
of the lofty deeds of their ancestors inspired them with a great
confidence in themselves, and excited their warlike spirit.[69]
The most powerful nations among the Belgæ were the Bellovaci,[70] who
could arm a hundred thousand men, and whose territory extended to the
sea,[71] the Nervii, the Remi, and the Treviri.
2. Celtic Gaul.[72] The central part of Gaul, designated by the Greek
writers under the name of Celtica, and the inhabitants of which
constituted in the eyes of the Romans the Gauls properly so named
(Galli), was the most extensive and most populous. Among the most
important nations of Celtic Gaul were reckoned the Arverni, the Ædui,
the Sequani, and the Helvetii. Tacitus informs us that the Helvetii had
once occupied a part of Germany.[73]
These three first peoples often disputed the supremacy of Gaul. As to
the Helvetii, proud of their independence, they acknowledged no
authority superior to their own. In the centre and south of Celtic Gaul
dwelt peoples who had also a certain importance. On the west and
north-west were various maritime populations designated under the
generic name of Armoricans, an epithet which had, in the Celtic
tongue, the meaning of maritime. Small Alpine tribes inhabited the
valleys of the upper course of the Rhone, at the eastern extremity of
Lake Lémon, a country which now forms the Valais.
3. Aquitaine.[74] Aquitaine commenced on the left bank of the
Garonne: it was inhabited by several small tribes, and contained none of
those agglomerations which were found among the Celts and the Belgæ. The
Aquitanians, who had originally occupied a vast territory to the north
of the Pyrenees, having been pushed backward by the Celts, had but a
rather limited portion of it in the time of Cæsar.
The three regions which composed Gaul were not only, as already stated,
divided into a great number of states, but each state (civitas) was
farther subdivided into pagi,[75] representing, perhaps, the same
thing as the tribe among the Arabs. The proof of the distinct character
of these agglomerations is found in the fact that in the army each of
them had its separate place, under the command of its own chieftains.
The smallest subdivision was called vicus.[76] Such, at least, are the
denominations employed in the “Commentaries,” but which were certainly
not those of the Celtic language. In each state there existed principal
towns, called indifferently by Cæsar urbs or oppidum;[77] yet this
last name was given by preference to considerable towns, difficult of
access and carefully fortified, placed on heights or surrounded by
marshes.[78] It was to these oppida that, in case of attack, the Gauls
transported their grain, their provisions, and their riches.[79] Their
habitations, established often in the forests or on the bank of a river,
were constructed of wood, and tolerably spacious.[80]
Manners.
III. The Gauls were tall in stature, their skin was white, their eyes
blue, their hair fair or chestnut, which they dyed, in order to make the
colour more brilliant.[81] They let their beard grow; the nobles alone
shaved, and preserved long moustaches.[82] Trousers or breeches, very
wide among the Belgæ, but narrower among the southern Gauls, and a
shirt with sleeves, descending to the middle of the thighs, composed
their principal dress.[83] They were clothed with a mantle or
saie,[84] magnificently embroidered with gold or silver among the
rich,[85] and held about the neck by means of a metal brooch. The lowest
classes of the people used instead an animal’s skin. The Aquitanians
covered themselves, probably according to the Iberic custom, with cloth
of coarse wool unshorn.[86]
The Gauls wore collars, earrings, bracelets, and rings for the arms, of
gold or copper, according to their rank; necklaces of amber, and rings,
which they placed on the third finger.[87]
They were naturally agriculturists, and we may suppose that the
institution of private property existed among them, because, on the one
hand, all the citizens paid the tax, except the Druids,[88] and, on the
other, the latter were judges of questions of boundaries.[89] They were
not unacquainted with certain manufactures. In some countries they
fabricated serges, which were in great repute, and cloths or felts;[90]
in others they worked the mines with skill, and employed themselves in
the fabrication of metals. The Bituriges worked in iron, and were
acquainted with the art of tinning.[91] The artificers of Alesia plated
copper with leaf-silver, to ornament horses’ bits and trappings.[92]
The Gauls fed especially on the flesh of swine, and their ordinary
drinks were milk, ale, and mead.[93] They were reproached with being
inclined to drunkenness.[94]
They were frank and open in temper, and hospitable toward strangers,[95]
but vain and quarrelsome;[96] fickle in their sentiments, and fond of
novelties, they took sudden resolutions, regretting one day what they
had rejected with disdain the day before;[97] inclined to war and eager
for adventures, they showed themselves hot in the attack, but quickly
discouraged in defeat.[98] Their language was very concise and
figurative;[99] in writing, they employed Greek letters.
The men were not exempt from a shameful vice, which we might have
believed less common in this county than among the peoples of the
East.[100] The women united an extraordinary beauty with remarkable
courage and great physical force.[101]
The Gauls, according to the tradition preserved by the Druids, boasted
of being descended from the god of the earth, or from Pluto (Dis),
according to the expression of Cæsar.[102] It was for this reason that
they took night for their starting-point in all their divisions of time.
Among their other customs, they had one which was singular: they
considered it as a thing unbecoming to appear in public with their
children, until the latter had reached the age for carrying arms.[103]
When he married, the man took from his fortune a part equal to the dowry
of the wife. This sum, placed as a common fund, was allowed to
accumulate with interest, and the whole reverted to the survivor. The
husband had the right of life and death over his wife and children.[104]
When the decease of a man of wealth excited any suspicion, his wives, as
well as his slaves, were put to the torture, and burnt if they were
found guilty.
The extravagance of their funerals presented a contrast to the
simplicity of their life. All that the defunct had cherished during his
life, was thrown into the flames after his death; and even, before the
Roman conquest, they joined with it his favourite slaves and
clients.[105]
In the time of Cæsar, the greater part of the peoples of Gaul were armed
with long iron swords, two-edged (σπἁθη), sheathed in
scabbards similarly of iron, suspended to the side by chains. These
swords were generally made to strike with the edge rather than to
stab.[106] The Gauls had also spears, the iron of which, very long and
very broad, presented sometimes an undulated form (materis,
σαὑνιον).[107] They also made use of light javelins without
amentum,[108] of the bow, and of the sling. Their helmets were of
metal, more or less precious, ornamented with the horns of animals, and
with a crest representing some figures of birds or savage beasts, the
whole surmounted by a high and bushy tuft of feathers.[109] They carried
a great buckler, a breastplate of iron or bronze, or a coat of mail—the
latter a Gaulish invention.[110] The Leuci and the Remi were celebrated
for throwing the javelin.[111] The Lingones had party-coloured
breastplates.[112] The Gaulish cavalry was superior to the
infantry;[113] it was composed of the nobles, followed by their
clients;[114] yet the Aquitanians, celebrated for their agility, enjoyed
a certain reputation as good infantry.[115] In general, the Gauls were
very ready at imitating the tactics of their enemies.[116] The habit of
working mines gave them a remarkable dexterity in all underground
operations, applicable to the attack and defence of fortified
posts.[117] Their armies dragged after them a multitude of wagons and
baggage, even in the less important expeditions.[118]
Although they had reached, especially in the south of Gaul, a tolerably
advanced degree of civilisation, they preserved very barbarous customs:
they killed their prisoners. “When their army is ranged in battle,” says
Diodorus, “some of them are often seen advancing from the ranks to
challenge the bravest of their enemies to single combat. If their
challenge is accepted, they chaunt a war-song, in which they boast of
the great deeds of their forefathers, exalting their own valour and
insulting their adversary. After the victory, they cut off their enemy’s
head, hang it to their horse’s neck, and carry it off with songs of
triumph. They keep these hideous trophies in their house, and the
highest nobles preserve them with great care, bathed with oil of cedar,
in coffers, which they show with pride to their guests.”[119]
When a great danger threatened the country, the chiefs convoked an armed
council, to which the men were bound to repair, at the place and day
indicated, to deliberate. The law required that the man who arrived last
should be massacred without pity before the eyes of the assembly. As a
means of intercommunication, men were placed at certain intervals
through the country, and these, repeating the cry from one to another,
transmitted rapidly news of importance to great distances. They often,
also, stopped travellers on the roads, and compelled them to answer
their questions.[120]
The Gauls were very superstitious.[121] Persuaded that in the eyes of
the gods the life of a man can only be redeemed by that of his fellow,
they made a vow, in diseases and dangers, to immolate human beings by
the ministry of the Druids. These sacrifices had even a public
character.[122] They sometimes constructed human figures of osier of
colossal magnitude, which they filled with living men; to these they set
fire, and the victims perished in the flames. These victims were
generally taken from among the criminals, as being more agreeable to
the gods; but if there were no criminals to be had, the innocent
themselves were sacrificed.
Cæsar, who, according to the custom of his countrymen, gave to the
divinities of foreign peoples the names of those of Rome, tells us that
the Gauls honoured Mercury above all others. They raised statues to him,
regarded him as the inventor of the arts, the guide of travellers, and
the protector of commerce.[123] They also offered worship to divinities
which the “Commentaries” assimilate to Apollo, Mars, Jupiter, and
Minerva, without informing us of their Celtic names. From Lucan,[124] we
learn the names of three Gaulish divinities, Teutates (in whom, no
doubt, we must recognise the Mercury of the “Commentaries”), Hesus or
Esus, and Taranis. Cæsar makes the remark that the Gauls had pretty much
the same ideas with regard to their gods as other nations. Apollo cured
the sick, Minerva taught the elements of the arts, Jupiter was the
master of heaven, Mars the arbiter of war. Often, before fighting, they
made a vow to consecrate to this god the spoils of the enemy, and, after
the victory, they put to death all their prisoners. The rest of the
booty was piled up in the consecrated places, and nobody would be so
impious as to take anything away from it. The Gauls rendered also, as we
learn from inscriptions and passages in different authors, worship to
rivers, fountains, trees, and forests: they adored the Rhine as a god,
and made a goddess of the Ardenne.[125]
Institutions
IV. There were in Gaul, says Cæsar, only two classes who enjoyed public
consideration and honours,[126] the Druids and the knights. As to the
people, deprived of all rights, oppressed with debts, crushed with
taxes, exposed to the violences of the great, their condition was little
better than that of slaves. The Druids, ministers of religion, presided
over the sacrifices, and preserved the deposit of religious doctrines.
The youth, greedy of instruction, pressed around them. The dispensers of
rewards and punishments, they were the judges of almost all disputes,
public or private. To private individuals, or even to magistrates, who
rebelled against their decisions, they interdicted the sacrifices, a
sort of excommunication which sequestrated from society those who were
struck by it, placed them in the rank of criminals, removed them from
all honours, and deprived them even of the protection of the law. The
Druids had a single head, and the power of this head was absolute. At
his death, the next in dignity succeeded him; if there were several with
equal titles, these priests had recourse to election, and sometimes even
to a decision by force of arms. They assembled every year in the country
of the Carnutes, in a consecrated place, there to judge disputes. Their
doctrine, it was said, came from the isle of Britain, where, in the time
of Cæsar, they still went to draw it as at its source.[127]
The Druids were exempt from military service and from taxes.[128] These
privileges drew many disciples, whose novitiate, which lasted sometimes
twenty years, consisted in learning by heart a great number of verses
containing their religious precepts. It was forbidden to transcribe
them. This custom had the double object of preventing the divulgation of
their doctrine and of exercising the memory. Their principal dogma was
the immortality of the soul and its transmigration into other bodies. A
belief which banished the fear of death appeared to them fitted to
excite courage. They explained also the movement of the planets, the
greatness of the universe, the laws of nature, and the omnipotence of
the immortal gods. “We may conceive,” says the eminent author of the
Histoire des Gaulois, “what despotism must have been exercised over a
superstitious nation by this caste of men, depositaries of all
knowledge, authors and interpreters of all law, divine or human,
remunerators, judges, and executioners.”[129]
The knights, when required by the necessities of war, and that happened
almost yearly, were all bound to take up arms. Each, according to his
birth and fortune, was accompanied by a greater or less number of
attendants or clients. Those who were called ambacti[130] performed in
war the part of esquires.[131] In Aquitaine, these followers were named
soldures; they shared the good as well as the evil fortune of the
chief to whom they were attached, and, when he died, not one of them
would survive him. Their number was considerable: we shall see a king of
the Sotiates possess no less than six hundred of them.[132]
The states were governed either by an assembly, which the Romans called
a senate, or by a supreme magistrate, annual or for life, bearing the
title of king,[133] prince,[134] or vergobret.[135]
The different tribes formed alliances among themselves, either permanent
or occasional; the permanent alliances were founded, some on a community
of territorial interests,[136] others on affinities of races,[137] or on
treaties,[138] or, lastly, on the right of patronage.[139] The
occasional alliances were the results of the necessity of union against
a common danger.[140]
In Gaul, not only each state and each tribe (pagus), but even each
family, was divided into two parties (factiones); at the head of these
parties were chiefs, taken from among the most considerable and
influential of the knights. Cæsar calls them principes.[141] All those
who accepted their supremacy became their clients; and, although the
principes did not exercise a regular magistracy, their authority was
very extensive. This organisation had existed from a remote antiquity;
its object was to offer to each man of the people a protection against
the great, since each was thus placed under the patronage of a chief,
whose duty it was to take his cause in hand, and who would have lost all
credit if he had allowed one of his clients to be oppressed.[142] We see
in the “Commentaries” that this class of the principes enjoyed very
great influence. On their decisions depended all important
resolutions;[143] and their meeting formed the assembly of the whole of
Gaul (concilium totius Galliæ).[144] In it everything was decided by
majority of votes.[145]
Affairs of the state were allowed to be treated only in these
assemblies. It appertained to the magistrates alone to publish or
conceal events, according as they judged expedient; and it was a sacred
duty for any one who learnt, either from without or from public rumour,
any news which concerned the civitas, to give information of it to the
magistrate, without revealing it to any other person. This measure had
for its object to prevent rash or ignorant men from being led into error
by false reports, and from rushing, under this first impression, into
extravagant resolutions.
In the same manner as each state was divided into two rival factions, so
was the whole of Gaul (with the exception of Belgic Gaul and Helvetia)
divided into two great parties,[146] which exercised over the others a
sort of sovereignty (principatus);[147] and when, in extraordinary
circumstances, the whole of Gaul acknowledged the pre-eminence of one
particular state, the chief of the privileged state took the name of
princeps totius Galliæ, as had been the case with the Arvernan
Celtillus, the father of Vercingetorix.[148]
This supremacy, nevertheless, was not permanent; it passed from one
nation to another, and was the object of continual ambitions and
sanguinary conflicts. The Druids, it is true, had succeeded in
establishing a religious centre, but there existed no political centre.
In spite of certain federative ties, each state had been more engaged in
the consideration of its own individuality than in that of the country
in general. This egoistic carelessness of their collective interests,
this jealous rivality among the different tribes, paralysed the efforts
of a few eminent men who were desirous of founding a nationality, and
the Gauls soon furnished the enemy with an easy means of dividing and
combating them. The Emperor Napoleon I. was thus right in saying: “The
principal cause of the weakness of Gaul was the spirit of isolation and
locality which characterised the population; at this epoch the Gauls had
no national spirit or even provincial spirit; they were governed by a
spirit of town. It is the same spirit which has since forged chains for
Italy. Nothing is more opposed to national spirit, to general ideas of
liberty, than the particular spirit of family or of town. From this
parcelling it resulted that the Gauls had no army of the line kept up
and exercised; and therefore no art and no military science. Every
nation which should lose sight of the importance of an army of the line
perpetually on foot, and which should trust to levies or national
armies, would experience the fate of the Gauls, without even having the
glory of opposing the same resistance, which was the effect of the
barbarism of the time and of the ground, covered with forests, marshes,
and bogs, and without roads, which rendered it difficult to conquer and
easy to defend.”[149] Before Cæsar came into Gaul, the Ædui and the
Arverni were at the head of the two contending parties, each labouring
to carry the day against his rival. Soon these latter united with the
Sequani, who, jealous of the superiority of the Ædui, the allies of the
Roman people, invoked the support of Ariovistus and the Germans. By dint
of sacrifices and promises, they had succeeded in bringing them into
their territory. With this aid the Sequani had gained the victory in
several combats.[150] The Ædui had lost their nobility, a part of their
territory, nearly all their clients, and, after giving up as hostages
their children and their chiefs, they had bound themselves by oath never
to attack the Sequani, who had at length obtained the supremacy of all
Gaul. It was under these circumstances that Divitiacus had gone to Rome
to implore the succour of the Republic, but he had failed;[151] the
Senate was too much engaged with intestine quarrels to assume an
energetic attitude towards the Germans. The arrival of Cæsar was
destined to change the face of things, and restore to the allies of Rome
their old preponderance.[152]
Projects of Invasion by the Helvetii.
I. CÆSAR, as we have seen, had received from the Senate and people a
command which comprised the two Gauls (Transalpine and Cisalpine) and
Illyria.[153] Yet the agitation which continued to reign in the Republic
was retaining him at the gates of Rome, when suddenly, towards the
spring of 696, news came that the Helvetii, returning to their old
design, were preparing to invade the Roman province. This intelligence
caused a great sensation.
The Helvetii, proud of their former exploits, confident in their
strength, and incommoded by excess of population, felt humiliated at
living in a country the limits of which had been made narrow by nature,
and for some years they meditated quitting it to repair into the south
of Gaul.
As early as 693, an ambitious chieftain, Orgetorix, found no difficulty
in inspiring them with the desire to seek elsewhere a more fertile
territory and a milder climate. They resolved to go and establish
themselves in the country of the Santones (the Saintonge), situated on
the shores of the ocean, to the north of the Gironde. Two years were to
be employed in preparations, and, by a solemn engagement, the departure
was fixed for the third year. But Orgetorix, sent to the neighbouring
peoples to contract alliances, conspired with two influential
personages—one of the country of the Sequani, the other of that of the
Ædui. He induced them to undertake to seize the supreme power, promised
them the assistance of the Helvetii, and persuaded them that those three
powerful nations, leagued together, would easily subjugate the whole of
Gaul. This conspiracy failed, through the death of Orgetorix, accused in
his own country of a design to usurp the sovereignty. The Helvetii
persisted, nevertheless, in their project of emigration. They collected
the greatest possible number of wagons and beasts of burden; and, in
order to destroy all idea of returning, they burnt their twelve towns,
their four hundred hamlets, and all the wheat they could not carry with
them. Each furnished himself with meal[154] for three months; and after
persuading their neighbours, the Rauraci,[155] the Tulingi, and the
Latobriges,[156] to imitate their example and follow them, and having
drawn to them those of the Boii who had moved from Noricum to the
neighbourhood of the Rhine, they fixed the rendezvous on the banks of
the Rhone for the 5th of the Calends of April (the 24th of March, the
day of the equinox).[157]
There were only two roads by which they could leave Helvetia; one
crossed the country of the Sequani, the entrance to which was defended
by a narrow and difficult defile, situated between the Rhone and the
Jura (the Pas-de-l’Ecluse), and where the wagons could with difficulty
pass one at a time. As this defile was commanded by a very lofty
mountain, a handful of men was sufficient to prevent the access. The
other road, less contracted and more easy, crossed the Roman province,
after having passed the Rhone, which separated the Allobroges from the
Helvetii, from Lake Léman to the Jura. Within this distance the river
was fordable in several places.[158] At Geneva, the extreme limit of the
territory of the Allobroges towards Helvetia, a bridge established a
communication between the two countries. The Helvetii decided on taking
the most convenient road; they reckoned, moreover, on the co-operation
of this neighbouring people, who, but recently subjugated, could have
but doubtful sympathies for the Romans.[159]
Cæsar’s Arrival at Geneva.
II. Cæsar, learning that the Helvetii intended to pass through the Roman
province, left Rome hastily in the month of March, hurried by forced
marches into Transalpine Gaul, and, according to Plutarch, reached
Geneva in eight days.[160] As he had in the province only a single
legion, he ordered a levy of as many men as possible, and then destroyed
the bridge of Geneva. Informed of his arrival, the Helvetii, who were
probably not yet all assembled, sent their men of noblest rank to demand
a passage through the country of the Allobroges, promising to commit no
injury there; they had, they said, no other road to quit their country.
Cæsar was inclined to refuse their demand at once, but he called to mind
the defeat and death of the Consul L. Cassius; and wishing to obtain
time to collect the troops of which he had ordered the levy, he gave
them hopes of a favourable reply, and adjourned it to the Ides of April
(8th of April). By this delay he gained a fortnight; it was employed in
fortifying the left bank of the Rhone, between Lake Léman and the
Jura.[161] If we estimate at 5,000 men the legion which was in the
province, and at 5,000 or 6,000 the number of soldiers of the new
levies, we see that Cæsar had at his disposal, to defend the banks of
the Rhone, about 10,000 or 11,000 infantry.[162]
Description of the Retrenchment of the Rhone.
III. The distance from Lake Léman to the Jura, following the
sinuosities of the river, is 29½ kilomètres, or 19,000 Roman paces
(millia passuum decem novem).[163] It is on the space comprised
between these two points that a retrenchment was raised which is called
in the “Commentaries” murus fossaque. This could not be a continuous
work, as the ground to be defended is intersected by rivers and ravines,
and the banks of the Rhone are almost everywhere so precipitous that it
would have been useless to fortify them. Cæsar, pressed for time, can
only have made retrenchments on the weakest points of the line where the
passage of the river was easy; indeed, this is what Dio Cassius tells
us.[164] The labours of the Romans were only supplementary, on certain
points, to the formidable natural obstacles which the Rhone presents in
the greater part of its course. The only places where an attempt could
be made to pass it, because the heights there sink towards the banks of
the river into practicable declivities, are situated opposite the modern
villages of Russin, Cartigny, Avully, Chancy, and Cologny. In these
places they cut the upper part of the slope into a perpendicular, and
afterwards hollowed a trench, the scarp of which thus gained an
elevation of sixteen feet. These works, by uniting the escarpments of
the Rhone, formed, from Geneva to the Jura, a continuous line, which
presented an impassable barrier. Behind and along this line, at certain
distances, posts and closed redoubts rendered it impregnable. (See
Plate 3.)[165]
This retrenchment, which required only from two to three days’ labour,
was completed when the deputies returned, at the time appointed, to hear
Cæsar’s reply. He flatly refused the passage, declaring that he would
oppose it with all his means.
Meanwhile the Helvetii, and the people who took part in their
enterprise, had assembled on the right bank of the Rhone. When they
learnt that they must renounce the hope of quitting their country
without opposition, they resolved to open themselves a passage by
force. Several times—sometimes by day, and sometimes by night—they
crossed the Rhone, some by fording, others with the aid of boats joined
together, or of a great number of rafts of timber, and attempted to
carry the heights, but, arrested by the strength of the retrenchment
(operis munitione), and by the efforts and missiles of the soldiers
who hastened to the threatened points (concursu et telis), they
abandoned the attack.[166]
The Helvetii begin their March towards the Saône. Cæsar
unites his Troops.
IV. The only road which now remained was that which lay across the
country of the Sequani (the Pas-de-l’Ecluse); but this narrow defile
could not be passed without the consent of its inhabitants. The Helvetii
charged the Æduan Dumnorix, the son-in-law of Orgetorix, to solicit it
for them. High in credit among the Sequani, Dumnorix obtained it; and
the two peoples entered into an engagement, one to leave the passage
free, the other to commit no disorder; and, as pledges of their
convention, they exchanged hostages.[167]
When Cæsar learned that the Helvetii were preparing to pass through the
lands of the Sequani and the Ædui on their way to the Santones, he
resolved to oppose them, unwilling to suffer the establishment of
warlike and hostile men in a fertile and open country, neighbouring upon
that of the Tolosates, which made part of the Roman province.[168]
But, as he had not at hand sufficient forces, he resolved on uniting all
the troops he could dispose of in his vast command. He entrusts,
therefore, the care of the retrenchments on the Rhone to his lieutenant
T. Labienus, hastens into Italy by forced marches, raises there in great
haste two legions (the 11th and 12th), brings from Aquileia, a town of
Illyria,[169] the three legions which were there in winter quarters (the
7th, 8th, and 9th), and, at the head of his army, takes across the Alps
(see Plate 4) the shortest road to Transalpine Gaul.[170] The
Centrones, the Graioceli, and the Caturiges (see page 24, note),
posted on the heights,[171] attempt to bar his road; but he overthrows
them in several engagements, and from Ocelum (Usseau),[172] the
extreme point of the Cisalpine, reaches in seven days the territory of
the Vocontii, making thus about twenty-five kilomètres a day. He next
penetrates into the country of the Allobroges, then into that of the
Segusiavi, who bordered on the Roman province beyond the Rhone.[173]
These operations took two months;[174] the same time had been employed
by the Helvetii in negotiating the conditions of their passage through
the country of the Sequani, moving from the Rhone to the Saône, and
beginning to pass the latter river. They had passed the Pas-de-l’Ecluse,
followed the right bank of the Rhone as far as Culoz, then turned to the
east through Virieu-le-Grand, Tenay, and Saint-Rambert, and, thence
crossing the plains of Ambérieux, the river Ain, and the vast plateau of
the Dombes, they had arrived at the Saône, the left bank of which they
occupied from Trévoux to Villefranche. (See Plate 4.) The slowness of
their march need not surprise us if we consider that an agglomeration of
368,000 individuals, men, women, and children, dragging after them from
8,000 to 9,000 wagons, through a defile where carriages could only pass
one abreast, would necessarily employ several weeks in passing it.[175]
Cæsar, no doubt, calculated beforehand, with sufficient accuracy, the
time it would take them to gain the banks of the Saône; and we may
therefore suppose that, at the moment when he repaired into Italy, he
hoped to bring thence his army in time to prevent them from passing that
river.
He established his camp near the confluence of the Rhone and the Saône,
on the heights which command Sathonay; thence he could equally
manœuvre on the two banks of the Saône, take the Helvetii in flank as
they marched towards that river, or prevent them, if they crossed it,
from entering into the Roman province by the valley of the Rhone. It was
probably at this point that Labienus joined him with the troops which
had been left with him, and which raised to six the number of his
legions. His cavalry, composed principally of Ædui and men raised in the
Roman province, amounted to 4,000 men. During this time the Helvetii
were ravaging the lands of the Ambarri, those of the Ædui, and those
which the Allobroges possessed on the right bank of the Rhone. These
peoples implored the succour of Cæsar. He was quite disposed to listen
to their prayers.[176]
Defeat of the Helvetii on the Saône.
V. The Saône, which crossed the countries of the Ædui and the
Sequani,[177] flowed, then as now, in certain places with an extreme
sluggishness. Cæsar says that people could not distinguish the direction
of the current. The Helvetii, who had not learned to make bridges,
crossed the river, between Trévoux and Villefranche, on rafts and boats
joined together. As soon as the Roman general had ascertained by his
scouts that three-quarters of the barbarians were on the other side of
the river, and the others were still on his side, he left his camp
towards midnight (de tertia vigilia) (see note 1 on page 69) with
three legions, came upon those of the Helvetii who were still on the
left bank, to the north of Trévoux, in the valley of the Formans,
towards six o’clock in the morning, after a march of eighteen
kilomètres, attacked them by surprise in the midst of the confusion of
passing the river, and slew a great number. Those who could escape
dispersed, and concealed themselves in the neighbouring forests. This
disaster fell upon the Tigurini (the inhabitants of the Cantons of
Vaud, Friburg, and a part of the Canton of Berne), one of the four
tribes of which the nation of the Helvetii was composed, the same which,
in an expedition out of Helvetia, had formerly slain the Consul L.
Cassius, and made his army pass under the yoke.[178]
After this combat, Cæsar, in order to pursue the other part of the
enemy’s army, and prevent its marching towards the south, threw a bridge
across the Saône, and transported his troops to the right bank. The
barques which followed him for the conveyance of provisions would
necessarily facilitate this operation. It is probable that a detachment
established in the defiles on the right bank of the Saône, at the spot
where Lyons now stands, intercepted the road which would have conducted
the Helvetii towards the Roman province. As to the three legions which
remained in the camp of Sathonay, they soon rejoined Cæsar. The
Helvetii, struck by his sudden approach, and by the rapidity with which
he had effected, in one single day, a passage which had cost them twenty
days’ labour, sent him a deputation, the chief of which, old Divico, had
commanded in the wars against Cassius. In language full of boast and
threatening, Divico reminded Cæsar of the humiliation inflicted formerly
on the Roman arms. The proconsul replied that he was not forgetful of
old affronts, but that recent injuries were sufficient motives for his
conduct. Nevertheless, he offered peace, on condition that they should
give him hostages. “The Helvetii,” replied Divico, “have learned from
their ancestors to receive, but not to give, hostages; the Romans ought
to know that.” This proud reply closed the interview.
Nevertheless, the Helvetii appear to have been desirous of avoiding
battle, for next day they raised their camp, and, cut off from the
possibility of following the course of the Saône to proceed towards the
south, they took the easiest way to reach the country of the Santones,
by directing their march towards the sources of the Dheune and the
Bourbince. (See Plate 4.) This broken country, moreover, permitted
them to resist the Romans with advantage. They followed across the
mountains of Charolais the Gaulish road, on the trace of which was, no
doubt, subsequently constructed the Roman way from Lyons to Autun,
vestiges of which still exist; the latter followed the course of the
Saône as far as Belleville, where it parted from it abruptly, crossing
over the Col d’Avenas, proceeding through the valley of the Grosne to
Cluny, and continuing by Saint-Vallier to Autun. At Saint-Vallier they
would quit this road, and march towards the Loire to pass it at
Decize.[179]
Cæsar followed the Helvetii, and sent before him all his cavalry to
watch their march. These, too eager in the pursuit, came to blows with
the enemy’s cavalry in a position of disadvantage, and experienced some
loss. Proud of having repulsed 4,000 men with 500 horsemen, the Helvetii
became sufficiently emboldened to venture sometimes to harass the Roman
army. But Cæsar avoided engaging his troops; he was satisfied with
following, day by day, the enemies at a distance of five or six miles at
most (about eight kilomètres), opposing the devastations they committed
on their passage, and waiting a favourable occasion to inflict a defeat
upon them.
The two armies continued their march extremely slowly, and the days
passed without offering the desired opportunity. Meanwhile, the
provisionment of the Roman army began to inspire serious uneasiness;
wheat arrived no longer by the Saône, for Cæsar had been obliged to move
from it in order to keep up with the Helvetii. On another hand, the Ædui
delayed, under vain pretexts, sending the grain which they had promised.
The harvest, too, was not yet ripe, and even forage failed. As the day
for distribution approached, Cæsar convoked the Æduan chiefs, who were
numerous in his camp, and overwhelmed them with reproaches. One of them,
Liscus, occupied in his country the supreme magistracy, under the name
of vergobret; he denounced Dumnorix, the brother of Divitiacus, as
opposing the sending of provisions; it was the same Dumnorix who had
heretofore secretly negotiated the passage of the Helvetii across the
country of the Sequani, and who, placed at the head of the Æduan
contingent, had, in the last combat, by retreating with his men, led to
the flight of the whole body of the cavalry. Cæsar sent for Divitiacus,
a man devoted to the Roman people, and revealed to him the culpable
conduct of his brother, which merited an exemplary punishment.
Divitiacus expressed the same opinion, but, in tears, implored the
pardon of Dumnorix. Cæsar granted it to him, and contented himself with
placing him under surveillance. It was, indeed, good policy not to
alienate the Æduan people by any excessive severity against a man of
power among them.
The Helvetii, after advancing northward as far as Saint-Vallier, had
turned to the west to reach the valley of the Loire. Arrived near
Issy-l’Evêque, they encamped on the banks of a tributary of the Somme,
at the foot of Mount Tauffrin, eight miles from the Roman army. Informed
of this circumstance, Cæsar judged that the moment had arrived for
attacking them by surprise, and sent to reconnoitre by what circuits the
heights might be reached. He learnt that the access was easy, and
ordered Labienus to gain, with two legions, the summit of the mountain
by bye-roads, without giving alarm to the enemy, and to wait till he
himself, marching at the head of the four other legions, by the same
road as the Helvetii, should appear near their camp; then both were to
attack them at the same time. Labienus started at midnight, taking for
guides the men who had just explored the roads. Cæsar, on his part,
began his march at two o’clock in the morning (de quarta
vigilia),[180] preceded by his cavalry. At the head of his scouts was
P. Considius, whose former services under L. Sylla, and subsequently
under M. Crassus, pointed him out as an experienced soldier.
At break of day Labienus occupied the heights, and Cæsar was no more
than 1,500 paces from the camp of the barbarians; the latter suspected
neither his approach nor that of his lieutenant. Suddenly Considius
arrived at full gallop to announce that the mountain of which Labienus
was to take possession was in the power of the Helvetii; he had
recognised them, he said, by their arms and their military ensigns. At
this news, Cæsar, fearing that he was not in sufficient force against
their whole army, with only four legions, chose a strong position on a
neighbouring hill, and drew up his men in order of battle. Labienus,
whose orders were not to engage in battle till he saw the troops of
Cæsar near the enemy’s camp, remained immovable, watching for him. It
was broad daylight when Cæsar learnt that his troops had made themselves
masters of the mountain, and that the Helvetii had left their camp. They
escaped him thus, through the false report of Considius, who had been
blinded by a groundless terror.
Admitting that the Helvetii had passed near Issy-l’Evêque, Mount
Tauffrin, which rises at a distance of four kilomètres to the west of
that village, answers to the conditions of the text. There is nothing to
contradict the notion that Labienus and Cæsar may have, one occupied the
summit, the other approached the enemy’s camp within 1,500 paces,
without being perceived; and the neighbouring ground presents heights
which permitted the Roman army to form in order of battle.[181]
Defeat of the Helvetii near Bibracte.
VI. That day the Helvetii continued their advance to Remilly, on the
Alène. Since the passage of the Saône, they had marched about a
fortnight, making an average of not more than eleven or twelve
kilomètres a day.[182] According to our reckoning, it must have been the
end of the month of June. Cæsar followed the Helvetii at the usual
distance, and established his camp at three miles’ distance from theirs,
on the Cressonne, near Ternant.
Next day, as the Roman army had provisions left for no more than two
days,[183] and as, moreover, Bibracte (Mont Beuvray),[184] the
greatest and richest town of the Ædui, was not more than eighteen miles
(twenty-seven kilomètres) distant, Cæsar, to provision his army, turned
from the road which the Helvetii were following, and took that to
Bibracte. (See Plate 4.) The enemy was informed of this circumstance
by some deserters from the troop of L. Emilius, decurion[185] of the
auxiliary cavalry. Believing that the Romans were going from them
through fear, and hoping to cut them off from their provisions, they
turned back, and began to harass the rear-guard.
Cæsar immediately led his troops to a neighbouring hill—that which
rises between the two villages called the Grand-Marié and the
Petit-Marié (see Plate 5)—and sent his cavalry to impede the enemies
in their march, which gave him the time to form in order of battle. He
ranged, half way up the slope of the hill, his four legions of veterans,
in three lines, and the two legions raised in the Cisalpine on the
plateau above, along with the auxiliaries, so that his infantry covered
the whole height. The heavy baggage, and the bundles (sarcinæ)[186]
with which the soldiers were loaded, were collected on one point, which
was defended by the troops of the reserve. While Cæsar was making these
dispositions, the Helvetii, who came followed by all their wagons,
collected them in one place; they then, in close order, drove back the
cavalry, formed in phalanxes, and, making their way up the slope of the
hill occupied by the Roman infantry, advanced against the first
line.[187]
Cæsar, to make the danger equal, and to deprive all of the possibility
of flight, sends away the horses of all the chiefs, and even his
own,[188] harangues his troops, and gives the signal for combat. The
Romans, from their elevated position, hurl the pilum,[189] break the
enemy’s phalanxes, and rush upon them sword in hand. The engagement
becomes general. The Helvetii soon become embarrassed in their
movements: their bucklers, pierced and nailed together by the same
pilum, the head of which, bending back, can no longer be withdrawn,
deprive them of the use of their left arm; most of them, after having
long agitated their arms in vain, throw down their bucklers, and fight
without them. At last, covered with wounds, they give way, and retire to
the mountain of the castle of La Garde, at a distance of about 1,000
paces; but while they are pursued, the Boii and the Tulingi, who, to the
number of about 15,000, formed the last of the hostile columns, and
composed the rear-guard, rush upon the Romans, and without halting
attack their right flank.[190] The Helvetii, who had taken refuge on the
height, perceive this movement, return to the charge, and renew the
combat. Cæsar, to meet these two attacks, effects a change of front
(conversa signa bipartito intulerunt) in his third line, and opposes
it to the new assailants, while the first two lines resist the Helvetii
who had already been repulsed.[191]
This double combat was long and furious. Unable to resist the
impetuosity of their adversaries, the Helvetii were obliged to retire,
as they had done before, to the mountain of the castle of La Garde; the
Boii and Tulingi towards the baggage and wagons. Such was the
intrepidity of these Gauls during the whole action, which lasted from
one o’clock in the afternoon till evening, that not one turned his back.
Far into the night there was still fighting about the baggage. The
barbarians, having made a rampart of their wagons, some threw from
above their missiles on the Romans; others, placed between the wheels,
wounded them with long pikes (mataræ ac tragulæ). The women and
children, too, shared desperately in the combat.[192] At the end of an
obstinate struggle, the camp and baggage were taken. The daughter and
one of the sons of Orgetorix were made prisoners.
This battle reduced the Gaulish emigration to 130,000 individuals. They
began their retreat that same evening, and, after marching without
interruption day and night, they reached on the fourth day the territory
of the Lingones, towards Tonnerre (see Plate 4): they had, no doubt,
passed by Moulins-en-Gilbert, Lormes, and Avallon. The Lingones were
forbidden to furnish the fugitives with provisions or succour, under
pain of being treated like them. At the end of three days, the Roman
army, having taken care of their wounded and buried the dead, marched in
pursuit of the enemy.[193]
Pursuit of the Helvetii.
VII. The Helvetii, reduced to extremity, sent to Cæsar to treat for
their submission. The deputies met him on his march, threw themselves at
his feet, and demanded peace in the most suppliant terms. He ordered
them to say to their fellow-countrymen that they must halt on the spot
they then occupied, and await his arrival; and they obeyed. As soon as
Cæsar overtook them, he required them to deliver hostages, their arms,
and the fugitive slaves. While they were preparing to execute his
orders, night coming on, about 6,000 men of a tribe named Verbigeni
(Soleure, Argovie, Lucerne, and part of the Canton of Berne) fled,
either through fear that, having once delivered up their arms, they
should be massacred, or in the hope of escaping unperceived in the midst
of so great a multitude. They directed their steps towards the Rhine and
the frontiers of Germany.
On receiving news of the flight of the Verbigeni, Cæsar ordered the
peoples whose territories they would cross to stop them and bring them
back, under pain of being considered as accomplices. The fugitives were
delivered up and treated as enemies; that is, put to the sword, or sold
as slaves. As to the others, Cæsar accepted their submission: he
compelled the Helvetii, the Tulingi, and the Latobriges to return to the
localities they had abandoned, and to restore the towns and hamlets they
had burnt; and since, after having lost all their crops, they had no
more provisions of their own, the Allobroges were ordered to furnish
them with wheat.[194] These measures had for their object not to leave
Helvetia without inhabitants, as the fertility of its soil might draw
thither the Germans of the other side the Rhine, who would thus become
borderers upon the Roman province. He permitted the Boii, celebrated for
their brilliant valour, to establish themselves in the country of the
Ædui, who had asked permission to receive them. They gave them lands
between the Allier and the Loire, and soon admitted them to a share in
all their rights and privileges.
In the camp of the Helvetii were found tablets on which was written, in
Greek letters, the number of all those who had quitted their country: on
one side, the number of men capable of bearing arms; and on the other,
that of the children, old men, and women. The whole amounted to 263,000
Helvetii, 36,000 Tulingi, 14,000 Latobriges, 23,000 Rauraci, and 32,000
Boii—together, 368,000 persons, of whom 92,000 were men in a condition
to fight. According to the census ordered by Cæsar, the number of those
who returned home was 110,000.[195] The emigration was thus reduced to
less than one-third.
The locality occupied by the Helvetii when they made their submission is
unknown; yet all circumstances seem to concur in placing the theatre of
this event in the western part of the country of the Lingones. This
hypothesis appears the more reasonable, as Cæsar’s march, in the
following campaign, can only be explained by supposing him to start from
this region. We admit, then, that Cæsar received the submission of the
Helvetii on the Armançon, towards Tonnerre, and it is there that we
suppose him to have been encamped during the events upon the recital of
which we are now going to enter.
Observations.
VIII. The forces of the two armies opposed to each other in the battle
of Bibracte were about equal, for Cæsar had six legions—the 10th, which
he had found in the Roman province; the three old legions (7th, 8th, and
9th), which he had brought from Aquileia; and the two new ones (11th and
12th), raised in the Cisalpine. The effective force of each must have
been near the normal number of 6,000 men, for the campaign had only
begun, and their ranks must have been increased by the veterans and
volunteers of whom we have spoken in the first volume (page 456). The
number of the legionaries was thus 36,000. Adding 4,000 cavalry, raised
in the Roman province and among the Ædui, and probably 20,000
auxiliaries,[196] we shall have a total of 60,000 combatants, not
including the men attached to the machines, those conducting the
baggage, the army servants, &c. The Helvetii, on their side, did not
count more than 69,000 combatants, since, out of 92,000, they had lost
one-fourth near the Saône.
In this battle, it must be remarked, Cæsar did not employ the two
legions newly raised, which remained to guard the camp, and secure the
retreat in case of disaster. Next year he assigned the same duty to the
youngest troops. The cavalry did not pursue the enemies in their rout,
doubtless because the mountainous nature of the locality made it
impossible for it to act.
Seat of the Suevi and other German Tribes.
I. ON the termination of the war against the Helvetii, the chiefs of
nearly all Celtic Gaul went to congratulate Cæsar, and thank him for
having, at the same time, avenged their old injuries, and delivered
their country from immense danger. They expressed the desire to submit
to his judgment certain affairs, and, in order to concert matters
previously, they solicited his permission to convoke a general assembly.
Cæsar gave his consent.
After the close of the deliberations, they returned, secretly and in
tears, to solicit his support against the Germans and Ariovistus, one of
their kings. These peoples were separated from the Gauls by the Rhine,
from its mouth to the Lake of Constance. Among them the Suevi occupied
the first rank. They were by much the most powerful and the most
warlike. They were said to be divided into a hundred cantons, each of
which furnished, every year, a thousand men for war and a thousand men
for agriculture, taking each other’s place alternately: the labourers
fed the soldiers. No boundary line, among the Suevi, separated the
property of the fields, which remained common, and no one could prolong
his residence on the same lands beyond a year. However, they hardly
lived upon the produce of the soil: they consumed little wheat, and
drank no wine; milk and flesh were their habitual food. When these
failed, they were fed upon grass.[197] Masters of themselves from
infancy, intrepid hunters, insensible to the inclemency of the seasons,
bathing in the cold waters of the rivers, they hardly covered a part of
their bodies with thin skins. They were savages in manners, and of
prodigious force and stature. They disdained commerce and foreign
horses, which the Gauls sought with so much care. Their own horses,
though mean-looking and ill-shaped, became indefatigable through
exercise, and fed upon brushwood. Despising the use of the saddle,
often, in engagements of cavalry, they jumped to the ground and fought
on foot: their horses were taught to remain without moving.[198] The
belief in the dogma of the immortality of the soul, strengthened in them
the contempt for life.[199] They boasted of being surrounded by immense
solitudes: this fact, as they pretended, showed that a great number of
their neighbours had not been able to resist them: and it was reported,
indeed, that on one side (towards the east) their territory was bounded,
for an extent of 600 miles, by desert plains; on the other, they
bordered upon the Ubii, their tributaries, the most civilised of the
German peoples, because their situation on the banks of the Rhine placed
them in relation with foreign merchants, and because, neighbours to the
Gauls, they had formed themselves to their manners.[200]
Two immense forests commenced not far from the Rhine, and extended, from
west to east, across Germany; these were the Hercynian and Bacenis
forests. (See Plate 2.) The first, beginning from the Black Forest and
the Odenwald, covered all the country situated between the Upper Danube
and the Maine, and comprised the mountains which, further towards the
east, formed the northern girdle of the basin of the Danube; that is,
the Boehmerwald, the mountains of Moravia, and the Little Carpathians.
It had a breadth which Cæsar represents by nine long days’ march.[201]
The other, of much less extent, took its rise in the forest of
Thuringia; it embraced all the mountains to the north of Bohemia, and
that long chain which separates the basins of the Oder and the Vistula
from that of the Danube.
The Suevi inhabited, to the south of the forest Bacenis, the countries
situated between the forest of Thuringia, the Boehmerwald, the Inn, and
the Black Forest, which compose, in our days, the Duchies of
Saxe-Meiningen and Saxe-Coburg, Bavaria, and the greater part of
Wurtemberg.[202] To the east of the Suevi were the Boii (partly in
Bohemia and partly in the north-west of Austria);[203] to the north,
the Cherusci, separated from the Suevi by the forest Bacenis; to the
west, the Marcomanni (the upper and middle course of the Maine) and
the Sedusii (between the Maine and the Neckar); to the south, the
Harudes (on the north of the Lake of Constance), the Tulingi, and the
Latobriges (the southern part of the Grand Duchy of Baden).
On the two banks of the Rhine dwelt the Rauraci (the territory of Bâle
and part of the Brisgau); the Triboces (part of Alsace and of the
Grand Duchy of Baden): on the right bank were the Nemetes (opposite
Spire); the Vangiones (opposite Worms); the Ubii, from the Odenwald
to the watershed of the Sieg and the Ruhr. To the north of the Ubii were
the Sicambri, established in Sauerland, and nearly as far as the Lippe.
Finally, the Usipetes and the Tencteri were still farther to the north,
towards the mouth of the Rhine. (See Plate 2.)
The Gauls solicit Cæsar to come to their assistance.
II. The Gaulish chiefs who had come to solicit the succour of Cæsar made
the following complaints against Ariovistus:—“The German king,” they
said, “had taken advantage of the quarrels which divided the different
peoples of Gaul; called in formerly by the Arverni and the Sequani, he
had gained, with their co-operation, several victories over the Ædui, in
consequence of which the latter were subjected to the most humiliating
conditions. Shortly afterwards his yoke grew heavy on the Sequani
themselves, to such a degree that, though conquerors with him, they are
now more wretched than the vanquished Ædui. Ariovistus has seized a
third of their territory;[204] another third is on the point of being
given up, by his orders, to 24,000 Harudes, who have joined him some
months ago. There are 120,000 Germans in Gaul. The contingents of the
Suevi have already arrived on the banks of the Rhine. In a few years the
invasion of Gaul by the Germans will be general. Cæsar alone can prevent
it, by his prestige and that of the Roman name, by the force of his
arms, and by the fame of his recent victory.”
Gaul thus came voluntarily, in the persons of her chiefs, to throw
herself into the arms of Cæsar, take him for the arbiter of her destiny,
and implore him to be her saviour. He spoke encouragingly, and promised
them his support. Several considerations engaged him to act upon these
complaints. He could not suffer the Ædui, allies of Rome, to be brought
under subjection by the barbarians. He saw a substantial danger for the
Republic in the numerous immigrations of fierce peoples who, once
masters of Gaul, would not fail, in imitation of the Cimbri and
Teutones, to invade the Roman province, and thence fall upon Italy.
Resolved to prevent these dangers, he proposed an interview with
Ariovistus, who was probably occupied, since the defeat of the
Helvetii, in collecting an army among the Triboci (towards
Strasburg),[205] as well to oppose the further designs of the Romans, as
to defend the part of the country of the Sequani which he had seized.
Ariovistus, it will be remembered, had been declared, under Cæsar’s
consulate, ally and friend of the Roman people; and this favour would
encourage the expectation that the head of the Germans would be willing
to treat; but he refused with disdain the proposed interview. Then Cæsar
sent messengers to him to reproach him with his ingratitude. “If
Ariovistus cares to preserve his friendship, let him make reparation for
all the injury he has inflicted upon the allies of Rome, and let him
bring no more barbarians across the Rhine; if, on the contrary, he
rejects these conditions, so many acts of violence will be punished in
virtue of the decree rendered by the Senate, under the consulate of M.
Messala and M. Piso, which authorises the governor of Gaul to do that
which he judges for the advantage of the Republic, and enjoins him to
defend the Ædui and the other allies of the Roman people.”
By this language, Cæsar wished to show that he did not violate the law,
enacted a year before under his consulate, which forbade the governors
to leave their provinces without an order of the Senate. He purposely
appealed to an old decree, which gave unlimited powers to the governor
of Gaul, a province the importance of which had always required
exceptional laws.[206] The reply of Ariovistus was equally proud:—
“Cæsar ought to know as well as he the right of the conqueror: he admits
no interference in the treatment reserved for the vanquished; he has
himself causes of complaint against the proconsul, whose presence
diminishes his revenues; he will not restore the hostages to the Ædui;
the title of brothers and allies of the Roman people will be of little
service to them. He cares little for threats. No one has ever braved
Ariovistus with impunity. Let anybody attack him, and he will learn the
valour of a people which, for fourteen years, has never sought shelter
under a roof.”[207]
March of Cæsar upon Besançon.
III. This arrogant reply, and news calculated to give alarm, hastened
Cæsar’s decision. In fact, on one side the Ædui complained to him of the
devastation of their country by the Harudes; and, on the other, the
Treviri announced that the hundred cantons of the Suevi were preparing
to cross the Rhine.[208] Cæsar, wishing to prevent the junction of
these new bands with the old troops of Ariovistus, hastened the
collecting of provisions, and advanced against the Germans by forced
marches. The negotiations having probably lasted during the month of
July, it was now the beginning of August. Starting from the
neighbourhood of Tonnerre, where we have supposed he was encamped, Cæsar
followed the road subsequently replaced by a Roman way of which vestiges
are still found, and which, passing by Tanlay, Gland, Laignes, Etrochey,
and Dancevoir, led to Langres.[209] (See Plate 4.) After three long
days’ marches, on his arrival towards Arc-en-Barrois, he learnt that
Ariovistus was moving with all his troops to seize Besançon, the most
considerable place in Sequania, and that he had already advanced three
days’ march beyond his territory. Cæsar considered it a matter of
urgency to anticipate him, for this place was abundantly provided with
everything necessary for an army. Instead of continuing his march
towards the Rhine, by way of Vesoul, Lure, and Belfort, he advanced, day
and night, by forced marches, towards Besançon, obtained possession of
it, and placed a garrison there.[210]
The following description, given in the “Commentaries,” is still
applicable to the present town. “It was so well fortified by nature,
that it offered every facility for sustaining war. The Doubs, forming a
circle, surrounds it almost entirely, and the space of sixteen hundred
feet,[211] which is not bathed by the water, is occupied by a high
mountain, the base of which reaches, on each side, to the edge of the
river. The wall which encloses this mountain makes a citadel of it, and
connects it with the oppidum.”[212]
During this rapid movement of the Roman army on Besançon, Ariovistus had
advanced very slowly. We must suppose, indeed, that he halted when he
was informed of this march; for, once obliged to abandon the hope of
taking that place, it was imprudent to separate himself any farther from
his re-enforcements, and, above all, from the Suevi, who were ready to
pass the Rhine towards Mayence, and await the Romans in the plains of
Upper Alsace, where he could advantageously make use of his numerous
cavalry.
Panic in the Roman Army.
IV. During the few days which Cæsar passed at Besançon (the middle of
August), in order to assure himself of provisions, a general panic took
possession of his soldiers. Public rumour represented the Germans as men
of gigantic stature, of unconquerable valour, and of terrible aspect.
Now there were in the Roman army many young men without experience in
war, come from Rome, some out of friendship for Cæsar, others in the
hope of obtaining celebrity without trouble. Cæsar could not help
receiving them. It must have been difficult, indeed, for a general who
wished to preserve his friends at Rome, to defend himself against the
innumerable solicitations of influential people.[213] This panic had
begun with these volunteers; it soon gained the whole army. Every one
made his will; the least timid alleged, as an excuse for their fear, the
difficulty of the roads, the depth of the forests, the want of
provisions, the impossibility of obtaining transports, and even the
illegality of the enterprise.[214]
Cæsar, surprised at this state of feeling, called a council, to which he
admitted the centurions of all classes. He sharply reproached the
assembled chiefs with wishing to penetrate his designs, and to seek
information as to the country into which he intended to lead them. He
reminded them that their fathers, under Marius, had driven out the
Cimbri and the Teutones; that, still more recently, they had defeated
the German race in the revolt of the slaves;[215] that the Helvetii had
often beaten the Germans, and that they, in their turn, had just beaten
the Helvetii. As to those who, to disguise their fears, talk of the
difficulty of the roads and the want of food, he finds it very insolent
in them to suppose that their general will forget his duty, or to
pretend to dictate it to him. The care of the war is his business: the
Sequani, the Leuci, and the Lingones will furnish wheat; in fact, it is
already ripe in the fields (jamque esse in agris frumenta matura). As
to the roads, they will soon have the opportunity of judging of them
themselves. He is told the soldiers will not obey, or raise the ensigns
(signa laturi).[216] Words like these would not shake him; the soldier
despises the voice of his chief only when the latter is, by his own
fault, abandoned by fortune or convicted of cupidity or embezzlement. As
to himself, his whole life proves his integrity; the war of the Helvetii
affords evidence of his favour with fortune; for which cause, without
delay, he will break up the camp to-morrow morning, for he is impatient
to know if, among his soldiers, fear will prevail over honour and duty.
If the army should refuse to follow him, he will start alone, with the
10th legion, of which he will make his prætorian cohort. Cæsar had
always loved this legion, and, on account of its valor, had always the
greatest confidence in it.
This language, in which, without having recourse to the rigours of
discipline, Cæsar appealed to the honour of his soldiers, exciting at
the same time the emulation both of those whom he loaded with praise
and of those whose services he affected to disdain,—this proud
assertion of his right to command produced a wonderful revolution in the
minds of the men, and inspired the troops with great ardour for
fighting. The 10th legion first charged its tribunes to thank him for
the good opinion he had expressed towards them, and declared that they
were ready to march. The other legions then sent their excuses by their
tribunes and centurions of the first class, denied their hesitations and
fears, and pretended that they had never given any judgment upon the
war, as that appertained only to the general.[217]
March towards the Valley of the Rhine.
V. This agitation having been calmed, Cæsar sought information
concerning the roads from Divitiacus, who, of all the Gauls, inspired
him with the greatest amount of confidence. In order to proceed from
Besançon to the valley of the Rhine, to meet Ariovistus, the Roman army
had to cross the northern part of the Jura chain. This country is
composed of two very distinct parts. The first comprises the valley of
the Doubs from Besançon to Montbéliard, the valley of the Oignon, and
the intermediate country, a mountainous district, broken, much covered
with wood, and, without doubt, at the time of Cæsar’s war in Gaul, more
difficult than at present. The other part, which begins at the bold
elbow made by the Doubs near Montbéliard, is composed of lengthened
undulations, which diminish gradually, until they are lost in the plains
of the Rhine. It is much less wooded than the first, and offers easier
communications. (See Plate 4.)
Cæsar, as he had announced, started early on the morrow of the day on
which he had thus addressed his officers, and, determined on conducting
his army through an open country, he turned the mountainous and
difficult region just described, thus making a circuit of more than
fifty miles (seventy-five kilomètres),[218] which is represented by a
semi-circumference, the diameter of which would be the line drawn from
Besançon to Arcey. It follows the present road from Besançon to Vesoul
as far as Pennesières, and continues by Vallerois-le-Bois and
Villersexel to Arcey. He could perform this distance in four days; then
he resumed, on leaving Arcey, the direct road from Besançon to the Rhine
by Belfort and Cernay.
On the seventh day of a march uninterrupted since leaving Besançon, he
learnt by his scouts that the troops of Ariovistus were at a distance of
not more than twenty-four miles (36 kilomètres).
Supposing 20 kilomètres for the day’s march, the Roman army would have
travelled over 140 kilomètres in seven days, and would have arrived on
the Thur, near Cernay. (By the road indicated, the distance from
Besançon to the Thur is about 140 kilomètres.) At this moment,
Ariovistus would have been encamped at 36 kilomètres from the Romans, to
the north, near Colmar.
Informed of the arrival of Cæsar, Ariovistus sent him word “that he
consented to an interview, now that the Roman general had come near, and
that there was no longer any danger for him in going to him.” Cæsar did
not reject this overture, supposing that Ariovistus had returned to more
reasonable sentiments.
The interview was fixed for the fifth day following.[219] In the
interval, while there was a frequent exchange of messages, Ariovistus,
who feared some ambuscade, stipulated, as an express condition, that
Cæsar should bring with him no foot soldiers, but that, on both sides,
they should confine themselves to an escort of cavalry. The latter,
unwilling to furnish any pretext for a rupture, consented; but, not
daring to entrust his personal safety to the Gaulish cavalry, he mounted
on their horses men of the 10th legion, which gave rise to this jocular
saying of one of the soldiers: “Cæsar goes beyond his promise; he was to
make us prætorians, and he makes us knights.”[220]
Interview between Cæsar and Ariovistus.
VI. Between the two armies extended a vast plain, that which is crossed
by the Ill and the Thur. A tolerably large knoll rose in it at a nearly
equal distance from either camp.[221] This was the place of meeting of
the two chieftains. Cæsar posted his mounted legion at 200 paces from
the knoll, and the cavalry of Ariovistus stood at the same distance. The
latter demanded that the interview should take place on horseback, and
that each of the two chiefs should be accompanied only by ten horsemen.
When they met, Cæsar reminded Ariovistus of his favours, of those of the
Senate, of the interest which the Republic felt in the Ædui, of that
constant policy of the Roman people which, far from suffering the
abasement of its allies, sought incessantly their elevation. He repeated
his first conditions.
Ariovistus, instead of accepting them, put forward his own claims: “He
had only crossed the Rhine at the prayer of the Gauls; the lands which
he was accused of having seized, had been ceded to him; he had
subsequently been attacked, and had scattered his enemies; if he has
sought the friendship of the Roman people, it is in the hope of
benefiting by it; if it becomes prejudicial to him, he renounces it; if
he has carried so many Germans into Gaul, it is for his personal safety;
the part he occupies belongs to him, as that occupied by the Romans
belongs to them; his rights of conquest are older than those of the
Roman army, which had never passed the limits of the province. Cæsar is
only in Gaul to ruin it. If he does not withdraw from it, he will regard
him as an enemy, and he is certain that by his death he shall gain the
gratitude of a great number of the first and most illustrious personages
in Rome. They have informed him by their messengers that, at this price,
he would gain their good-will and friendship. But if he be left in free
possession of Gaul, he will assist in all the wars that Cæsar may
undertake.”
Cæsar insisted on the arguments he had already advanced: “It was not one
of the principles of the Republic to abandon its allies; he did not
consider that Gaul belonged to Ariovistus any more than to the Roman
people. When formerly Q. Fabius Maximus vanquished the Arverni and the
Ruteni, Rome pardoned them, and neither reduced them to provinces nor
imposed tribute upon them. If, then, priority of conquest be invoked,
the claims of the Romans to the empire of Gaul are the most just; and if
it be thought preferable to refer to the Senate, Gaul ought to be free,
since, after victory, the Senate had willed that she should preserve her
own laws.”
During this conversation, information was brought to Cæsar that the
cavalry of Ariovistus were approaching the knoll, and were throwing
stones and darts at the Romans. Cæsar immediately broke up the
conference, withdrew to his escort, and forbade them to return the
attack, not from fear of an engagement with his favourite legion, but in
order to avoid, in case he should defeat his enemies, the suspicion that
he might have taken advantage of their good faith to surprise them in an
interview. Nevertheless, the arrogance of Ariovistus, the disloyal
attack of his cavalry, and the rupture of the conference, were soon
known, and excited the ardour and impatience of the Roman troops.
Two days afterwards, Ariovistus made a proposal for a renewal of the
conference, or for the sending to him of one of Cæsar’s lieutenants.
Cæsar refused, the more so because, the day before, the Germans had
again advanced and thrown their missiles at the Romans, and that thus
his lieutenant would not have been safe from the attacks of the
barbarians. He thought it more prudent to send as his deputy Valerius
Procillus, the son of a Gaul who had become a Roman citizen, who spoke
the Celtic language, and who was on familiar terms with Ariovistus, and
M. Mettius, with whom the German king was bound by the rights of
hospitality. They had hardly entered the camp of Ariovistus, when he
ordered them to be thrown into fetters, under pretence that they were
spies.[222]
Movements of the two Armies.
VII. The same day, the German king broke up his camp and took another
position at the foot of the Vosges (sub monte), at a distance of 6,000
paces from that of Cæsar, between Soultz and Feldkirch, not far from the
Lauch. (See Plate 6.) Next day he crossed the Thur, near its
confluence with the Ill, ascended the left banks of the Ill and the
Doller, and only halted at Reiningen, after having gone two miles (three
kilomètres) beyond the Roman camp. By this manœuvre, Ariovistus cut
off Cæsar’s communication with Sequania and the Æduan country, but he
left open the communications with the country of the Leuci and the
Lingones.[223] (See the Map of Gaul, 2.) The two armies thus encamped
at a short distance from each other. During the five following days,
Cæsar drew out his troops each day, and formed them in order of battle
at the head of his camp (pro castris suas copias produxit), but was
not able to provoke the Germans to fight; all hostility was limited to
cavalry skirmishes, in which the latter were much practised. To 6,000
horsemen was joined an equal number of picked men on foot, among whom
each horseman had chosen one to watch over him in combat. According to
circumstances, the horsemen fell back upon the footmen, or the latter
advanced to their assistance. Such was their agility, that they kept up
with the horses, running and holding by the mane.[224]
Cæsar, seeing that Ariovistus persisted in shutting himself up in his
camp and intercepting his communications, sought to re-establish them,
chose an advantageous position about 600 paces (900 mètres) beyond that
occupied by the Germans, and led thither his army drawn up in three
lines. He kept the first and second under arms, and employed the third
on the retrenchments. The spot on which he established himself is
perhaps the eminence situated on the Little Doller, to the north of
Schweighausen. Ariovistus sent thither about 16,000 of his light troops
and all his cavalry, to intimidate the Romans and impede the works.
Nevertheless, the third line continued them, and the two others repelled
the attack. The camp once fortified, Cæsar left in it two legions and a
part of the auxiliaries, and took back the four others to the principal
camp. The two Roman camps were 3,600 mètres distant from each other.
Hitherto Cæsar had been satisfied with drawing out his troops and
backing them upon his retrenchments; the next day, persisting in his
tactics (instituto suo) of trying to provoke Ariovistus to fight, he
drew them up at a certain distance in advance of the principal camp, and
placed them in order of battle (paulum a majoribus castris progressus,
aciem instruxit). In spite of this advanced position (ne tum
quidem), Ariovistus persisted in not coming out. The Roman army
re-entered the camp towards midday, and a part of the German troops
immediately attacked the small camp. Both armies fought resolutely till
evening, and there were many wounded on both sides. Astonished at seeing
that, in spite of this engagement, Ariovistus still avoided a general
battle, Cæsar interrogated the prisoners, and learnt that the matrons
charged with consulting destiny had declared that the Germans could not
be conquerors if they fought before the new moon.[225]
Battle against the Germans.
VIII. Next day, leaving a sufficient guard in the two camps, Cæsar
placed all his auxiliaries in view of the enemy, in advance of the
smaller camp; the number of the legionaries being less than that of the
Germans, he sought to conceal his inferiority from the enemy by
displaying other troops. While the Germans took these auxiliaries for
the two legions which occupied the lesser camp, the latter left it by
the Decuman gate, and, unperceived, went to rejoin the other four. Then
Cæsar drew up his six legions in three lines, and, marching forward, he
led them up to the enemy’s camp (usque ad castra hostium accessit).
This offensive movement allowed the Germans no longer the choice of
avoiding battle: they quitted their camp, descended into the plain,[226]
drew up in line, by order of nations, at equal intervals—Harudes,
Marcomanni, Suevi, Triboces, Vangiones, Nemetes, and Sedusii; and, to
deprive themselves of all possibility of flight, inclosed themselves on
the sides and in the rear by a circuit of carriages and wagons, on which
they placed their women: dishevelled and in tears, these implored the
warriors, as they marched to the battle, not to deliver them in slavery
to the Romans. In this position, the Roman army faced the east, and the
German army the west, and their lines extended over a space now partly
covered by the forest of Nonnenbruch.[227]
Cæsar, still more to animate his soldiers, determined to give them
witnesses worthy of their courage, and placed at the head of each legion
either one of his lieutenants or his quæstor.[228] He led the attack in
person, with his right wing, on the side where the Germans seemed
weakest. The signal given, the legions dash forward; the enemy, on his
side, rushes to the encounter. On both sides the impetuosity is so great
that the Romans, not having time to use the pilum, throw it away, and
fight hand to hand with the sword. But the Germans, according to their
custom, to resist an attack of this kind, form rapidly in phalanxes of
three or four hundred men,[229] and cover their bare heads with their
bucklers. They are pressed so close together, that even when dead they
still remain standing.[230] Such was the ardour of the legionaries, that
many rushed upon these sort of tortoises, tearing away the bucklers, and
striking the enemies from above.[231] The short and sharp-pointed swords
of the Romans had the advantage over the long swords of the
Germans.[232] Nevertheless, according to Appian, the legions owed their
victory chiefly to the superiority of their tactics and the steadiness
with which they kept their ranks.[233] Ariovistus’s left did not resist
long; but while it was driven back and put to flight, the right, forming
in deep masses, pressed the Romans hard. Young P. Crassus, commander of
the cavalry placed at a distance from the thick of the battle, and
better placed to judge of its incidents, perceived this, sent the third
line to the succour of the wavering legions, and restored the combat.
Soon Ariovistus’s right was obliged to give way in its turn; the rout
then became general, and the Germans desisted from flight only when they
reached the Rhine, fifty miles from the field of battle.[234] They
descended, no doubt, the valley of the Ill as far as Rhinau, thus
retracing a part of the road by which they had come. (See Plate 4.)
Cæsar sent his cavalry after them; all who were overtaken were cut to
pieces; the rest attempted to swim across the river, or sought safety in
boats. Among the latter was Ariovistus, who threw himself into a
boat[235] he found attached to the bank. According to Plutarch and
Appian,[236] 80,000 men perished in the combat and during the pursuit.
Two of the wives of the German king experienced the same fate; one was a
Sueve, the other a Norician. Of his two daughters, one was killed and
the other taken prisoner. Cæsar says that, as he himself pursued the
enemy with his cavalry, he experienced a pleasure equal to that given by
victory when he recovered, first Procillus, loaded with a triple chain,
and who had thrice seen the barbarians draw lots whether he should be
burnt alive or not, and, subsequently, M. Mettius, both of whom, as we
have seen, had been sent by him as messengers to Ariovistus.
The report of this glorious exploit having spread beyond the Rhine, the
Suevi, who had come to its banks, returned home. The Ubii, who dwelt
near the river, pursued their terrified bands, and slew a considerable
number of the fugitives.
Cæsar, having concluded two great wars in one single campaign, placed
his army in winter quarters among the Sequani rather sooner than the
season required—at the beginning of September—and left them under the
command of Labienus. He then left, and went to hold the assemblies in
Cisalpine Gaul.[237]
Observations.
IX. There are several things worthy of remark in this campaign:—
1. The resolution taken by Cæsar to gain possession of Besançon, and
thus to anticipate Ariovistus. We see the importance which he attaches
to that military position as a point of support and of supply.
2. The facility with which a whole legion transforms itself into
cavalry.
3. The judicious use which Cæsar makes of his light troops (alarii),
by assembling them in mass, so that the enemy should believe in a
greater number of legions.
4. Lastly, this singular circumstance, that the third line, which serves
as reserve and decides the fate of the battle, receives from young P.
Crassus, and not from the general-in-chief, the order to attack.
The dates of the principal events of this year may be indicated in the
following manner:—
Rendezvous of the Helvetii on the banks of the Rhone (the day of the equinox) | March 24. |
Cæsar refuses them a passage through the province | April 8. |
Arrival at the confluence of the Rhone and the Saône of the legions from Italy and Illyria | June 7. |
Defeat of the Tigurini on the Saône | June 10. |
Passage of the Saône by Cæsar | June 12. |
About fifteen days’ march (De Bello Gallico, I. 15) | From June 13 to June 27. |
Manœuvre of Labienus to surprise the Helvetii | June 28. |
Battle of Bibracte | June 29. |
Cæsar remains three days interring the dead; marches on the fourth;
employs six days in his march from the field of battle to the country of the Lingones,
and there overtakes the Helvetii in their retreat, | From June 30 to July 8. |
Negotiations with Ariovistus (a month), | From July 8 to August 8. |
Departure of Cæsar (from Tonnerre, to meet Ariovistus) | August 10. |
Arrival of Cæsar at Besançon | August 16. |
Abode of Cæsar at Besançon, | From August 16 to August 22. |
Departure from Besançon (“the harvest is ripe,” De Bello Gallico, I. 40) | August 22. |
March of seven days from Besançon to the Rhine | From August 22 to August 28. |
Interview (five days afterwards) | September 2. |
Manœuvres (about eight days), | From September 3 to September 10. |
Battle of the Thur (fought before the new moon, which took place on the 18th of September) | September 10. |
League of the Belgæ. Cæsar advances from Besançon to the
Aisne.
I. THE brilliant successes gained by Cæsar over the Helvetii and the
Germans had delivered the Republic from an immense danger, but at the
same time they had roused the distrust and jealousy of most of the
nations of Gaul. These conceived fears for their independence, which
were further increased by the presence of the Roman army in Sequania.
The irritation was very great among the Belgæ. They feared that their
turn to be attacked would come when Celtic Gaul was once reduced to
peace. Besides, they were excited by influential men who understood
that, under Roman domination, they would have less chance of obtaining
possession of the supreme power. The different tribes of Belgic Gaul
entered into a formidable league, and reciprocally exchanged hostages.
Cæsar learnt these events in the Cisalpine province, through public
rumour and the letters of Labienus. Alarmed at the news, he raised two
legions in Italy, the 13th and 14th, and, in the beginning of
spring,[238]
sent them into Gaul, under the command of the lieutenant
Q. Pedius.[239] It is probable that these troops, to reach Sequania
promptly, crossed the Great St. Bernard, for Strabo relates that one of
the three routes which led from Italy into Gaul passed by Mount
Pœrinus (Great St. Bernard), after having traversed the country of
the Salassi (Valley of Aosta), and that this latter people offered at
first to assist Cæsar’s troops in their passage by levelling the roads
and throwing bridges across the torrents; but that, suddenly changing
their tone, they had rolled masses of rock down upon them and pillaged
their baggage. It was no doubt in the sequel of this defection that,
towards the end of the year 697, Cæsar, as we shall see farther on, sent
Galba into the Valais, to take vengeance on the mountaineers for their
perfidious conduct and to open a safe communication with Italy.[240]
As soon as forage was abundant, he rejoined his legions in person,
probably at Besançon, since, as we have seen, they had been placed in
winter quarters in Sequania. He charged the Senones and the other Celts
who bordered upon Belgic Gaul to watch what was doing there and inform
him of it. Their reports were unanimous: troops were being raised, and
an army was assembling. Cæsar then decided upon immediately entering
into campaign.
His army consisted of eight legions: they bore the numbers 7, 8, 9, 10,
11, 12, 13, and 14. As their effective force, in consequence of marches
and previous combats, cannot have been complete, we may admit a mean of
5,000 men to the legion, which would make 40,000 men of infantry. Adding
to these one-third of auxiliaries, Cretan archers, slingers, and
Numidians, the total of infantry would have been 53,000 men. There was,
in addition to these, 5,000 cavalry and a body of Æduan troops under the
command of Divitiacus. Thus the army of Cæsar amounted to at least
60,000 soldiers, without reckoning the servants for the machines,
drivers, and valets, who, according to the instance cited by Orosius,
amounted to a very considerable number.[241]
After securing provisions, Cæsar started from Besançon, probably in the
second fortnight in May, passed the Saône at Seveux (see Plate 4),
crossed the country of the Lingones in the direction of Langres, at
Bar-sur-Aube, and entered, towards Vitry-le-François, on the territory
of the Remi, having marched in about a fortnight 230 kilomètres, the
distance from Besançon to Vitry-le-François.[242]
The Remi were the first Belgic people he encountered in his road (qui
proximi Galliæ ex Belgis sunt). Astonished at his sudden appearance,
they sent two deputies, Iccius and Adecumborius, the first personages of
their country, to make their submission, and offer provisions and every
kind of succour. They informed Cæsar that all the Belgæ were in arms,
and that the Germans on that side of the Rhine had joined the coalition;
for themselves, they had refused to take any part in it, but the
excitement was so great that they had not been able to dissuade from
their warlike projects the Suessiones themselves, who were united with
them by community of origin, laws, and interests. “The Belgæ,” they
added, “proud of having been formerly the only people of Gaul who
preserved their territory from the invasion of the Teutones and Cimbri,
had the loftiest idea of their own valour. In their general assembly,
each people had engaged to furnish the following contingents:—The
Bellovaci, the most warlike, could send into the field 100,000 men; they
have promised 60,000 picked troops, and claim the supreme direction of
the war. The Suessiones, their neighbours, masters of a vast and fertile
territory, in which are reckoned twelve towns, furnish 50,000 men; they
have for their king Galba, who has been invested, by the consent of the
allies, with the chief command. The Nervii, the most distant of all, and
the most barbarous among these peoples, furnish the same number; the
Atrebates, 15,000; the Ambiani, 10,000; the Morini, 25,000; the Menapii,
7000; the Caletes, 10,000; the Veliocasses and the Veromandui, 10,000;
the Aduatuci, 19,000; lastly, the Condrusi, Eburones, Cæresi, and
Pæmani, comprised under the general name of Germans, are to send 40,000;
in all, about 296,000 men.”[243]
Cæsar’s Camp at Berry-au-Bac.
II. Cæsar could judge, from this information, the formidable character
of the league which he had now to combat. His first care was to try to
divide the hostile forces, and, with this view, he induced Divitiacus,
in spite of the friendly relations which had long united the Ædui with
the Bellovaci, to invade and ravage the territory of the latter with the
Æduan troops. He then required the senate of the Remi to repair to his
presence, and the children of the principes to be brought to him as
hostages; and then, on information that Galba was marching to meet him,
he resolved to move to the other side of the Aisne, which crossed the
extremity of the territory of the Remi (quod est in extremis Remorum
finibus),[244] and encamp there in a strong position, to await the
enemy’s attack. The road he had hitherto followed led straight to the
Aisne, and crossed it by a bridge at the spot where now stands the
village of Berry-au-Bac. (See Plate 7.) He marched in great haste
towards this bridge, led his army across it, and fixed his camp on the
right side of the road, on the hill situated between the Aisne and the
Miette, a small stream with marshy banks, which makes a bend in that
river between Berry-au-Bac and Pontavert. (See Plate 8.) This hill,
called Mauchamp, is of small elevation (about 25 mètres) above the
valley of the Aisne, and in its length, from east to west, it presents
sufficient space for the Roman army to deploy. Laterally, it sinks to
the level of the surrounding ground by slight undulations, and the side
which looks upon the Miette descends by a gentle slope towards the banks
of the stream. This position offered several advantages: the Aisne
defended one side of the camp; the rear of the army was protected, and
the transports of provisions could arrive in safety through the
countries of the Remi and other friendly peoples. Cæsar ordered a work
to be constructed on the right bank of the Aisne, at the extremity of
the bridge, where he established a post (see Plates 8 and 9),[245] and
he left on the other side of the river the lieutenant Q. Titurius
Sabinus with six cohorts. The camp was surrounded by a retrenchment
twelve feet high, and by a fosse eighteen feet wide.[246]
Meanwhile the Belgæ, after having concentrated their forces in the
country of the Suessiones, to the north of the Aisne, had invaded the
territory of the Remi. On their road, and at eight miles from the Roman
camp (see Plate 7), was a town of the Remi called Bibrax
(Vieux-Laon).[247] The Belgæ attacked it vigorously, and it was
defended with difficulty all day. These peoples, like the Celts,
attacked fortresses by surrounding them with a crowd of combatants,
throwing from every side a great quantity of stones, to drive the
defenders away from the walls; then, forming the tortoise, they advanced
against the gates and sapped the walls. When night had put a stop to the
attack, Iccius, who commanded in the town, sent information to Cæsar
that he could hold out no longer, unless he received prompt succour.
Towards midnight the latter sent him Numidians, Cretan archers, and
Balearic slingers, who had the messengers of Iccius for their guides.
This re-enforcement raised the courage of the besieged, and deprived the
enemy of the hope of taking the town; and after remaining some time
round Bibrax, laying waste the land and burning the hamlets and houses,
they marched towards Cæsar, and halted at less than two miles from his
camp. Their fires, kindled on the right bank of the Miette, indicated a
front of more than 8,000 paces (twelve kilomètres).
The great numbers of the enemy, and their high renown for bravery, led
the proconsul to resolve to postpone the battle. If his legions had in
his eyes an incontestible superiority, he wished, nevertheless, to
ascertain what he could expect from his cavalry, which was composed of
Gauls. For this purpose, and to try, at the same time, the courage of
the Belgæ, he engaged them every day in cavalry combats in the undulated
plain to the north of the camp. Once certain that his troops did not
yield in valour to those of the enemy, he resolved to draw them into a
general action. In front of the entrenchments was an extensive tract of
ground, advantageous for ranging an army in order of battle. This
commanding position was covered in front and on the left by the marshes
of the Miette. The right only remained unsupported, and the Belgæ might
have taken the Romans in flank in the space between the camp and the
stream, or turned them by passing between the camp and the Aisne. To
meet this danger, Cæsar made, on each of the two slopes of the hill, a
fosse, perpendicular to the line of battle, about 400 paces (600 mètres)
in length, the first reaching from the camp to the Miette, the second
joining it to the Aisne. At the extremity of these fosses he established
redoubts, in which were placed military machines.[248]
Battle on the Aisne.
III. Having made these dispositions, and having left in the camp his two
newly-raised legions to serve as a reserve in case of need, Cæsar placed
the six others in array of battle, the right resting on the
retrenchments. The enemy also drew out his troops and deployed them in
face of the Romans. The two armies remained in observation, each waiting
till the other passed the marsh of the Miette, as the favourable moment
for attack. Meanwhile, as they remained thus stationary, the cavalry
were fighting on both sides. After a successful charge, Cæsar,
perceiving that the enemies persisted in not entering the marshes,
withdrew his legions. The Belgæ immediately left their position to move
towards the Aisne, below the point where the Miette entered it. Their
object was to cross the river between Gernicourt and Pontavert, where
there were fords, with part of their troops, to carry, if they could,
the redoubt commanded by the lieutenant Q. Titurius Sabinus, and to cut
the bridge, or, at least, to intercept the convoys of provisions, and
ravage the country of the Remi, to the south of the Aisne, whence the
Romans drew their supplies.
The barbarians were already approaching the river, when Sabinus
perceived them from the heights of Berry-au-Bac;[249] he immediately
gave information to Cæsar, who, with all his cavalry, the light-armed
Numidians, the slingers, and the archers, passed the bridge, and,
descending the left bank, marched to meet the enemies towards the place
threatened. When he arrived there, some of them had already passed the
Aisne. An obstinate struggle takes place. Surprised in their passage,
the Belgæ, after having experienced considerable loss, advance
intrepidly over the corpses to cross the river, but are repulsed by a
shower of missiles; those who had reached the left bank are surrounded
by the cavalry and massacred.[250]
Retreat of the Belgæ.
IV. The Belgæ having failed in taking the oppidum of Bibrax, in
drawing the Romans upon disadvantageous ground, in crossing the river,
and suffering, also, from want of provisions, decided on returning home,
to be ready to assemble again to succour the country which might be
first invaded by the Roman army. The principal cause of this decision
was the news of the threatened invasion of the country of the Bellovaci
by Divitiacus and the Ædui: the Bellovaci refused to lose a single
instant in hurrying to the defence of their hearths. Towards ten o’clock
in the evening, the Belgæ withdrew in such disorder that their departure
resembled a flight. Cæsar was informed immediately by his spies, but,
fearing that this retreat might conceal a snare, he retained his
legions, and even his cavalry, in the camp. At break of day, better
informed by his scouts, he sent all his cavalry, under the orders of the
lieutenants Q. Pedius and L. Aurunculeius Cotta,[251] and ordered
Labienus, with three legions, to follow them. These troops fell upon the
fugitives, and slew as many as the length of the day would permit. At
sunset they gave up the pursuit, and, in obedience to the orders they
had received, returned to the camp.[252]
The coalition of the Belgæ, so renowned for their valour, was thus
dissolved. Nevertheless, it was of importance to the Roman general, in
order to secure the pacification of the country, to go and reduce to
subjection in their homes the peoples who had dared to enter into league
against him. The nearest were the Suessiones, whose territory bordered
upon that of the Remi.
Capture of Noviodunum and Bratuspantium.
V. The day after the flight of the enemy, before they had recovered from
their fright, Cæsar broke up his camp, crossed the Aisne, descended its
left bank, invaded the country of the Suessiones, arrived after a long
day’s march (45 kilomètres) before Noviodunum (Soissons) (see Plate
7), and, informed that this town had a weak garrison, he attempted the
same day to carry it by assault; he failed, through the breadth of the
fosses and the height of the walls. He then retrenched his camp, ordered
covered galleries to be advanced (vineas agere),[253] and all things
necessary for a siege to be collected. Nevertheless, the crowd of
fugitive Suessiones threw themselves into the town during the following
night. The galleries having been pushed rapidly towards the walls, the
foundations of a terrace[254] to pass the fosse (aggere jacto) were
established, and towers were constructed. The Gauls, astonished at the
greatness and novelty of these works, so promptly executed, offered to
surrender. They obtained safety of life at the prayer of the Remi.
Cæsar received as hostages the principal chiefs of the country, and even
the two sons of King Galba, exacted the surrender of all their arms, and
accepted the submission of the Suessiones. He then conducted his army
into the country of the Bellovaci, who had shut themselves up, with all
they possessed, in the oppidum of Bratuspantium (Breteuil).[255] The
army was only at about five miles’ distance from it, when all the aged
men, issuing from the town, came, with extended hands, to implore the
generosity of the Roman general; when he had arrived under the walls of
the place, and while he was establishing his camp, he saw the women and
children also demanding peace as suppliants from the top of the walls.
Divitiacus, in the name of the Ædui, interceded in their favour. After
the retreat of the Belgæ and the disbanding of his troops, he had
returned to the presence of Cæsar. The latter, who had, at the prayer
of the Remi, just shown himself clement towards the Suessiones,
displayed, at the solicitation of the Ædui, the same indulgence towards
the Bellovaci. Thus obeying the same political idea of increasing among
the Belgæ the influence of the peoples allied to Rome, he pardoned them;
but, as their nation was the most powerful in Belgic Gaul, he required
from them all their arms and 600 hostages. The Bellovaci declared that
the promoters of the war, seeing the misfortune they had drawn upon
their country, had fled into the isle of Britain.
It is curious to remark the relations which existed at this epoch
between part of Gaul and England. We know, in fact, from the
“Commentaries,” that a certain Divitiacus, an Æduan chieftain, the most
powerful in all Gaul, had formerly extended his power into the isle of
Britain, and we have just seen that the chiefs in the last struggle
against the Romans had found a refuge in the British isles.
Cæsar next marched from Bratuspantium against the Ambiani, who
surrendered without resistance.[256]
March against the Nervii.
VI. The Roman army was now to encounter more formidable adversaries. The
Nervii occupied a vast territory, one extremity of which touched upon
that of the Ambiani. This wild and intrepid people bitterly reproached
the other Belgæ for having submitted to foreigners and abjured the
virtues of their fathers. They had resolved not to send deputies, nor to
accept peace on any condition. Foreseeing the approaching invasion of
the Roman army, the Nervii had drawn into alliance with them two
neighbouring peoples, the Atrebates and the Veromandui, whom they had
persuaded to risk with them the fortune of war: the Aduatuci, also, were
already on the way to join the coalition. The women, and all those whose
age rendered them unfit for fighting, had been placed in safety, in a
spot defended by a marsh, and inaccessible to an army, no doubt at
Mons.[257]
After the submission of the Ambiani, Cæsar left Amiens to proceed to the
country of the Nervii; and after three days’ march on their territory,
he arrived probably at Bavay (Bagacum), which is considered to have
been their principal town. There he learnt by prisoners that he was no
more than ten miles (fifteen kilomètres) distant from the Sambre, and
that the enemy awaited him posted on the opposite bank of the
river.[258] He thus found himself on the left bank, and the Nervii were
assembled on the right bank.[259] (See Plate 7.)
In accordance with the informations he had received, Cæsar sent out a
reconnoitring party of scouts and centurions, charged with the selection
of a spot favourable for the establishment of a camp. A certain number
of the Belgæ, who had recently submitted, and other Gauls, followed him,
and accompanied him in his march. Some of them, as was known
subsequently by the prisoners, having observed during the preceding days
the usual order of march of the army, deserted during the night to the
Nervii, and informed them that behind each of the legions there was a
long column of baggage; that the legion which arrived first at the camp
being separated by a great space from the others, it would be easy to
attack the soldiers, still charged with their bundles (sarcinæ); that
this legion once routed and its baggage captured, the others would not
dare to offer any resistance. This plan of attack was the more readily
embraced by the Belgæ, as the nature of the locality favoured its
execution. The Nervii, in fact, always weak in cavalry (their whole
force was composed of infantry), were accustomed, in order to impede
more easily the cavalry of their neighbours, to notch and bend
horizontally young trees, the numerous branches of which, interlaced and
mingled with brambles and brushwood, formed thick hedges, a veritable
wall which nothing could pass through, impenetrable even to the
eye.[260] As this kind of obstacle was very embarrassing to the march of
the Roman army, the Nervii resolved to hide themselves in the woods
which then covered the heights of Haumont, to watch there the moment
when it would debouch on the opposite heights of the Sambre, to wait
till they perceived the file of baggage, and then immediately to rush
upon the troops which preceded.[261] (See Plate 10.)
Battle on the Sambre.
VII. The centurions sent to reconnoitre had selected for the
establishment of the camp the heights of Neuf-Mesnil. These descend in a
uniform slope to the very banks of the river. Those of Boussières, to
which they join, end, on the contrary, at the Sambre, in sufficiently
bold escarpments, the elevation of which varies from five to fifteen
mètres, and which, inaccessible near Boussières, may be climbed a little
lower, opposite the wood of Quesnoy. The Sambre, in all this extent, was
no more than about three feet deep. On the right bank, the heights of
Haumont, opposite those of Neuf-Mesnil, descend on all sides in gentle
and regular slopes to the level of the river. In the lower part, they
were bare for a breadth of about 200 Roman paces (300 mètres), reckoning
from the Sambre; and then the woods began, which covered the upper
parts. It was in these woods, impenetrable to the sight, that the Belgæ
remained concealed. They were there drawn up in order of battle: on the
right, the Atrebates; in the centre, the Veromandui; on the left, the
Nervii; these latter facing the escarpments of the Sambre. On the open
part, along the river, they had placed some posts of cavalry. (See
Plate 10.)
Cæsar, ignorant of the exact position where the Belgæ were encamped,
directed his march towards the heights of Neuf-Mesnil. His cavalry
preceded him, but the order of march was different from that which had
been communicated to the Nervii by the deserters; as he approached the
enemy, he had, according to his custom, united six legions, and placed
the baggage in the tail of the column, under the guard of the two
legions recently raised, who closed the march.
The cavalry, slingers, and archers passed the Sambre and engaged the
cavalry of the enemy, who at one moment took refuge in the woods, and at
another resumed the offensive, nor were ever pursued beyond the open
ground. Meanwhile, the six legions debouched. Arrived on the place
chosen for the camp, they began to retrench, and shared the labour among
them. Some proceeded to dig the fosses, while others spread themselves
over the country in search of timber and turf. They had hardly begun
their work, when the Belgæ, perceiving the first portion of the baggage
(which was the moment fixed for the attack), suddenly issue from the
forest with all their forces, in the order of battle they had adopted,
rush upon the cavalry and put it to rout, and run towards the Sambre
with such incredible rapidity that they seem to be everywhere at
once—at the edge of the wood, in the river, and in the midst of the
Roman troops; then, with the same celerity, climbing the hill, they rush
towards the camp, where the soldiers are at work at the retrenchments.
The Roman army is taken off its guard.
Cæsar had to provide against everything at the same time. It was
necessary to raise the purple standard as the signal for hastening to
arms,[262] to sound the trumpets to recall the soldiers employed in the
works, to bring in those who were at a distance, form the lines,
harangue the troops, give the word of order.[263] In this critical
situation, the experience of the soldiers, acquired in so many combats,
and the presence of the lieutenants with each legion, helped to supply
the place of the general, and to enable each to take, by his own
impulse, the dispositions he thought best. The impetuosity of the enemy
is such that the soldiers have time neither to put on the ensigns,[264]
nor to take the covering from their bucklers, nor even to put on their
helmets. Each, abandoning his labours, runs to range himself in the
utmost haste under the first standard which presents itself.
The army, constrained by necessity, was drawn up on the slope of the
hill, much more in obedience to the nature of the ground and the
exigencies of the moment than according to military rules. The legions,
separated from one another by thick hedges, which intercepted their
view, could not lend each other mutual succour; they formed an irregular
and interrupted line: the 9th and 10th legions were placed on the left
of the camp, the 8th and 11th in the centre, the 7th and 12th on the
right. In this general confusion, in which it became as difficult to
carry succour to the points threatened as to obey one single command,
everything was ruled by accident.
Cæsar, after taking the measures most urgent, rushes towards the troops
which chance presents first to him, takes them as he finds them in his
way, harangues them, and, when he comes to the 10th legion, he recalls
to its memory, in a few words, its ancient valour. As the enemy was
already within reach of the missiles, he orders the attack; then,
proceeding towards another point to encourage his troops, he finds them
already engaged.
The soldiers of the 9th and 10th legions throw the pilum, and fall,
sword in hand, upon the Atrebates, who, fatigued by their rapid advance,
out of breath, and pierced with wounds, are soon driven back from the
hill they have just climbed. These two legions, led no doubt by
Labienus, drive them into the Sambre, slay a great number, cross the
river at their heels, and pursue them up the slopes of the right bank.
The enemy, then thinking to take advantage of the commanding position,
form again, and renew the combat; but the Romans repulse them anew, and,
continuing their victorious march, take possession of the Gaulish camp.
In the centre, the 8th and 11th legions, attacked by the Veromandui, had
driven them back upon the banks of the Sambre, to the foot of the
heights, where the combat still continued.
While on the left and in the centre victory declared for the Romans, on
the right wing, the 7th and 12th legions were in danger of being
overwhelmed under the efforts of the whole army of the Nervii, composed
of 60,000 men. These intrepid warriors, led by their chief, Boduognatus,
had dashed across the Sambre in face of the escarpments of the left
bank; they had boldly climbed these, and thrown themselves, in close
rank, upon the two legions of the right wing. These legions were placed
in a position the more critical, as the victorious movements of the left
and centre, by stripping almost entirely of troops that part of the
field of battle, had left them without support. The Nervii take
advantage of these circumstances: some move towards the summit of the
heights to seize the camp, others outflank the two legions on the right
wing (aperto latere).
As chance would have it, at this same moment, the cavalry and
light-armed foot, who had been repulsed at the first attack, regained
pell-mell the camp; finding themselves unexpectedly in face of the
enemy, they are confounded, and take to flight again in another
direction. The valets of the army, who, from the Decuman gate and the
summit of the hill, had seen the Romans cross the river victoriously,
and had issued forth in hope of plunder, look back; perceiving the
Nervii in the camp, they fly precipitately. The tumult is further
increased by the cries of the baggage-drivers, who rush about in terror.
Among the auxiliaries in the Roman army, there was a body of Treviran
cavalry, who enjoyed among the Gauls a reputation for valour. When they
saw the camp invaded, the legions pressed and almost surrounded, the
valets, the cavalry, the slingers, the Numidians, separated, dispersed,
and flying on all sides, they believed that all was lost, took the road
for their own country, and proclaimed everywhere in their march that the
Roman army was destroyed.
Cæsar had repaired from the left wing to the other points of the line.
When he arrived at the right wing, he had found the 7th and 12th legions
hotly engaged, the ensigns of the cohorts of the 12th legion collected
on the same point, the soldiers pressed together and mutually
embarrassing each other, all the centurions of the 4th cohort and the
standard-bearer killed; the standard lost; in the other cohorts most of
the centurions were either killed or wounded, and among the latter was
the primipilus Sextius Baculus, a man of rare bravery, who was destined
soon afterwards to save the legion of Galba in the Valais. The soldiers
who still resisted were exhausted, and those of the last ranks were
quitting the ranks to avoid the missiles; new troops of enemies
continually climbed the hill, some advancing to the front against the
Romans, the others turning them on the two wings. In this extreme
danger, Cæsar judges that he can hope for succour only from himself:
having arrived without buckler, he seizes that of a legionary of the
last ranks and rushes to the first line; there, calling the centurions
by their names and exciting the soldiers, he draws the 12th legion
forward, and causes more interval to be made between the files of the
companies in order to facilitate the handling of their swords. His
example and encouraging words restore hope to the combatants and revive
their courage. Each man, under the eyes of their general, shows new
energy, and this heroic devotedness begins to cool the impetuosity of
the enemy. Not far thence, the 7th legion was pressed by a multitude of
assailants. Cæsar orders the tribunes gradually to bring the two legions
back to back, so that each presented its front to the enemy in opposite
directions. Fearing no longer to be taken in the rear, they resist with
firmness, and fight with new ardour. While Cæsar is thus occupied, the
two legions of the rear-guard, which formed the escort of the baggage
(the 13th and 14th), informed of what was taking place, arrive in haste,
and appear in view of the enemy at the top of the hill. On his part, T.
Labienus, who, at the head of the 9th and 10th legions, had made himself
master of the enemy’s camp on the heights of Haumont, discovers what is
passing in the Roman camp. He judges, by the flight of the cavalry and
servants, the greatness of the danger with which Cæsar is threatened,
and sends the 10th legion to his succour, which, re-passing the Sambre,
and climbing the slopes of Neuf-Mesnil, runs in haste to fall upon the
rear of the Nervii.
On the arrival of these re-enforcements, the whole aspect of things
changes: the wounded raise themselves, and support themselves on their
bucklers in order to take part in the action; the valets, seeing the
terror of the enemy, throw themselves unarmed upon men who are armed;
and the cavalry,[265] to efface the disgrace of their flight, seek to
outdo the legionaries in the combat. Meanwhile the Nervii fight with the
courage of despair. When those of the first ranks fall, the nearest take
their places, and mount upon their bodies; they are slain in their turn;
the dead form heaps; the survivors throw, from the top of this mountain
of corpses, their missiles upon the Romans, and send them back their own
pila. “How can we, then, be astonished,” says Cæsar, “that such men
dared to cross a broad river, climb its precipitous banks, and overcome
the difficulties of the ground, since nothing appeared too much for
their courage?” They met death to the last man, and 60,000 corpses
covered the field of battle so desperately fought, in which the fortune
of Cæsar had narrowly escaped wreck.
After this struggle, in which, according to the “Commentaries,” the race
and name of the Nervii were nearly annihilated, the old men, women, and
children, who had sought refuge in the middle of the marshes, finding no
hopes of safety, surrendered.[266] In dwelling on the misfortune of
their country, they said that, of 600 senators, there remained only
three; and that, of 60,000 combatants, hardly 500 had survived. Cæsar,
to show his clemency towards the unfortunate who implored it, treated
these remains of the Nervii with kindness; he left them their lands and
towns, and enjoined the neighbouring peoples not only not to molest
them, but even to protect them from all outrage and violence.[267]
Siege of the Oppidum of the Aduatuci.
VIII. This victory was gained, no doubt, towards the end of July. Cæsar
detached the 7th legion, under the orders of young P. Crassus, to reduce
the maritime peoples of the shores of the ocean: the Veneti, the Unelli,
the Osismii, the Curiosolitæ, the Essuvii, the Aulerci, and the Redones.
He proceeded in person, with the seven other legions, following the
course of the Sambre, to meet the Aduatuci, who, as we have seen above,
were marching to join the Nervii. They were the descendants of those
Cimbri and Teutones who, in their descent upon the Roman province and
Italy in the year 652, had left on this side the Rhine 6,000 men in
charge of as much of the baggage as was too heavy to be carried with
them. After the defeat of their companions by Marius, and many
vicissitudes, these Germans had established themselves towards the
confluence of the Sambre and the Meuse, and had there formed a state.
As soon as the Aduatuci were informed of the disaster of the Nervii,
they returned to their own country, abandoned their towns and forts, and
retired, with all they possessed, into one oppidum, remarkably
fortified by nature. Surrounded in every direction by precipitous rocks
of great elevation, it was accessible only on one side by a gentle
slope, at most 100 feet wide, defended by a fosse and double wall of
great height, on which they placed enormous masses of rock and pointed
beams. The mountain on which the citadel of Namur is situated[268]
answers sufficiently to this description. (See Plate 11.)
On the arrival of the army, they made at first frequent sorties, and
engaged in battles on a small scale. Later, when the place was
surrounded by a countervallation of twelve feet high in a circuit of
15,000 feet,[269] with numerous redoubts, they kept close in their
oppidum. The Romans pushed forward their covered galleries, raised a
terrace under shelter of these galleries, and constructed a tower of
timber, intended to be pushed against the wall. At the sight of these
preparations, the Aduatuci, who, like most of the Gauls, despised the
Romans on account of their small stature, addressed the besiegers
ironically from their walls, not understanding how a great machine,
placed at a great distance, could be put in motion by men so diminutive.
But when they saw this tower move and approach the walls, struck with a
sight so strange and so new to them, they sent to implore peace,
demanding, as the only condition, that they should be left in possession
of their arms. Cæsar refused this condition, but declared that, if they
surrendered before the ram had struck their wall, they should be placed,
like the Nervii, under the protection of the Roman people, and preserved
from all violence. The besieged thereupon threw such a quantity of arms
into the fosses that they filled them almost to the height of the wall
and the terrace; yet, as was afterwards discovered, they had retained
about one-third. They threw open their gates, and that day remained
quiet.
The Romans had occupied the town; towards evening, Cæsar ordered them to
leave it, fearing the violences which the soldiers might commit on the
inhabitants during the night. But these, believing that after the
surrender of the place the posts of the countervallation would be
guarded with less care, resume the arms they had concealed, furnish
themselves with bucklers of bark of trees, or wicker, covered hastily
with skins, and, at midnight, attack the part of the works which seems
most easy of access. Fires, prepared by Cæsar, soon announce the attack.
The soldiers rush to the spot from the nearest redoubts; and, though the
enemies fight with the obstinacy of despair, the missiles thrown from
the entrenchments and the towers disperse them, and they are driven back
into the town with a loss of 4,000 men. Next day the gates were broken
in without resistance, and, the town once taken, the inhabitants were
sold publicly to the number of 53,000.[270]
Subjugation of Armorica by P. Crassus
IX. Towards the time of the conclusion of this siege (the first days of
September), Cæsar received letters from P. Crassus. This lieutenant
announced that the maritime peoples on the coasts of the ocean, from the
Loire to the Seine, had submitted. On the arrival of this news at Rome,
the Senate decreed fifteen days of thanksgivings.[271]
These successful exploits, and Gaul entirely pacified, gave to the
barbarian peoples so high an opinion of the Roman power, that the
nations beyond the Rhine, particularly the Ubii, sent deputies to Cæsar,
offering hostages and obedience to his orders. Anxious to proceed to
Italy and Illyria, he commanded the deputies to return to him at the
commencement of the following spring, and placed his legions, with the
exception of the 12th, in winter quarters, in the countries of the
Carnutes, the Andes, and the Turones, neighbouring upon the localities
where Crassus had been making war.[272] They were probably échelonnés
in the valley of the Loire, between Orleans and Angers.
Expedition of Galba into the Valais.
X. Before he departed for Italy, Cæsar sent Servius Galba, with a part
of the cavalry and the 12th legion, into the country of the Nantuates,
the Veragri, and the Seduni (peoples of Chablais and Lower and Upper
Valais), whose territory extended from the country of the Allobroges,
Lake Léman, and the Rhone, to the summit of the Alps. His object was to
open an easy communication with Italy by way of these mountains, that
is, by the Simplon and the St. Bernard, where travellers were
continually subject to exactions and vexations. Galba, after some
successful battles, by which all these peoples were subdued, obtained
hostages, placed two cohorts among the Nantuates, and the rest of his
legions in a town of the Veragri called Octodurus (Martigny). This
town, situated in a little plain at the bottom of a glen surrounded by
high mountains, was divided into two parts by a river (the Drance).
Galba left one bank to the Gauls, and established his troops on the
other, which he fortified with a fosse and rampart.
Several day had passed in the greatest tranquillity, when Galba learnt
suddenly that the Gauls had during the night evacuated the part of the
town which they occupied, and that the Veragri and the Seduni were
appearing in great numbers on the surrounding mountains. The situation
was most critical; for not only could Galba reckon on no succour, but he
had not even finished his retrenchments, or gathered in his provisions
in sufficient quantity. He called together a council, in which it was
decided, in spite of the opinions of some chiefs, who proposed to
abandon the baggage and fight their way out, that they should defend the
camp; but the enemies hardly gave the Romans time to make the necessary
dispositions. Suddenly they rush from all sides towards the
retrenchments, and throw a shower of darts and javelins (gæsa). Having
to defend themselves against forces which are continually renewed, they
are obliged to fight all at once, and to move incessantly to the point
that are most threatened. The men who are fatigued, and even the
wounded, cannot quit the place. The combat had lasted six hours: the
Romans were exhausted with fatigue. Already they began to be short of
missiles; already the Gauls, with increasing audacity, were filling up
the fosse and tearing down the palisades; already the Romans were
reduced to the last extremity, when the primipilus, P. Sextius Baculus,
the same who had shown so much energy in the battle of the Sambre, and
C. Volusenus, tribune of the soldiers, advise Galba that the only hope
which remained was in a sally. The suggestion is adopted. At the command
of the centurions, the soldiers confine themselves to parrying the
missiles, and take breath; then, when the signal is given, rushing on
all sides to the gates, they fall upon the enemy, put him to rout, and
make an immense slaughter. Of 30,000 Gauls, about 10,000 were slain.[273]
In spite of this, Galba, not believing himself in safety in so difficult
a country, in the midst of hostile populations, brought back the 12th
legion into the country of the Allobroges, where it wintered.[273a]
Insurrection of the Maritime Peoples.
I. WHILE Cæsar was visiting Illyria and the different towns of the
Cisalpine, such as Ravenna and Lucca, war broke out anew in Gaul. The
cause was this. Young P. Crassus was in winter quarters with the 7th
legion among the Andes, near the ocean; as he fell short of wheat, he
sent several prefects and military tribunes to ask for provisions from
the neighbouring peoples. T. Terrasidius was deputed to the Unelli,[274]
M. Trebius Gallus to the Curiosolitæ, and Quintus Velanius, with T.
Silius, to the Veneti. This last people was the most powerful on the
whole coast through its commerce and its navy. Its numerous ships served
to carry on a traffic with the isle of Britain. Possessed of consummate
skill in the art of navigation, it ruled over this part of the ocean.
The Veneti first seized Silius and Velanius, in the hope of obtaining in
exchange for them the return of the hostages given to Crassus. Their
example was soon followed. The Unelli and the Curiosolitæ seized, with
the same design, Trebius and Terrasidius; they entered into an
engagement with the Veneti, through their chiefs, to run the same
fortune, excited the rest of the neighbouring maritime peoples to
recover their liberty, and all together intimated to Crassus that he
must send back the hostages if he wished his tribunes and prefects to be
restored.
Cæsar, then very far distant from the scene of these events, learnt them
from Crassus. He immediately ordered galleys to be constructed on the
Loire, rowers to be fetched from the coast of the Mediterranean, and
sailors and pilots to be procured. These measures having been promptly
executed, he repaired to the army as soon as the season permitted. At
the news of his approach, the Veneti and their allies, conscious that
they had been guilty of throwing into fetters envoys invested with a
character which is inviolable, made preparations proportionate to the
danger with which they saw they were threatened. Above all, they set to
work making their ships ready for action. Their confidence was great:
they knew that the tides would intercept the roads on the sea-coast;
they reckoned on the difficulty of the navigation in those unknown
latitudes, where the ports are few, and on the want of provisions, which
would not permit the Romans to make a long stay in their country.
Their determination once taken, they fortified their oppida, and
transported to them the wheat from their fields. Persuaded that the
country of the Veneti would be the first attacked, they gathered
together all their ships, no doubt in the vast estuary formed by the
river Auray in the Bay of Quiberon. (See Plate 12.) They allied
themselves with the maritime peoples of the coast, from the mouth of the
Loire to that of the Scheldt,[275] and demanded succour from the isle of
Britain.[276]
In spite of the difficulties of this war, Cæsar undertook it without
hesitation. He was influenced by grave motives: the violation of the
right of nations, the rebellion after submission, the coalition of so
many peoples; above all, by the fear that their impunity would be an
encouragement to others. If we believe Strabo, Cæsar, as well as the
Veneti, had other reasons to desire this war: on one side, the latter,
possessed of the commerce of Britain, already suspected the design of
the Roman general to pass into that island, and they sought to deprive
him of the means; and, on the other, Cæsar could not attempt the
dangerous enterprise of a descent on England till after he had destroyed
the fleet of the Veneti, the sole masters of the ocean.[277]
War against the Veneti.
II. Be this as it may, in order to prevent new risings, Cæsar divided
his army so as to occupy the country militarily. The lieutenant T.
Labienus, at the head of a part of the cavalry, was sent to the Treviri,
with the mission to visit the Remi and other peoples of Belgic Gaul, to
maintain them in their duty, and to oppose the passage of the Rhine by
the Germans, who were said to have been invited by the Belgæ. P. Crassus
was ordered, with twelve legionary cohorts, and a numerous body of
cavalry, to repair into Aquitaine, to prevent the inhabitants of that
province from swelling the forces of the insurrection. The lieutenant Q.
Titurius Sabinus was detached with three legions to restrain the Unelli,
the Curiosolitæ, and the Lexovii. The young D. Brutus,[278] who had
arrived from the Mediterranean with the galleys,[279] received the
command of the fleet, which was increased by the Gaulish ships borrowed
from the Pictones, the Santones, and other peoples who had submitted.
His instructions enjoined him to sail as soon as possible for the
country of the Veneti. As to Cæsar, he proceeded thither with the rest
of the land army.
The eight legions of the Roman army were then distributed thus: to the
north of the Loire, three legions; in Aquitaine, with Crassus, a legion
and two cohorts; one legion, no doubt, on the fleet; and two legions and
eight cohorts with the general-in-chief, to undertake the war against
the Veneti.[280]
We may admit that Cæsar started from the neighbourhood of Nantes, and
directed his march to the Roche-Bernard, where he crossed the Vilaine.
Having arrived in the country of the Veneti, he resolved to profit by
the time which must pass before the arrival of his fleet to obtain
possession of the principal oppida where the inhabitants took refuge.
Most of these petty fortresses on the coast of the Veneti were situated
at the extremities of tongues of land or promontories; at high tide they
could not be reached by land, while at low tide the approach was
inaccessible to ships, which remained dry on the flats; a double
obstacle to a siege.
The Romans attacked them in the following manner: they constructed on
the land, at low tide, two parallel dykes, at the same time serving for
terraces (aggere ac molibus), and forming approaches towards the
place. During the course of construction, the space comprised between
these two dykes continued to be inundated with water at every high tide;
but as soon as they had succeeded in joining them up to the oppidum,
this space, where the sea could no longer penetrate, remained finally
dry, and then presented to the besiegers a sort of place of arms useful
in the attack.[281]
With the aid of these long and laborious works, in which the height of
the dykes finished by equalling that of the walls, the Romans succeeded
in taking several of these oppida. But all their labours were thrown
away; for, as soon as the Veneti thought themselves no longer safe, they
evacuated the oppidum, embarked with all their goods on board their
numerous vessels, and withdrew to the neighbouring oppida, the
situations of which offered the same advantages for a new resistance.
The greater part of the fine season had passed away in this manner.
Cæsar, convinced at length that the assistance of his ships was
indispensable, came to the resolution of suspending these laborious and
fruitless operations until the arrival of his fleet; and, that he might
be near at hand to receive it, he encamped to the south of the Bay of
Quiberon, near the coast, on the heights of Saint-Gildas. (See Plate
12.)
The vessels of the fleet, held back by contrary winds, had not yet been
able to assemble at the mouth of the Loire. As the Veneti had foreseen,
they navigated with difficulty on this vast sea, subject to high tides,
and almost entirely unfurnished with ports. The inexperience of the
sailors, and even the form of the ships, added to their difficulties.
The enemy’s ships, on the contrary, were built and rigged in a manner to
enable them to wrestle with all obstacles; flatter than those of the
Romans, they had less to fear from the shallows and low tide. Built of
oak, they supported the most violent shocks; the front and back, very
lofty, were beyond the reach of the strongest missiles. The beams
(transtra), made of pieces of timber a foot thick, were fixed with
iron nails, an inch in bigness; and the anchors were held by iron chains
instead of cables; soft skins, made very thin, served for sails, either
because those peoples were nearly or entirely unacquainted with linen,
or because they regarded the ordinary sails as insufficient to support,
with such heavy ships, the impetuosity of the winds of the ocean. The
Roman ships were superior to them only in agility and the impulse of the
oars. In everything else, those of the Veneti were better adapted to the
nature of the localities and to the heavy seas. By the solidity of their
construction they resisted the ships’ beaks, and by their elevation they
were secure from the missiles, and were difficult to seize with the
grappling-irons (copulæ).[282]
Naval Combat against the Veneti.
III. The Roman fleet, thanks to a wind from the east or north-east, was
at length enabled to set sail.[283] It quitted the Loire, and directed
its course towards the Bay of Quiberon and Point Saint-Jaques. (See
Plate 12.) As soon as the Veneti perceived it, they sent out from the
port formed by the river Auray 220 ships well armed and well equipped,
which advanced to encounter it. During this time, the Roman fleet
reached Point Saint-Jaques, where it formed in order of battle near the
shore. That of the Veneti drew up in front of it. The battle took place
under the very eyes of Cæsar and his troops, who occupied the heights on
the shore.
It was the first time that a Roman fleet appeared on the ocean.
Everything conspired to disconcert Brutus, as well as the tribunes of
the soldiers and the centurions who commanded each vessel: the impotence
of the beaks against the Gaulish ships; the height of the enemy’s poops,
which overlooked even the high towers of the Roman vessels; and lastly,
the inefficiency of the missiles thrown upwards. The military chiefs
were hesitating, and had already experienced some loss,[284] when, to
remedy this disadvantage, they imagined a method having some analogy
with that to which Duillius owed his victory over the Carthaginians in
492: they tried to disable the Gaulish vessels by the aid of hooks
(falces) similar to those which were used in attacks on fortresses
(non absimili forma muralium falcium).[285] The falx was an iron
with a point and sharpened hook, fixed at the end of long poles, which,
suspended to the masts by ropes, received an impulsion similar to that
of the ram. One or more ships approached a Gaulish vessel, and, as soon
as the crew had succeeded in catching with one of these hooks the ropes
which attached the yards to the masts, the sailors rowed away with all
their strength, so as to break or cut the cords. The yards fell; the
disabled vessel was immediately surrounded by the Romans, who boarded
it; and then all depended on mere valour. This manœuvre was
completely successful. The soldiers of the fleet, knowing that no act of
courage could pass unperceived by Cæsar and the land troops, emulated
one another in zeal, and captured several of the enemy’s vessels. The
Gauls prepared to seek their safety in flight. They had already swerved
their ships to the wind, when suddenly there came on a dead calm. This
unexpected occurrence decided the victory. Left without the possibility
of moving, the heavy Gaulish vessels were captured one after another; a
very small number succeeded in gaining the coast under favour of the
night.
The battle, which began at ten o’clock in the morning, had lasted till
sunset. It terminated the war with the Veneti and the other maritime
peoples of the ocean. They lost in it, at one blow, all their youth, all
their principal citizens, and all their fleet; without refuge, without
the means of defending any longer their oppida, they surrendered
themselves, bodies and goods. Cæsar, wishing to compel the Gauls in
future to respect the rights of nations, caused the whole Senate to be
put to death and the rest of the inhabitants to be sold for slaves.
Cæsar has been justly reproached with this cruel chastisement; yet this
great man gave such frequent proofs of his clemency towards the
vanquished, that he must have yielded to very powerful political motives
to order an execution so contrary to his habits and temper. Moreover, it
was a sad effect of the war to expose incessantly the chiefs of the
Gallic states to the resentments of the conquerors and the fury of the
mob. While the Roman general punished the Senate of the Veneti for its
revolt and obstinate resistance, the Aulerci-Eburovices and the Lexovii
slaughtered theirs because it laboured to prevent them from joining the
insurrection.[286]
Victory of Sabinus over the Unelli.
IV. While these events were taking place among the Veneti, Q. Titurius
Sabinus gained a decisive victory over the Unelli. At the head of this
nation, and other states in revolt, was Viridovix, who had been joined,
a few days before, by the Aulerci-Eburovices and the Lexovii. A
multitude of men of no account, who had joined him from all parts of
Gaul, in the hope of pillage, came to increase the number of his troops.
Sabinus, starting, we believe, from the neighbourhood of Angers with his
three legions, arrived in the country of the Unelli, and chose there for
his camp a position which was advantageous in all respects. He
established himself on a hill belonging to the line of heights which
separates the basin of the Sée from that of the Célune, where we now
find the vestiges of a camp called Du Chastellier.[287] (See Plate
13.) This hill is defended on the west by escarpments; to the north,
the ground descends from the summit by a gentle slope of about 1,000
paces (1,500 mètres) to the banks of the Sée. Viridovix came and took a
position in face of the Roman camp, at a distance of two miles, on the
heights of the right bank of the stream. Every day he deployed his
troops and offered battle in vain. As Sabinus remained prudently shut up
in his camp, his inaction drew upon him the sarcasms of his own
soldiers, and to such a degree the contempt of the enemy, that the
latter advanced to the foot of his entrenchments. He considered that, in
face of so great a number of troops, it was not the duty of a
lieutenant, in the absence of his general-in-chief, to give battle,
without at least having in his favour all the chances of success. But,
not satisfied with having convinced the enemies of his weakness, he
determined further to make use of a stratagem; he persuaded a clever and
cunning Gaul to repair to Viridovix, under pretence of being a
deserter, and to spread the report that the Romans, during the following
night, would quit secretly their camp, in order to go to the succour of
Cæsar. At this news, the barbarians cried out that they must seize the
favourable opportunity to march against the Romans, and let none of them
escape. Full of ardour, they compelled Viridovix to give the order for
arming. Already confident of victory, they loaded themselves with
branches and brushwood to fill up the fosses, and rushed to attack the
retrenchments. In the hope of not giving time to the Romans to assemble
and arm, they advance with rapidity, and arrive out of breath. But
Sabinus was prepared, and, at the opportune moment, he gives the order
to issue suddenly by the two gates, and to fall upon the enemies while
they were encumbered with their burdens. The advantage of the locality,
the unskilfulness and fatigue of the Gauls, and the valour of the
Romans, all contributed to their success. The barbarians, pursued by the
cavalry, were cut to pieces. The neighbouring peoples immediately
submitted.
Cæsar and Sabinius received intelligence at the same time, one of the
victory over the Unelli, the other of the result of the combat against
the Veneti.[288]
Conquest of Aquitaine by P. Crassus.
V. Almost at the same time, P. Crassus, detached, as we have seen, with
twelve cohorts and a body of cavalry, arrived in Aquitaine, which,
according to the “Commentaries,” formed the third part of Gaul.[289] He
believed that he could not display too much prudence in a country
where, a few years before, the lieutenant L. Valerius Præconinus had
lost his army and his life, and the proconsul L. Mallius had experienced
a great defeat. Having provided for supplies, assembled the auxiliaries,
and chosen by name the most courageous men of Toulouse and Narbonne, he
led his army into the lands of the Sotiates, who, very numerous, and
strong especially in excellent cavalry, attacked the Roman army during
its march. Their horsemen were at first repulsed and pursued; but,
suddenly unmasking their infantry, which lay in ambush in a defile (in
convalle), they charge the Romans as they were dispersed, and the
battle re-commenced with fury.
Proud of their ancient victories, the Sotiates expected by their valour
to save Aquitaine; on their side, the troops of Crassus sought to show
what they could do under a young chief, at a distance from their general
and the other legions. The victory in the end remained with the Romans.
Crassus pursued his march, and having arrived before the oppidum of
the Sotiates (the town of Sos), attempted to carry it by assault; but
the vigorous resistance he met with obliged him to have recourse to
covered galleries and towers. The enemies had recourse sometimes to
sallies, sometimes to subterranean galleries, carried so far that they
went under the works of the besiegers (a labour familiar to the
Aquitanians on account of the numerous mines they worked); yet, all
their efforts failing against the activity of the Roman soldiers, they
made offers to surrender. Crassus accepted their submission, and the
Sotiates delivered up their arms. During the capitulation,
Adiatunnus,[290] supreme chief of the country, followed by 600 trusty
men of the class called soldures, attempted a sally from another side
of the town. At the clamours which arose, the Romans ran to arms, and,
after a severe struggle, drove him back into the oppidum;
nevertheless, Crassus granted him the same terms as the others.
When he had received their arms and hostages, Crassus started for the
countries of the Vasates and the Tarusates. But these barbarians, far
from being discouraged by the so prompt fall of an oppidum fortified
by nature and art, leagued together, raised troops, and demanded succour
and chiefs of the peoples of Citerior Spain, which joined upon
Aquitaine. Formerly companions in arms of Q. Sertorius, these chiefs
enjoyed a great military reputation, and, in their tactics as well as in
their method of fortifying their camps, imitated the Romans. Crassus had
too few troops to spread them far from him, while the enemies threw out
detachments on all sides, who intercepted his provisions. At last, as he
saw their numbers increasing daily, he became convinced that there was
danger in deferring a battle. He assembled his council; which was of the
same opinion, and the combat was fixed for the morrow.
At daybreak, the Roman troops issued from the camp and formed in two
lines, with the auxiliaries in the centre; in this position they awaited
the enemy. The latter, trusting in their numbers, full of recollections
of their ancient glory, imagined that they could easily overpower the
weak Roman army. Still they thought it more prudent to obtain the
victory without a blow, persuaded that by intercepting his provisions
they would force Crassus to a retreat, and that they should then attack
with advantage in the confusion of his march. They therefore remained
shut up in their camp, and let the Romans range their troops and offer
battle. But this deliberate temporising, which had all the appearance of
fear, kindled, on the contrary, that of the Romans: they demanded with
loud cries to march against the enemy without delay. Crassus yields to
their impatience, and leads them forward. Some fill the fosse, others
drive away with a shower of missiles the barbarians who stand on the
rampart. The auxiliaries, on whom Crassus placed little reliance for
action, render, nevertheless, important services: they pass the stones
and missiles, or carry heaps of turf to fill up the fosse. Meanwhile the
enemy was offering an obstinate resistance, when some of the cavalry
brought information to Crassus that, on the side of the Decuman gate,
the camp was not so well fortified, and that the access was more
easy.[291] He then directs the prefects of the cavalry to excite the
ardour of the soldiers with the hope of recompenses; orders them to take
the cohorts who, left to guard the camp, had not yet been engaged in
the battle, and to lead them by a long circuit to the place reported to
be least defended. While the barbarians are solely occupied with the
principal attack, these cohorts rush into the camp; on hearing the
clamour which arises from this attack, the assailants, led by Crassus,
redouble their efforts. The barbarians, surrounded on all sides, lose
courage, rush out of the retrenchments, and seek their safety in flight.
The cavalry overtook them in the open plain, and of 50,000 Aquitanians
or Cantabrians, hardly one quarter escaped, who only reached the camp
very late in the night.
At the news of this victory, the greater part of the peoples of
Aquitaine[292] submitted to Crassus, and sent spontaneously him
hostages; some, nevertheless, who were more distant, and reckoned on the
advanced period of the season, refused to make their submission.[293]
March against the Morini and the Menapii.
VI. Towards the same time, Cæsar, in spite of the near approach of the
end of the fine season, marched against the Morini and the Menapii, who
alone, after the entire pacification of Gaul, remained in arms, and had
not sent him deputies. These peoples had no towns: they dwelt in
caverns[294] or under the tent.[295] Taught by the example of their
neighbours, they avoided engaging in pitched battles, and withdrew into
the recesses of woods and marshes. Cæsar, when he arrived in their
country, was attacked by surprise at the moment he was beginning to
fortify his camp. He drove them back into the woods, but not without
experiencing some loss; then, to open himself a wider road in the forest
which had become their asylum, he caused the trees between him and the
enemy to be cut down, and, heaping them up to the right and the left, he
formed two ramparts, which secured him from attacks on the flank. This
work was executed in a few days over a great space with incredible
celerity. Cæsar had already reached the place of refuge of the Morini
and the Menapii, who retired further and further into the thickness of
the forests; already he had captured their herds and baggage, which they
were obliged to leave behind, when rain falling in torrents, no longer
permitting the soldiers to remain under tents, compelled him to
retire.[296] He ravaged the country, burnt the habitations, and withdrew
his army, which he placed in winter quarters (between the Seine and the
Loire), among the Aulerci, the Lexovii, and the other peoples recently
vanquished.[297]
Observations.
VII. The war of 698, directed almost exclusively against the peoples on
the shores of the ocean, shows clearly that Cæsar already, at that time,
entertained the design of making an expedition into the isle of Britain,
for he not only destroys the only important fleet that could be brought
against him, that of the Veneti, but he subjugates, either in person or
by his lieutenants, all the countries which extend from Bayonne to the
mouth of the Scheldt.
It is worthy of remark how much the Romans were superior to the
barbarians, by discipline, tactics, and the art of sieges; with what
facility they raised terraces, made dykes, or promptly cut down a forest
to clear themselves a passage through it. Truly, it is to the genius of
Cæsar that the glory of all these brilliant successes belongs; but we
must also acknowledge that he had under his orders the best army in the
world, and the men most experienced in the military profession. Among
these were the chiefs placed over the machines and siege operations,
named præfecti fabrorum. They rendered him the most signal services.
Mention is made of L. Cornelius Balbus,[298] who prepared the material
of his army during his consulate, and Mamurra,[299] who, in spite of the
bad character Catullus gives him in his satires, gave proof of his
genius during the wars in Gaul.
Cæsar’s March against the Usipetes and the Tencteri.
I. THE Usipetes and the Tencteri, German peoples driven out of their
place by the Suevi, had wandered during three years in different
countries of Germany, when, during the winter of 698 to 699, they
resolved to pass the Rhine. They invaded the territory of the Menapii
(established on the two banks), surprised them, massacred them, crossed
the river not far from its mouth (towards Cleves[300] and Xanten) (see
Plate 14), and, after taking possession of the whole country, lived
the rest of the winter on the provisions they found there.
Cæsar saw the necessity of being on his guard against the impression
which this invasion would produce on the minds of the Gauls. It was to
be feared they would be tempted to revolt, with the assistance of the
Germans who had just crossed the Rhine.
To meet this danger, Cæsar crossed the mountains earlier than usual
(maturius quam consuerat), and joined the army in the countries of the
Aulerci and the Lexovii, between the Loire and the Seine, where it had
wintered. His apprehensions were but too well founded. Several peoples
of Gaul had invited the Germans to leave the banks of the Rhine and
penetrate farther into the interior. Eager to respond to this appeal,
the latter soon spread themselves far over the country, and already some
of them had arrived at the countries of the Eburones and the Condrusi,
the latter clients of the Treviri. On receiving news of this, Cæsar
called together the Gaulish chiefs who had invited the Germans, feigned
ignorance of their conduct, addressed kind words to them, obtained
cavalry from them, and, after securing his provisions, began his march
against this new irruption of barbarians. He foresaw a formidable war,
for the number of the Tencteri and Usipetes amounted to no less than
430,000 individuals—men, women, and children. If we admit that among
these peoples the proportion of the number of men capable of bearing
arms was the same as in the emigration of the Helvetii, that is,
one-fourth of the total population, we see that the Romans had to
combat more than 100,000 enemies.[301]
Without knowing exactly the road taken by Cæsar, we may suppose that he
promptly concentrated his army on the lower Seine to carry it towards
the north, at Amiens, where he had convoked the Gaulish chiefs who had
sought the support of the Germans. He followed, from Amiens, the road
which passes by Cambrai, Bavay, Charleroy, Tongres, and Maestricht,
where he crossed the Meuse. (See Plate 14.) He was only a few days’
march from the Germans, when deputies came to propose, in rather haughty
language, an arrangement:—“Driven from their country, they have not
taken the initiative in the war; but they will not seek to avoid it.
The Germans have learnt from their ancestors, whoever may be the
aggressor, to have recourse to arms, and never to prayers. They may be
useful allies to the Romans, if lands are given to them, or if they are
allowed to retain those they have conquered. Moreover, with the
exception of the Suevi, to whom the gods themselves are not equal, they
know no people capable of resisting them.” Cæsar imposed upon them, as a
first condition, to quit Gaul; observing, “Those who have not been able
to defend their own lands, have no right to claim the lands of others;”
and he offered them a settlement among the Ubii, who were imploring his
support against the Suevi. The deputies promised to bring an answer to
this proposal in three days; meanwhile, they begged him to suspend his
march. Cæsar considered that this demand was only a subterfuge to gain
time to recall the cavalry, which had been sent a few days before to
collect plunder and provisions among the Ambivariti,[302] beyond the
Meuse. He rejected their proposal, and continued his advance.
At the appointed time, Cæsar, having passed the locality where Venloo
now stands, was no longer more than twelve miles from the enemy; and the
deputies returned as they had promised. They met the army in march, and
earnestly entreated it should go no farther. When they found they could
not prevail, they begged at least that the cavalry, which formed the
vanguard, should not engage in action, and that they should be allowed a
delay of three days, in order to send deputies to the Ubii; if the
latter bound themselves by oath to receive them, they would accept
Cæsar’s conditions. The latter was not the dupe of this new stratagem,
yet he promised them to advance that day no more than four miles, for
the purpose of finding water. He invited them, further, to send a more
numerous deputation next day. His cavalry received the order not to
provoke a combat, but to confine itself in case of being attacked, to
remaining firm, and await the arrival of the legions.
When they learnt that Cæsar was approaching the Meuse and the Rhine, the
Usipetes and Tencteri had concentrated their forces towards the
confluence of those two rivers, in the most remote part of the country
of the Menapii, and had established themselves on the river Niers, in
the plains of Goch. Cæsar, on his side, after leaving Venloo, had borne
to the right to march to the encounter of the enemy. Since, to the north
of the Roer, there exists, between the Rhine and the Meuse, no other
water-course but the Niers, he was evidently obliged to advance to that
river to find water: he was four miles from it when he met, at Straelen,
the German deputation.
The vanguard, consisting of 5,000 cavalry, marched without distrust,
reckoning on the truce which had been concluded. Suddenly, 800 horsemen
(all at the disposal of the Germans, since the greater part of their
cavalry had passed the Meuse) appeared bearing down upon Cæsar’s cavalry
from the greatest distance at which they could be seen. In an instant
the ranks of the latter are thrown into disorder. They have succeeded in
forming again, when the German horsemen, according to their custom,
spring to the ground, stab the horses in the bellies, and overthrow
their riders, who fly in terror till they come in sight of the legions.
Seventy-four of the cavalry perished, among whom was the Aquitanian
Piso, a man of high birth and great courage, whose grandfather had
wielded the sovereign power in his country, and had obtained from the
Senate the title of “Friend.” His brother, in the attempt to save him,
shared his fate.
This attack was a flagrant violation of the truce, and Cæsar resolved to
enter into no further negotiation with so faithless an enemy. Struck
with the impression produced by this single combat on the fickle minds
of the Gauls, he was unwilling to leave them time for reflection, but
decided on delaying battle no longer; besides, it would have been folly
to give the Germans leisure to wait the return of their cavalry. Next
morning their chiefs came to the camp in great numbers, to offer their
justification for the previous day’s attack in defiance of the
convention, but their real object was to obtain by deception a
prolongation of the truce. Cæsar, satisfied at seeing them deliver
themselves into his power of their own accord, judged right to make use
of reprisals, and ordered them to be arrested. The Roman army, then
encamped on the Niers, was only eight miles distant from the
Germans.[303]
Rout of the Usipetes and the Tencteri.
II. Cæsar drew all the troops out of his camp, formed the infantry in
three lines,[304] and placed the cavalry, still intimidated by the late
combat, in the rear guard. After marching rapidly over the short
distance which separated him from the Germans, he came upon them totally
unexpected. Struck with terror at the sudden appearance of the army, and
disconcerted by the absence of their chiefs, they had the time neither
to deliberate nor to take their arms, and hesitated for a moment between
flight and resistance.[305] While their cries and disorder announce
their terror, the Romans, provoked by their perfidious conduct on the
previous day, rush upon the camp. As many of the Germans as are quick
enough to gain their arms attempt to defend themselves, and combat among
the baggage and wagons. But the women and children fly on every side.
Cæsar sends the cavalry to pursue them. As soon as the barbarians, who
still resisted, hear behind them the cries of the fugitives, and see the
massacre of their companions, they throw down their arms, abandon their
ensigns, and rush headlong out of the camp. They only cease their flight
when they reach the confluence of the Rhine and the Meuse, where some
are massacred and others are swallowed up in the river.[306] This
victory, which did not cost the Romans a single man, delivered them
from a formidable war. Cæsar restored their liberty to the chiefs he had
retained; but they, fearing the vengeance of the Gauls, whose lands they
had ravaged, preferred remaining with him.[307]
First Passage of the Rhine.
III. After so brilliant a success, Cæsar, to secure the results,
considered it a measure of importance to cross the Rhine, and so seek
the Germans in their homes. For this purpose, he must choose the point
of passage where the right bank was inhabited by a friendly people, the
Ubii. The study of this and the following campaigns leads us to believe
that this was Bonn.[308] From the field of battle, then, he proceeded
up the valley of the Rhine; he followed a direction indicated by the
following localities: Gueldres, Crefeld, Neuss, Cologne, and Bonn. (See
Plate 14.) Above all, it was Cæsar’s intention to put a stop to the
rage of the Germans for invading Gaul, to inspire them with fears for
their own safety, and to prove to them that the Roman army dared and
could cross a great river. He had, moreover, a plausible motive for
penetrating into Germany—the refusal of the Sicambri to deliver up to
him the cavalry of the Usipetes and Tencteri, who had taken refuge among
them after the battle. The Sicambri had replied to his demand, that the
empire of the Roman people ended with the Rhine, and that beyond it
Cæsar had no further claims. At the same time, the Ubii, who alone of
the peoples beyond the Rhine had sought his alliance, claimed his
protection against the Suevi, who were threatening them more seriously
than ever. It would be a sufficient guarantee for their safety, they
said, to show himself on the right bank of the Rhine, so great was the
renown of the Roman army among even the most remote of the German
nations, since the defeat of Ariovistus and the recent victory; and they
offered him boats for passing the river. Cæsar declined this offer. It
did not appear to him worthy of the dignity of himself or of the Roman
people to have recourse to barbarians, and he judged it unsafe to
transport the army in boats. Therefore, in spite of the obstacles
presented by a wide, deep, and rapid river, he decided on throwing a
bridge across it.
It was the first time that a regular army attempted to cross the Rhine.
The bridge was constructed in the following manner. (See Plate 15.)
Two trees (probably in their rough state), a foot and a half in
thickness, cut to a point at one of their extremities, and of a length
proportionate to the depth of the river, were bound together with
cross-beams at intervals of two feet from each other; let down into the
water, and stuck into the ground by means of machines placed in boats
coupled together, they were driven in by blows of a rammer, not
vertically, like ordinary piles, but obliquely, giving them an
inclination in the direction of the current. Opposite them, and at a
distance of forty feet below, another couple of piles were placed,
arranged in the same manner, but inclined in a contrary direction, in
order to resist the violence of the river. In the interval left between
the two piles of each couple, a great beam was lodged, called the
head-piece, of two feet square; these two couples (hæc utraque) were
bound together on each side, beginning from the upper extremity, by two
wooden ties (fibulæ), so that they could neither draw from nor towards
each other, and presented, according to the “Commentaries,” a whole of a
solidity so great, that the force of the water, so far from injuring it,
bound all its parts tighter together.[309] This system formed one row of
piles of the bridge; and as many of them were established as were
required by the breadth of the river. The Rhine at Bonn being about 430
mètres wide, the bridge must have been composed of fifty-six arches,
supposing each of these to have been twenty-six Roman feet in length
(7·70 mètres). Consequently, there were fifty-four rows of piles. The
floor was formed of planks reaching from one head-piece to the other, on
which were placed transversely smaller planks, which were covered with
hurdles. Besides this, they drove in obliquely, below each row of piles,
a pile which, placed in form of a buttress (quæ pro ariete subjectæ),
and bound in with it, increased the resistance to the current. Other
piles were similarly driven in at a little distance above the rows of
piles, so as to form stockades, intended to stop trunks of trees and
boats which the barbarians might have thrown down in order to break the
bridge.
These works were completed in ten days, including the time employed for
the transport of the materials. Cæsar crossed the river with his army,
left a strong guard at each extremity of the bridge, and marched towards
the territory of the Sicambri, proceeding, no doubt, up the valley of
the Sieg and the Agger, (See Plate 14.) During his march, deputies
from different peoples came to solicit his alliance. He gave them a
friendly reception, and exacted hostages. As to the Sicambri, at the
beginning of the erection of the bridge, they had fled to the deserts
and forests, terrified by the reports of the Usipetes and Tencteri, who
had taken refuge among them.
Cæsar remained only eighteen days beyond the Rhine. During this time he
ravaged the territory of the Sicambri, returned to that of the Ubii, and
promised them succour if they were attacked by the Suevi. The latter
having withdrawn to the centre of their country, he renounced the
prospect of combating them, and considered that he had thus accomplished
his design.
It is evident, from what precedes, that Cæsar’s aim was not to make the
conquest of Germany, but to strike a great blow which should disgust the
barbarians with their frequent excursions across the Rhine. No doubt he
hoped to meet with the Suevi, and give them battle; but learning that
they had assembled at a great distance from the Rhine, he thought it
more prudent not to venture into an unknown country covered with
forests, but returned into Gaul, and caused the bridge to be broken.
It was not enough for Cæsar to have intimidated the Germans; he formed a
still bolder project, that of crossing the sea, to go and demand a
reckoning of the Britons for the succour which, in almost all his wars,
and particularly in that of the Veneti, they had sent to the Gauls.[310]
Description of Britain in the time of Cæsar.
IV. The Romans had but imperfect information relating to Britain, which
they owed to certain Greek writers, such as Pytheas of Marseilles, who
had visited the Northern Sea in the fourth century before our era, and
Timæus of Tauromenium. The Gauls who visited Britain for the sake of
traffic, knew hardly more than the southern and south-eastern coasts.
Nevertheless, a short time before the arrival of the Romans, one of the
populations of Belgic Gaul, the Suessiones, then governed by Divitiacus,
had extended their domination into this island.[311]
It was only after having landed in Britain that Cæsar was able to form a
tolerably exact idea of its form and extent. “Britain,” he says, “has
the form of a triangle, the base of which, about 500 miles in extent,
faces Gaul. The side which faces Spain, that is, the west, presents a
length of about 700 miles. In this direction the island is separated
from Hibernia (Ireland) by an arm of the sea, the breadth of which is
apparently the same as the arm of the sea which separates Britain from
Gaul;” and he adds that “the surface of Hibernia represents about one
half the surface of Britain. The third part of the triangle formed by
this latter island is eastward turned to the north, and 800 miles long;
it faces no land; only one of the angles of this side looks towards
Germany.”[312] These imperfect estimates, which were to give place in
the following century to others less inaccurate,[313] led the great
captain to ascribe to the whole of Britain twenty times 100,000 paces in
circuit. He further gathered some information still more vague on the
small islands in the vicinity of Britain. “One of them,” he writes, “is
called Mona (the Isle of Man), and is situated in the middle of the
strait which separates Britain from Hibernia.” The Hebrides, the
Shetland islands (Acmodæ of the ancients), and the Orcades, which were
only known to the Romans at the commencement of our era,[314] were
confounded, in the minds of Cæsar and his contemporaries, with the
archipelago of the Feroe isles and Scandinavia. Caledonia (Scotland)
appeared only in an obscure distance.
Cæsar represents the climate of Britain as less cold and more temperate
than that of Gaul. With the exception of the beech (fagus) and the fir
(abies), the same timbers were found in the forests of this island as
on the neighbouring continent.[315] They grew wheat there, and bred
numerous herds of cattle.[316] “The soil, if it is not favourable to
the culture of the olive, the vine, and other products of warm
climates,” writes Tacitus,[317] “produces in their place grain and
fruits in abundance. Although they grow quickly, they are slow in
ripening.”
Britain contained a numerous population. The interior was inhabited by
peoples who believed themselves to be autochthones, and the southern
and eastern coasts by a race who had emigrated from Belgic Gaul, and
crossed the Channel and the Northern Sea, attracted by the prospect of
plunder. After having made war on the natives, they had established
themselves in the island, and became agriculturalists.[318] Cæsar adds
that nearly all these tribes which had come from the continent had
preserved the names of the civitates from whence they had issued. And,
in fact, among the peoples of Britain named by geographers in the ages
subsequent to the conquest of Gaul, we meet, on the banks of the Thames
and the Severn, with the names of Belgæ and Atrebates.
The most powerful of the populations of Belgic origin were found in
Cantium (Kent), which was placed, by its commercial relations, in more
habitual intercourse with Gaul.[319] The “Commentaries” mention only a
small number of British nations. These are the Trinobantes (the people
of Essex and Middlesex), who proved the most faithful to the
Romans,[320] and whose principal oppidum was probably already, in the
time of Cæsar, Londinium (London), mentioned by Tacitus;[321] the
Cenimagni[322] (Suffolk, to the north of the Trinobantes); the
Segontiaci (the greater part of Hampshire and Berkshire, southern
counties); the Bibroci (inhabiting a region then thickly wooded, over
which extended the celebrated forest of Anderida);[323] their territory
comprised a small part of Hampshire and Berkshire, and embraced the
counties of Surrey and Sussex and the most western part of Kent;
the Ancalites (a more uncertain position, in the north of Berkshire
and the western part of Middlesex); the Cassii (Hertfordshire and
Bedfordshire, central counties). Each of these little nations was
governed by a chieftain or king.[324]
The Belgæ of Britain possessed the same manners as the Gauls, but their
social condition was less advanced. Strabo[325] gives this proof, that,
having milk in abundance, the Britons did not know how to make cheese,
an art, on the contrary, carried to great perfection in certain parts of
Gaul. The national character of the two populations, British and
Gaulish, presented a great analogy:—“The same boldness in seeking
danger, the same eagerness to fly from it when it is before them,”
writes Tacitus; “although the courage of the Britons has more of pride
in it.”[326] This resemblance of the two races showed itself also in
their exterior forms. Yet, according to Strabo, the stature of the
Britons was taller than that of the Gauls, and their hair was less red.
Their dwellings were but wretched huts made of stubble and wood;[327]
they stored up their wheat in subterranean repositories; their oppida
were situated in the middle of forests, defended by a rampart and a
fosse, and served for places of refuge in case of attack.[328]
The tribes of the interior of the island lived in a state of greater
barbarism than those of the maritime districts. Clothed in the skins of
animals, they fed upon milk and flesh.[329] Strabo even represents them
as cannibals; and assures us that the custom existed among them of
eating the bodies of their dead relatives.[330] The men wore their hair
very long, and a moustache; they rubbed their skin with woad, which gave
them a blue colour, and rendered their aspect as combatants singularly
hideous.[331] The women also coloured themselves in the same manner for
certain religious ceremonies, in which they appeared naked.[332] Such
was the barbarism of the Britons of the interior, that the women were
sometimes common to ten or twelve men, a promiscuousness which was
especially customary amongst the nearest relatives. As to the children
who were born of these incestuous unions, they were considered to belong
to the first who had received into his house the mother while still a
girl.[333] The Britons of the Cape Belerium (Cornwall) were very
hospitable, and the trade they carried on with foreign merchants had
softened their manners.[334]
The abundance of metals in Britain, especially of tin, or plumbum
album, which the Phœnicians went to seek there from a very remote
antiquity,[335] furnished the inhabitants with numerous means of
exchange. At all events, they were not acquainted with money, and only
made use of pieces of copper, gold, or iron, the value of which was
determined by weighing. They did not know how to make bronze, but
received it from abroad.[336]
The religion of the Britons, on which Cæsar gives us no information,
must have differed little from that of the Gauls, since Druidism passed
for having been imported from Britain into Gaul.[337] Tacitus, in fact,
tells us that the same worship and the same superstitions were found in
Britain as among the Gauls.[338] Strabo speaks, on the authority of
Artemidorus, of an island neighbouring to Britain, where they
celebrated, in honour of two divinities, assimilated by the latter to
Ceres and Proserpine, rites which resembled those of the mysteries of
Samothrace.[339] Under the influence of certain superstitious ideas, the
Britons abstained from the flesh of several animals, such as the hare,
the hen, and the goose, which, nevertheless, they domesticated as
ornamental objects.[340]
The Britons, though living in an island, appear to have possessed no
shipping in the time of Cæsar. They were foreign ships which came to
the neighbourhood of Cape Belerium to fetch the tin, which the
inhabitants worked with as much skill as profit.[341] About a century
after Cæsar, the boats of the Britons were still only frames of
wicker-work covered with leather.[342] The inhabitants of Britain were
less ignorant in the art of war than in that of navigation. Protected by
small bucklers,[343] and armed with long swords, which they handled with
skill, but which became useless in close combat, they never combated in
masses: they advanced in small detachments, which supported each other
reciprocally.[344] Their principal force was in their infantry;[345] yet
they employed a great number of war-chariots armed with scythes.[346]
They began by driving about rapidly on all sides, and hurling darts,
seeking thus to spread disorder in the enemy’s ranks by the mere terror
caused by the impetuosity of the horses and the noise of the wheels;
then they returned into the intervals of their cavalry, leaped to the
ground, and fought on foot mixed with the horsemen. During this time the
drivers withdrew themselves with the chariots so as to be ready in case
of need to receive the combatants.[347] The Britons thus united the
movableness of cavalry with the steadiness of infantry; daily exercise
had made them so dexterous that they maintained their horses at full
speed on steep slopes, drew them in or turned them at will, ran upon the
shaft, held under the yoke, and thence threw themselves rapidly into
their chariots.[348] In war they used their dogs as auxiliaries, which
the Gauls procured from Britain for the same purpose. These dogs were
excellent for the chase.[349]
In short, the Britons were less civilised than the Gauls. If we except
the art of working certain metals, their manufactures were limited to
the fabrication of the coarsest and most indispensable objects; and it
was from Gaul they obtained collars, vessels of amber and glass, and
ornaments of ivory for the bridles of their horses.[350]
It was known also that pearls were in the Scottish sea, and people
easily believed that it concealed immense treasures.
These details relating to Britain were not collected until after the
Roman expeditions, for that country was previously the subject of the
most mysterious tales; and when Cæsar resolved on its conquest, this
bold enterprise excited people’s minds to the highest degree by the
ever-powerful charm of the unknown. As to him, in crossing the Channel,
he obeyed the same thought which had carried him across the Rhine: he
wished to give the barbarians a high notion of Roman greatness, and
prevent them from lending support to the insurrections in Gaul.
First Expedition to Britain.
V. Although the summer approached its end, the difficulties of a
descent upon Britain did not stop him. Even supposing, indeed, that the
season should not permit him to obtain any decisive result by the
expedition, he looked upon it as an advantage to gain a footing in that
island, and to make himself acquainted with the locality, and with the
ports and points for disembarking. None of the persons whom he examined
could or would give him any information, either on the extent of the
country, or on the number and manners of its inhabitants, or on their
manner of making war, or on the ports capable of receiving a large
fleet.
Desirous of obtaining some light on these different points before
attempting the expedition, Cæsar sent C. Volusenus, in a galley, with
orders to explore everything, and return as quickly as possible with the
result of his observations. He proceeded in person with his army into
the country of the Morini, from whence the passage into Britain was
shortest. There was on that coast a port favourably situated for fitting
out an expedition against this island, the Portius Itius, or, as we
shall endeavour to prove farther on, the port of Boulogne. The ships of
all the neighbouring regions, and the fleet constructed in the previous
year for the war against the Veneti, were collected there.
The news of his project having been carried into Britain by the
merchants, the deputies of several nations in the island came with
offers of submission. Cæsar received them with kindness; and on their
return he sent with them Commius, whom he had previously made king of
the Atrebates. This man, whose courage, prudence, and devotion he
appreciated, enjoyed great credit among the Britons. He directed him to
visit the greatest possible number of tribes, to keep them in good
feelings, and to announce his speedy arrival.
While Cæsar remained among the Morini, waiting the completion of the
preparations for his expedition, he received a deputation which came in
the name of a great part of the inhabitants to justify their past
conduct. He accepted their explanations readily, unwilling to leave
enemies behind him. Moreover, the season was too far advanced to allow
of combating the Morini, and their entire subjection was not a matter of
sufficient importance to divert him from his enterprise against Britain:
he was satisfied with exacting numerous hostages. Meanwhile Volusenus
returned, at the end of five days, to report the result of his mission:
as he had not ventured to land, he had only performed it imperfectly.
The forces destined for the expedition consisted of two legions, the 7th
and the 10th, commanded probably by Galba and Labienus, and of a
detachment of cavalry, which made about 12,000 legionaries and 450
horses.
Q. Titurius Sabinus and L. Aurunculeius Cotta received the command of
the troops left on the continent to occupy the territory of the Menapii
and that of the country of the Morini which had not submitted. The
lieutenant P. Sulpicius Rufus was charged with the guard of the port
with a sufficient force.
They had succeeded in collecting eighty transport ships, judged capable
of containing the two legions of the expedition, with all their baggage,
and a certain number of galleys, which were distributed among the
quæstor, the lieutenants, and the prefects. Eighteen other vessels,
destined for the cavalry, were detained by contrary winds in a little
port (that of Ambleteuse) situated eight miles to the north of
Boulogne.[351] (See Plate 16.)
Having made these dispositions, Cæsar, taking advantage of a favourable
wind, started in the night between the 24th and 25th of August (we shall
endeavour to justify this date farther on), towards midnight, after
giving orders to the cavalry to proceed to the port above
(Ambleteuse); he reached the coast of Britain at the fourth hour of
the day (ten o’clock in the forenoon), opposite the cliffs of Dover. The
cavalry, which had embarked but slowly, had not been able to join him.
From his ship Cæsar perceived the cliffs covered with armed men. At this
spot the sea was so close to these cliffs that a dart thrown from the
heights could reach the beach.[352] The place appeared to him in no
respect convenient for landing. This description agrees with that which
Q. Cicero gave to his brother, of “coasts surmounted by immense
rocks.”[353] (See Plate 17.) Cæsar cast anchor, and waited in vain
until the fifth hour (half-past three) (see the Concordance of Hours,
Appendix B), for the arrival of the vessels which were delayed. In the
interval, he called together his lieutenants and the tribunes of the
soldiers, communicated to them his plans as well as the information
brought by Volusenus, and urged upon them the instantaneous execution of
his orders on a simple sign, as maritime war required, in which the
manœuvres must be as rapid as they are varied. It is probable that
Cæsar had till then kept secret the point of landing.
When he had dismissed them, towards half-past three o’clock, the wind
and tide having become favourable at the same time, he gave the signal
for raising their anchors, and, after proceeding about seven miles to
the east, as far as the extremity of the cliffs, and having, according
to Dio Cassius, doubled a lofty promontory,[354] the point of the South
Foreland (see Plate 16), he stopped before the open and level shore
which extends from the castle of Walmer to Deal.
From the heights of Dover it was easy for the Britons to trace the
movement of the fleet; guessing that it was making for the point where
the cliffs ended, they hastened thither, preceded by their cavalry and
their chariots, which they used constantly in their battles. They
arrived in time to oppose the landing, which had to be risked under the
most difficult circumstances. The ships, on account of their magnitude,
could only cast anchor in the deep water; the soldiers, on an unknown
coast, with their hands embarrassed, their bodies loaded with the weight
of their arms, were obliged to throw themselves into the waves, find a
footing, and combat. The enemy, on the contrary, with the free use of
their limbs, acquainted with the ground, and posted on the edge of the
water, or a little way in advance in the sea, threw their missiles with
confidence, and pushed forward their docile and well-disciplined horses
into the midst of the waves. Thus the Romans, disconcerted by this
concurrence of unforeseen circumstances, and strangers to this kind of
combat, did not carry to it their usual ardour and zeal.
In this situation, Cæsar detached from the line of transport ships the
galleys—lighter ships, and of a form which was new to the
barbarians—and directed them by force of rowing upon the enemy’s
uncovered flank (that is, on his right side), in order to drive him from
his position by means of slings, arrows, and darts thrown from the
machines. This manœuvre was of great assistance; for the Britons,
struck with the look of the galleys, the movement of the oars, and the
novel effect of the machines, halted and drew back a little. Still the
Romans hesitated, on account of the depth of the water, to leap out of
the ships, when the standard-bearer of the 10th legion, invoking the
gods with a loud voice, and exhorting his comrades to defend the eagle,
leaps into the sea and induces them to follow.[355] This example is
imitated by the legionaries embarked in the nearest ships, and the
combat begins. It was obstinate. The Romans being unable to keep their
ranks, or gain a solid footing, or rally round their ensigns, the
confusion was extreme; all those who leapt out of the ships to gain the
land singly, were surrounded by the barbarian cavalry, to whom the
shallows were known, and, when they were collected in mass, the enemy,
taking them on the uncovered flank, overwhelmed them with missiles. On
seeing this, Cæsar caused the galleys’ boats and the small vessels which
served to light the fleet to be filled with soldiers, and sent them
wherever the danger required. Soon the Romans, having succeeded in
establishing themselves on firm ground, formed their ranks, rushed upon
the enemy, and put him to flight; but a long pursuit was impossible for
want of cavalry, which, through contrary winds in the passage, had not
been able to reach Britain. In this alone fortune failed Cæsar.
In this combat, in which, no doubt, many acts of courage remained
unknown, a legionary, whose name, Cæsius Scæva, has been preserved by
Valerius Maximus, distinguished himself in a very remarkable manner.
Having thrown himself into a boat with four men, he had reached a
rock,[356] whence, with his comrades, he threw missiles against the
enemy; but the ebb rendered the space between the rock and the land
fordable. The barbarians then rushed to them in a crowd. His companions
took refuge in their boat; he, firm to his post, made an heroic defence,
and killed several of his enemies; at last, having his thigh
transpierced with an arrow, his face bruised by the blow of a stone, his
helmet broken to pieces, his buckler covered with holes, he trusted
himself to the mercy of the waves, and swam back towards his companions.
When he saw his general, instead of boasting of his conduct, he sought
his pardon for returning without his buckler. It was, in fact, a
disgrace among the ancients to lose that defensive arm; but Cæsar loaded
him with praise, and rewarded him with the grade of a centurion.
The landing having been effected, the Romans established their camp near
the sea, and, as everything leads us to believe, on the height of
Walmer. The galleys were hauled on the strand, and the transport ships
left at anchor not far from the shore.
The enemies, who had rallied after their defeat, decided on peace. They
joined with their deputies; sent, to solicit it, some of the Morini,
with whom they lived on friendly terms,[357] and Commius, the King of
the Atrebates, who had been previously sent on a mission to Britain. The
barbarians had seized his person the moment he landed, and loaded him
with fetters. After the combat, they set him at liberty, and came to ask
pardon for this offence, throwing the fault upon the multitude. Cæsar
reproached them with having received him as an enemy, after they had, of
their own motion, sent deputies to him on the continent to treat of
peace. Nevertheless, he pardoned them, but required hostages; part of
these were delivered to him immediately, and the rest promised within a
few days. Meanwhile they returned to their homes, and from all sides the
chiefs came to implore the protection of the conqueror.
Peace seemed to be established. The army had been four days in Britain,
and the eighteen ships which carried the cavalry, quitting the upper
port with a light breeze, approached the coast, and were already in view
of the camp, when suddenly a violent tempest arose which drove them out
of their course. Some were carried back to the point whence they had
started, whilst others were driven towards the south of the island,
where they cast anchor; but, beaten by the waves, they were obliged, in
the midst of a stormy night, to put to sea and regain the continent.
This night, between the 30th and 31st of August, coincided with full
moon; the Romans were ignorant of the fact that this was the period of
the highest tides on the ocean. The water soon submerged the galleys
which had been drawn upon the dry beach, and the transport ships which
had remained at anchor, yielding to the tempest, were broken on the
coast or disabled. The consternation became general; the Romans were in
want of everything at once, both of the means of transport, of materials
for repairing their ships, and even of provisions; for Cæsar, not
intending to winter in Britain, had carried thither no supplies.
At the moment of this disaster, the chiefs of the Britains had again
assembled to carry out the conditions imposed upon them; but, informed
of the critical position of the Romans, and judging the small number of
the invaders by the diminutive proportions of their camp, which was the
more contracted as the legions had embarked without baggage[358] they
determined on again resorting to arms. The opportunity seemed favourable
for intercepting provisions, and prolonging the struggle till winter, in
the firm conviction that, if they annihilated the Romans and cut them
off from all retreat, nobody would dare in future to carry the war into
Britain.
A new league is forming. The barbarian chiefs depart one after another
from the Roman camp, and secretly recall the men they had sent away.
Cæsar as yet was ignorant of their design; but their delay in delivering
the rest of the hostages, and the disaster which had befallen his fleet,
soon led him to anticipate what would happen. He therefore took his
measures to meet all eventualities. Every day the two legions repaired
in turn to the country to reap; the fleet was repaired with the timber
and copper of the ships which had suffered most, and the materials of
which they were in want were brought over from the continent. Thanks to
the extreme zeal of the soldiers, all the ships were set afloat again,
with the exception of twelve, which reduced the fleet to sixty-eight
vessels instead of eighty, its number when it left Gaul.
During the execution of these works, Britons came backwards and forwards
to the camp freely, and nothing predicted the approach of hostilities;
but one day, when the seventh legion, according to custom, had proceeded
to no great distance from the camp to cut wheat, the soldiers on guard
before the gates suddenly came to announce that a thick cloud of dust
arose in the direction taken by the legion. Cæsar, suspecting some
attack from the barbarians, assembles the cohorts on guard, orders two
others to replace them, and the rest of the troops to arm and follow him
without delay, and hurries forward in the direction indicated. What had
happened was this. The Britons, foreseeing that the Romans would repair
to the only spot which remained to reap (pars una erat reliqua), had
concealed themselves the previous night in the forests. After waiting
till the soldiers of the 7th legion had laid aside their arms and begun
to cut the grain, they had fallen upon them unexpectedly, and, while the
legionaries in disorder were forming, they had surrounded them with
their cavalry and chariots.
This strange manner of combating had thrown the soldiers of the 7th
legion into disorder. Closely surrounded, and resisting with difficulty
under a shower of missiles, they would perhaps have succumbed, when
Cæsar appeared at the head of his cohorts; his presence restored
confidence to his own men and checked the enemy. Nevertheless, he did
not judge it prudent to risk a battle, and, after remaining a certain
length of time in position, he withdrew his troops. The 7th legion had
experienced considerable loss.[359] Continual rains, during some days,
rendered all operations impossible; but eventually the barbarians,
believing that the moment had arrived to recover their liberty,
assembled from all parts, and marched against the camp.
Deprived of cavalry, Cæsar foresaw well that it would go the same with
this combat as with the preceding, and that the enemy, when repulsed,
would escape easily by flight; nevertheless, as he had at his disposal
thirty horses brought into Britain by Commius, he believed that he could
use them with advantage;[360] he drew up his legions in battle at the
head of the camp, and ordered them to march forward. The enemy did not
sustain the shock long, and dispersed; the legionaries pursued them as
quickly and as far as their arms permitted; they returned to the camp,
after having made a great slaughter, and ravaged everything within a
vast circuit.
The same day, the barbarians sent deputies to ask for peace. Cæsar
doubled the number of hostages he had required before, and ordered them
to be brought to him on the continent. In all Britain, two states only
obeyed this order.
As the equinox approached, he was unwilling to expose vessels ill
repaired to a navigation in winter. He took advantage of favourable
weather, set sail a little after midnight, and regained Gaul with all
his ships without the least loss. Two transport vessels only were unable
to enter the port of Boulogne with the fleet, and were carried a little
lower towards the south. They had on board about 300 soldiers, who, once
landed, marched to rejoin the army. In their way, the Morini, seduced by
the prospect of plunder, attacked them by surprise, and soon, increasing
to the number of 6,000, succeeded in surrounding them. The Romans formed
in a circle; in vain their assailants offered them their lives if they
would surrender. They defended themselves valiantly during more than
four hours, until the arrival of all the cavalry, which Cæsar sent to
their succour. Seized with terror, the Morini threw down their arms, and
were nearly all massacred.[361]
Chastisement of the Morini and Menapii.
VI. On the day after the return of the army to the continent, Labienus
received orders to reduce, with the two legions brought back from
Britain, the revolted Morini, whom the marshes, dried up by the summer
heats, no longer sheltered from attack, as they had done the year
before. On another side, Q. Titurius Sabinus and L. Cotta rejoined
Cæsar, after laying waste and burning the territory of the Menapii, who
had taken refuge in the depths of their forests. The army was
established in winter quarters among the Belgæ. The Senate, when it
received the news of these successes, decreed twenty days of
thanksgiving.[362]
Order for Rebuilding the Fleet. Departure for Illyria.
VII. Before he left for Italy, Cæsar ordered his lieutenants to repair
the old ships, and to construct during the winter a greater number, of
which he fixed the form and dimensions. That it might be easier to load
them and draw them on land, he recommended them to be made a little
lower than those which were in use in Italy; this disposition presented
no inconvenience, for he had remarked that the waves of the channel rose
to a less elevation than those of the Mediterranean, which he attributed
wrongly to the frequency of the motions of the tide and ebb. He desired
also to have greater breadth in the vessels on account of the baggage
and beasts of burden he had to transport, and ordered them to be
arranged so as to be able to employ oars, the use of which was
facilitated by the small elevation of the side-planks. According to Dio
Cassius, these ships held the mean between the light vessels of the
Romans and the transport ships of the Gauls.[363] He procured from Spain
all the rigging necessary for the equipment of these vessels.
Having given these instructions, Cæsar went into Italy to hold the
assembly of Citerior Gaul, and afterwards started for Illyria, on the
news that the Pirustes (peoples of the Carnic Alps) were laying the
frontier waste. Immediately on his arrival, by prompt and energetic
measures, he put a stop to these disorders, and re-established
tranquillity.[364]
Points of Embarking and Landing. Date of the Arrival in
Britain.
VIII. We have indicated, in the preceding pages, Boulogne as the port at
which Cæsar embarked, and Deal as the point where he landed in Britain.
Before explaining our reasons, it will not be useless to state that in
this first expedition, as well as in the second, the account of which
will follow, the places of embarking and landing were the same. In the
first place, the terms used in the “Commentaries” lead us to suppose it;
next, as we will endeavour to prove, he could only start from Boulogne;
and lastly, according to the relation of Dio Cassius, he landed on both
occasions at the same spot.[365] It is, then, convenient to treat here
the question for both expeditions, and to anticipate in regard to
certain facts.
Writers of great repute have placed the Portus Itius, some at Wissant,
others at Calais, Etaples, or Mardyke; but the Emperor Napoleon I, in
his Précis des Guerres de César, has not hesitated in preferring
Boulogne. It will be easy for us to prove in effect that the port of
Boulogne is the Portus Itius, which alone answers the necessities of
the text, and at the same time satisfies the requirements of a
considerable expedition.[366]
To proceed logically, let us suppose the absence of all kind of data.
The only means to approach the truth would then be to adopt, as the
place where Cæsar embarked, the port mentioned most anciently by
historians; for, in all probability, the point of the coast rendered
famous by the first expeditions to Britain would have been chosen in
preference for subsequent voyages. Now, as early as the reign of
Augustus, Agrippa caused a road to be constructed, which went from Lyons
to the ocean, across the country of the Bellovaci and the Ambiani,[367]
and was to end at Gesoriacum (Boulogne), since the Itinerary of
Antoninus traces it thus.[368] It was at Boulogne that Caligula caused a
pharos to be raised,[369] and that Claudius embarked for Britain.[370]
It was thence that Lupicinus, under the Emperor Julian,[371] and
Theodosius, under the Emperor Valentinian,[372] Constantius
Chlorus,[373] and lastly, in 893, the Danes,[374] set sail. This port,
then, was known and frequented a short time after Cæsar, and continued
to be used during the following centuries, while Wissant and Calais are
only mentioned by historians three or four centuries later. Lastly, at
Boulogne, Roman antiquities are found in abundance; none exist at Calais
or Wissant. Cæsar’s camp, of which certain authors speak as situated
near Wissant, is only a small modern redoubt, incapable of containing
more than 200 men.
To this first presumption in favour of Boulogne we may add another: the
ancient authors speak only of a single port on the coast of Gaul nearest
to Britain; therefore, they very probably give different names to the
same place, among which names figures that of Gesoriacum. Florus[375]
calls the place where Cæsar embarked the port of the Morini. Strabo[376]
says that this port was called Itius; Pomponius Mela, who lived less
than a century after Cæsar, cites Gesoriacum as the port of the Morini
best known;[377] Pliny expresses himself in analogous terms.[378]
Let us now show that the port of Boulogne agrees with the conditions
specified in the “Commentaries.”
1. Cæsar, in his first expedition, repaired to the country of the
Morini, whence the passage from Gaul to Britain is shortest. Now,
Boulogne is actually situated on the territory of that people which,
occupying the western part of the department of the Pas-de-Calais, was
the nearest to England.
2. In his second expedition, Cæsar embarked at the port Itius, which he
had found to offer the most convenient passage for proceeding to
Britain, distant from the continent about thirty Roman miles. Now, even
at the present day, it is from Boulogne that the passage is easiest to
arrive in England, because the favourable winds are more frequent than
at Wissant and Calais. As to the distance of about thirty miles
(forty-four kilometres), Cæsar gives it evidently as representing the
distance from Britain to the Portus Itius: it is exactly the distance
from Boulogne to Dover, whereas Wissant and Calais are farther from
Dover, the one twenty, the other twenty-three Roman miles.
3. To the north, at eight miles’ distance from the Portus Itius,
existed another port, where the cavalry embarked. Boulogne is the only
port on this coast at eight miles from which, towards the north, we meet
with another, that of Ambleteuse. The distance of eight miles is exact,
not as a bird flies, but following the course of the hills. To the north
of Wissant, on the contrary, there is only Sangatte or Calais. Now
Sangatte is six Roman miles from Wissant, and Calais eleven.
4. The eighteen ships of the upper port were prevented by contrary
winds from rallying the fleet at the principal port. We understand
easily that these ships, detained at Ambleteuse by winds from the
south-west or west-south-west, which prevail frequently in the Channel,
were unable to rally the fleet at Boulogne. As to the two ships of
burthen, which, at the return of the first expedition, could not make
land in the same port as the fleet, but were dragged by the current more
to the south, nothing is said in the “Commentaries” which would show
that they entered a port; it is probable, indeed, that they were driven
upon the shore. Nevertheless, it is not impossible that they may have
landed in the little fishers’ ports of Hardelot and Camiers. (See
Plate 15.)
We see from what precedes that the port of Boulogne agrees with the text
of the “Commentaries.” But the peremptory reason why, in our opinion,
the port where Cæsar embarked is certainly that of Boulogne, is, that it
would have been impossible to prepare elsewhere an expedition against
England, Boulogne being the only place which united the conditions
indispensable for collecting the fleet and embarking the troops. In
fact, it required a port capable of containing either eighty transport
ships and galleys, as in the first expedition, or 800 ships, as in the
second; and extensive enough to allow the ships to approach the banks
and embark the troops in a single tide. Now these conditions could only
be fulfilled where a river sufficiently deep, flowing into the sea,
formed a natural port; and, on the part of the coasts nearest to
England, we find only at Boulogne a river, the Liane, which presents all
these advantages. Moreover, it must not be forgotten, all the coast has
been buried in sand. It appears that it is not more than a century and
a half that the natural basin of Boulogne has been partly filled; and,
according to tradition and geological observations, the coast advanced
more than two kilomètres, forming two jetties, between which the high
tide filled the valley of the Liane to a distance of four kilomètres
inland.
None of the ports situated to the north of Boulogne could serve as the
basis of Cæsar’s expedition, for none could receive so great a number of
vessels, and we cannot suppose that Cæsar would have left them on the
open coast, during more than a month, exposed to the tempests of the
ocean, which were so fatal to him on the coasts of Britain.
Boulogne was the only point of the coast where Cæsar could place in
safety his depôts, his supplies, and his spare stores. The heights which
command the port offered advantageous positions for establishing his
camps,[379] and the little river Liane allowed him to bring with ease
the timber and provisions he required. At Calais he would have found
nothing but flats and marshes, at Wissant nothing but sands, as
indicated by etymology of the word (white sand).
It is worthy of remark, that the reasons which determined Cæsar to start
from Boulogne were the same which decided the choice of Napoleon I. in
1804. In spite of the difference in the times and in the armies, the
nautical and practical conditions had undergone no change. “The Emperor
chose Boulogne,” says M. Thiers, “because that port had long been
pointed out as the best point of departure of an expedition directed
against England; he chose Boulogne, because its port is formed by the
little river Liane, which allowed him, with some labour, to place in
safety from 1,200 to 1,300 vessels.”
We may point out, as another similarity, that certain flat boats,
constructed by order of the Emperor, had nearly the same dimensions as
those employed by Cæsar. “There required,” says the historian of the
‘Consulate and the Empire,’ “boats which would not need more, when they
were laden, than seven or eight feet of water to float, and which would
go with oars, so as to pass, either in calm or fog, and strand without
breaking on the flat English shores. The great gun-boats carried four
pieces of large bore, and were rigged like brigs, that is, with two
masts, manœuvred by twenty-four sailors, and capable of carrying a
company of a hundred men, with its staff, and its arms and munitions....
These boats offered a vexatious inconvenience, that of falling to the
leeward, that is, yielding to the currents. This was the result of their
clumsy build, which presented more hold to the water than their masts to
the wind.”[380]
Cæsar’s ships experienced the same inconvenience, and, drawn away by the
currents in his second expedition, they went to the leeward rather far
in the north.
We have seen that Cæsar’s transport boats were flat-bottomed, that they
could go either with sails or oars; carry if necessary 150 men, and be
loaded and drawn on dry ground with promptness (ad celeritatem
onerandi subductionesque). They had thus a great analogy with the
flat-bottomed boats of 1804. But there is more, for the Emperor Napoleon
had found it expedient to imitate the Roman galleys. “He had seen the
necessity,” says M. Thiers, “of constructing boats still lighter and
more movable than the preceding, drawing only two or three feet of
water, and calculated for landing anywhere. They were large boats,
narrow, sixty feet long, having a movable deck which could be laid or
withdrawn at will, and were distinguished from the others by the name of
pinnaces. These large boats were provided with sixty oars, carried at
need a light sail, and moved with extreme swiftness. When sixty
soldiers, practised in handling the oar as well as the sailors, set them
in motion, they glided over the sea like the light boats dropped from
the sides of our great vessels, and surprised the eye by the rapidity of
their course.”
The point of landing has been equally the subject of a host of contrary
suppositions. St. Leonards, near Hastings, Richborough (Rutupiœ),
near Sandwich, Lymne, near Hythe, and Deal, have all been proposed.
The first of these localities, we think, must be rejected, for it
answers none of the conditions of the relation given in the
“Commentaries,” which inform us that, in the second expedition, the
fleet sailed with a gentle wind from the south-west. Now, this is the
least favourable of all winds for taking the direction of Hastings, when
starting from the coasts of the department of the Pas-de-Calais. In this
same passage, Cæsar, after having been drawn away from his course during
four hours of the night, perceived, at daybreak, that he had left
Britain to his left. This fact cannot possibly be explained if he had
intended to land at St. Leonards. As to Richborough, this locality is
much too far to the north. Why should Cæsar have gone so far as
Sandwich, since he could have landed at Walmer and Deal? Lymne, or
rather Romney Marsh, will suit no better. This shore is altogether unfit
for a landing-place, and none of the details furnished by the
“Commentaries” can be made to suit it.[381]
There remains Deal; but before describing this place, we must examine
if, on his first passage, when Cæsar sailed, after remaining five days
opposite the cliffs of Dover, the current of which he took advantage
carried him towards the north or towards the south. (See Page 177.)
Two celebrated English astronomers, Halley and Mr. Airy, have studied
this question; but they agree neither on the place where Cæsar embarked,
nor on that where he landed. We may, nevertheless, arrive at a solution
of this problem by seeking the day on which Cæsar landed. The year of
the expedition is known by the consulate of Pompey and Crassus—it was
the year 699. The month in which the departure took place is known by
the following data, derived from the “Commentaries;” the fine season was
near its end, exuigua parte œstatis reliqua (IV. 20); the wheat had
been reaped everywhere, except in one single spot, omni ex reliquis
partibus demesso frumento, una pars erat reliqua (IV. 32); the equinox
was near at hand, propinqua die œquinoctii (IV. 36). These data
point sufficiently clearly to the month of August. Lastly, we have,
relative to the day of landing, the following indications:—After four
days past since his arrival in Britain.... there arose suddenly so
violent a tempest.... That same night it was full moon, which is the
period of the highest tides of the ocean, Post diem quartam, quam est
in Britanniam ventum([382]).... tanta tempestas subita coorta est....
Eadem nocte accidit, ut esset luna plena, qui dies maritimos æstus
maximos in Oceano efficere consuevit.
According to this, we consider that the tempest took place after four
days, counted from the day of landing; that the full moon fell on the
following night; and lastly, that this period coincided not with the
highest tide, but with the highest tides of the ocean. Thus we
believe that it would be sufficient for ascertaining the exact day of
landing, to take the sixth day which preceded the full moon of the month
of August, 699; now this phenomenon, according to astronomical tables,
happened on the 31st, towards three o’clock in the morning. On the eve,
that is, on the 30th, the tempest had occurred; four full days had
passed since the landing; this takes us back to the 25th. Cæsar then
landed on the 25th of August. Mr. Airy, it is true, has interpreted the
text altogether differently from our explanation: he believes that the
expression post diem quartum may be taken in Latin for the third day;
on another hand, he doubts if Cæsar had in his army almanacks by which
he could know the exact day of the full moon; lastly, as the highest
tide takes place a day and a half after the full moon, he affirms that
Cæsar, placing these two phenomena at the same moment, must have been
mistaken, either in the day of the full moon, or in that of the highest
tide; and he concludes from this that the landing may have taken place
on the second, third, or fourth day before the full moon.
Our reasoning has another basis. Let us first state that at that time
the science of astronomy permitted people to know certain epochs of the
moon, since, more than a hundred years before, during the war against
Perseus, a tribune of the army of Paulus Æmilius announced on the
previous day to his soldiers an eclipse of the moon, in order to
counteract the effect of their superstitious fears.[383] Let us remark
also, that Cæsar, who subsequently reformed the calendar, was well
informed in the astronomical knowledge of his time, already carried to a
very high point of advance by Hipparchus, and that he took especial
interest in it, since he discovered, by means of water-clocks, that the
nights were shorter in Britain than in Italy.
Everything, then, authorises us in the belief that Cæsar, when he
embarked for an unknown country, where he might have to make night
marches, must have taken precautions for knowing the course of the moon,
and furnished himself with calendars. But we have put the question
independently of these considerations, by seeking among the days which
preceded the full moon of the end of August, 699, which was the one in
which the shifting of the currents of which Cæsar speaks could have been
produced at the hour indicated in the “Commentaries.”
Supposing, then, the fleet of Cæsar at anchor at a distance of half a
mile opposite Dover, as it experienced the effect of the shifting of the
currents towards half-past three o’clock in the afternoon, the question
becomes reduced to that of determining the day of the end of the month
of August when this phenomenon took place at the above hour. We know
that in the Channel the sea produces, in rising and falling, two
alternate currents, one directed from the west to the east, called
flux (flot), or current of the rising tide; the other directed from
the east to the west, named reflux (jusant), or current of the
falling tide. In the sea opposite Dover, at a distance of half a mile
from the coast, the flux begins usually to be sensible two hours before
high tide at Dover, and the reflux four hours after.
So that, if we find a day before the full moon of the 31st of August,
699, on which it was high tide at Dover, either at half-past five in the
afternoon or at midday, that will be the day of landing; and further, we
shall know whether the current carried Cæsar towards the east or towards
the west. Now, we may admit, according to astronomical data, that the
tides of the days which preceded the full moon of the 31st of August,
699, were sensibly the same as those of the days which preceded the full
moon of the 4th of September, 1857; and, as it was the sixth day before
the full moon of the 4th of September, 1857, that it was high tide at
Dover towards half-past five in the afternoon (see the Annuaire des
Marées des Côtes de France for the year 1857),[384] we are led to
conclude that the same phenomenon was produced also at Dover on the
sixth day before the 31st of August, 699; and that it was on the 25th of
August that Cæsar arrived in Britain, his fleet being carried forward by
the current of the rising tide.
This last conclusion, by obliging us to seek the point of landing to the
north of Dover, constitutes the strongest theoretic presumption in
favour of Deal. Let us now examine if Deal satisfies the requirements of
the Latin text.
The cliffs which border the coasts of England towards the southern part
of the county of Kent form, from Folkestone to the castle of Walmer, a
vast quarter of a circle, convex towards the sea, abrupt on nearly all
points; they present several bays or creeks, as at Folkestone, at Dover,
at St. Margaret’s, and at Oldstairs, and, diminishing by degrees in
elevation, terminate at the castle of Walmer. From this point,
proceeding towards the north, the coast is flat, and favourable for
landing on an extent of several leagues.
The country situated to the west of Walmer and Deal is itself flat as
far as the view can reach, or presents only gentle undulations of
ground. We may add that it produces, in great quantities, wheat of
excellent quality, and that the nature of the soil leads us to believe
that it was the same at a remote period. These different conditions
rendered the shore of Walmer and Deal the best place of landing for the
Roman army.
Its situation, moreover, agrees fully with the narrative of the
“Commentaries.” In the first expedition, the Roman fleet, starting from
the cliffs of Dover and doubling the point of the South Foreland, may
have made the passage of seven miles in an hour; it would thus have
come to anchor opposite the present village of Walmer. The Britons,
starting from Dover, might have made a march of eight kilomètres quickly
enough to oppose the landing of the Romans. (See Plate 16.)
The combat which followed was certainly fought on the part of the shore
which extends from Walmer Castle to Deal. At present the whole extent of
this coast is covered with buildings, so that it is impossible to say
what was its exact form nineteen centuries ago; but, from a view of the
locality, we can understand without difficulty the different
circumstances of the combat described in Book IV. of the “Commentaries.”
Four days completed after the arrival of Cæsar in Britain, a tempest
dispersed the eighteen ships which, after quitting Ambleteuse, had
arrived just within sight of the Roman camp. All the sailors of the
Channel who have been consulted believe it possible that the same
hurricane, according to the text, might have driven one part of the
ships towards the South Foreland and the other part towards the coast of
Boulogne and Ambleteuse. The conformation of the ground itself indicates
the site of the Roman camp on the height where the village of Walmer
rises. It was situated there at a distance of 1,000 or 1,200 mètres from
the beach, in a position which commanded the surrounding country. And it
is thus easy to understand, from the aspect of the locality, the details
relative to the episode of the 7th legion, surprised while it was
mowing.[385] It might be objected that at Deal the Roman camp was not
near to a water-course, but they could dig wells, which is the only
method by which the numerous population of Deal at the present day
obtain water.
From all that has just been said, the following facts appear to us to be
established in regard to the first expedition. Cæsar, after causing all
his flotilla to go out of the port the day before, started in the night
between the 24th and 25th of August, towards midnight, from the coast of
Boulogne, and arrived opposite Dover towards six o’clock in the morning.
He remained at anchor until half-past three in the afternoon, and then,
having wind and tide in his favour, he moved a distance of seven miles
and arrived near Deal, probably between Deal and Walmer Castle, at
half-past four. As in the month of August twilight lasts till after
half-past seven, and its effect may be prolonged by the moon, which at
that hour was in the middle of the heaven, Cæsar had still four hours
left for landing, driving back the Britons, and establishing himself on
the British soil. As the sea began to ebb towards half-past five, this
explains the anecdote of Cæsius Scæva told by Valerius Maximus; for,
towards seven o’clock, the rocks called the Malms might be left
uncovered by the ebb of the tide.
After four entire days, reckoned from the moment of landing, that is, on
the 30th of August, the tempest arose, and full moon occurred in the
following night.
This first expedition, which Cæsar had undertaken too late in the
season, and with too few troops, could not lead to great results. He
himself declares that he only sought to make an appearance in Britain.
In fact, he did not remove from the coast, and he left the island
towards the 17th of September, having remained there only twenty-three
days.[386]
Résumé of the Dates of the Campaign of 699.
IX. We recapitulate as follows the probable dates of the campaign of
699:—
| Cæsar crosses the mountains earlier than usual. | April 10. |
| His arrival at the army between the Loire and the Seine. | April 22. |
| Abode with the army, and informations. | From April 22 to May 10. |
| March to between the Meuse and the Rhine | From May 11 to May 28. |
| Victory over the Usipetes and Tencteri | June 4. |
| Arrival at Bonn for the passage of the Rhine | June 11. |
| Construction of the bridge of piles (10 days) | From June 12 to June 21. |
| The campaign beyond the Rhine (18 days) | From June 22 to July 9. |
| March from Bonn to Boulogne, | From July 11 to July 28. |
| Preparations for the expedition to Britain | From July 28 to August 24. |
| Departure. | Night between Aug. 24 and Aug. 25. |
| Landing. | August 25. |
| The tempest. | August 30. |
| Duration of the abode in Britain (18 days). | From August 25 to Sept. 12. |
| Return to Gaul. | Sept. 12. |
| Autumnal equinox. | Sept. 26. |
Inspection of the Fleet. March against the Treviri.
I. CÆSAR, after having appeased the troubles of Illyria, and passed some
time in Italy, rejoined the army in the country of the Belgæ, at the
beginning of June in the year 700. Immediately on his arrival, he
visited all his quarters, and the naval arsenal established, according
to Strabo, at the mouth of the Seine.[387] He found his fleet ready for
sea. In spite of the scarcity of necessary materials, the soldiers had
laboured in building it with the greatest zeal. He rewarded them with
commendations, complimented those who had directed the works, and
appointed for the general rendezvous the Portus Itius (Boulogne).
The concentration of the fleet required a considerable length of time,
of which Cæsar took advantage to prevent the effects of the agitation
which had shown itself among the Treviri. These populations, rebelling
against his orders, and suspected of having called the Germans from
beyond the Rhine, did not send their representatives to the assemblies.
Cæsar marched against them with four legions, without baggage, and 800
cavalry, and left troops in sufficient number to protect the fleet.
The Treviri possessed, in addition to a considerable infantry, a more
numerous cavalry than any other people in Gaul. They were divided into
two factions, whose chiefs, Indutiomarus and his son-in-law Cingetorix,
disputed the chief power. The latter was no sooner informed of the
approach of the legions, than he repaired to Cæsar, and assured him that
he would not fail in his duties towards the Roman people. Indutiomarus,
on the contrary, raised troops, and caused to be placed in safety, in
the immense forest of the Ardennes, which extended across the country of
the Treviri from the Rhine to the territory of the Remi, all those whose
age rendered them incapable of carrying arms. But when he saw several
chiefs (principes), drawn by their alliance with Cingetorix or
intimidated by the approach of the Romans, treat with Cæsar, fearing to
be abandoned by all, he made his submission. Although Cæsar put no faith
in his sincerity, yet, as he did not want to pass the fine season among
the Treviri, and as he was desirous of hastening to Boulogne, where all
was ready for the expedition into Britain, he was satisfied with
exacting 200 hostages, among whom were the son and all the kindred of
Indutiomarus, and, after having assembled the principal chiefs, he
conferred the authority on Cingetorix. This preference accorded to a
rival turned Indutiomarus into an irreconcileable enemy.[388]
Departure for the Isle of Britain.
II. Hoping that he had pacified the country by these measures, Cæsar
proceeded with his four legions to the Portus Itius. His fleet,
perfectly equipped, was ready to sail. Including the vessels of the
preceding years, it was composed of six hundred transport ships and
twenty-eight galleys. It wanted only forty ships built in the country of
the Meldæ,[389] which a tempest had driven back to their point of
departure; adding to it a certain number of light barques which many
chiefs had caused to be built for their own personal usage, the total
amounted to 800 sail.[390] The Roman army concentrated at Boulogne
consisted of eight legions and 4,000 cavalry raised in the whole of Gaul
and in Spain;[391] but the expeditionary body was composed only of five
legions and 2,000 cavalry. Labienus received orders to remain on the
coast of the Channel with three legions, and one-half of the cavalry, to
guard the ports, provide for the supply of the troops, keep watch upon
Gaul, and act according to circumstances. Cæsar had convoked the
principal citizens, of each people (principes ex omnibus civitatibus),
and left upon the continent but the small number of those of whose
fidelity he was assured, taking with him the others as pledges of
tranquillity during his absence. Dumnorix, who commanded the Æduan
cavalry in the expedition, was of all the chiefs the one it was most
important to carry with him. Restless, ambitious, and distinguished by
his courage and credit, this man had tried every means in vain to obtain
permission to remain in his country. Irritated by the refusal, he became
a conspirator, and said openly that Cæsar only dragged the nobles into
Britain to sacrifice them. These plots were known and watched with care.
It was the end of June. The wind from the north-west, which on this
coast blows habitually at this period of the year, retarded the
departure of the fleet twenty-five days; at length a favourable wind
rose, and the army received orders to embark. In the middle of the
bustle and confusion of starting, Dumnorix left the camp secretly with
the Æduan cavalry, and took the road for his own country. When this was
known, the embarkment was suspended, and a great part of the cavalry
went in pursuit of the fugitive, with orders to bring him back dead or
alive. Dumnorix, soon overtaken, resists, and is surrounded and slain.
The Æduan cavalry all returned to the camp.
On the 20th of July, we believe, the fleet raised anchor at sunset, with
a light breeze from the south-west. This wind having ceased towards
midnight, the fleet was carried rather far out of its route by the
current of the rising tide. At daybreak, Cæsar perceived that he had
left Britain to his left. (See Plate 16.) But then came on the
shifting of the current, of which he took advantage, and, aided by the
reflux (jusant), laboured with all oars to gain the part of the isle
found, in the preceding year, to offer an easy landing. Under these
circumstances, the soldiers, with a persevering energy, succeeded, by
means of their oars, in giving to the transport ships, in spite of their
heaviness, the speed of galleys. The army landed, towards noon, on
several points at once,[392] without any appearance of the enemy.
Prisoners reported subsequently that the barbarians, terrified at the
view of so great a number of ships, had withdrawn to the heights.[393]
March into the interior of the Country.
III. Having effected the landing, Cæsar established his camp in a good
position, near the sea.[394] The fleet, left at anchor near the shore,
on a level beach without shoals, under the command of Atrius, inspired
him with no uneasiness.[395] As soon as he knew where the enemy was
posted, he began his march at the third watch (midnight), leaving ten
cohorts[396] and 300 cavalry to guard the fleet. After having proceeded
during the night about twelve miles, the Romans at daybreak came in
sight of the barbarians, posted on the heights of Kingston, beyond a
stream of water now called the Little Stour.[397] These caused their
cavalry and chariots to advance as far as the bank of the stream,
seeking, from their commanding position, to dispute the passage; but,
repulsed by the cavalry, they withdrew into a forest where there was a
place singularly fortified by nature and art, a refuge constructed in
former times in their intestine wars.[398] Numerous abatis of felled
trees closed all the avenues. The Romans pushed the enemy up to the
border of the wood, and made an attempt to carry the position. The
Britons issued forth in small groups to defend the approaches of their
oppidum; but the soldiers of the 7th legion, having formed the
tortoise and pushed a terrace up to the inclosure, obtained possession
of the retrenchment, and drove them out of the wood without sensible
loss. Cæsar prevented the pursuit; he was unacquainted with the country,
and wished to employ the rest of the day in fortifying his camp.[399]
Destruction of a part of the Fleet.
IV. Next morning, he divided the infantry and cavalry into three bodies,
and sent them separately in pursuit of the enemy. The troops had
advanced a considerable distance, and already the hindmost of the
fugitives were in view, when a party of cavalry, despatched by Q.
Atrius, came to announce that, in the preceding night, a violent
tempest had damaged and thrown on shore nearly all the vessels. Neither
anchors nor cordage had been strong enough to resist; the efforts of
pilots and sailors had been powerless, and the shocks of the vessels
against one another had caused serious loss. At this news, Cæsar called
in his troops, ordered them to limit their efforts to repulsing the
enemy as they retired, and hurried on before them to his fleet. He
verified the correctness of the losses which were announced: about forty
ships were destroyed, and the repair of the others required a long
labour. He took the workmen attached to the legions, and brought others
from the continent; wrote to Labienus to build, with his troops, the
greatest number of ships possible; and lastly, in order to place his
fleet in safety from all danger, he resolved, in spite of the labour it
must entail upon him, to haul all the vessels on land, and inclose them
in the camp by a new retrenchment.[400] The soldiers employed ten entire
days in this work, without interruption, even during the night.[401]
Cæsar resumes the offensive.
V. The vessels once placed on dry ground and surrounded with substantial
defences, Cæsar left in the camp the same troops as before, and
returned towards the localities where he had been obliged to abandon the
pursuit of the Britons. He found them collected in great number. The
general direction of the war had been entrusted to Cassivellaunus, whose
states were separated from the maritime districts by the Thames, a river
which was about eighty miles distant from the coast.[402] This chief had
heretofore had to sustain continual wars against the other peoples of
the island; but, in face of the danger, all, with unanimous accord,
agreed in giving him the command.
The enemy’s cavalry, with the war-chariots, attacked vigorously the
cavalry in its march; they were everywhere beaten and driven back into
the woods or to the heights. A short time after, while the Romans were
labouring without distrust at their retrenchments, the Britons suddenly
issued from the woods and attacked their advanced posts. The struggle
becoming obstinate, Cæsar sent forward two picked cohorts, the first of
two legions. They had hardly taken their position, leaving a slight
interval between them, when the barbarians, manœuvring with their
chariots according to custom, so intimidated the Romans by this mode of
fighting, that they passed and repassed with impunity across the
interval between the cohorts. The enemy was only repulsed on the arrival
of re-enforcements. Q. Laberius Durus, a military tribune, perished in
this action.
The description of this battle, as given in the “Commentaries,” has been
differently understood. According to Dio Cassius, the Britons had at
first thrown the ranks of the Romans into disorder by means of their
chariots; but Cæsar, to baffle this manœuvre, had opened for them a
free passage by placing his cohorts at greater intervals. He would thus
have repeated the dispositions taken by Scipio at the battle of Zama, to
protect him against the Carthaginian elephants.
This engagement, which took place before the camp and under the eyes of
the army, showed how little the Roman tactics were fitted for this kind
of warfare. The legionary, heavily armed, and accustomed to combat in
line, could neither pursue the enemy in his retreat, nor move too far
from his ensigns. There existed a still greater disadvantage for the
cavalry. The Britons, by a simulated flight, drew them away from the
legionaries, and then, jumping down from their chariots, engaged on foot
in an unequal struggle; for, always supported by their cavalry, they
were as dangerous in the attack as in the defence.[403]
The following day, the enemies took a position far from the camp, on the
heights; they only showed themselves in small parties, isolated,
harassing the cavalry with less ardour than before. But, towards the
middle of the day, Cæsar having sent three legions and the cavalry,
under the orders of the lieutenant C. Trebonius, to forage, they rushed
from all sides upon the foragers with such impetuosity, that they
approached the eagles and legions which had remained under arms. The
infantry repulsed them vigorously, and, though they usually left to the
cavalry the care of the pursuit, this time they did not cease to drive
them before them till the cavalry, feeling themselves supported, came
themselves to complete the rout. These left them time neither to rally
nor to halt, nor to descend from their chariots, but made a great
carnage of them. After this defeat, the Britons resolved to combat no
more with their forces united, but to confine themselves to harassing
the Roman army, so as to drag on the war in length.[404]
March towards the Thames.
VI. Cæsar, penetrating their design, hesitated no longer, in order to
terminate the campaign promptly, to advance to the very centre of their
strength: he directed his march towards the territory of Cassivellaunus,
passing, no doubt, by Maidstone and Westerham. (See Plate 16.)
Arriving at the banks of the Thames, which was then fordable only at one
place, perhaps at Sunbury, he perceived a multitude of enemies drawn up
on the opposite bank.[405] It was defended by a palisade of sharp
pointed stakes, before which other stakes driven into the bed of the
river remained hidden under the water. Cæsar was informed of this by
prisoners and deserters, and he sent the cavalry forward (probably a
certain distance above or below), in order to turn the enemy’s position
and occupy his attention, while the infantry destroyed the obstacles and
crossed the ford. The soldiers entered the river resolutely, and,
although they were in the water up to their shoulders, such was their
ardour that the enemy could not sustain the shock, but abandoned the
bank and fled. Polyænus relates that on this occasion Cæsar made use of
an elephant to facilitate the passage; but, as the “Commentaries” do not
mention such a fact, it is difficult to believe.[406]
Submission of a part of Britain.
VII. This check deprived Cassivellaunus of all hope of resistance; he
sent away the greatest part of his troops, and only kept with him about
4,000 men, mounted in chariots. (Supposing six essedarii to the
chariot, this would still amount to the considerable number of 660
carriages.) Sometimes confining himself to watching the march of the
army, at others hiding in places of difficult access, or making a void
before the march of the Roman columns; often, also, profiting by his
knowledge of the localities, he fell unexpectedly with his chariots on
the cavalry when it ventured far plundering and sacking, which obliged
the latter to keep near the legions. Thus the damage inflicted on the
enemy could not extend beyond the march of the infantry.
Meanwhile the Trinobantes, one of the most powerful peoples of Britain,
sent deputies to offer their submission and demand Mandubratius for
their king. This young man, flying from the anger of Cassivellaunus, who
had put his father to death, had come to the continent to implore the
protection of Cæsar, and had accompanied him into Britain. The Roman
general listened favourably to the demand of the Trinobantes, and
exacted from them forty hostages and wheat for the army.
The protection obtained by the Trinobantes engaged the Cenimagni, the
Segontiaci, the Ancalites, the Bibroci, and the Cassi (see p. 168), to
follow their example. The deputies of these different peoples informed
Cæsar that the oppidum of Cassivellaunus (St. Albans) stood at a
short distance, defended by marshes and woods, and containing a great
number of men and cattle.[407] Although this formidable position had
been further fortified by the hands of men, Cæsar led his legions
thither, and attacked it on two points without hesitation. After a
feeble resistance, the barbarians, in their attempt to escape, were
slain or captured in great numbers.
Nevertheless, Cæsar was operating too far from his point of departure
not to tempt Cassivellaunus to deprive him of the possibility of
returning to the continent, by seizing upon his fleet. In effect,
Cassivellaunus had ordered the four kings of the different parts of
Cantium (Kent), Cingetorix, Carvilius, Taximagulus, and Segovax, to
collect all their troops, and attack unexpectedly the camp in which the
Roman ships were inclosed. They hastened thither; but the cohorts did
not leave them time to attack; they made a sortie, killed a great number
of barbarians, captured one of their principal chiefs, Lugotorix, and
re-entered their camp without loss. On the news of this defeat,
Cassivellaunus, discouraged by so many reverses and the defection of
several peoples, employed Commius to offer his submission.[408]
Re-embarkment of the Army.
VIII. Summer approached its end (they were in the last days of August).
Cæsar, aware that there no longer remained sufficient time to be
employed with advantage, prepared for his departure; he wished,
moreover, to pass the winter on the continent, fearing sudden revolts on
the part of the Gauls. He therefore caused hostages to be delivered to
him, fixed the tribute to be paid annually by Britain to the Roman
people, and expressly prohibited Cassivellaunus from all acts of
hostility against Mandubratius and the Trinobantes.
After receiving the hostages, Cæsar hastened to return in person to the
coast, and ordered his army to follow him afterwards; he found the ships
repaired, and caused them to be put afloat. His great number of
prisoners, and the loss of several of his ships, obliged him to pass the
army across the channel in two convoys. It is remarkable that, of so
many ships employed several times in the passage this year or the year
before, not one of those which carried the troops was lost; but, on the
contrary, the greater part of the ships which returned empty, after
having landed the soldiers of the first transport, and those built by
Labienus, to the number of sixty, did not reach their destination; they
were nearly all thrown back upon the coast of the continent. Cæsar, who
had resolved to leave Britain only with the last convoy, waited for them
some time in vain. The approach of the equinox led him to fear that the
period favourable for navigation would pass by, and he decided on
overloading his ships with soldiers, sailed in a moment of calm at the
beginning of the second watch (nine o’clock), and, after a favourable
passage, landed at daybreak.[409]
This second expedition, though more successful than the first, did not
bring as its result the complete submission of the isle of Britain.
According to Cæsar, the Romans did not even obtain any booty; yet Strabo
speaks of a considerable booty,[410] and another author confirms this
fact by relating that Cæsar formed out of the spoils of the enemy a
cuirass ornamented with pearls, which he consecrated to Venus.[411]
Observations.
IX. Several indications enable us again to fix precisely the period of
the second expedition to Britain. We know, from a letter from Quintus to
his brother Cicero, that Cæsar was at the end of May at Lodi (we admit
the 22nd of May).[412] He might therefore have arrived towards the 2nd
of June on the shores of the ocean, where he inspected his fleet. During
the interval before it assembled at the Portus Itius, he proceeded to
the country of the Treviri, where he did not remain long; for, towards
the middle of the summer (ne æstatem in Treviris consumere cogeretur),
he started for Boulogne, where he arrived at the end of June. The winds
from the north-west retained him there twenty-five days, that is, till
towards the end of July. On another hand, Cicero wrote to Atticus on the
26th of July: “I see, from my brother’s letters, that he must already be
in Britain.”[413] In reply to another letter of Quintus, dated on the
4th of the Ides of August (the 8th of August), he rejoices at having
received on the day of the Ides of September (9th of September), the
news of his arrival in that island.[414] These data fix the departure of
the expedition to the end of July, for the letters took from twenty to
thirty days to pass from Britain to Rome.[415] When the army moved from
the coasts, the news was naturally much longer on the way; and in the
month of October, Cicero wrote to his brother, “Here are fifty days
passed without the arrival of letter or sign of life from you, or Cæsar,
or even from where you are.”[416] Having ascertained the month of July
for that of his departure, we have next to find the day on which that
departure took place.
Cæsar sailed at sunset, that is, towards eight o’clock (solis occasu
naves solvit, leni Africo provectus). The wind having ceased at
midnight, he was drawn by the currents towards the north; and when day
broke, at four o’clock in the morning, he saw on his left the cliffs of
the South Foreland; but then, the current changing with the tide, by
force of rowing he made land towards midday, as in the preceding summer,
near Deal.
To determine the day on which Cæsar landed, it is necessary, in the
first place, to know to what part the Roman fleet was carried during the
night. It is evident, first, that it was borne towards the north-east by
the current of the rising tide or flux, for otherwise we could not
understand how Cæsar, at sunrise, could have perceived Britain on his
left. We may add that it wandered from its way till it came to the
latitude of the Northern Sea, which is situated to the east of Deal, and
at about ten maritime miles from the coast. (See Plate 14.) In fact,
according to the text, the fleet took advantage of the current contrary
to that which had carried it away, and consequently of the reflux or
current of the ebbing tide, to reach the coast. Now, we are obliged by
this fact to conclude that it had been carried northward at least to the
latitude of Deal; for, if it had only arrived to the south of that
latitude, the reflux would necessarily have thrown it back into the
Straits. Lastly, to cause the fleet by force of rowing and aided by the
reflux to require eight hours to effect the last part of its passage to
Deal, it must, according to the best information obtained from sailors,
have been, at sunrise, ten miles from the coast.
This being granted, it is evidently sufficient, for determining the day
of landing, to resolve this question: on what day of the month of July
in the year 700 the current of the descending tide began to be perceived
at sunrise, that is, towards four o’clock in the morning, in the part
of the sea at ten miles to the east of Deal? or otherwise, if we
consider that the reflux begins there about four hours and a half after
the hour of high tide at Dover,[417] what day of the month of July in
the year 700 it was high tide at Dover towards half-past eleven o’clock
at night?
By following a train of reasoning similar to that which we applied to
determine the day of Cæsar’s first landing in Britain, and remarking
that the tides of the days preceding the full moon of the month of July,
700, which fell on the 21st, correspond to those of the days which
preceded the full moon of the 26th of July, 1858, we find that it was
either fifteen days or one day before the 21st of July of the year 700,
that is, the 6th or the 20th of July, that it was high tide at Dover
towards half-past eleven at night. Cæsar, therefore, landed on the 7th
or on the 21st of July. We adopt the second date, because, according to
Cicero’s letter cited above, he received, before the 26th of July, at
Rome news of his brother, which must have been of the 6th of the same
month, as the couriers were twenty days on the road. In this letter
Quintus announced his approaching departure for Britain.
This date, according to which the Roman army would have landed on the
eve of the day of the full moon, is the more probable, as Cæsar,
immediately on his arrival in Britain, made a night march, which would
have been impossible in complete darkness. The passage of the sea had
taken fifteen hours. In the return, it only took nine hours, since
Cæsar started at nine o’clock in the evening (secunda inita cum
solvisset vigilia), and arrived at Boulogne at daybreak (prima luce),
which, in the middle of September, is at six o’clock in the
morning.[418]
The date of his return is nearly fixed by a letter of Cicero, who
expresses himself thus: “On the 11th of the Calends of November (17th of
October), I received letters from my brother Quintus, and from Cæsar;
the expedition was finished, and the hostages delivered. They had made
no booty. They had only imposed contributions. The letters, written from
the shores of Britain, are dated on the 6th of the Calends of October
(21st of September), at the moment of embarking the army, which they are
bringing back.”[419] This information accords with the date of the
equinox, which fell on the 26th of September, and which, according to
the “Commentaries,” was close at hand (quod equinoctium suberat).
Cæsar had, then, remained in Britain about sixty days.
Presumed Dates of the Second Campaign in Britain.
X. Departure of Cæsar from Lodi[420] | May 22. |
Arrival at the army, in the country of the Belgæ (in 12 days) | June 2. |
Inspection of the fleet and of the winter quarters;
junction of the four legions in the country of the Remi,
on the Meuse, towards Sedan. | From June 2 to June 7. |
Passage from Sedan to the country of the Treviri
(80 kilometres, 3 days), | From June 8 to June 10. |
Occurrences among the Treviri, | From June 10 to June 15. |
Passage from Treviri to Boulogne (330 kil., 12 days) | From June 15 to June 26. |
Delay of 25 days at Boulogne, | From June 26 to July 20. |
Embarkment | July 20. |
Landing | July 21. |
Combat | July 22. |
Cæsar returns to his fleet | July 23. |
Ten days of reparations, | From July 24 to August 2. |
New march against the Britons | August 3. |
Combat | August 4. |
March towards the Thames
(from the Little Stour to Sunbury, 140 kilomètres) | From August 5 to August 11. |
March from the Thames
to the oppidum of Cassivellaunus, | From August 12 to August 15. |
Time employed in negotiations and receiving hostages (8 days), | From August 16 to August 23. |
Return of Cæsar (in person) towards the sea-coast.
The 28th of August, on his arrival at the fleet,
he writes to Cicero.—(Epist. ad Quintum, III. 1.) |
August 28. |
March of his army to the coast, | From August 24 to Sept. 10. |
Embarkation of the last convoy | Sept. 21. |
Distribution of the Legions in their Winter Quarters.
XI. Cæsar had no sooner arrived on the continent than he caused his
ships to be brought on ground, and then held at Samarobriva, (Amiens)
the assembly of Gaul. The defective harvest, caused by the dryness of
the season, obliged him to distribute his winter quarters differently
from the preceding years, by spreading them over a greater extent.[421]
The number of his legions was eight and a half, because, independent of
the eight legions brought together at Boulogne before the departure for
Britain, he had no doubt formed five cohorts of soldiers and sailors
employed on his fleet. The troops were distributed in the following
manner: he sent one legion into the country of the Morini (to Saint
Pol), under the orders of C. Fabius; another to the Nervii (at
Charleroy), with Quintus Cicero;[422] a third to the Essuvii (at Sées,
in Normandy), under the command of L. Roscius; a fourth, under T.
Labienus, to the country of the Remi, near the frontier of the Treviri
(at Lavacherie, on the Ourthe).[423] He placed three in Belgium,[424]
one at Samarobriva itself (Amiens), under the orders of Trebonius; the
second in the country of the Bellovaci, under M. Crassus, his questor,
at twenty-five miles from Amiens (Montdidier); the third under L.
Munatius Plancus, near the confluence of the Oise and the Aisne (at
Champlieu). The legion last raised[425] among the Transpadans repaired
with five cohorts, under the orders of Titurius Sabinus and Aurunculeius
Cotta, to the Eburones, whose country, situated in great part between
the Meuse and the Rhine, was governed by Ambiorix and Catuvolcus. It
occupied a fortress named Aduatuca (Tongres).[426] This distribution
of the army appeared to Cæsar a more easy manner to supply it with
provisions. Moreover, these different winter quarters, with the
exception of that of M. Roscius, who occupied the most peaceable part of
Gaul, were all included within a circle of a hundred miles radius (148
kil.). It was Cæsar’s intention not to leave them until he knew that the
legions were firmly established and their quarters fortified. (See
Plate 14, the sites of the winter quarters.)
There was among the Carnutes (country of Chartres) a man of high
birth, named Tasgetius, whose ancestors had reigned over that nation. In
consideration of his valour and of his important military services,
Cæsar had replaced him, during three years, in the rank held by his
forefather, when his enemies publicly massacred him. The men who had
participated in this crime were so numerous, that there was reason for
fearing that the revolt would spread over the whole country. To prevent
it, Cæsar despatched in the greatest haste L. Plancus at the head of his
legion, with orders to establish his quarters in the country of the
Carnutes, and to send him the accomplices in the murder of
Tasgetius.[427]
Defeat of Sabinus at Aduatuca.
XII. He received at the same period (the end of October), from the
lieutenants and the questor, the news that the legions had arrived and
retrenched in their quarters. They had indeed been established in them
about a fortnight, when suddenly a revolt took place at the instigation
of Ambiorix and Catuvolcus. These chiefs had at first repaired to the
limits of their territory to meet Sabinus and Cotta, and had even
furnished them with provisions; but soon after, urged on by the Treviran
Indutiomaras, they raise the country, fall unexpectedly on the soldiers
occupied in seeking wood, and attack the camp of Sabinus with
considerable forces. Immediately the Romans run to arms and mount on the
vallum. The Spanish cavalry makes a successful sortie, and the enemies
retire, deceived in their hope of carrying the retrenchments by storm.
Having then recourse to stratagem, they utter, according to their
custom, loud cries, and demand to enter into negotiations and deliberate
on their common interests, C. Arpineius, a Roman knight and the friend
of Sabinus, and the Spaniard Q. Junius, who had been employed on several
missions to Ambiorix, were sent to them. Ambiorix declared that he had
not forgotten the numerous benefits he had received from Cæsar, but that
he was forced to follow the movement of Gaul, which had conspired in a
common effort to recover its liberty. That very day, according to his
statement, the various quarters were to be attacked at the same time, so
as to hinder them from lending each other mutual succour; the Germans
had passed the Rhine, and would arrive in two days; Sabinus had no
other chance of safety but by abandoning his camp and rejoining Cicero
or Labienus, who were at a distance of fifty miles. In the end, Ambiorix
promised under an oath to give him a free passage. The envoys reported
to Sabinus and Cotta what they had heard. Troubled at this news, and the
more disposed to put faith in it because it was hardly credible that so
small a people as the Eburones would have dared alone to brave the Roman
power, the two lieutenants submitted the affair to a council of war: it
became the subject of warm disputes. Cotta, and with him several of the
tribunes and centurions of the first class, were of opinion that they
should not act hastily, but wait for orders from Cæsar. Their camp was
strong enough to resist all the forces of the Germans; they were not
pressed by want of food; they might receive succours, and, under
circumstances of so much gravity, it would be disgraceful to take their
counsel from the enemy.
Sabinus replied with force that it would be too late to decide when the
number of the assailants would be increased by the arrival of the
Germans, and when the neighbouring quarters would have experienced some
disaster. “The movement requires a prompt decision. Cæsar has, no doubt,
started for Italy: otherwise, would the Carnutes have dared to slay
Tasgetius, and the Eburones to attack the camp with so much boldness? We
must consider the counsel itself, and not him who gives it: the Rhine is
at a short distance; the Germans are irritated by the death of
Ariovistus, and by their preceding defeats; Gaul is in flames; she
supports with impatience the Roman yoke, and the loss of her ancient
military glory. Would Ambiorix have engaged without powerful motives in
such an enterprise? It is safest, therefore, to follow his counsel, and
to gain as quickly as possible the nearest quarters.”
Cotta and the centurions of the first class earnestly maintained the
contrary opinion. “Let it then be as you will!” said Sabinus; and then,
raising his voice to be heard by the soldiers, he shouted: “Death does
not terrify me; but behold, Cotta, those who will require of thee a
reckoning for the misfortunes which thou art preparing for them. After
to-morrow, if you would agree to it, they could have rejoined the
nearest legion, and, united with it, incur together the chances of war;
they will know that thou hast preferred leaving them, far from their
companions, exposed to perish by the sword or by famine.”
When the council was ended, the lieutenants are surrounded and implored
not to compromise the safety of the army by their misunderstanding; let
them go or remain, provided they are agreed, everything will be easy.
The debate is prolonged into the middle of the night; at last, Cotta,
moved, yields to the opinion of Sabinus, and agrees to repair to Cicero,
encamped in the country of the Nervii; the departure is fixed for
daybreak. The rest of the night is passed in the midst of preparations;
the soldier chooses what articles of his winter equipment he will carry
with him. And, as if the danger were not sufficiently great, he seems as
if he wished to increase it by fatigue and watching. At daybreak, the
troops, in full security, begin their march in a long column,
encumbered with a numerous baggage.
At the distance of three kilomètres (a millibus passuum circiter
duobus) from the town of Tongres is the vale of Lowaige, closed in
between two hills, and forming a great defile of about 2,500 mètres in
length (magnam convallem). It is traversed by a stream, the Geer. The
hills, now denuded, were, only a century ago, covered with wood;[428] it
was there that the Eburones lay in wait for the Roman army.
Informed of the intended retreat by the noise and tumult, they had
divided themselves into two bodies, on the right and left of the vale,
and placed themselves in ambush in the middle of the woods. When they
saw the greater part of the Roman troops engaged in the defile, they
attacked them in rear and in front, profiting by all the advantages of
the locality.
Then Sabinus, like a man who had shown no foresight, becomes troubled,
hurries hither and thither, hesitates in all his measures—as happens to
him who, taken by surprise, is obliged to act decisively in the middle
of danger. Cotta, on the contrary, who had calculated the fatal chances
of the departure which he had opposed, neglects nothing for the general
safety. He encourages the troops, combats in the ranks—a general and a
soldier at the same time. As the length of the column prevented the
lieutenants from seeing all and ordering all themselves, they caused the
soldiers to pass on from mouth to mouth the order to abandon the baggage
and form the circle. This resolution, though justified by the
circumstances, had, nevertheless, a disastrous effect; it diminished the
confidence of the Romans, and increased the ardour of the Eburones, who
ascribed so desperate a resolution to fear and discouragement. There
resulted from it, too, an inevitable inconvenience: the soldiers quitted
their ensigns in crowds to run to the baggage, and take their more
valuable effects; and on all parts there was nothing but shouts and
confusion.
The barbarians acted with intelligence. Their chiefs, fearing that they
would disperse to pillage the baggage of the Romans, sent orders on all
points that every one must keep his rank, declaring that the thing
important was first to assure themselves of the victory, and that
afterwards the booty would fall into their hands.
The Eburones were rough adversaries; but by their number and their
courage, the Romans might have maintained the struggle. Although
abandoned by their chief and by fortune, they relied upon themselves for
everything, and every time that a cohort fell upon the enemies, it made
a great carnage of them. Ambiorix perceived this: he shouted loudly his
commands that his men should throw their missiles from a distance, and
not approach near; that they should retire whenever the Romans rushed
forward, and only attack them in their retreat, when they returned to
their ensigns—a manœuvre easy to the Eburones, practised in such
exercises, and nimble on account of the lightness of their equipment.
The order was faithfully executed. When a cohort quitted the circle to
charge the enemies, they fled with speed; but the cohort, in its
advance, left its right flank (not protected, like the left flank, by
the bucklers) exposed to the missiles; when it resumed its former
position, it was surrounded on all sides both by those who had
retreated, and by those who had remained on its flanks.
If, instead of sending forward their cohorts in succession, the Romans
stood firm in their circle, they lost the advantage of attacking, and
their close ranks made them more exposed to the multitude of missiles.
Meanwhile, the number of the wounded increased every moment. It was two
o’clock; the combat had lasted from sunrise, and yet the Roman soldiers
had not ceased to show themselves worthy of themselves. At this moment
the struggle becomes more desperate. T. Balventius, a brave and
respected man, who, in the previous year, had commanded as primipilus,
has his two thighs transpierced by a javelin; Q. Lucanius, an officer of
the same grade, is killed fighting valiantly to rescue his son, who is
surrounded by enemies. Cotta himself, while he runs from rank to rank to
encourage the soldiers, is wounded in the face by a missile from a
sling.
At this sight, Sabinus, discouraged, sees no other help but to treat
with Ambiorix. Perceiving him at a distance in the act of urging on his
troops, he sends to him his interpreter Cn. Pompeius, to pray him to
spare him and his men. Ambiorix replies that he is quite willing to
enter into negotiations with Sabinus, whose person he undertakes under
the obligation of his oath to cause to be respected; that further, he
hopes to obtain from the Eburones safety of life for the Roman soldiers.
Sabinus communicates this reply to Cotta, who is already wounded, and
proposes that they should go together to confer with Ambiorix; this step
may secure the safety of themselves and the army. Cotta refuses
obstinately, and declares that he will never treat with an enemy in
arms.
Sabinus enjoins to the tribunes of the soldiers who stand round him, and
to the centurions of the first class, to follow him. Arriving near
Ambiorix, he is summoned to lay down his sword: he obeys, and orders his
men to imitate his example. While they discuss the conditions in an
interview which the chief of the Eburones prolongs intentionally,
Sabinus is gradually surrounded and massacred. Then the barbarians,
raising, according to their custom, wild cries, rush upon the Romans and
break their ranks. Cotta and the greatest part of his soldiers perish
with their arms in their hands; the others seek refuge in the camp of
Aduatuca, from whence they had started. The ensign-bearer, L.
Petrosidius, pressed by a crowd of enemies, throws the eagle into the
retrenchments, and dies defending himself bravely at the foot of the
rampart. The unfortunate soldiers strive to sustain the combat till
night, and that very night they kill one another in despair. A few,
however, escaping from the field of battle, cross the forests, and gain
by chance the quarters of T. Labienus, to whom they give information of
this disaster.[429]
Attack on Cicero’s Camp.
XIII. Elated by this victory, Ambiorix immediately repairs with his
cavalry into the country of the Aduatuci, a people adjoining to his
states, and marches without interruption all the night and the following
day: the infantry has orders to follow him. He announces his successes
to the Aduatuci, and urges them to take up arms. Next day he proceeds to
the Nervii, presses them to seize this occasion to avenge their injuries
and deliver themselves for ever from the yoke of the Romans; he informs
them of the death of two lieutenants, and of the destruction of a great
part of the Roman army; he adds that the legion in winter quarters among
them, under the command of Cicero, will be easily surprised and
annihilated; he offers his alliance to the Nervii, and easily persuades
them.
These immediately give information to the Ceutrones, the Grudii, the
Levaci, the Pleumoxii, and the Geiduni, tribes under their dependence:
they collect all the troops they can, and proceed unexpectedly to the
winter quarters of Cicero, before he had learnt the disaster and death
of Sabinus. There, as it had happened recently at Aduatuca, some
soldiers, occupied in cutting wood in the forest, are surprised by the
cavalry. Soon a considerable number of Eburones, Aduatuci, and Nervii,
with their allies and clients, proceed to attack the camp. The Romans
rush to arms, and mount the vallum; but that day they make head with
difficulty against an enemy who has placed all his hope in the
promptness of an unforeseen attack, and was convinced that after this
victory nothing further could resist him.[430]
Cæsar marches to the succour of Cicero.
XIV. Cæsar was still at Amiens, ignorant of the events which had just
taken place. Cicero immediately wrote to him, and promised great
recompenses to those who should succeed in delivering his letters to
him; but all the roads were watched, and nobody could reach him. During
the night twenty towers were raised, with an incredible celerity, by
means of the wood which had been already brought for fortifying the
camp,[431] and the works were completed. Next day, the enemies, whose
forces had increased, returned to the attack and began to fill the
fosse. The resistance was as energetic as the day before, and continued
during the following days; among these heroic soldiers constancy and
energy seemed to increase with the peril. Each night they prepare
everything necessary for the defence on the morrow. They make a great
number of stakes hardened by fire, and pila employed in sieges; they
establish with planks the floors of the towers, and by means of hurdles
make parapets and battlements. They work without intermission: neither
wounded nor sick take repose. Cicero himself, though a man of feeble
health, is day and night at work, in spite of the entreaties of his
soldiers, who implore him to spare himself.
Meanwhile, the chiefs and principes of the Nervii proposed an
interview to Cicero. They repeated to him what Ambiorix had said to
Sabinus: “All Gaul is in arms; the Germans have passed the Rhine; the
quarters of Cæsar and his lieutenants are attacked.” They added:
“Sabinus and his cohorts have perished; the presence of Ambiorix is a
proof of their veracity; Cicero would deceive himself if he reckoned on
the succour of the other legions. As to them, they have no hostile
intention, provided the Romans will discontinue occupying their country.
The legion has full liberty to retire without fear whither it likes.”
Cicero replied “that it was not the custom of the Roman people to accept
conditions from an enemy in arms; but that, if they consented to lay
them down, he would serve them as a mediator with Cæsar, who would
decide.”
Deceived in their expectation of intimidating Cicero, the Nervii
surrounded the camp with a rampart nine feet high, and a fosse fifteen
wide. They had observed the Roman works in the preceding campaigns, and
learnt from some prisoners to imitate them. But, as they did not possess
the necessary instruments of iron, they were obliged to cut the turf
with their swords, to take the earth with their hands, and to carry it
in their cloaks. We may judge of their great number by the fact that in
less than three hours they completed a retrenchment of 15,000 feet in
circuit.[432] On the following days, they raised towers to the height of
the vallum, prepared hooks (falces), and covered galleries
(testudines), which they had similarly been taught by the
prisoners.[433]
On the seventh day of the siege, a great wind having arisen, the enemies
threw into the camp fiery darts, and launched from their slings balls of
burning clay (ferventes fusili ex argilla glandes).[434] The barracks,
roofed with straw, in the Gaulish manner, soon took fire, and the wind
spread the flames in an instant through the whole camp. Then, raising
great shouts, as though they had already gained the victory, they pushed
forward their towers and covered galleries, and attempted, by means of
ladders, to scale the vallum; but such were the courage and steadiness
of the Roman soldiers, that, though surrounded with flames, overwhelmed
with a shower of darts, and knowing well that the fire was devouring
their baggage and their property, not one of them quitted his post, or
even dreamt of turning his head, so much did that desperate struggle
absorb their minds. This was their most trying day. Meanwhile, many of
the enemies were killed and wounded, because, crowding to the foot of
the rampart, the last ranks stopped the retreat of the first. The fire
having been appeased, the barbarians pushed up a tower against the
vallum.[435] The centurions of the third cohort, who happened to be
there, drew their men back, and, in bravado, invited, by their gesture
and voice, the enemies to enter. Nobody ventured. Then they drove them
away by a shower of stones, and the tower was burnt. There were in that
legion two centurions, T. Pulio and L. Vorenus, who emulated each other
in bravery by rushing into the midst of the assailants. Thrown down in
turn, and surrounded by enemies, they mutually rescued each other
several times, and returned into the camp without wounds. Defensive arms
then permitted individual courage to perform actual prodigies.
Still the siege continued, and the number of the defenders diminished
daily; provisions began to fall short, as well as the necessaries for
tending the wounded.[436] The frequent messengers sent by Cicero to
Cæsar were intercepted, and some of them cruelly put to death within
view of the camp. At last, Vertico, a Nervian chieftain who had embraced
the cause of the Romans, prevailed upon one of his slaves to take charge
of a letter to Cæsar. His quality of a Gaul enabled him to pass
unperceived, and to give intelligence to the general of Cicero’s danger.
Cæsar received this information at Amiens towards the eleventh hour of
the day (four o’clock in the afternoon). He had only at hand three
legions—that of Trebonius, at Amiens; that of M. Crassus, whose
quarters were at Montdidier, in the country of the Bellovaci, at a
distance of twenty-five miles; and lastly, that which, under C. Fabius,
was wintering in the country of the Morini, at Saint-Pol.[437] (See
Plate 14.) He despatched a courier to Crassus, charged with delivering
to him his order to start with his legion in the middle of the night,
and join him in all haste at Amiens, to relieve there the legion of
Trebonius. Another courier was sent to the lieutenant C. Fabius, to
direct him to take his legion into the territory of the Atrebates, which
Cæsar would cross, and where their junction was to be effected. He wrote
similarly to Labienus, to march with his legion towards the country of
the Nervii, if he could without peril. As to the legion of Roscius and
that of Plancus, which were too far distant, they remained in their
quarters.
Crassus had no sooner received his orders than he began his march; and
next day, towards the third hour (ten o’clock), his couriers announced
his approach. Cæsar left him at Amiens, with one legion, to guard the
baggage of the army, the hostages, the archives, and the winter
provisions. He immediately started in person, without waiting for the
rest of the army, with the legion of Trebonius, and four hundred cavalry
from the neighbouring quarters. He followed, no doubt, the direction
from Amiens to Cambrai, and made that day twenty miles (thirty
kilomètres). He was subsequently joined on his road, probably towards
Bourcies, between Bapaume and Cambrai, by Fabius, who had not lost a
moment in executing his orders. Meanwhile arrived the reply of Labienus.
He informed Cæsar of the events which had taken place among the
Eburones, and of their effect among the Treviri. These latter had just
risen. All their troops had advanced towards him, and surrounded him at
a distance of three miles. In this position, fearing that he should not
be able to resist enemies proud of a recent victory, who would take his
departure for a flight, he thought that there would be danger in
quitting his winter quarters.
Cæsar approved of the resolution taken by Labienus, although it reduced
to two the three legions on which he counted; and, although their
effective force did not amount to more than 7,000 men, as the safety of
the army depended on the celerity of his movements, he proceeded by
forced marches to the country of the Nervii; there he learnt from
prisoners the perilous situation of Cicero. He immediately engaged, by
the promise of great recompenses, a Gaulish horseman to carry a letter
to him: it was written in Greek,[438] in order that the enemy, if he
intercepted it, might not know its meaning. Further, in case the Gaul
could not penetrate to Cicero, he had directed him to attach the letter
to the amentum (see page 37, note 2) of his javelin, and throw it over
the retrenchments. Cæsar wrote that he was approaching in great haste
with his legions, and he exhorted Cicero to persevere in his energetic
defence. According to Polyænus, the despatch contained these words:
θαῥῥεἱν βοἡθειαν προσδἑχου (“Courage! expect succour”).[439]
As soon as he arrived near the camp, the Gaul, not daring to penetrate
to it, did as Cæsar had directed him. By chance his javelin remained two
days stuck in a tower. It was only on the third that it was seen and
carried to Cicero. The letter, read in the presence of the assembled
soldiers, excited transports of joy. Soon afterwards they perceived in
the distance the smoke of burning habitations, which announced the
approach of the army of succour. At that moment, after a five days’
march, it had arrived within twenty kilomètres of Charleroi, near
Binche, where it encamped. The Gauls, when they were informed of it by
their scouts, raised the siege, and then, to the number of about 60,000,
marched to meet the legions.
Cicero, thus liberated, sent another Gaul to announce to Cæsar that the
enemy were turning all their forces against him. At this news, received
towards the middle of the night, Cæsar informed his soldiers, and
strengthened them in their desire of vengeance. At daybreak next day he
raised his camp. After advancing four miles, he perceived a crowd of
enemies on the other side of a great valley traversed by the stream of
the Haine.[440] Cæsar did not consider it prudent to descend into the
valley to engage in combat against so great a number of troops.
Moreover, Cicero once rescued, there was no need for hurrying his march;
he therefore halted, and chose a good position for retrenching—mount
Sainte-Aldegonde. Although his camp, containing hardly 7,000 men,
without baggage, was necessarily of limited extent, he diminished it as
much as possible by giving less width to the streets, in order to
deceive the enemy as to his real strength. At the same time he sent out
scouts to ascertain the best place for crossing the valley.
That day passed in skirmishes of cavalry on the banks of the stream, but
each kept his positions: the Gauls, because they were waiting for
re-enforcements; Cæsar, because he counted on his simulated fear to draw
the enemies out of their position, and compel them to fight on his side
of the Haine, before his camp. If he could not succeed, he obtained time
to reconnoitre the roads sufficiently to pass the river and valley with
less danger. On the morrow, at daybreak, the enemy’s cavalry came up to
the retrenchments, and attacked that of the Romans. Cæsar ordered his
men to give way, and return into the camp; at the same time he caused
the height of the ramparts to be increased, the gates to be stopped up
with mere lumps of turf, and directed his soldiers to execute his
directions with tumultuous haste and all the signs of fear.
The Gauls, drawn on by this feint, passed the stream, and formed in
order of battle in a disadvantageous place. Seeing that the Romans had
even abandoned the vallum, they approached nearer to it, threw their
missiles over it from all sides, and caused their heralds to proclaim
round the retrenchments that, until the third hour (ten o’clock), every
Gaul or Roman who should desert to them should have his life saved. At
last, having no hope of forcing the gates, which they supposed to be
solidly fortified, they carried their boldness so far as to begin to
fill up the fosse, and to pull down the palisades with their hands. But
Cæsar held his troops in readiness to profit by the excessive confidence
of the Gauls: at a signal given, they rush through all the gates at
once; the enemy does not resist, but takes to flight, abandoning their
arms, and leaves the ground covered with his dead.
Cæsar did not pursue far, on account of the woods and marshes; he would
not have been able, indeed, to inflict further loss; he marched with his
troops, without having suffered any loss, towards the camp of Cicero,
where he arrived the same day.[441] The towers, the covered galleries,
and the retrenchments of the barbarians, excited his astonishment.
Having assembled the soldiers of Cicero’s legion, nine-tenths of whom
were wounded, he could judge how much danger they had run and how much
courage they had displayed. He loaded with praise the general and
soldiers, addressing individually the centurions and the tribunes who
had distinguished themselves. The prisoners gave him more ample details
on the deaths of Sabinus and Cotta, whose disaster had produced a deep
impression in the army. The next day he reminds the troops convoked for
that purpose of the past event, consoles and encourages them, throws the
fault of this check on the imprudence of the lieutenant, and exhorts
them to resignation the more, because, thanks to the valour of the
soldiers and the protection of the gods, the expiation had been prompt,
and left no further reason for the enemies to rejoice, or for the Romans
to be afflicted.[442]
We see, from what precedes, how small a number of troops, disseminated
over a vast territory, surmounted, by discipline and courage, a
formidable insurrection. Quintus Cicero, by following the principle
invoked by Cotta, not to enter into negotiations with an enemy in
arms, saved both his army and his honour. As to Cæsar, he gave proof,
in this circumstance, of an energy and strength of mind which Quintus
Cicero did not fail to point out to his brother when he wrote to
him.[443] If we believe Suetonius and Polyænus, Cæsar felt so great a
grief for the check experienced by Sabinus, that, in sign of mourning,
he let his beard and hair grow until he had avenged his
lieutenants,[444] which only happened in the year following, by the
destruction of the Eburones and the Nervii.
Cæsar places his Troops in Winter Quarters. Labienus defeats
Indutiomarus.
XV. Meanwhile the news of Cæsar’s victory reached Labienus, across the
country of the Remi, with incredible speed: his winter quarters were at
a distance of about sixty miles from Cicero’s camp, where Cæsar had only
arrived after the ninth hour of the day (three o’clock in the
afternoon), and yet before midnight shouts of joy were raised at the
gates of the camp, the acclamations of the Remi who came to congratulate
Labienus. The noise spread in the army of the Treviri, and Indutiomarus,
who had resolved to attack the camp of Labienus next day, withdrew
during the night, and took all his troops with him.
These events having been accomplished, Cæsar distributed the seven
legions he had left in the following manner: he sent Fabius with his
legion to his winter quarters among the Morini, and established himself
in the neighbourhood of Amiens with three legions, which he separated in
three quarters: they were the legion of Crassus, which had remained
stationary, that of Cicero, and that of Trebonius. There are still seen,
along the Somme, in the neighbourhood of Amiens, three camps at a short
distance from each other, which appear to have been those of that
period.[445] Labienus, Plancus, and Roscius continued to occupy the same
positions. The gravity of the circumstances determined Cæsar to remain
all the winter with the army. In fact, on the news of the disaster of
Sabinus, nearly all the people of Gaul showed a disposition to take
arms, sent deputations and messages to each other, communicated their
projects, and deliberated upon the point from which the signal for war
should be given. They held nocturnal assemblies in bye-places, and
during the whole winter not a day passed in which there was not some
meeting or some movement of the Gauls to cause uneasiness to Cæsar. Thus
he learnt from L. Roscius, lieutenant placed at the head of the 13th
legion, that considerable troops of Armorica had assembled to attack
him; they were not more than eight miles from his winter quarters, when
the news of Cæsar’s victory had compelled them to retreat precipitately
and in disorder.
The Roman general called to his presence the principes of each state,
terrified some by letting them know that he was informed of their plots,
exhorted the others to perform their duty, and by these means maintained
the tranquillity of a great part of Gaul. Meanwhile a vexatious event
took place in the country of the Senones, a powerful and influential
nation among the Gauls. They had resolved, in an assembly, to put to
death Cavarinus, whom Cæsar had given them for king. Cavarinus had fled;
upon which they pronounced his deposition, banished him, and pursued him
to the limits of their territory. They had sought to justify themselves
to Cæsar, who ordered them to send him all their senators. They refused.
This boldness on the part of the Senones, by showing to the barbarians
some individuals capable of resisting the Romans, produced so great a
change in their minds, that, with the exception of the Ædui and the
Remi, there was not a people which did not fall under suspicion of
revolt, each desiring to free itself from foreign domination.
During the whole winter, the Treviri and Indutiomarus never ceased
urging the people on the other side of the Rhine to take up arms,
assuring them that the greater part of the Roman army had been
destroyed. But not one of the German nations could be persuaded to pass
the Rhine. The remembrance of the double defeat of Ariovistus and the
Tencteri made them cautious of trying their fortune again. Deceived in
his expectations, Indutiomarus did not discontinue collecting troops,
exercising them, buying horses from the neighbouring countries, and
drawing to him from all parts of Gaul outlaws and condemned criminals.
His ascendency was soon so great, that from all parts people eagerly
sought his friendship and protection.
When he saw some rallying to him spontaneously, others, such as the
Senones and the Carnutes, engaging in his cause through a consciousness
of their fault; the Nervii and the Aduatuci preparing for war, and a
crowd of volunteers disposed to join him as soon as he should have
quitted his country, Indutiomarus, according to the custom of the Gauls
at the beginning of a campaign, called together an assembly in arms. He
pronounced Cingetorix, his son-in-law, who remained faithful to Cæsar,
an enemy of his country; and announced that, in reply to the appeal of
the Senones and Carnutes, he would go to them through the country of the
Remi, whose lands he would ravage; but, above all, he would attack the
camp of Labienus.
The latter, established on the Ourthe, master of a position naturally
formidable, which he had further fortified, was in fear of no attack,
but dreamt, on the contrary, of seizing the first opportunity of
combating with advantage. Informed by Cingetorix of the designs of
Indutiomarus, he demanded cavalry of the neighbouring states, pretended
fear, and, letting the enemy’s cavalry approach with impunity, remained
shut up in his camp.
While, deceived by these appearances, Indutiomarus became daily more
presumptuous, Labienus introduced secretly into his camp during the
night the auxiliary cavalry, and, by keeping a close watch, prevented
the Treviri from being informed of it. The enemy, ignorant of the
arrival of this re-enforcement, advanced nearer and nearer to the
retrenchments, and redoubled his provocations. They were unnoticed, and
towards evening he withdrew in disorder. Suddenly Labienus causes his
cavalry, seconded by his cohorts, to issue by the two gates. Foreseeing
the rout of the enemy, he urges his troops to follow Indutiomarus alone,
and promises great rewards to those who shall bring his head. Fortune
seconded his designs; Indutiomarus was overtaken just at the ford of the
river (the Ourthe), and put to death, and his head was brought into the
camp. The cavalry, in their return, slew all the enemies they found in
their way. The Eburones and the Nervii dispersed. The result of these
events was to give to Gaul a little more tranquillity.[446]
Observations.
XVI. The Emperor Napoleon, in his Précis des Guerres de César,
explains in the following manner the advantage the Romans drew from
their camps:—
“The Romans owe the constancy of their successes to the method, from
which they never departed, of encamping every night in a fortified camp,
and of never giving battle without having behind them a retrenched camp,
to serve them as a place of retreat, and to contain their magazines,
their baggage, and their wounded. The nature of arms in those ages was
such that, in these camps, they were not only in safety from the attacks
of an equal army, but even an army which was stronger; they were the
masters to fight or to wait a favourable opportunity. Marius is assailed
by a cloud of Cimbri or Teutones; he shuts himself up in his camp,
remains there until the favourable day or occasion comes, then he issues
with victory before him. Cæsar arrives near the camp of Cicero; the
Gauls abandon the latter, and march to meet the former; they are four
times more numerous. Cæsar takes a position in a few hours, retrenches
his camp, and in it he bears patiently the insults and provocations of
an enemy whom he is not yet willing to combat; but a favourable
opportunity is not long in presenting itself. He then issues through all
his gates; the Gauls are vanquished.
“Why, then, has a rule so wise, so fertile in great results, been
abandoned by modern generals? Because offensive arms have changed its
character; arms for the hand were the principal arms of the ancients; it
was with his short sword that the legionary conquered the world; it was
with the Macedonian pike that Alexander conquered Asia. The principal
arms of modern armies are projectiles; the musket is superior to
anything ever invented by man; no defensive arm is a protection against
it.
“As the principal arm of the ancients was the sword or the pike, their
habitual formation was in deep order. The legion and the phalanx, in
whatever situation they were attacked, either in front, or in right
flank, or in left flank, faced everywhere without disadvantage; they
could encamp on surfaces of small extent, in order to have less labour
in fortifying the line of circuit, and in order to hold their ground
with the smallest detachment possible. The principal arm of the moderns
is the projectile; their habitual order has naturally been narrow order,
the only one which permits them to bring all their projectiles to bear.
“A consular army enclosed in its camp, attacked by a modern army of
equal force, would be driven out of it without assault, and without
being able to use their swords; it would not be necessary to fill up the
fosses or to scale the ramparts: surrounded on all sides by the
attacking army, pierced through, enveloped, and raked by the fire, the
camp would be the common drain of all the shots, of all the balls, of
all the bullets: fire, devastation, and death would open the gates and
throw down the retrenchments. A modern army, placed in a Roman camp,
would at first, no doubt, make use of all its artillery; but, though
equal to the artillery of the besieger, it would be taken in rouage
and quickly reduced to silence; a part only of the infantry could use
their muskets, but it would fire upon a line less extended, and would be
far from producing an effect equal to the injury it would receive. The
fire from the centre to the circumference is null; that from the
circumference to the centre is irresistible. All these considerations
have decided modern generals in renouncing the system of retrenched
camps, to adopt instead natural positions well chosen.
“A Roman camp was placed independently of localities: all these were
good for armies whose strength consisted in arms used with the hand; it
required neither experienced eye nor military genius to encamp well;
whereas the choice of positions, the manner of occupying them and
placing the different arms, by taking advantage of the circumstances of
the ground, is an art which forms part of the genius of the modern
captain.
“If it were said now-a-days to a general, You shall have, like Cicero,
under your orders, 5,000 men, sixteen pieces of cannon, 5,000 pioneers’
tools, 5,000 sacks of earth; you shall be within reach of a forest, on
ordinary ground; in fifteen days you shall be attacked by an army of
60,000 men, having 120 pieces of cannon; you shall not be succoured till
eighty or ninety-six hours after having been attacked. What are the
works, what are the plans, what are the profiles, which art prescribes?
Has the art of the engineer secrets which can solve this problem?”[447]
Cæsar augments his Army.
I. THE state of Gaul gave Cæsar cause to anticipate serious agitations,
and he felt convinced of the necessity of new levies. He employed on
this mission his lieutenants M. Silanus, C. Antistius Reginus, and T.
Sextius; at the same time he asked Pompey, who had remained before Rome
with the imperium, in order to watch over the public interests, to
recall to their colours and send him the soldiers of Cisalpine Gaul
enlisted under the consulate of the latter in 699. Cæsar attached, with
a view to the present and to the future, great importance to giving the
Gauls a high idea of the resources of Italy, and to proving to them that
it was easy for the Republic, after a check, not only to repair its
losses, but also to bring into the field troops more numerous than ever.
Pompey, through friendship and consideration for the public good,
granted his demand. Thanks to the activity of his lieutenants, before
the end of winter three new legions (or thirty cohorts) were raised and
joined to the army: the 1st, the 14th, which had just taken the number
of the legion annihilated at Aduatuca, and the 15th. In this manner, the
fifteen cohorts lost under Sabinus were replaced by double their number,
and it was seen, by this rapid display of forces, what was the power of
the military organization and resources of the Roman people. It was the
first time that Cæsar commanded ten legions.
War against the Nervii, General Assembly of Gaul.
II. After the death of Indutiomarus, the Treviri took for their chiefs
some members of his family. These in vain urged the nearest peoples of
the right bank of the Rhine to make common cause with them; but they
succeeded with some of the more distant tribes, particularly the Suevi,
and persuaded Ambiorix to enter into their league. From all parts, from
the Rhine to the Scheldt, were announced preparations for war. The
Nervii, the Aduatuci, the Menapii, all the Germans on this side of the
Rhine, were in arms. The Senones persisted in their disobedience, and
acted in concert with the Carnutes and the neighbouring states;
everything urged upon Cæsar the counsel to open the campaign earlier
than usual. Accordingly, without waiting for the end of winter, he
concentrates the four legions nearest to Amiens, his head-quarters
(those of Fabius, Crassus, Cicero, and Trebonius), invades unexpectedly
the territory of the Nervii, gives them time neither to assemble nor to
fly, but carries off the men and cattle, abandons the booty to the
soldiers, and forces this people to submission.
This expedition so rapidly terminated, the legions returned to their
winter quarters. At the beginning of spring, Cæsar convoked, according
to his custom, the general assembly of Gaul, which met, no doubt, at
Amiens. The different peoples sent thither their representatives, with
the exception of the Senones, the Carnutes, and the Treviri. He regarded
this absence as a sign of revolt, and in order to pursue his designs
without neglecting the general affairs, he resolved to transfer the
assembly nearer to the insurrection, to Lutetia. This town belonged to
the Parisii, who bordered on the Senones, and although formerly these
peoples had formed but one, the Parisii do not appear to have entered
into the conspiracy. Cæsar, having announced this decision from the
summit of his prætorium (pro suggestu pronuntiata), started the same
day at the head of his legions, and advanced by forced marches towards
the country of the Senones.
At the news of his approach, Acco, the principal author of the revolt,
ordered the population to retire into the oppida; but, taken by
surprise by the arrival of the Romans, the Senones employed the Ædui,
once their patrons, to intercede in their favour. Cæsar pardoned them
without difficulty, preferring to employ the fine season in war than in
the search of those who were culpable. A hundred hostages exacted from
the Senones were entrusted to the Ædui. The Carnutes imitated the
example of the Senones, and, by the intermediation of the Remi, whose
clients they were, obtained their pardon. Cæsar pronounced the close of
the assembly of Gaul, and ordered the different states to furnish their
contingents of cavalry.[448]
Submission of the Menapii.
III. Having pacified this part of the country, Cæsar turned all his
thoughts towards the war with the Treviri and with Ambiorix, the chief
of the Eburones. He was, above all, impatient to take a striking
vengeance for the humiliation inflicted on his arms at Aduatuca. Knowing
well that Ambiorix would not hazard a battle, he sought to penetrate his
designs. Two things were to be feared: the first, that Ambiorix, when
his territory was invaded, would take refuge among the Menapii, whose
country, adjoining that of the Eburones, was defended by woods and vast
marshes, and who, alone among the Gauls, had never made an act of
submission; the second, that he might join the Germans beyond the Rhine,
with whom, as was known, he had entered into friendly relations through
the intermediation of the Treviri. Cæsar conceived the plan of first
preventing these two eventualities, in order to isolate Ambiorix.
Wishing, above all, to reduce to submission the Menapii and Treviri, and
carry the war at the same time into the countries of these two peoples,
he undertook in person the expedition against the Menapii, and entrusted
that against the Treviri to Labienus, his best lieutenant, who had
operated against them on several occasions. Labienus, after his victory
over Indutiomarus, had continued in his winter quarters with his legions
at Lavacherie, on the Ourthe.[449] Cæsar sent him all the baggage of
the army and two legions. He marched in person towards the country of
the Menapii, at the head of five legions without baggage. He took with
him Cavarinus and the Senonese cavalry, fearing lest the resentment of
this king against his people, or the hatred which he had drawn upon
himself, might raise some disorders, and, following the general
direction of Sens, Soissons, Bavay, and Brussels, he reached the
frontier of the Menapii. The latter, trusting in the nature of the
ground, had assembled no forces, but took refuge in the woods and
marshes. Cæsar divided his troops with the lieutenant C. Fabius and the
questor M. Crassus, formed them into three columns, and, causing bridges
to be hastily constructed, to cross the marshy water-courses, penetrated
at three points into their territory, which he ravaged. The Menapii,
reduced to extremity, demanded peace: it was granted to them on the
express condition that they should refuse all shelter to Ambiorix or to
his lieutenants. Cæsar left Commius among them with part of the cavalry
to hold them under surveillance, and marched thence towards the country
of the Treviri.[450]
Success of Labienus against the Treviri.
IV. On his part, Labienus had obtained brilliant successes; the Treviri
had marched with considerable forces against his winter quarters. They
were no more than two days’ march from him, when they learnt that he
had been joined by two other legions. Resolving then to wait the succour
of the Germans, they halted at a distance of fifteen miles from the camp
of Labienus. The latter, informed of the cause of their inaction, and
hoping that their imprudence would present an opportunity for giving
battle, left five cohorts to guard the greatest part of the baggage,
and, with the twenty-five others and a numerous cavalry, established his
camp within a mile of the enemy.
The two armies were separated by the river Ourthe, the passage of which
was rendered difficult by the steepness of the banks. Labienus had no
intention of crossing it, but he feared that the enemy might imitate his
prudence until the arrival of the Germans, who were expected
immediately. To draw them to him, he spread a rumour that he should
withdraw on the morrow at break of day, in order to avoid having to
combat the united forces of the Treviri and the Germans. He assembled
during the night the tribunes and centurions of the first class,
informed them of his design, and, contrary to Roman discipline, broke up
his camp with every appearance of disorder and a precipitate retreat.
The proximity of the camps allowed the enemy to obtain information of
this movement by his scouts before daybreak.
The rear-guard of Labienus had no sooner begun its march, than the
barbarians urge each other not to let a prey so long coveted escape
them. They imagine that the Romans are struck with terror, and, thinking
it disgraceful to wait any longer the succour of the Germans, they cross
the river and advance unhesitatingly upon unfavourable ground.
Labienus, seeing the success of his stratagem, continued slowly his
apparent retreat, in order to draw all the Gauls over the river. He had
sent forward, to an eminence, the baggage, guarded by a detachment of
cavalry. Suddenly he orders the ensigns to be turned towards the enemy,
forms his troops in order of battle, the cavalry on the wings, and
exhorts them to display the same valour as if Cæsar were present. Then
an immense cry rises in the ranks, and the pila are thrown from all
sides. The Gauls, surprised at seeing an enemy they believed they were
pursuing turn against them, did not sustain even the first shock, but
fled precipitately into the neighbouring forests. Pressed by the
cavalry, they were slain or captured in great numbers.
Labienus employed those wise tactics to which the Romans owed their
greatest successes. Invincible in their fortified camps, they could, as
the Emperor Napoleon I. has so well remarked, either combat or wait for
the opportune moment. The Gauls, on the contrary, warlike peoples,
carried away by a fiery courage, not understanding the patience and
wiliness of their adversaries, fell always into the snare which was laid
for them. It was enough to feign terror, and inspire them with contempt
for the enemy’s forces, to make them engage instantly in disorderly
attacks, which the Romans, by sudden sorties, easily defeated. This was
the system followed by Sabinus when attacked by the Unelli, by Cæsar on
his way to the relief of Cicero, and by Labienus himself in the previous
year.
A few days afterwards the country submitted; for, on the news of the
defeat of the Treviri, the Germans returned home, followed by the
relatives of Indutiomarus, the author of the revolt. Cingetorix,
constant in his fidelity to the Romans, was replaced at the head of the
nation. The double object proposed by Cæsar was thus attained; for, on
one hand, since the submission of the Menapii, Ambiorix could no longer
dream of finding a refuge among them; and, on the other, the victory of
Labienus, followed by the retreat of the Germans, placed it out of his
power to league with these latter. Nevertheless, to assure this double
result, punish the Germans for their readiness to succour the Treviri,
and cut off Ambiorix from all retreat, Cæsar, after having effected his
junction with Labienus, resolved to pass the Rhine a second time.[451]
Second Passage of the Rhine.
V. He had passed from the country of the Menapii into that of the
Treviri, and had arrived near the locality where now stands the town of
Bonn. He there caused a bridge to be built a little above the spot where
his army had crossed two years before. In consequence of the experience
gained by the processes employed on the former occasion, and of the
extreme zeal of the soldiers, the work was finished in a few days.
Having left for the protection of the bridge a strong detachment on the
bank belonging to the Treviri, for fear of some movement on their part,
Cæsar crossed the river with the legions and the cavalry. The Ubii, who
had long before made their submission, assured him that they had
neither sent assistance to the Treviri or violated their oath; that the
Suevi alone had furnished auxiliaries; and that thus he ought not to
confound them with the latter in his anger against the Germans. He
accepted their excuses, and obtained information on the roads and passes
which led to the country of the Suevi.
A few days afterwards, he learnt that the latter were concentrating on a
single point their troops and the contingents of the tribes under their
dependence. He provided for the supply of provisions, chose a favourable
position for his camp, and enjoined the Ubii to transport their cattle
and goods into their oppida, hoping to compel the barbarians by famine
to fight at disadvantage. The Ubii were similarly charged to watch the
enemy by means of numerous scouts. A few days later, they informed Cæsar
that the Suevi, at the approach of the Romans, had retired, with all
their troops and those of their allies, to the extremity of their
territory. There lay the forest Bacenis,[452] which advanced very far
into the country, and which, placed like a natural barrier between the
Suevi and the Cherusci, separated these two peoples and defended them
against their mutual excursions. It was at the entrance to this forest,
probably towards the mountains of Thuringia, that the Suevi had resolved
to await the Romans.
In this expedition, as in the one preceding, Cæsar feared to engage
himself too far in the middle of an uncultivated country, where
provisions might have failed him. He therefore repassed the Rhine. But
to keep the barbarians in fear of his return, and to prevent their
re-enforcements from reaching the Gauls, he did not destroy the whole
bridge, but only cut off 200 feet on the side of the Ubian bank; at the
extremity of the truncated part he built a tower of four stories, and
left on the left bank twelve cohorts in a retrenched post. Young C.
Volcatius Tullus had the command of it. Cæsar’s two expeditions to the
right bank of the Rhine led to no battle, and yet the moral effect was
so great, that after this period the Germans no longer supported the
insurrections in Gaul, and even became the auxiliaries of the
Romans.[453]
War against Ambiorix.
VI. On the approach of harvest, Cæsar marched against Ambiorix, with his
ten legions, except the guard left at the bridge of the Rhine. He
started from Bonn, and advanced towards the country of the Eburones, by
way of Zulpich and Eupen (see Plate 14), across the forest of the
Ardennes, which extended, it will be remembered, from the banks of the
Rhine to the country of the Nervii. In the hope of surprising the enemy,
he sent forward M. Minucius Basilus, with all the cavalry, recommending
to him not to light fires, which would reveal his approach, and
informing him that he should follow him closely.
Basilus, faithful to his orders, fell by surprise on a great number of
Eburones, proceeded straight towards the locality to which Ambiorix was
said to have retired with a few cavalry, succeeded in penetrating to the
abode of this chieftain, and seized upon all his effects; but the
latter, protected by some of his followers, escaped on horseback
through the woods; his partisans dispersed. It was thus that fortune,
which plays so important a part in war, favoured at the same time the
enterprise against Ambiorix and his escape. The Eburon chief sent secret
messages in all directions, recommending the inhabitants to provide for
their own safety. Some concealed themselves in the forest of the
Ardennes, others in the midst of the marshes. Those who were nearest to
the ocean sought refuge in the islands which are formed at high tide;
others expatriated themselves, and settled in distant countries.
Catuvolcus, king of one-half of the country of the Eburones, crushed
with age and misfortunes, took poison, that he might not fall alive into
the power of the Romans.
During this time, Cæsar was approaching the country of the Segni and
Condrusi,[454] who came to implore him not to confound in the same cause
all the Germans beyond the Rhine, and protested their neutrality. The
fact having been satisfactorily proved, Cæsar assured them that, if they
would deliver up to him the Eburones who had sought refuge among them,
their territory should be respected. Having arrived at Visé, on the
Meuse, where a ford exists from time immemorial, he divided his troops
into three bodies, and sent the baggage of all the legions to Aduatuca
(Tongres): it was the place which had witnessed the recent disaster of
Sabinus. He gave preference to this position, because the retrenchments
of the preceding year, still standing, would spare the troops much
labour. He left, as a guard for the baggage, the 14th legion, and placed
it, with 200 cavalry, under the command of Quintus Cicero.
Of the nine legions remaining with Cæsar, three were sent with T.
Labienus to the north towards the ocean, into the part of the country of
the Eburones which touched on that of the Menapii; three to the south
with C. Trebonius, to ravage the districts neighbouring on the Aduatuci
(towards the south-west, between the Meuse and the Demer); lastly,
Cæsar, at the head of the three others, advanced towards the Scheldt,
the waters of which, at this period, mingled with those of the
Meuse.[455] (See Plate 14.) It was his intention to gain the extremity
of the Ardennes (between Brussels and Antwerp), whither it was said that
Ambiorix had retired with a few horsemen. He announced, on his
departure, that he should return to Aduatuca on the seventh day, the
period for the distribution of provisions to the legion which was left
at that place in charge of the baggage. Labienus and Trebonius were, if
they found it possible, to return at the same period, in order to
concert again on the measures to be taken after they had made themselves
acquainted with the designs of the enemy.
The Eburones had neither regular force, nor garrison, nor oppidum.
They formed a scattered multitude, always in ambush, attacking the
soldiers when isolated, and obliging the Romans to carry on a harassing
war, without any decisive result; for the nature of the country, covered
with thick forests, and intersected by marshes, protected the
barbarians, who could only be reached by small detachments. In the midst
of these difficulties, Cæsar preferred doing less injury to the enemy,
and sparing the lives of his own soldiers, by having recourse to the
Gauls. He accordingly sent messages to invite the neighbouring peoples
to come and ravage the territory of the Eburones, and assist him in
exterminating a race guilty of having slaughtered his soldiers. At his
call, numerous hordes rushed from all sides, and the entire territory of
the Eburones was soon given up to pillage.[456]
The Sicambri attack Aduatuca.
VII. Meanwhile, the seventh day, the period fixed for Cæsar’s return,
approached. Chance, so common in war, brought about a remarkable
incident. The enemy, scattered, and struck with terror, could no longer
inspire the least fear. But rumour having spread beyond the Rhine, among
the Germans, that all peoples were invited to ravage the country of the
Eburones, the Sicambri, neighbours to the river, who had, as we have
seen, received the Usipetes and Tencteri after their defeat, collect
2,000 cavalry; they pass the Rhine on rafts and boats, thirty miles
below where Cæsar had built his bridge and left a guard (forty-five
kilomètres below Bonn.)[457] They invade the territory of the Eburones,
pick up a crowd of fugitives, and seize upon a great number of cattle.
The attraction of booty draws them on farther and farther; bred in the
midst of war and plundering, nothing stops them—neither marshes nor
woods. On their arrival at some distance from the Meuse, they learn from
prisoners the absence of Cæsar and the distance of the army, and that in
three hours they can reach Aduatuca, where the riches of the Romans are
deposited. They are made to believe that this fortress is defended by a
garrison too weak to line the walls or venture to issue from the
retrenchments. Trusting in this information, the Germans hide their
booty, and, guided by a prisoner, march against Aduatuca, crossing the
Meuse at Maestricht.
Hitherto, Cicero had scrupulously executed Cæsar’s order, and retained
the troops in the camp without even permitting a single valet to quit
it; but on the seventh day, reckoning no longer on the return of the
general at the term fixed, he yielded to the complaints of the soldiers,
who blamed his obstinacy in keeping them shut up as though they were
besieged. He believed, moreover, that the nine legions, and the numerous
cavalry which scoured the country, permitted him to venture without
danger to a distance of three miles from his camp, especially after the
dispersion of the enemy’s forces; he therefore sent five cohorts to cut
wheat in the nearest fields, situated to the north of Aduatuca, and
separated from the camp only by a hill. With them went, under the same
ensign, 300 men of different legions left sick, but then restored, and
a multitude of valets, taking with them a great number of beasts of
burden, which were in the camp.
Suddenly the German cavalry arrive; their march had been concealed by
the woods. Without halting, they rush toward the Decuman gate, and
attempt to enter the camp. (See Plate 18.) The attack is so sudden,
that the merchants established under the vallum have not time to
enter. The soldiers, taken by surprise, are in confusion; the cohort on
guard struggles to prevent the enemy from entering the gate. The
Sicambri spread themselves round the camp, to discover another passage;
but, fortunately, the nature of the locality and the retrenchments
render access impossible everywhere but at the gates. They attempt to
force an entry there, and are prevented with difficulty. The alarm and
disorder are at their height. The soldiers are uncertain where to direct
their steps, or where to assemble; some pretend that the camp is taken,
others that the army and Cæsar have perished. A feeling of superstitious
anxiety recalls to their minds the disaster of Sabinus and Cotta, slain
at the same place. At the sight of such a general consternation, the
barbarians are confirmed in their opinion that the Romans are too few to
resist; they strive to force an entrance, and urge one another not to
let so rich a prey escape.
Among the sick left in the camp was the primipilus P. Sextius Baculus,
who had signalised himself in the preceding combats. For five days he
had taken no food. Uneasy for the safety of all, as well as his own, he
leaves his tent without arms, sees before him the enemy and the danger,
snatches a sword from the first man he meets, and takes his post at a
gate. The centurions of the cohort on guard follow him, and all together
sustain the attack for a few instants. Baculus, grievously wounded,
faints. He is passed from hand to hand, and only saved with difficulty.
This incident gives the others time to recover their courage. They
remain on the rampart, and present at least some appearance of defence.
At this moment the soldiers who had gone out to reap were on their way
back to the camp; they are struck with the cries they hear; the cavalry
press forward, perceive the imminence of the danger, and see, with
terror, that it is no longer possible to obtain refuge behind the
retrenchments. The newly-levied soldiers, inexperienced in war,
interrogate the tribune and centurions with their looks, and wait their
orders. There is no one so brave as not to be agitated by so unexpected
an event. The Sicambri, perceiving the ensigns at a distance, believe at
first that the legions were returning, and cease from the attack; but
soon, filled with contempt for such a handful of men, they rush upon
them on all sides.
The valets take refuge on a neighbouring hill, that on which now stands
the village of Berg. Driven from this post, they rush back into the
midst of the ensigns and manipuli, and increase the fear of the already
intimidated men. Among the soldiers, some propose to form in wedge, in
order to open themselves a way to the camp they see so near them: the
loss of a small number will be the safety of all. Others advise to
remain firm on the heights, and run the same chance together. This
latter opinion is not that of the old soldiers, united under the same
ensign. Led by C. Trebonius, a Roman knight, they fight their way
through the enemy, and re-enter the camp without the loss of a single
man. Under protection of this bold movement, the valets and cavalry
succeed in following them. As to the young soldiers who had posted
themselves on the heights, they were not able, in their inexperience,
either to maintain their resolution to defend themselves in their
position, or to imitate the successful energy of the veterans; they
engaged on disadvantageous ground in an attempt to regain the camp, and
their destruction would have been certain but for the devotedness of the
centurions. Some had been promoted from the lowest ranks of the army to
this grade, in reward for their courage; and for a moment they
intimidated the enemy, by sacrificing their lives in order to justify
their renown. This heroic act, contrary to all expectation, enabled
three cohorts to re-enter the camp; the two others perished.
During these combats, the defenders of the camp had recovered from their
first alarm. When they saw them stationed on the rampart, the Germans
despaired of being able to force the retrenchments; they withdrew, and
repassed the Rhine with their booty. The terror they had spread was such
that, even after their retreat, when, the following night, C. Volusenus
arrived at Aduatuca with the cavalry which preceded the legions, the
return of Cæsar and the safety of the army seemed hardly credible. Men’s
minds were affected to such a degree that they supposed the cavalry
alone had escaped from the disaster; for, they said, the Germans would
never have attacked the camp if the legions had not been defeated. The
arrival of Cæsar alone dissipated all their fears.
Accustomed to the various chances of war, and to events which must be
supported without complaining, he uttered no reproach;[458] he merely
reminded them that they should not have run the least risk by letting
the troops go out of the camp; that, moreover, if they might blame
fortune for the sudden attack of the enemy, they might, on the other
hand, congratulate themselves on having driven them back from the gates
of the camp. He was astonished, nevertheless, that the Germans, having
crossed the Rhine for the purpose of ravaging the territory of the
Eburones, should have acted so as to render the most signal service to
Ambiorix, by coming to attack the Romans.
Cæsar, to complete the ruin of the Eburones, marched again, collected a
great number of pillagers from the neighbouring states, and sent them in
different directions in pursuit of the enemy, to plunder and burn
everything. Their villages and habitations became, without exception, a
prey to the flames. The cavalry scoured the country in all directions,
in the hope of overtaking Ambiorix; the prospect of seizing him, and
gaining thereby the gratitude of the general, made them support infinite
fatigues, almost beyond human endurance. At every moment they believed
they were on the point of seizing the fugitive, and continually the
thick forests or deep retreats hid him from their pursuit. At last,
under protection of night, he reached other regions, escorted by four
horsemen, the only friends left to whom he dared trust his life.
Ambiorix escaped, but the massacre of the legion of Sabinus was cruelly
avenged by the devastation of the country of the Eburones!
After this expedition, Cæsar led back to Durocortorum (Rheims), the
chief town of the Remi, the army diminished by the two cohorts lost at
Aduatuca. He there convoked the assembly of Gaul, and caused judgment to
be passed on the conspiracy of the Senones and Carnutes. Acco, the chief
of the revolt, was condemned to death, and executed according to the old
Roman custom. Some others, fearing the same fate, took flight. They were
forbidden fire and water (that is, they were condemned to exile). Cæsar
sent two legions to winter quarters on the frontier of the Treviri, two
among the Lingones, and the six others among the Senones, at Agedincum
(Sens). After providing for the provisionment of the army, he
proceeded into Italy.[459]
Revolt of Gaul.
I. THE Roman arms had in six years subjugated, one after another, the
principal states of Gaul. Belgium, Aquitaine, and the countries on the
sea-coast, had been the theatre of the most desperate struggles. The
inhabitants of the isle of Britain, like the Germans, had become prudent
by the defeats they had suffered. Cæsar had just taken a signal
vengeance upon the revolted Eburones, and thought that he might without
danger leave his army and proceed into Italy, to hold the assemblies.
During his abode in this part of his command, the murder of P. Clodius
took place (the 13th of the Calends of February, 30th of December, 701),
which caused a great agitation, and gave rise to the Senatus-consultus,
which ordered all the youths of Italy to take the military oath; Cæsar
took advantage of it to make levies also in the Province. The rumours of
what was taking place at Rome soon passed the Alps, to revive the
resentments and hopes of the Gauls; they believed that the domestic
troubles would detain Cæsar in Italy, and would give rise to a
favourable opportunity for a new insurrection.
The principal chiefs meet in secluded spots; mutually excite each other
by the recital of their grievances, and by the remembrance of the death
of Acco; promise great rewards to those who, at the peril of their
lives, will commence the war; but decide that, before all, the return of
Cæsar to his army must be rendered impossible, a project the execution
of which was so much the easier, since the legions would not dare to
leave their winter quarters in the absence of their general, and since
the general himself could not join them without a sufficient escort.
The Carnutes are the first to offer to take arms: as the necessity of
acting secretly did not allow them to exchange hostages, they exact as
security an oath of alliance. This oath is taken by all the ensigns in a
meeting in which the moment for the rising is fixed.
On the day appointed, the Carnutes, led by two resolute men, Cotuatus
and Conetodunus, rush to Genabum (Gien), plunder and slaughter the
Roman merchants, amongst others the knight C. Fusius Cita, charged by
Cæsar with the victualling department. These news reached every state in
Gaul with an extreme celerity, according to the custom of the Gauls of
communicating remarkable events by cries transmitted from neighbour to
neighbour across the country.[460] Thus what had happened at Genabum at
sunrise, was known by the Arverni before the end of the first watch
(towards eight o’clock at night), at a distance of 160 miles.
Vercingetorix, a young Arvernan who possessed great influence in his
country,[461] and whose father, Celtillus, for a time chief of all Gaul,
had been put to death by his countrymen for having aspired to the
royalty, calls his clients together, and excites their zeal. Expelled
from Gergovia by those who were unwilling to tempt fortune with him, he
raises the country, and, with the help of a numerous band, retakes the
town, and causes himself to be proclaimed king. Soon he seduces the
Senones, the Parisii, the Pictones, the Cadurci, the Turones, the
Aulerci, the Lemovices of Armorica, the Andes, and the other peoples who
dwell on the shores of the ocean. The commandment is given to him by
unanimous consent. He exacts hostages from those peoples, orders a
prompt levy of soldiers, fixes the number of men and arms which each
country is to furnish in a given time, and occupies himself especially
with the raising of the cavalry. Active, daring, severe, and inflexible
even to cruelty, he subjects to the most atrocious tortures those who
hesitate, and by these means of terror soon forms an army.
He sent a part of it to the Ruteni, under the command of Cadurcus
Lucterius, a man full of daring; and to draw the Bituriges into the
insurrection, he invaded their territory. By acting thus, he threatened
the Province, and protected his rear whilst he moved towards the north,
where the Roman occupation was concentrated. On his approach, the
Bituriges solicited the help of the Ædui, their allies. The last, by the
advice of Cæsar’s lieutenants, who had remained with the army, sent them
a body of cavalry and infantry to support them against Vercingetorix;
but, when they reached the Loire, which separated the territory of the
two peoples, these auxiliary troops halted for some days, and then
returned, without having dared to cross the river, pretending that they
had been betrayed by the Bituriges. Immediately after their departure,
the latter joined the Arverni.[462]
Cæsar begins the Campaign.
II. Cæsar heard of these events in Italy, and, reassured on the troubles
in Rome, which had been appeased by the firmness of Pompey, he took his
departure from Transalpine Gaul. When he arrived on the other side of
the Alps (perhaps on the banks of the Rhone), he was struck with the
difficulties which lay in the way of his joining the army. If he sent
for the legions into the Roman province, they would be compelled, on
their way, to fight without him; if, on the other hand, he would go to
them, he was obliged to pass through populations to whom,
notwithstanding their apparent tranquillity, it would have been
imprudent to trust his person.
While Cæsar found so great difficulties before him, Lucterius,[463] who
had been sent by Vercingetorix to the Ruteni, brings them over to the
alliance with the Arverni, advances towards the Nitiobriges and the
Gabali, from whom he receives hostages, and, at the head of a numerous
army, threatens the Province in the direction of Narbonne. These events
made Cæsar resolve to proceed to that town. His arrival put an end to
people’s fears. He placed garrisons among the peoples who bordered on
the territory of the enemy, the Ruteni of the left bank of the Tarn
(Ruteni provinciales), the Volcæ Arecomici, the Tolosates, and near
Narbonne. At the same time, he ordered a part of the troops of the
province, and the re-enforcements which he had brought from Italy, to
unite on the territory of the Helvi, which bordered upon that of the
Arverni.[464] Intimidated by these dispositions, Lucterius did not
venture to engage himself in the midst of these garrisons, and retired.
This first danger averted, it was important for Cæsar to prevent
Vercingetorix from raising other peoples, who might perhaps be inclined
to follow the example of the Bituriges. By invading the country of the
Arverni, Cæsar might hope to draw the Gaulish chief into his own
country, and thus remove him from those where the legions were
wintering. He proceeded, therefore, to the country of the Helvi, where
he joined the troops who had just concentrated there. The mountains of
the Cévennes, which separated this people from the Arverni, were covered
with six feet of snow; the soldiers opened a passage by dint of labour.
Advancing by Aps and Saint-Cirgues, between the sources of the Loire and
the Allier (see Plate 19), Cæsar debouched on Le Puy and Brioude. The
Arverni, at this season, the most rigorous of the year, believed
themselves defended by the Cévennes, as by an insurmountable wall: he
fell upon them unexpectedly, and, in order to spread still greater
terror, he caused the cavalry to scour the country far around.
Quickly informed of this march, Vercingetorix, at the prayer of the
Arverni, who implored his succour, abandoned the country of the
Bituriges. Cæsar had foreseen this; so he only remains two days amongst
the Arverni, and, quitting them under the pretext of increasing his
forces, he leaves the command to young Brutus, whom he enjoins to throw
out his reconnoitring parties to as great a distance as possible, and
promises to return at the end of three days. Having by this diversion
drawn Vercingetorix southward, he proceeds in great haste to Vienne,
arrives there unexpectedly, takes the newly-raised cavalry which he had
sent thither, marches night and day, crosses the country of the Ædui,
and directs his march towards the Lingones, where two legions were in
winter quarters. By this extreme rapidity he seeks to prevent any evil
design on the part of the Ædui. Scarcely has he arrived amongst the
Lingones, when he sends orders to the other legions, two of which were
on the frontiers of the Treviri, and the six others in the country of
the Senones, to concentrate the whole army at Agedincum (Sens) before
his march is known to the Arverni. As soon as Vercingetorix was informed
of this movement, he returned with his army to the country of the
Bituriges, and thence started to lay siege to Gorgobina
(Saint-Parize-le-Châtel), an oppidum of the Boii, who had settled,
after the defeat of the Helvetii, near the confluence of the Allier and
the Loire.[465]
Taking of Vellaunodunum, Genabum, and Noviodunum.
III. Although Cæsar had succeeded in uniting his troops, and in placing
himself at their head, he found it still difficult to fix upon a
determined plan. If he opened the campaign too early, the army might run
short of provisions through the difficulty of transport. If, on the
other hand, during the rest of the winter,[466] his army, remaining
inactive, allowed Vercingetorix to take Gorgobina, a place tributary to
the Ædui, the example might discourage his allies and lead to the
defection of the whole of Gaul. Rather than undergo such an affront, he
resolved to brave all obstacles. He engaged the Ædui, therefore, to
furnish provisions, announced his speedy arrival to the Boii,
recommended them to remain faithful, and to offer an energetic
resistance; and then, leaving at Agedincum two legions and the baggage
of the whole army, he marched with the eight others towards the
territory of the Boii. On the second day[467] he arrived at
Vellaunodunum (Triguères), a town of the Senones, and prepared to lay
siege to it, in order to protect his rear and secure his supply of
provisions. (See Plate 19.) The countervallation was finished in two
days. On the third, the town offered to surrender: the capitulation was
only accepted on condition of delivering up the arms, the beasts of
burden, and 600 hostages. Cæsar left C. Trebonius, his lieutenant, to
see the convention executed, and marched in haste towards Genabum
(Gien), a town of the Carnutes.[468] He arrived there in two days,
and sufficiently early to surprise the inhabitants, who, thinking that
the siege of Vellaunodunum would last longer, had not yet assembled
sufficient troops for the defence of the place. The Roman army took its
position before the oppidum; but the approach of night made it
necessary to postpone the attack until the following morning. However,
as Genabum had a bridge on the Loire adjoining to the town, Cæsar kept
two legions under arms to watch it, in the fear that the besieged might
escape during the night. And, in fact, towards midnight they silently
issued from Genabum and began to pass the river. Cæsar, informed by his
scouts, set fire to the gates, introduced the legions he had kept in
reserve, and took possession of the place. The fugitives, who were
closely crowded together at the issues of the town, and at the entrance
of the bridge, which were too narrow to allow them to pass, fell nearly
all into the hands of the Romans. Genabum was plundered and burnt, and
the spoil abandoned to the soldiers. Then the army passed the Loire,
arrived on the territory of the Bituriges, and continued its march.
The town of Noviodunum (Sancerre), belonging to this latter people,
lay in Cæsar’s route; he undertook to lay siege to it. The inhabitants
were already hastening to make their submission, and a part of the
hostages had been delivered, when they saw in the distance the cavalry
of Vercingetorix, who, warned of the approach of the Romans, had raised
the siege of Gorgobina, and marched to meet them. At this sight, the
besieged, mustering courage again, seize their arms, shut their gates,
and man the wall. The Roman cavalry was immediately sent to meet the
enemy; staggered at the first shock, it was on the point of giving way;
but soon, supported by about 400 German cavalry, in Cæsar’s pay since
the commencement of the campaign, they entirely routed the Gauls. This
defeat having again spread terror in the town, the inhabitants delivered
up the instigators of the revolt, and surrendered. Cæsar marched thence,
through the fertile territory of the Biturges, towards Avaricum
(Bourges), the largest and strongest oppidum of that people. The
taking of this town, he considered, would render him master of the whole
country.[469]
Siege of Avaricum.
IV. Vercingetorix, after having experienced so many reverses
successively at Vellaunodunum, at Genabum, and at Noviodunum, convokes a
council, in which he explains the necessity of adopting a new system of
warfare. Above all, according to him, they must take advantage of the
season, and of the numerous Gaulish cavalry, to cut off the Romans from
provisions and forage, sacrifice private interest to the common welfare,
set fire to the habitations, burgs, and oppida which they could not
defend, so as to spread desolation from the territory of the Boii as far
as the enemy could extend his incursions. If that be an extreme
sacrifice, it is nothing in comparison with death and slavery.
This advice having been unanimously approved, the Bituriges, in one
single day, set fire to more than twenty towns; the neighbouring
countries follow their example. The hope of a speedy victory made them
support this painful sight with resignation. They deliberated whether
Avaricum should not undergo the same fate; the Bituriges implored them
to spare one of the most beautiful towns in Gaul, the ornament and
bulwark of their country; “the defence of it will be easy,” they added,
“on account of its almost inaccessible position.” Vercingetorix, at
first of a contrary opinion, ended by giving way to this general feeling
of compassion, entrusted the place to men capable of defending it, and,
following Cæsar by short marches, pitched his camp in a spot defended by
woods and marshes, sixteen miles from Avaricum[470] (two kilomètres to
the north of Dun-le-Roy, at the confluence of the Auron and the
Taisseau).
Avaricum was situated, as Bourges is at present, at the extremity of a
piece of ground surrounded, to the north and west, by several marshy
streams: the Yèvre, the Yévrette, and the Auron. (See Plate 20.) The
Gaulish town, adorned with public places, and enclosing 40,000 souls,
exceeded, no doubt, in extent the Gallo-Roman circuit. The aspect of the
locality is certainly no longer the same: the marshes have been dried,
and the courses of water reduced within regular limits; the ruins
accumulated so many centuries ago have raised the level of the ground on
many points. To the south of Bourges, at a distance of 700 mètres, the
ground forms a neck, which, in the time of Cæsar’s wars, was narrower
than at present; it inclined more towards the place, and presented, at
80 mètres from the walls, a sudden depression, resembling a vast fosse.
(See the section along C D.) The slopes, then, abrupt towards the
Yévrette and the Auron, defined more clearly the only and very narrow
avenue (unum et perangustum aditum) which gave access to the
town.[471]
Cæsar established his camp behind this tongue of land, to the south, and
at 700 mètres from Avaricum, between the Auron and the Yévrette. As the
nature of the locality prevented all countervallation, he took his
dispositions for a regular siege. The place was only open to attack
towards that part of the enclosure which faced the avenue, on a width of
from 300 to 400 Roman feet (about 100 mètres). In this place the summit
of the walls commanded by about 80 feet (twenty-four mètres) the ground
situated in advance.[472] Cæsar commanded a terrace to be commenced,
covered galleries to be pushed towards the oppidum, and two towers to
be constructed.
During the execution of these works, trusty messengers informed
Vercingetorix every moment of what was going on in Avaricum, and carried
back his orders. The besiegers were watched when they went to forage,
and, notwithstanding their precaution to choose every day different
hours and roads, they could not move any distance from the camp without
being attacked.
The Romans incessantly demanded provisions from the Ædui and the Boii;
but the first showed little haste to send them, and the latter, poor and
weak, had exhausted their resources; moreover, their country had just
been laid waste by fire. Although, during several days, the troops,
deprived of corn, lived only on cattle which had been brought from afar,
yet they uttered no complaint unworthy of the Roman name and of their
preceding victories. When, visiting the works, Cæsar addressed by turn
each of the legions, and offered to the soldiers to raise the siege if
they felt their privations too rigorous, they unanimously called upon
him to persevere: “they had learned,” they said, “after so many years
that they served under his command, never to suffer anything that was
humiliating, and to leave nothing unfinished.” They renewed this protest
to the centurions and to the tribunes.
The towers already approached the walls, when prisoners informed Cæsar
that Vercingetorix, from want of forage, had quitted his camp, leaving
in it the mass of his army, and had advanced nearer to Avaricum with his
cavalry and light infantry, with the intention of laying an ambush on
the spot where he expected that the Romans would go to forage the
following day.[473] Upon this information, Cæsar, seeking to take
advantage of the absence of Vercingetorix, started silently in the
middle of the night, and came in the morning near the camp of the
enemies. As soon as they were acquainted with his march, they hid their
baggage and wagons in the forests, and drew up their troops on an open
height. Cæsar immediately ordered his soldiers to lay down their bundles
in one spot, and to keep their arms ready for combat.
The hill occupied by the Gauls rose with an easy slope above a marsh
which, surrounding it on nearly all sides, rendered it difficult of
access, although it was only fifty feet broad. They had broken the
bridges, and, full of confidence in their position, drawn up according
to tribes, and guarding all the fords and passages, they were ready to
fall upon the Romans, if the latter attempted to overcome this obstacle.
With the two armies thus in presence and so near to each other, one
would have believed them, by their attitude, animated with the same
courage, and offering the combat under equal conditions; but, when we
consider the defensive strength of the position of the Gauls, we are
soon convinced that the firmness of the latter was only one of
ostentation. The Romans, indignant at being thus braved, demanded the
order to fight; but Cæsar represented to them that the victory would
cost the lives of too many brave men, and that the more they were bent
upon daring everything for his glory, the more blamable would it be in
him to sacrifice them. These words calmed their impatience, and the same
day he led them back to the siege operations.
Vercingetorix, on his return to his army, was accused of treason, for
having placed his camp nearer to that of the Romans, taken away with him
all the cavalry, left his infantry without a head, and facilitated, by
his departure, the sudden and so well-calculated arrival of the enemy.
“All these incidents,” they said, “could not be the effect of chance;
evidently Vercingetorix preferred owing the empire of Gaul to Cæsar than
to his fellow-citizens.” As the improvised chief of a popular movement,
Vercingetorix had to expect one of those fickle demonstrations of the
multitude, who are rendered fanatical by successes, and unjust by
reverses. But, strong in his patriotism and in his conduct, he justified
easily to his followers the dispositions he had taken. “The scarcity of
forage only has decided him, at their entreaties, to change the position
of his camp; he has chosen a new position, which is impregnable; he has
employed the cavalry, which is useless in a marshy place, to advantage.
He has transferred the command to nobody, for fear that a new chief, to
please bands without discipline, incapable of supporting the fatigues of
war, might let himself be persuaded to give battle. Whether it were
chance or treason which had brought the Romans before them, they ought
to thank Fortune for it, since they had retired with disgrace. He has no
desire to obtain the supreme authority from Cæsar at the price of a
guilty defection: victory will soon give it him. It is now no longer
doubtful. As to himself, he is ready to lay down an authority which
would be only a vain honour, and not a means of delivery;” and, to prove
the sincerity of his hopes, he brought forward slaves who had been made
prisoners, whom he represents as legionaries, and who, at his
instigation, declare that in three days the Romans will be obliged by
want of provisions to raise the siege. His discourse is received by the
acclamations of the army, and all signify their applause by the clang of
their arms, according to the Gaulish manner. It is agreed to send 10,000
men to Avaricum, taken among the different contingents, so that the
Bituriges alone should not have the glory of saving a town upon which
depended in a great measure the fate of the war.
The Gauls, endowed with the genius of imitation, struggled by all means
possible against the wonderful perseverance of the Roman soldiers. They
turned away the rams with pointed heads (falces)[474] by means of
nooses, and, when they had once caught hold of them, they dragged them
up by means of machines.[475] Accustomed to work in the iron mines, and
to the construction of subterranean galleries, they skilfully
countermined the terrace, and also provided their walls with towers of
several stories, covered with leather. Day and night they made sallies,
and set fire to the works of the besiegers. As the daily increase of the
terrace heightened the level of the towers, the besieged raised theirs
to the same height by means of scaffoldings; they stopped the progress
of the subterranean galleries, prevented them from being advanced to the
walls by trying to break them open with pointed stakes hardened in the
fire (apertos cuniculos prœusta ac prœacuta materia ...
morabantur),[476] and by throwing molten pitch and blocks of stone.
The Gauls constructed their walls in this manner: beams were placed
horizontally on the ground, in a direction perpendicular to the line of
the enclosure,[477] at intervals of two feet from each other; they were
bound together on the side of the town; by cross-beams, usually of forty
feet in length, firmly fixed in the ground, and the whole covered with a
great quantity of earth, except on the exterior side, where the
intervals were furnished with large blocks of rock, and formed a facing.
After this first layer had been well fixed and rendered compact, they
raised upon it a second, absolutely similar, taking care that the beams
were not exactly above each other, but corresponded with the intervals
filled in with stones, in which they were, as it were, enchased. The
work was thus continued until the wall had attained the required height.
These successive layers, in which the beams and stones alternated
regularly, offered, by their very variety, an agreeable appearance to
the eye. This construction had great advantages for the defence of
places: the stone preserved it from fire, and the wood from the ram;
held together by the cross-beams, the beams could be neither torn down
nor driven in. (See Plate 20.)
Notwithstanding the obstinacy of the defence, and the cold and continual
rains, the Roman soldiers surmounted all obstacles, and raised in
twenty-five days a terrace 330 feet wide by 80 feet high. It already
nearly touched the town wall, when, towards the third watch (midnight),
clouds of smoke were seen issuing from it. It was the moment when Cæsar,
according to his custom, was inspecting the works, and encouraging the
soldiers at their labour; the Gauls had set the terrace on fire from the
gallery of a mine. At the same instant cries arose from the whole extent
of the rampart, and the besieged, rushing out by two gates, made a sally
on the two sides where the towers were; from the top of the walls some
threw dry wood and torches on the terrace, others pitch and various
inflammable materials; nobody knew whither to run nor where to give
help. As two legions, however, generally passed the night under arms in
front of the camp, whilst the others relieved each other alternately for
the work, they were soon able to face the enemy; meanwhile some drew
back the towers, and others cut the terrace to intercept the fire; the
whole army, in fact, hurried to put out the latter.
When day broke, they were still fighting on every point; the besieged
had the more hope of conquering, as the penthouses which protected the
approaches to the towers were burnt (deustos pluteos turrium),[478]
and as then the Romans, compelled to march without cover, could with
difficulty arrive at the burning works. Persuaded that the salvation of
Gaul depended on this critical moment, they replaced incessantly the
troops which were weary. Then happened a fact worthy of notice: before
the gate of the oppidum there was a Gaul who threw balls of grease and
pitch into the fire opposite a Roman tower; a dart shot from a
scorpion[479] struck him in the right side and killed him. The next
man immediately takes his place, and perishes in the same manner; a
third succeeds him, then a fourth, and the post is only abandoned after
the extinction of the fire and the retreat of the assailants.
After so many fruitless efforts, the Gauls resolved next day to obey the
order of Vercingetorix, and evacuate the place. His camp not being far
off, they hoped, by favour of the night, to escape without great loss,
reckoning on a continuous marsh to protect their flight. But the women,
in despair, struggle to retain them, and, seeing that their
supplications had no effect, to such an extent does fear extinguish
pity, they give warning to the Romans by their cries, and thus compel
the Gauls to renounce their intended flight.
The day following Cæsar caused a tower to be advanced, and the works to
be prosecuted with vigour; an abundant rain, and the negligence of the
enemy in guarding the wall, engaged him to attempt an assault. He
thereupon ordered the work to be slackened without entirely stopping it,
in order not to awaken suspicions, assembled his legions under arms,
sheltered behind the covered galleries (vineas), and informed them
that they were going to reap the fruit of so many fatigues. He promised
rewards to those who should be first to scale the wall of the town, and
gave the signal. The Romans at once rushed forward from every side, and
reached the top of the ramparts.
The enemies, terrified by this unexpected attack, and thrown down from
the tops of the walls and towers, sought refuge in the public places,
and formed in wedges, so as to offer a resistance on all sides; but when
they saw that the Romans, instead of descending into the town, went
round it on the ramparts, they were afraid of being shut in, and threw
down their arms and fled towards the other extremity of the oppidum
(where are at present the faubourgs Taillegrain and Saint-Privé). (See
Plate 20.) Most of them were killed near the gates, the narrow passage
of which they blocked up; the others by the cavalry outside the town. No
one among the Roman soldiers thought of plunder. Irritated by the
remembrance of the massacre of Genabum, and by the fatigues of the
siege, they spared neither old men, women, nor children. Of about 40,000
combatants, scarcely 800 fugitives were able to join Vercingetorix. He,
fearing that their presence, if they came in a body, might excite a
mutiny, had, in the middle of the night, sent trusty men and the
principal chiefs a long way out, to distribute them in fractions among
the camps belonging to the different tribes.
The next day Vercingetorix sought, in a general assembly, to revive the
courage of his countrymen, by ascribing the success of the Romans to
their superiority in the art of sieges, which was unknown to the Gauls.
He told them that this reverse ought not to dishearten them; that his
advice, they well knew, had never been to defend Avaricum; that a signal
revenge would soon console them; that, through his care, the countries
separated from the common cause would enter into his alliance, animate
Gaul with the one thought, and cement a union capable of resisting the
whole world. Then this fearless defender of the national independence
shows his genius in taking advantage even of a misfortune to subject his
ill-disciplined troops to the rough labours of war, and succeeds in
convincing them of the necessity of retrenching their camp in the manner
of the Romans, so as to protect it from surprise.
The constancy of Vercingetorix, after so great a reverse, and the
foresight which he had shown in recommending, from the beginning of the
war, to burn, and afterwards to abandon Avaricum, increased his
influence. So the Gauls, for the first time, fortified their camp, and
their courage was so much confirmed, that they were ready to undergo all
trials.
Vercingetorix, true to his engagements, exerted himself to the utmost to
gain over to his cause the other states of Gaul, and to seduce the
chiefs by presents and promises; and, for this purpose, he sent to them
zealous and intelligent agents. He caused the men who had fled from
Avaricum to be clothed and armed anew, and, in order to repair his
losses, he required from the divers states a contingent at a stated
period, and archers, who were very numerous in Gaul. At the same time
Teutomatus, son of Ollovico, King of the Nitiobriges, whose father had
received from the Senate the title of friend, came to join him with a
numerous corps of cavalry, raised in his own country and in Aquitaine.
Cæsar remained some time in Avaricum, where he found great store of
provisions, and where the army recovered from its fatigues.[480]
Arrival of Cæsar at Decetia, and March towards Auvergne.
V. The winter was drawing to a close, and the season was propitious for
the continuation of military operations. As Cæsar prepared to march
against the enemy, either in order to draw him from the woods and
marshes, or to shut him up in them, the principes of the Ædui came to
request him to put an end to dissensions among them which threatened to
degenerate into civil war. “The situation was most critical. In fact,
according to ancient customs, the supreme authority was only granted to
a single magistrate, named for a year. At that moment, however, there
were two, each claiming to have been legally elected. The first was
Convictolitavis, a young man of illustrious birth; the second, Cotus,
sprung from a very ancient family, powerful also by his personal
influence, his alliances, and whose brother, Valetiacus, had the year
before filled the same office. The country was in arms, the Senate
divided like the people, each of the pretenders at the head of his
clients. The authority of Cæsar alone could prevent civil war.”
The Roman general considered it essential to prevent troubles from
arising in an important state, closely attached to the Republic, and
where the weakest party would not fail to call in the aid of
Vercingetorix. Consequently, notwithstanding the inconvenience of
suspending the military operations and moving from the enemy, he
resolved to repair to the Ædui, whose first magistrate, according to the
laws, could not leave the territory. Having thus aimed at proving to
them the respect which he entertained for their institutions, he arrived
at Decetia (Decize, in the Nivernais), where he called before him the
Senate and the two pretenders.[481] Nearly the whole nation came
thither. Cæsar, having acquired the conviction that the nomination of
Cotus was the result of an intrigue of the minority, obliged him to
resign, and maintained Convictolitavis, who had been chosen by the
priests, according to the legal forms and customs of the country.
After this decision, he engaged the Ædui to forget their quarrels, and
to devote themselves entirely to the war; Gaul once subjected, he would
recompense them for their sacrifices. He exacted from them all their
cavalry and 10,000 infantry, intending to distribute them in such a
manner as to ensure the regularity of the victualling department. He
next divided his army into two bodies. Labienus, detached with two
legions and part of the cavalry, had instructions to take at Sens the
two other legions which Cæsar had left there, and to repair, at the head
of those four legions, to the country of the Parisii, who had been drawn
by Vercingetorix into the revolt.
On his part, Cæsar resolved, with the six other legions and the rest of
the cavalry, to invade the country of the Arverni themselves, the focus
of the insurrection. He started from Decetia, and directed his march
upon Gergovia, the principal oppidum of that people.
After the capture of Avaricum, Vercingetorix, suspecting Cæsar’s
ulterior designs, had moved towards the Allier, which the Romans were
obliged to pass in order to reach Gergovia; and, on the news of their
march, he had caused all the bridges to be destroyed.
Cæsar, having arrived on the banks of the Allier, towards Moulins (see
Plate 19), followed its downward course, on the right bank.
Vercingetorix, on his part, marched along the opposite bank. The two
armies were within sight of each other, the camps nearly opposite, and
the Gaulish scouts, who watched the left bank, prevented the Romans from
establishing a bridge. The position of the latter was difficult, for the
Allier, which is fordable in the autumn only, might delay their passage
a long time.[482] In order to surmount this obstacle, Cæsar had recourse
to a stratagem: he fixed his camp in a place covered with wood, opposite
the remains of one of the bridges which Vercingetorix had caused to be
destroyed (probably at Varennes). There he remained hidden the following
day with two legions, and made the rest of the troops, as well as the
baggage, proceed in the usual order. But, that they might present to the
enemy the appearance of six legions, he had divided into six corps the
forty cohorts or four legions which he sent forward.[483] They received
the order to march as long as possible, in order to attract
Vercingetorix, and, at the time Cæsar presumed that they had arrived at
their camp, he caused the bridge to be rebuilt on the old piles, the
lower part of which remained untouched. The work being soon completed,
the legions which remained with him passed the river, and, after having
chosen a favourable position, he recalled the mass of his army, which
rejoined him during the night.[484] When Vercingetorix was informed of
this manœuvre, fearing lest he should be compelled to fight against
his will, he took the start and marched in great haste to occupy the
oppidum of the Arverni.
From the place he occupied, which we believe to have been Varennes,[485]
Cæsar reached Gergovia in five days; on the very day of his arrival,
after a slight skirmish of cavalry, he reconnoitred the position of the
town. As it was built on a very high mountain of difficult access, he
considered it impossible to take it by assault; he therefore resolved to
blockade it, and not to begin investing it until he had assured his
provisions. (See Plate 21.)
Blockade of Gergovia.
VI. The oppidum of the Arverni was situated at a distance of six
kilomètres to the south of Clermont-Ferrand, on the mountain which has
preserved the name of Gergovia. Its summit, elevated about 740 mètres
above the level of the sea, and 380 above the plain, forms a plateau of
1,500 mètres in length by more than 500 mètres in breadth. The northern
and eastern slopes present such abrupt declivities that they defy the
escalade. The southern slope presents a very different character: it may
be compared to an immense staircase, the steps of which would be vast
terraces with very little inclination, and a breadth which in some
places extends to as much as 150 mètres.
On the western side, the mountain of Gergovia is attached by a narrow
defile of 120 mètres in width, called the Goules (see Plate 21, C),
to the heights of Risolles, an irregular mass, the plateau of which is
at a mean depth of about 30 mètres beneath that of Gergovia. To the west
are the detached mountains of Montrognon and Le Puy-Giroux. This latter
is separated from that of Risolles by a rather deep gorge, in which the
village of Opme is built. Opposite the southern slope of Gergovia, at
the very foot of the mountain, rises a very steep hill, called the Roche
Blanche. Its culminating point is at about 108 mètres below the plateau.
Two brooks, the Auzon and the Artières,[486] tributaries of the Allier,
flow, one to the south, the other to the north of Gergovia. Lastly, a
low tract of ground, situated to the east, indicates the site of the
ancient marsh of Sarlièves, which has been dry since the seventeenth
century.
Cæsar established his camp near the Auzon, on the undulations of the
ground which extend to the north-west of the village of Orcet, and as
far as the ancient marsh of Sarlièves. These undulations form a natural
glacis towards the plain, above which they rise about thirty mètres;
on the side of the stream of the Auzon they terminate in almost
imperceptible slopes. The camp occupied a part of the table-land and of
the northern slope.[487] (See Plate 21.)
Vercingetorix had arranged the contingents of each country separately,
at small intervals, on the southern slopes of the mountain of Gergovia
and the mountain mass of Risolles which look towards the Auzun; they
covered all the heights attached to the principal mountain, and
presented, in the space which the eye could embrace, a formidable
aspect.[488] His principal camps were situated between the outer wall of
the oppidum and a wall of large stones, six feet high, which ran along
the bend of the hill.
Every day, at sunrise, the chiefs who composed the council of
Vercingetorix repaired to him in order to make their reports or to
receive his orders. Every day, also, he tried in slight engagements[489]
the courage of his cavalry mixed with archers. The Gauls occupied, as an
advanced post, but by a weak garrison, La Roche-Blanche, which, scarped
on three sides, presented an extremely strong position; Cæsar judged
that, by taking possession of this hill, he would deprive the Gauls
almost entirely of forage and water, for they could no longer descend to
the Auzon, the only considerable stream in the neighbourhood. He started
from the camp in the silence of the night, drove away this post before
it could be succoured from the town, took the position, and placed two
legions upon it. The Roche-Blanche became his smaller camp;[490] it was
joined to the larger one by a double ditch of twelve feet, which
allowed the troops to communicate in safety, even singly, without fear
of being surprised by the enemy. (See Plate 22.)
During this time, the Æduan Convictolitavis, who, as we have seen, owed
the supreme magistracy to Cæsar, seduced by the money of the Arverni,
resolved to abandon the party of the Romans, and entered into
communication with several young men, at whose head was Litavicus and
his brothers, descended from an illustrious family. He shares with them
the price of his treason; exhorts them to remember that, born free, they
are made to command in their country; proves to them that the
lukewarmness of the Ædui alone delayed the general insurrection; and
that they ought to value above everything the independence of their
country. Seduced by such discourses and by the bait of gold, those young
men occupy themselves only with the means of executing their project;
yet, mistrusting the inclination of the people to be drawn into war,
they decide that Litavicus shall take the command of the 10,000 men who
were to join the Roman army, and induce them to revolt on the road,
whilst his brothers go before them to Cæsar.
Litavicus began his march. At thirty miles from Gergovia (probably at
Serbannes), he halts his troops, assembles them, and, spreading the
report that Cæsar has caused the Æduan nobility and knights who were in
his pay to be massacred, among others Eporedorix and Viridomarus, he
easily persuades them to go and join the Arverni at Gergovia, instead of
proceeding to the Roman camp. But, before taking this determination, he
gives up to plunder the convoy of provisions which marched under his
guard, causes the Romans who conducted it to be put to death with
tortures, and then sends messengers to raise the whole country of the
Ædui, by means of the same imposture. Eporedorix and Viridomarus, whose
death he had falsely announced, were with Cæsar, who, by special favour,
had raised Viridomarus from a very low to a high dignity. The former,
informed of the design of Litavicus, came in the middle of the night to
acquaint the proconsul with it, imploring him not to allow the folly of
a few young men to detach his country from the Roman alliance. It would
be too late when so many thousands of men had embraced the contrary
party.
Cæsar, more affected by this news as he had always favoured the Ædui,
takes immediately four legions, without baggage, and all the cavalry; he
waits not even to contract the compass of the two camps, for everything
depends upon celerity. His lieutenant, C. Fabius, is left to guard them,
with two legions. He orders the brothers of Litavicus to be placed under
arrest, and learns that they have just passed over to the enemy. His
soldiers, encouraged to support the fatigues of the march, follow him
with ardour, and at about twenty-five miles from Gergovia (near Randan,
on the road which Litavicus had to follow to join Vercingetorix) they
meet the Ædui. The cavalry, sent in advance, have orders to stop them
without using their arms. Eporedorix and Viridomarus, who had been
reported as dead, step forth from the ranks, speak to their
fellow-citizens, and are recognised. As soon as the deception practised
by Litavicus is discovered, the Ædui throw down their arms, ask for
pardon, and obtain it. Litavicus flies to Gergovia, with his clients,
who, in Gaul, never abandoned their patrons, not even in their worst
fortunes.
Cæsar sent to the Ædui to represent to them how generously he had acted
towards men whom the laws of war authorised him to put to death; and,
after having given his army three hours’ rest during the night, he
returned to his quarters before Gergovia. Half-way, horsemen came to
inform him of the perilous position of Fabius. The camps had been
attacked by troops which were unceasingly renewed. The Romans were
exhausted by unceasing labour, for the great extent of the enclosure
obliged them to remain continually on the vallum. The arrows and
missiles of all sorts thrown by the barbarians had wounded a great
number; but, on the other hand, the machines had been of great help in
supporting the defence. After the retreat of the enemies, Fabius,
expecting to be again attacked next day, had hastened to block up the
gates of the great camp, with the exception of two, and to add a
palisade to the vallum. On receiving this information, Cæsar hurried
his march, and, seconded by the ardour of his soldiers, arrived at the
camp before sunrise (having thus performed fifty miles, or seventy-four
kilomètres, in twenty-four hours).[491]
While these events were taking place at Gergovia, the Ædui, also
deceived by the news which Litavicus had spread, fall upon the Roman
citizens, plunder their goods, kill some, and drag others to prison. It
is Convictolitavis, also, who prompts these violences. The military
tribune M. Aristius, who was on his way to join his legion, as well as
the foreign merchants who resided in the country, are compelled to leave
Cabillonum (Châlon-sur-Sâone). An escort is promised to protect them;
but they have hardly started when they are attacked and stripped. They
defend themselves, and their resistance, which lasts during twenty-four
hours, calls a greater multitude to arms. However, as soon as the Ædui
hear of the new submission of their troops, they exert themselves to the
utmost to obtain their pardon; they have recourse to Aristius, throw the
blame of the outbreak upon a few, order the plundered goods to be
collected, and confiscate those of Litavicus and his brothers. They send
deputies to Cæsar to excuse themselves. Their object, in acting thus,
was to obtain the free disposal of their troops, for the consciousness
of their treason and the fear of punishment made them, at the same time,
conspire in secret with the neighbouring states.
Although informed of these secret plots, Cæsar received their deputies
with kindness, declaring that he did not hold the nation responsible for
the fault of some individuals, and that his feelings towards the Ædui
were not changed. Nevertheless, as he foresaw a general insurrection of
Gaul, which would surround him on all sides, he entertained serious
thoughts of abandoning Gergovia, and again effecting the concentration
of his whole army; but it was of importance that his retreat, caused by
the sole fear of a general defection, should not appear to be a flight.
In the midst of these cares, the besieged offered him a favourable
chance, of which he sought to take advantage. As he was visiting the
little camp to inspect the works, he perceived that a hill (no doubt the
hill marked A, which forms part of the mountain mass of Rissoles, see
Plate 21), which was almost hidden from sight by the masses of enemies
on the previous days, was clear of troops. Astonished at this change, he
inquired the cause of the deserters, who came every day in crowds to
surrender to him. All agreed in saying, as his scouts had already
reported to him, that the mountain ridge to which this hill belonged
(the top of the heights of Risolles) was almost flat, was connected with
the town, and gave access to it by a narrow and wooded defile. (See
Plates 21 and 22.) This point caused particular anxiety to the enemy;
for if the Romans, already masters of La Roche-Blanche, gained
possession of the mountain mass of Risolles, the Gauls would be almost
entirely invested, and could neither escape nor go to forage. This was
the reason why Vercingetorix had decided upon fortifying these heights,
and had called thither all his troops.[492]
In accordance with this information, Cæsar sends in this direction,
towards the middle of the night, several detachments of cavalry, with
orders to scour with great noise the country in every direction at the
foot of the heights of Risolles. At break of day, he sends out of the
great camp many horses and mules without pack-saddles, and causes the
muleteers to mount them, who put on helmets, so as to assume the
appearance of mounted troopers. He enjoins them to wind round the hills,
and a few cavalry who are joined with them have orders to spread wide
over the country, so as to increase the illusion. Finally, they are all,
by a long circuit, to move towards the spots which have just been
mentioned. These movements were perceived from the town, which
overlooked the camp, but at too great a distance to distinguish objects
accurately. Cæsar sends towards the same mountain mass one legion, who,
after having marched for a short distance, halt in a hollow, and pretend
to hide in the woods (towards Chanonat), so as to feign a surprise. The
suspicions of the Gauls increase; they take all their forces to the spot
threatened. Cæsar, seeing the enemy’s camp deserted, orders the military
ensigns (plumes, shields, &c.) to be covered, the standards to be
lowered, and the troops to pass in small detachments from the great to
the little camp, behind the epaulment of the double fosse of
communication, so that they cannot be perceived from the oppidum.[493]
He communicates his intentions to the lieutenants placed at the heads of
the legions, recommends them to take care to prevent the soldiers from
allowing themselves to be carried away by the ardour of the combat or
the hope of plunder, and draws their attention to the difficulties of
the ground. “Celerity alone,” he says, “can enable us to overcome them;
in fact, it is to be an attack by surprise, and not a fight.” Having
communicated these directions, he gives the signal, and, at the same
time, sends the Ædui out of the great camp, with orders to climb the
eastern slopes of the mountain of Gergovia, to effect a diversion to the
right. (See Plate 21.)
The distance from the wall of the oppidum to the foot of the mountain,
where the ground is almost flat, was 1,200 paces (1,780 mètres) in the
most direct line; but the way was longer, on account of the circuits it
was necessary to make to break the steepness.[494] Towards the middle of
the southern slope, in the direction of its length, the Gauls, taking
advantage of the character of the ground, had, as we have said, built a
wall of large stones, six feet high, a serious obstacle in case of
attack. The lower part of the slopes had remained free; but the upper
part, up to the wall of the oppidum, was occupied with camps placed
very near together. When the signal is given, the Romans reach rapidly
the wall, scale it, and take three camps with such promptitude, that
Teutomatus, king of the Nitiobriges, surprised in his tent where he was
taking his repose in the middle of the day, fled half naked; his horse
was wounded, and he escaped with difficulty from the hands of the
assailants.
Cæsar, satisfied with this success, ordered the retreat to be sounded,
and made the tenth legion, which accompanied him, halt (from an
examination of the ground, the spot where Cæsar stood is the knoll which
rises to the west of the village of Merdogne). (See Plate 21, first
position of the tenth legion.) But the soldiers of the other legions,
separated from him by a rather wide ravine, did not hear the trumpet.
Although the tribunes and the lieutenants did all they could to restrain
them, excited by the hope of an easy victory, and by the recollection of
their past successes, they thought nothing was insurmountable to their
courage, and persisted in the pursuit of the enemy up to the walls and
gates of the oppidum.
Then an immense cry arises in the town. The inhabitants of the most
remote quarters believe that it is invaded, and rush out of the walls.
The matrons throw from the top of the walls their precious objects to
the Romans, and, with breasts bare and hands extended in supplication,
implore them not to massacre the women and children, as at Avaricum.
Several even, letting themselves down from the walls, surrender to the
soldiers. L. Fabius, centurion of the 8th legion, excited by the rewards
given at Avaricum, had sworn to be the first to mount to the assault; he
is lifted up by three soldiers of his company, reaches the top of the
wall, and, in his turn, helps them to mount one after the other.
Meanwhile the Gauls, who, as we have seen, had proceeded to the west of
Gergovia to raise retrenchments, hear the cries from the town; repeated
messages announce the capture of the oppidum. They immediately hurry
towards it, sending their cavalry before them. As they arrive, each man
takes his stand under the wall and joins the combatants, and their
number increases every moment; while the same women who just before
implored the pity of the besiegers, now excite against them the
defenders of Gergovia, displaying their dishevelled hair and showing
their children. The place as well as the numbers rendered the struggle
unequal; the Romans, fatigued with their run and the length of the
combat, resisted with difficulty troops which were still fresh.
This critical state of things inspired Cæsar with alarm; he ordered T.
Sextius, who had been left to guard the little camp, to bring out the
cohorts quickly, and take a position at the foot of the mountain of
Gergovia, on the right of the Gauls, so as to support the Romans if they
were repulsed, and check the enemy’s pursuit. He himself, drawing the
10th legion a little back[495] from the place where he had posted it,
awaited the issue of the engagement. (See Plate 21, second position of
the 10th legion.)
When the struggle was most obstinate, suddenly the Ædui, who had been
sent to divert the attention of the enemy by an attack from another
side, appeared on the right flank of the Romans. The resemblance of
their arms to those of the Gauls caused a great alarm; and although they
had their right shoulders bare (dextris humeris exsertis), the
ordinary mark of the allied troops, it was taken for a stratagem of the
enemy. At the same moment, the centurion L. Fabius, and those who had
followed him, are surrounded and thrown down from the top of the wall.
M. Petronius, centurion of the same legion, overwhelmed by numbers in
his attempt to burst the gates, sacrifices himself for the safety of his
soldiers, and meets his death in order to give them time to join their
ensigns. Pressed on all sides, the Romans are driven back from the
heights, after having lost forty-six centurions; nevertheless, the 10th
legion, placed in reserve on more level ground (see Plate 21, third
position), arrests the enemies, who are too eager in their pursuit. It
is supported by the cohorts of the 13th, who had just taken position on
a commanding post (Le Puy-de-Marmant), under the command of the
lieutenant T. Sextius. As soon as the Romans had reached the plain, they
rallied, and formed front against the enemy. But Vercingetorix, once
arrived at the foot of the mountain, ventured no further, but led back
his troops within the retrenchments. This day cost Cæsar nearly 700
men.[496]
Next day, Cæsar assembled his troops, and reprimanded them for their
rashness and for their thirst for plunder. He reproached them with
having “wished to judge for themselves of the object to be attained, and
of the means of attack, and not listening either to the signal of
retreat or to the exhortations of the tribunes and lieutenants. He
pointed out to them all the importance of the difficulties caused by the
inequalities of the ground; and reminded them of his conduct at
Avaricum, where, in presence of an enemy without chief and without
cavalry, he had renounced a certain victory rather than expose himself
to loss, though slight, in a disadvantageous position. Much as he
admired their bravery, which had been checked neither by the
retrenchments, nor by the steepness of the ground, nor by the walls, he
blamed no less their disobedience and their presumption in believing
themselves capable of judging of the chances of success and calculating
the issue of the undertaking better than their general. He demanded of
the soldiers submission and discipline, no less than firmness and
bravery; and, to revive their courage, he added that their want of
success was to be attributed to the difficulties of the ground much more
than to the valour of the enemy.”[497]
Observations.
VII. In the foregoing account, which is taken almost literally from the
“Commentaries,” Cæsar skilfully disguises a defeat. It is evident that
he hoped to take Gergovia by a sudden assault, before the Gauls, drawn
by a false attack to the west of the town, had time to come back to its
defence. Deceived in his expectation, he ordered the retreat to be
sounded, but too late to be executed in good order. Cæsar does not
appear to be sincere when he declares that he had attained his object
the moment his soldiers reached the foot of the wall. This could not
have been the case, for what use could it be to him to take camps almost
without troops in them, if the consequence was not to be the surrender
of the town itself? The defeat appears to have been complete, and,
according to some, Cæsar was for a moment a prisoner in the hands of the
Gauls; according to others, he had only lost his sword. Servius, indeed,
relates the following rather incomprehensible anecdote: when Cæsar was
taken away prisoner by the Gauls, one of them began to cry out Cæsar,
which signifies in Gaulish let him go, and thus he escaped.[498]
Plutarch gives another version: “The Arverni,” he says, “still show a
sword hung up in one of their temples, which they pretend to be a spoil
taken from Cæsar. He saw it there himself subsequently, and only laughed
at it. His friends engaged him to take it away, but he refused,
pretending that it had become a sacred object.”[499] This tradition
proves that he was sufficiently great to bear the recollection of a
defeat, in which he was very different from Cicero, whom we have seen
stealthily taking away from the Capitol the brass plate on which was
engraved the law of his banishment.
Cæsar leaves Gergovia in order to join Labienus.
VIII. Cæsar, after the check he had suffered before Gergovia, persisted
all the more in his intentions of departure; but, not to have the
appearance of flight, he drew out his legions, and placed them in order
of battle on an advantageous ground. Vercingetorix did not allow himself
to be drawn into the plain; the cavalry only fought, and the combat was
favourable to the Romans, who afterwards returned to their camp. The
next day the same manœvre was repeated with the same success.
Thinking that he had done enough to abate the boasting of the Gauls, as
well as to strengthen the courage of his men, Cæsar left Gergovia, and
took his way towards the country of the Ædui.
His withdrawal did not draw out the enemies in pursuit; and he arrived
on the third day (that is, his second day’s march, reckoning from the
assault on Gergovia) on the banks of the Allier, rebuilt one of the
bridges, no doubt that of Vichy, and crossed the river in haste, in
order to place it between him and Vercingetorix.
There Viridomarus and Eporedorix urged upon him the necessity of their
presence among the Ædui, in order to maintain the country in obedience,
and to be beforehand with Litavicus, who had gone thither with all the
cavalry to excite a revolt. Notwithstanding the numerous proofs of their
perfidy, and the suspicion that the departure of those two chiefs would
hasten the revolt, he did not think proper to detain them, as he wished
to avoid even the appearance of violence or of fear. He confined himself
to reminding them of the services which he had rendered to their
country, and of the state of dependence and abasement from which he had
drawn them, to raise them to a high degree of power and prosperity, and
then dismissed them; and they proceeded to Noviodunum (Nevers). This
town of the Ædui was situated on the banks of the Loire, in a favourable
position. It contained all the hostages of Gaul, the stores, the public
treasury, nearly all the baggage of the general and the army, and,
lastly, a considerable number of horses bought in Italy and Spain.
Eporedorix and Viridomarus heard there, on their arrival, of the revolt
of the country, of the reception of Litavicus in the important town of
Bibracte by Convictolitavis and a great part of the Senate, as well as
of the steps taken to draw their fellow-citizens into the cause of
Vercingetorix. The occasion appears favourable to them: they massacre
the guards of the dépôt of Noviodunum and the Roman merchants, share
amongst themselves the horses and the money, burn the town, send the
hostages to Bibracte, load boats with all the grain they can take away,
and destroy the rest by water and fire; then they collect troops in the
neighbourhood, place posts along the Loire, spread their cavalry
everywhere in order to intimidate the Romans, to cut off their supply of
provisions, and to compel them through famine to retire into the
Narbonnese—a hope which was so much the better founded, as the Loire,
swollen by the melting of the snow, appeared to be nowhere fordable.
Cæsar was informed of these events during his march from the Allier
towards the Loire. His position had never been more critical. Suffering
under a severe defeat, separated from Labienus by a distance of more
than eighty leagues, and by countries in revolt, he was surrounded on
all sides by the insurrection: he had on his rear the Arverni, elated
with their recent success at Gergovia; on his left the Bituriges,
irritated by the sack of Avaricum; before him the Ædui, ready to dispute
the passage of the Loire. Was he to persevere in his design, or
retrograde towards the Province? He could not resolve on this latter
course, for not only would this retreat have been disgraceful, and the
passage of the Cévennes full of difficulties, but, above all, he felt
the greatest anxiety for Labienus and the legions which he had entrusted
to him. He therefore persevered in his first resolutions; and in order
to be able, in case of need, to build a bridge across the Loire before
the forces of the enemies were increased, he proceeded towards that
river by forced marches day and night, and arrived unexpectedly at
Bourbon-Lancy.[500] The cavalry soon discovered a ford which necessity
made them consider practicable, although the soldiers had only above
water their shoulders and their arms to carry their weapons. The cavalry
was placed up the stream, in order to break the current, and the army
passed without accident before the enemy had time to recover from his
first surprise. Cæsar found the country covered with the harvest and
with cattle, with which the army was largely provisioned, and he marched
towards the land of the Senones.[501]
Expedition of Labienus against the Parisii.
IX. Whilst the centre of Gaul was the scene of these events, Labienus
had marched with four legions towards Lutetia, a town situated on an
island in the Seine, the oppidum of the Parisii. After leaving his
baggage at Agedincum (Sens)[502] under the guard of the troops
recently arrived from Italy to fill up the voids, he followed the left
bank of the Yonne and of the Seine, wishing to avoid all important
streams and considerable towns.[503] At the news of his approach, the
enemy assembled in great numbers from the neighbouring countries. The
command was entrusted to Aulercus Camulogenus, who was elevated to this
honour, notwithstanding his great age, on account of his rare ability in
the art of war. This chief, having remarked that a very extensive marsh
sloped towards the Seine, and rendered impracticable all that part of
the country which is watered by the Essonne, established his troops
along the side of this marsh, in order to defend the passage. (See
Plate 23.)
When Labienus arrived on the opposite bank, he ordered covered galleries
to be pushed forward, and sought, by means of hurdles and earth, to
establish a road across the marsh; but, meeting with too many
difficulties, he formed the project of surprising the passage of the
Seine at Melodunum (Melun), and, when once on the right bank, of
advancing towards Lutetia by stealing a march upon the enemy. He
therefore left his camp in silence, at the third watch (midnight), and,
retracing his steps, arrived at Melun, an oppidum of the Senones,
situated, like Lutetia, on an island in the Seine. He seized about fifty
boats, joined them together, filled them with soldiers, and entered into
the place without striking a blow. Terrified at this sudden attack, the
inhabitants, a great part of whom had answered to the appeal of
Camulogenus, offered no resistance. A few days before, they had cut the
bridge which united the island with the right bank; Labienus restored
it, led his troops over it, and proceeded towards Lutetia, where he
arrived before Camulogenus. He took a position near the place where
Saint-Germain-l’Auxerrois now stands. Camulogenus, informed by those who
had fled from Melun, quits his position on the Essonne, returns to
Lutetia, gives orders to burn it and to cut the bridges, and establishes
his camp on the left bank of the Seine, in front of the oppidum, that
is, on the present site of the Hotel de Cluny.
It was already rumoured that Cæsar had raised the siege of Gergovia; the
news of the defection of the Ædui, and of the progress of the
insurrection, had begun already to spread. The Gauls repeated
incessantly that Cæsar, arrested in his march by the Loire, had been
compelled, by want of provisions, to retire towards the Roman province.
The Bellovaci, whose fidelity was doubtful, had no sooner heard of the
revolt of the Ædui, than they collected troops and prepared openly for
war.
At the news of so many unfavourable events, Labienus felt all the
difficulties of his situation. Placed on the right bank of the Seine, he
was threatened on one side by the Bellovaci, who had only to cross the
Oise to fall upon him; on the other by Camulogenus, at the head of a
well-trained army, ready to give battle; lastly, a large river, which he
had crossed at Melun, separated him from Sens, where he had his dépôts
and baggage. To escape from this perilous position, he thought it
advisable to change his plans: he renounced all offensive movements, and
resolved to return to his point of departure by an act of daring.
Fearing that, if he went by the road on which he had advanced, he should
not be able to cross the Seine at Melun, because his boats would not
have re-mounted the river without difficulty, he decided on surprising
the passage of the Seine below Paris, and returning to Sens by the left
bank, marching over the body of the Gaulish army. Towards evening he
convoked a council, and urged on his officers the punctual execution of
his orders. He entrusted the boats he had brought from Melun to the
Roman knights, with orders to descend the river at the end of the first
watch (ten o’clock), to advance in silence for the space of four miles
(six kilomètres), which would bring them as far down as the village of
Point-du-Joir, and to wait for him. The five cohorts which had least
experience were left in charge of the camp, and the five others of the
same legion received orders to re-ascend on the right bank of the river
in the middle of the night, with all their baggage, and attract by their
tumult the attention of the enemy. Boats were sent in the same
direction, which were rowed with great noise. He himself, a little
after, left in silence with the three remaining legions, and, proceeding
down the river, repaired to the spot where the first boats waited for
him.
When he arrived there, a violent storm enabled him to carry by surprise
the Gaulish posts placed along the whole bank. The legions and cavalry
had soon passed the Seine with the assistance of the knights. Day began
to appear, when the enemy learnt, almost at the same instant, first,
that an unusual agitation prevailed in the Roman camp, that a
considerable column of troops was ascending the river, and that in the
same direction a great noise of oars was heard; lastly, that lower down
the stream the troops were crossing the Seine in boats. This news made
the Gauls believe that the legions intended to cross it on three points,
and that, perplexed by the defection of the Ædui, they had decided on
forcing the road by the left bank.[504] Camulogenus divided also his
forces into three corps: he left one opposite the Roman camp; sent the
second, less numerous, in the direction of Melodunum,[505] with
instructions to regulate its march according to the progress of the
enemy’s boats which re-ascended the Seine; and, at the head of the
third, went to meet Labienus.
At sunrise the Roman troops had crossed the river, and the enemy’s army
appeared drawn up in order of battle. Labienus exhorts his soldiers to
recall to mind their ancient valour, and so many glorious exploits, and,
as they marched to the combat, to consider themselves under the eye of
Cæsar, who had led them so often to victory: he then gives the signal.
At the first shock the 7th legion, placed on the right wing, routs the
enemy; but on the left wing, although the 12th legion had transpierced
the first ranks with their pila, the Gauls defend themselves
obstinately, and not one dreams of flight. Camulogenus, in the midst of
them, excites their ardour. The victory was still doubtful, when the
tribunes of the 7th legion, informed of the critical position of the
left wing, lead their soldiers to the back of the enemies, and take them
in the rear. The barbarians are surrounded, yet not one yields a step;
all die fighting, and Camulogenus perishes with the rest. The Gaulish
troops left opposite the camp of Labienus had hurried forward at the
first news of the combat, and had taken possession of a hill (probably
that of Vaugirard); but they did not sustain the attack of the
victorious Romans, and were hurried along in the general rout; all who
would not find refuge in the woods and on the heights were cut to pieces
by the cavalry.
After this battle Labienus returned to Agedincum; thence he marched with
all his troops, and went to join Cæsar.[506]
The Gauls assume the offensive.
X. The desertion of the Ædui gave the war a greater development.
Deputies are sent in all directions: credit, authority, money,
everything is put in activity to excite the other states to revolt.
Masters of the hostages whom Cæsar had entrusted to them, the Ædui
threaten to put to death those who belong to the nations which hesitate.
In a general assembly of Gaul, convoked at Bibracte, at which the Remi,
the Lingones, and the Treviri only were absent, the supreme command is
conferred on Vercingetorix, in spite of the opposition of the Ædui, who
claim it, and who, seeing themselves rejected, begin to regret the
favours they had received from Cæsar. But they had pronounced for the
war, and no longer dare to separate themselves from the common cause.
Eporedorix and Viridomarus, young men of great promise, obey
Vercingetorix unwillingly. The latter begins by exacting from the other
states hostages to be delivered on a fixed day; orders that the cavalry,
amounting to 15,000 men, shall be gathered round his person; declares he
has infantry enough at Bibracte, for his intention is not to offer a
pitched battle to the Romans, but, with a numerous cavalry, to intercept
their convoys of grain and forage. He exhorts the Gauls to set fire
with a common accord to their habitations and crops, which are only
small sacrifices in comparison to their liberty. These measures having
been decided, he demands from the Ædui and the Segusiavi, who bordered
upon the Roman province, 10,000 foot soldiers, sends them 800 horse, and
gives the command of these troops to the brother of Eporedorix, with
orders to carry the war into the country of the Allobroges. On another
side, he orders the Gabali and the neighbouring cantons of the Arverni
to march against the Helvii, and sends the Ruteni and the Cadurci to lay
waste the country of the Volcæ Arecomici. At the same time, he labours
secretly to gain the Allobroges, in the hope that the remembrance of
their ancient struggles against the Romans is not yet effaced. He
promises money to their chiefs, and to their country the sovereignty
over the whole Narbonnese.
To meet these dangers, twenty-two cohorts, raised in the province, and
commanded by the lieutenant Lucius Cæsar,[507] had to face the enemy on
every side. The Helvii, faithful to the Romans, by their own impulse,
attacked their neighbours in the open field; but repulsed with loss, and
having to deplore the death of their chiefs, among others that of C.
Valerius Donnotaurus, they ventured no more outside their walls. As to
the Allobroges, they defended their territory with energy, by placing a
great number of posts along the Rhone. The superiority of the enemy in
cavalry, the interruption of the communications, the impossibility of
drawing succour from Italy or the province, decided Cæsar on demanding
from the German peoples on the other side of the Rhine, subdued the year
before, cavalry and light infantry accustomed to fight intermingled. On
their arrival, finding that the cavalry were not sufficiently well
mounted, he distributed amongst them the horses of the tribunes, and
even those of the Roman knights and the volunteers (evocati).[508]
Junction of Cæsar and Labienus. Battle of the Vingeanne.
XI. The line of march followed by Cæsar after he had crossed the Loire
has been the subject of numerous controversies. Yet the “Commentaries”
appear to us to furnish sufficient data to determine it with precision.
On leaving Gergovia, Cæsar’s object was, as he tells us himself, to
effect a junction with Labienus; with this view, he marched towards the
land of the Senones, after having crossed the Loire at Bourbon-Lancy. On
his part, Labienus, after returning to Sens, having advanced to meet
Cæsar, their junction must necessarily have taken place on a point of
the line from Bourbon-Lancy to Sens; this point, in our opinion, is
Joigny. (See Plate 19.) Encamped not far from the confluence of the
Armançon and the Yonne, Cæsar could easily receive the contingent which
he expected from Germany.
The Roman army was composed of eleven legions: the 1st, lent by Pompey,
and the 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, and 15th.[509]
The effective force of each of them varied from 4,000 to 5,000 men;
for, if we see (lib. V. 49) that on the return from Britain two legions
reckoned together only 7,000 men, their effective force was soon
increased by considerable re-enforcements which came to the army of Gaul
in 702;[510] the legion lent by Pompey was of 6,000 men;[511] and the
13th, at the breaking out of the civil war, had in its ranks 5,000
soldiers.[512] Cæsar had then at his disposal, during the campaigns
which ended with the taking of Alesia, 50,000 legionaries, and perhaps
20,000 Numidian or Cretan archers, and 5,000 or 6,000 cavalry, a
thousand of whom were Germans, making a total of about 75,000 men,
without counting the valets, who were always very numerous.
When the junction of the troops had been effected, Cæsar sought above
all to approach the Roman province, in order to carry succour to it with
more ease; he could not think of taking the most direct road, which
would have led him into the country of the Ædui, one of the centres of
the insurrection; he was, therefore, obliged to pass through the
territory of the Lingones, who had remained faithful to him, and to
proceed into Sequania, where Besançon offered an important place of
arms. (See Plate 19.) He started from Joigny, following the road which
he had taken when he marched to meet Ariovistus (696),[513] and the
winter before, when he moved from Vienne to Sens. After reaching the
Aube at Dancevoir, he proceeded towards the little river Vingeanne,
crossing, as the “Commentaries” say, the extreme part of the territory
of the Lingones (per extremos Lingonum fines).[514] His intention was,
no doubt, to cross the Saône, either at Gray, or at Pontailler.
Whilst the Romans abandoned that part of Gaul which had revolted, in
order to approach nearer to the province, Vercingetorix had assembled
his army, amounting to more than 80,000 men, at Bibracte; it had come in
great part from the country of the Arverni, and counted in its ranks the
cavalry furnished by all the states. Having been informed of Cæsar’s
march, he started at the head of his troops, to bar the road through
Sequania. Passing, as we believe, by Arnay-le-Duc, Sombernon, Dijon, and
Thil-Châtel, he arrived at the heights of Occey, Sacquenay, and
Montormentier, where he formed three camps, at a distance of 10,000
paces (fifteen kilomètres) from the Roman army. (See Plate 24.) In
this position Vercingetorix intercepted the three roads which Cæsar
could have taken towards the Saône, either at Gray, or at Pontailler, or
at Chalon.[515] Resolved on risking a battle, he convoked the chiefs of
the cavalry. “The moment of victory,” he told them, “has arrived; the
Romans fly into their province, and abandon Gaul. If this retreat
delivers us for the present, it ensures neither peace nor rest for the
future; they will return with greater forces, and the war will be
endless. We must attack them, therefore, in the disorder of their march;
for if the legions stop to defend their long convoy, they will not be
able to continue their road; or if, which is more probable, they abandon
their baggage in order to secure their own safety, they will lose what
is indispensable to them, and, at the same time, their prestige. As to
their cavalry, they will surely not dare to move away from the column;
that of the Gauls must show so much the more ardour, as the infantry,
ranged before the camp, will be there to intimidate the enemy.” Then,
the cavalry exclaimed, “Let every one swear, by a solemn oath, never to
return to the home of his forefathers, his wife, or his children, if he
has not ridden twice through the ranks of the enemy!” This proposition
was received with enthusiasm, and all took the oath.
The day on which Vercingetorix arrived on the heights of Sacquenay,[516]
Cæsar, as we have seen, encamped on the Vingeanne, near Longeau.
Ignorant of the presence of the Gauls, he started next day, in marching
column, the legions at a great distance from each other, separated by
their baggage. When his vanguard arrived near Dommarien, it could
perceive the hostile army. Vercingetorix was watching the moment they
(the Romans) debouched, to attack. He had divided his cavalry in three
bodies, and his infantry had descended from the heights of Sacquenay in
order to take a position along the Vingeanne and the Badin. (See Plate
24.) As soon as the vanguard of the enemy appears, Vercingetorix bars
its way with one of the bodies of cavalry, while the two others show
themselves in order of battle on the two wings of the Romans. Taken
unexpectedly, Cæsar divides his cavalry also into three bodies, and
opposes them to the enemy. The combat engages on all sides; the column
of the Roman army halts; the legions are brought into line, and the
baggage placed in the intervals. This order, in which the legions were,
no doubt, in column of three deep, was easy to execute, and presented
the advantages of a square. Wherever the cavalry gives way or is too
hotly pressed, Cæsar sends to its support the cohorts, which he draws
from the main body to range them in order of battle.[517] By this
manœuvre he renders the attacks less vigorous, and increases the
confidence of the Romans, who are assured of support. Finally, the
German auxiliaries, having gained, to the right of the Roman army, the
summit of a height (the hill of Montsaugeon), drive the enemies from it,
and pursue the fugitives as far as the river, where Vercingetorix stood
with his infantry. At the sight of this rout, the rest of the Gaulish
cavalry fear to be surrounded, and take to flight. From this time the
battle became a mere carnage. Three Ædui of distinction are taken and
brought to Cæsar: Cotus, chief of the cavalry, who, at the last
election, had contended with Convictolitavis for the sovereign
magistracy; Cavarillus, who, since the defection of Litavicus, commanded
the infantry; and Eporedorix, whom the Ædui had for chief in their war
against the Sequani, before the arrival of Cæsar in Gaul.[518]
Blockade of Alesia.
XII. Vercingetorix, after the defeat of his cavalry, decided on a
retreat; taking his infantry with him, without returning to his camp, he
marched immediately towards Alesia, the oppidum of the Mandubii. The
baggage, withdrawn from the camp, followed him without delay.[519] Cæsar
ordered his baggage to be carried to a neighbouring hill, under the
guard of two legions, pursued the enemies as long as daylight permitted,
killed about 3,000 men of their rear-guard, and established his camp,
two days afterwards, before Alesia.[520] After having reconnoitred the
position of the town, and taking advantage of the disorder of the enemy,
who had placed his principal confidence in his cavalry, which was thrown
into consternation by its defeat, he resolved to invest Alesia, and
exhorted his soldiers to support the labours and fatigues of a siege
with constancy.
Alise-Sainte-Reine, in the department of the Côte-d’Or, is, undoubtedly,
the Alesia of the “Commentaries.” The examination of the strategic
reasons which determined the march of Cæsar, the correct interpretation
of the text, and, lastly, the excavations lately made, all combine to
prove it.[521]
Ancient Alesia occupied the summit of the mountain now called Mont
Auxois; on the western slope is built the village of Alise-Sainte-Reine.
(See Plates 25 and 26.) It is an entirely isolated mountain, which
rises 150 to 160 mètres above the surrounding valleys (erat oppidum
Alesia in colle summo, admodum edito loco ...). Two rivers bathe the
foot of the mountain on two opposite sides: they are the Ose and the
Oserain (cujus collis radices duo duabus ex partibus flumina
subluebant). To the west of Mont Auxois the plain of Laumes extends,
the greatest dimension of which, between the village of Laumes and that
of Pouillenay, is 3,000 paces or 4,400 mètres (ante oppidum planities
circiter millia passuum III in longitudinem patebat). On all other
sides, at a distance varying from 1,100 to 1,600 mètres, rises a belt of
hills, the plateaux of which are at the same height (reliquis ex
omnibus partibus colles, mediocri interjecto spatio, pari altitudinis
fastigio oppidum cingebant).
The summit of Mont Auxois has the form of an ellipse, 2,100 mètres in
length, and 800 mètres broad in its greatest diameter. Including the
first spurs which surround the principal mass, it is found to contain a
superficies of 1,400,000 square mètres, 973,100 mètres of which for the
upper plateau and 400,000 mètres for the terraces and spurs. (See Plate
25.) The town appears to have crowned the whole of the plateau, which
was protected by scarped rocks against all attack.[522]
This oppidum could, apparently, only be reduced by a complete
investment. The Gaulish troops covered, at the foot of the wall, all the
slopes of the eastern part of the mountain; they were there protected by
a fosse and by a wall of unhewn stones six feet high. Cæsar established
his camps in favourable positions, the infantry on the heights, the
cavalry near the watercourses. These camps, and twenty-three redoubts or
blockhouses,[523] formed a line of investment of 11,000 paces (sixteen
kilomètres).[524] The redoubts were occupied in the day by small posts,
to prevent any surprise; by night, strong detachments bivouacked in
them.
The works were hardly begun, when a cavalry engagement took place in the
plain of Laumes. The combat was very hot on both sides. The Romans were
giving way, when Cæsar sent the Germans to their assistance, and ranged
the legions in order of battle in front of the camps, so that the
enemy’s infantry, kept in awe, should not come to the assistance of the
cavalry. That of the Romans recovered confidence on seeing that they
were supported by the legions. The Gauls, obliged to fly, became
embarrassed by their own numbers, and rushed to the openings left in the
wall of unhewn stones, which were too narrow for the occasion. Pursued
with fury by the Germans up to the fortifications, some were slain, and
others, abandoning their horses, attempted to cross the fosse and climb
over the wall. Cæsar then ordered the legions, who were drawn up before
his retrenchments, to advance a little. This movement carried disorder
into the Gaulish camp. The troops within feared a serious attack, and
the cry to arms rose on all sides. Some, struck with terror, threw
themselves into the oppidum; Vercingetorix was obliged to order the
gates to be closed, for fear the camp should be abandoned. The Germans
retired, after having killed a great number of the cavalry, and taken a
great number of horses.
Vercingetorix resolved to send away all his cavalry by night, before the
Romans had completed the investment. He urges the cavalry, on their
departure, to return each to his country, and recruit the men able to
carry arms; he reminds them of his services, and implores them to think
of his safety, and not to deliver him as a prey to the enemies, him who
has done so much for the general liberty: their indifference would
entail with his loss that of 80,000 picked men. On an exact calculation,
he has only provisions for one month; by husbanding them carefully, he
may hold out some time longer. After these recommendations, he causes
his cavalry to leave in silence, at the second watch (nine o’clock). It
is probable that they escaped by ascending the valleys of the Ose and
the Oserain. Then he orders, on pain of death, all the corn to be
brought to him. He divides among the soldiers individually the numerous
cattle which had been collected by the Mandubii; but as to the grain,
he reserves the power of distributing it gradually and in small
quantities. All the troops encamped outside withdraw into the oppidum.
By these dispositions he prepares to wait for the succour of Gaul, and
to sustain the war.
As soon as Cæsar was informed of these measures by the prisoners and
deserters, he resolved to form lines of countervallation and
circumvallation, and adopted the following system of fortifications: he
ordered first of all to be dug, in the plain of Laumes, a fosse twenty
feet wide, with vertical walls, that is, as wide at the bottom as at the
level of the ground (see Plates 25 and 28), so as to prevent lines so
extensive, and so difficult to guard with soldiers along their whole
extent, from being attacked suddenly by night, and also to protect the
workmen from the darts of the enemy during the day. Four hundred feet
behind this fosse, he formed the countervallation. He then made two
fosses of fifteen feet wide, of equal depth,[525] and filled the
interior fosse—that is, the one nearest to the town—with water derived
from the river Oserain. Behind these fosses he raised a rampart and a
palisade (aggerem ac vallum), having together a height of twelve feet.
Against this was placed a fence of hurdles with battlements (loricam
pinnasque); strong forked branches were placed horizontally at the
junction of the hurdle-fence and the rampart, so as to render them more
difficult to scale. (See Plate 27.) Lastly, he established towers on
all this part of the countervallation, with a distance of eighty feet
between them.
It was necessary at the same time to work at widely extended
fortifications, and to fetch in wood and provisions, so that these
distant and toilsome expeditions diminished incessantly the effective
force of the combatants; and the Gauls, too, often attempted to harass
the workmen, and even made vigorous sallies, through several gates at a
time. Cæsar judged it necessary to increase the strength of the works,
so that they might be defended with a smaller number of men. He ordered
trees or large branches to be taken, the extremities of which were
sharpened and cut to a point;[526] they were placed in a fosse five feet
deep; and, that they might not be torn up, they were tied together at
the lower part; the other part, furnished with branches, rose above
ground. There were five rows of these, contiguous and interlaced;
whoever ventured amongst them would be wounded by their sharp points;
they were called cippi. In front of these sorts of abatis were dug
wolves’ pits (scrobes), trunconic fosses, of three feet deep, disposed
in the form of a quincunx. In the centre of each hole was planted a
round stake, of the thickness of a man’s thigh, hardened in the fire,
and pointed at the top; it only rose about four inches above ground. In
order to render these stakes firmer, they were surrounded at the base
with earth well stamped down; the rest of the excavation was covered
with thorns and brushwood, so as to conceal the trap. There were eight
rows of holes, three feet distant from each other: they were called
lilies (lilia), on account of their resemblance to the flower of
that name. Lastly, in front of these defences were fixed, level with
the ground, stakes of a foot long, to which were fixed irons in the
shape of hooks. These kind of caltrops, to which they gave the name of
stimuli,[527] were placed everywhere, and very near each other.
When this work was finished, Cæsar ordered retrenchments to be dug,
almost similar, but on the opposite side, in order to resist attacks
from the exterior. This line of circumvallation, of fourteen miles in
circuit (twenty-one kilomètres), had been formed on the most favourable
ground, in conforming to the nature of the locality. If the Gaulish
cavalry brought back an army of succour, he sought by these means to
prevent it, however numerous it might be, from surrounding the posts
established along the circumvallation. In order to avoid the danger
which the soldiers would have run in quitting the camps, he ordered that
every man should provide himself with provisions and forage for thirty
days. Notwithstanding this precaution, the Roman army suffered from
want.[528]
Whilst Cæsar adopted these measures, the Gauls, having convoked an
assembly of their principal chiefs, probably at Bibracte, decided not to
collect all their men able to bear arms, as Vercingetorix wished, but to
demand from each people a certain contingent, for they dreaded the
difficulty of providing for so large and so confused a multitude, and of
maintaining order and discipline. The different states were required to
send contingents, the total of which was to amount to 283,000 men; but,
in reality, it did not exceed 240,000. The cavalry amounted to
8,000.[529]
The Bellovaci refused their contingent, declaring that they intended to
make war on their own account, at their own will, without submitting to
anybody’s orders. Nevertheless, at the instance of Commius, their host,
they sent 2,000 men.
This same Commius, we have seen, had in previous years rendered signal
service to Cæsar in Britain. In return for which, his land, that of the
Atrebates, freed from all tribute, had recovered its privileges, and
obtained the supremacy over the Morini. But such was then the eagerness
of the Gauls to re-conquer their liberty and their ancient glory, that
all feelings of gratitude and friendship had vanished from their memory,
and all devoted themselves body and soul to the war.
The numbering and the review of the troops took place on the territory
of the Ædui. The chiefs were named; the general command was given to the
Atrebatan Commius; to the Æduans Viridomarus and Eporedorix, and to the
Arvernan Vercasivellaunus, cousin of Vercingetorix. With them were
joined delegates from each country, who formed a council of direction
for the war. They began their march towards Alesia, full of ardour and
confidence: each was convinced that the Romans would retreat at the mere
sight of such imposing forces, especially when they found themselves
threatened at the same time by the sallies of the besieged, and by an
exterior army powerful in infantry and in cavalry.
Meanwhile, the day on which the besieged expected succour was past, and
their provisions were exhausted; ignorant, moreover, of what was taking
place among the Ædui, they assembled to deliberate on a final
resolution. The opinions were divided: some proposed to surrender,
others to make a sally, without waiting till their vigour would be
exhausted. But Critognatus, an Arvernan distinguished by his birth and
credit, in a discourse of singular and frightful atrocity, proposed to
follow the example of their ancestors, who, in the time of the war of
the Cimbri, being shut up in their fortresses, and a prey to want, ate
the men who were unable to bear arms, rather than surrender. When the
opinions were gathered, it was decided that that of Critognatus should
only be adopted at the last extremity, and that for the present they
would confine themselves to sending out of the place all useless mouths.
The Mandubii, who had received the Gaulish army within their walls,
were compelled to leave with their wives and children. They approached
the Roman lines, begged to be taken for slaves and supplied with bread.
Cæsar placed guards along the vallum, with orders not to admit them.
At length Commius and the other chiefs, followed by their troops, appear
before Alesia; they halt upon a neighbouring hill, scarcely 1,000 paces
from the circumvallation (the hill of Mussy-la-Fosse). The following day
they draw their cavalry out of their camp; it covered the whole plain of
Laumes. Their infantry establishes itself at a short distance on the
heights. The plateau of Alesia commanded the plain. At the sight of the
army of succour, the besieged meet together, congratulate each other,
yield to excess of joy, and then they rush out of the town, fill the
first fosse with fascines and earth, and all prepare for a general and
decisive sally.
Cæsar, obliged to face the enemy on two sides at once, disposed his army
on the two opposite lines of the retrenchments, and assigned to each his
post; he then ordered the cavalry to leave its camps, and to give
battle. From all the camps placed on the top of the surrounding hills,
the view extended over the plain, and the soldiers, in suspense, waited
for the issue of the event. The Gauls had mixed with their cavalry a
small number of archers and light-armed soldiers, to support them if
they gave way, and arrest the attack of the cavalry of the enemy. A good
number of the latter, wounded by these foot-soldiers, whom they had not
perceived until then, were obliged to retire from the battle. Then the
Gauls, confident in their numerical superiority, and in the valour of
their cavalry, believed themselves sure of victory; and from all sides,
from the besieged, as well as from the army of succour, there arose an
immense cry to encourage the combatants. The engagement was in view of
them all; no trait of courage or of cowardice remained unknown; on both
sides, all were excited by the desire of glory and the fear of
dishonour. From noon till sunset the victory remained uncertain, when
the Germans in Cæsar’s pay, formed in close squadrons, charged the
enemy, and put them to the rout; in their flight they abandoned the
archers, who were surrounded; then, from all parts of the plain, the
cavalry pursued the Gauls up to their camp without giving them time to
rally. The besieged, who had sallied out of Alesia, returned in
consternation, and almost despairing of safety.
After a day employed in making a great number of hurdles, ladders, and
hooks, the Gauls of the army of succour left their camp in silence
towards the middle of the night, and approached the works in the plain.
Then, suddenly uttering loud cries, in order to warn the besieged, they
throw their fascines, to fill up the fosse, attack the defenders of the
vallum with a shower of sling-balls, arrows, and stones, and prepare
everything for an assault. At the same time, Vercingetorix, hearing the
cries from without, gives the signal with the trumpet, and leads his
troops out of the place. The Romans take in the retrenchments the places
assigned to them beforehand, and they spread disorder among the Gauls by
throwing leaden balls, stones of a pound weight, and employing the
stakes placed in the works beforehand; the machines rain down upon the
enemy a shower of darts. As they fought in the dark (the shields being
useless), there were in both armies many wounded. The lieutenants M.
Antony and C. Trebonius, to whom was entrusted the defence of the
threatened points, supported the troops that were too hardly pressed by
means of reserves drawn from the neighbouring redoubts. So long as the
Gauls kept far from the circumvallation, the multitude of their missiles
gave them the advantage; but when they approached, some became suddenly
entangled in the stimuli; others fell bruised into the scrobes;
others again were transpierced by the heavy pila used in sieges, which
were thrown from the tops of the vallum and the towers. They had many
disabled, and nowhere succeeded in forcing the Roman lines. When day
began to break, the army of succour retired, fearing to be taken in
their uncovered flank (the right side) by a sally from the camps
established on the mountain of Flavigny. On their side, the besieged,
after losing much valuable time in transporting the material for the
attack, and in making efforts to fill up the first fosse (the one which
was twenty feet wide), learnt the retreat of the army of succour before
they had reached the real retrenchment. This attempt having failed, like
the other, they returned into the town.
Thus twice repulsed with great loss, the Gauls of the army of succour
deliberated on what was to be done. They interrogate the inhabitants of
the country, who inform them of the position and the sort of defences
of the Roman camps placed on the heights.
To the north of Alesia there was a hill (Mont Réa) which had not been
enclosed in the lines, because it would have given them too great an
extent; the camp necessary on that side had, for this reason, to be
established on a slope, and in a disadvantageous position (see Plate
25, camp D); the lieutenants C. Antistius Reginus and C. Caninius
Rebilus occupied it with two legions. The enemy’s chiefs resolved to
attack this camp with one part of their troops, whilst the other should
assail the circumvallation in the plain of Laumes. Having decided on
this plan, they send their scouts to reconnoitre the localities,
secretly arrange among themselves the plan and the means of execution,
and decide that the attack shall take place at noon. They choose 60,000
men amongst the nations most renowned for their valour.
Vercasivellaunus, one of the four chiefs, is placed at their head. They
sally at the first watch, towards nightfall, proceed by the heights of
Grignon and by Fain towards Mont Réa, arrive there at break of day,
conceal themselves in the depressions of the ground to the north of that
hill, and repose from the fatigues of the night. At the hour appointed,
Vercasivellaunus descends the slopes and rushes upon the camp of Reginus
and Rebilus; at the same moment, the cavalry of the army of succour
approaches the retrenchments in the plain, and the other troops,
sallying from their camps, move forwards.
When, from the top of the citadel of Alesia, Vercingetorix saw these
movements, he left the town, carrying with him the poles, the small
covered galleries (musculos), the iron hooks (falces),[530] and
everything which had been prepared for a sally, and proceeded towards
the plain. An obstinate struggle follows;, everywhere the greatest
efforts are made, and wherever the defence appears weakest, the Gauls
rush to the attack. Scattered over extensive lines, the Romans defend
only with difficulty several points at the same time, and are obliged to
face two attacks from opposite sides. Fighting, as it were, back to
back, everybody is agitated by the cries he hears, and by the thought
that his safety depends upon those that are behind him; “it lies in
human nature,” says Cæsar, “to be struck more deeply with the danger one
cannot see.”[531]
On the northern slopes of the mountain of Flavigny (at the point marked
J C, Plate 25), Cæsar had chosen the most convenient spot for
observing each incident of the action, and for sending assistance to the
places which were most threatened. Both sides were convinced that the
moment of the decisive struggle had arrived. If the Gauls do not force
the lines, they have no further hope of safety; if the Romans obtain the
advantage, they have reached the end of their labours. It is especially
at the retrenchments on the slopes of Mont Réa that the Romans run the
greatest danger, for the commanding position of the enemy gives them an
immense disadvantage (iniquum loci ad declivitatem fastigium, magnum
habet momentum). One part of the assailants throw darts; another
advances, forming the tortoise; fresh troops incessantly relieve the
soldiers who are weary. All strive desperately to fill the fosses, to
render useless the accessory defences by covering them with earth, and
to scale the rampart. Already the Romans begin to feel the want of arms
and strength. Cæsar, informed of this state of things, sends Labienus to
their succour with six cohorts, and orders him, if the troops cannot
maintain themselves behind the retrenchments, to withdraw them and make
a sally, but only at the last extremity. Labienus, encamped on the
mountain of Bussy, descends from the heights to proceed to the place of
combat. Cæsar, passing between the two lines, repairs to the plain,
where he encourages the soldiers to persevere, for this day, this hour
will decide whether they are to gather the fruit of their former
victories.
Meanwhile the besieged, having abandoned the hope of forcing the
formidable retrenchments of the plain, direct their attack against the
works situated at the foot of the precipitous heights of the mountain of
Flavigny, and transport thither all their materials of attack; with a
shower of arrows they drive away the Roman soldiers who fight from the
top of the towers; they fill the fosses with earth and fascines, clear a
passage for themselves, and, by means of iron hooks, tear down the
wattling of the parapet and the palisade. Young Brutus is first sent
thither with several cohorts, and after him the lieutenant C. Fabius
with seven more; at last, as the action becomes still hotter, Cæsar
himself hurries to them with new reserves.
After the fortune of the fight has been restored, and the enemies driven
back, he proceeds towards the place where he had sent Labienus, draws
four cohorts from the nearest redoubt, orders a part of the cavalry to
follow him, and the other part to go round by the exterior lines, to
take the enemy in the rear by issuing from the camp of Grésigny. On his
side, Labienus, seeing that neither the fosses nor the ramparts can
arrest the efforts of the Gauls, rallies thirty-nine cohorts which have
arrived from the neighbouring redoubts, and which chance offers to him,
and informs Cæsar that, according to what had been agreed, he is going
to make a sally.[532] Cæsar hastens his march in order to share in the
combat. As soon as, from the heights on which they stood, the
legionaries recognise their general by the colour of the garment which
he was in the habit of wearing in battle (the purple-coloured
paludamentum),[533] and see him followed by cohorts and detachments of
cavalry, they sally from the retrenchments and begin the attack. Shouts
arise on both sides, and are repeated from the vallum to the other
works. When Cæsar arrives, he sees the lines abandoned, and the battle
raging in the plain of Grésigny, on the banks of the Ose. The Roman
soldiers throw away the pilum, and draw their swords. At the same
time, the cavalry of the camp of Grésigny appears in the rear of the
enemy; other cohorts approach. The Gauls are put to the rout, and in
their flight encounter the cavalry, who make great slaughter among them.
Sedulius, chief and prince of the Lemovices, is slain; the Arvernan
Vercasivellaunus is taken prisoner. Seventy-four ensigns are brought to
Cæsar. Of all this army, so numerous as it was, few combatants return to
their camp safe and sound.
Witnesses, from the top of their walls, of this sanguinary defeat, the
besieged despaired of their safety, and called in the troops who were
attacking the countervallation.[534] As the result of these reverses,
the Gauls of the army of succour fly from their camp; and if the Romans,
compelled to defend so many points at one time, and to assist each other
mutually, had not been worn out by the labours of a whole day, the
entire mass of the enemies might have been annihilated. Towards the
middle of the night the cavalry sent in pursuit came up with their
rear-guard; a great part of them were taken prisoners or killed; the
others dispersed, to return to their countries.
Next day, Vercingetorix convokes a council. He declares that he has not
undertaken this war out of personal interest, but for the cause of the
liberty of all. “Since they must yield to fate, he places himself at the
discretion of his fellow-citizens, and offers them, in order to appease
the Romans, to be delivered up, dead or alive.” A deputation is at once
sent to Cæsar, who requires that the arms and the chiefs be delivered to
him. He places himself in front of his camp, inside the retrenchments;
the chiefs are brought, the arms are laid down, and Vercingetorix
surrenders to the conqueror. This valiant defender of Gaul arrives on
horseback, clad in his finest arms, makes the circuit of Cæsar’s
tribunal, dismounts, and laying down his sword and his military ensigns,
exclaims: “Thou hast vanquished a brave man, thou, the bravest of
all!”[535] The prisoners were distributed by head to each soldier, by
way of booty, except the 20,000 who belonged to the Ædui and Arverni,
and whom Cæsar restored in the hope of bringing back those people to his
cause.
Dio Cassius relates the surrender of the Gaulish chief as follows:
“After this defeat, Vercingetorix, who had neither been taken nor
wounded, might have fled; but, hoping that the friendship which had
formerly bound him to Cæsar would procure his pardon, he repaired to the
proconsul, without having sent a herald to ask for peace, and appeared
suddenly in his presence, at the moment he was sitting on his tribunal.
His appearance inspired some fear, for he was of tall stature, and had a
very imposing aspect under arms. There was a deep silence: the Gaulish
chief fell at Cæsar’s knees, and implored him by pressing his hands,
without uttering a word. This scene excited the pity of the by-standers,
by the remembrance of Vercingetorix’s former fortune compared to his
present misfortune. Cæsar, on the contrary, upbraided him with the
recollections on which he had hoped for his safety. He compared his
recent struggle with the friendship of which he reminded him, and by
that means pointed out more vividly the odiousness of his conduct. And
thus, far from being touched with his misfortune at that moment, he
threw him at once in fetters, and afterwards ordered him to be put to
death, after having exhibited him in his triumph.” By acting thus, Cæsar
believed that he was obeying state policy and the cruel customs of the
time. It is to be regretted for his glory that he did not use, towards
Vercingetorix, the illustrious Gaulish chief, the same clemency which,
during the Civil War, he showed towards the vanquished who were his
fellow-citizens.
When these events were accomplished, Cæsar proceeded towards the Ædui,
and received their submission. There he met the envoys of the Arverni,
who promised to pay deference to his orders: he required from them a
great number of hostages. Afterwards, he placed his legions in winter
quarters. T. Labienus, with two legions and some cavalry, among the
Sequani (Sempronius Rutilius was given him as a colleague); C. Fabius
and L. Minucius Basilius, with two legions, among the Remi, in order to
protect them against the Bellovaci, their neighbours; C. Antistius
Reginus amongst the Ambluareti; T. Sextius among the Bituriges; C.
Caninius Rebilus among the Ruteni, each with one legion. Q. Tullius
Cicero and P. Sulpicius were established at Cabillonum (Chalon) and
Matisco (Mâcon), in the land of the Ædui, on the Saône, to ensure the
supply of provisions. Cæsar resolved to pass the winter at
Bibracte.[536] He announced those events at Rome, where twenty days of
public thanksgivings were decreed.
Details of the Excavations at Mont Auxois.
XIII. The excavations earned on round Mont Auxois, from 1862 to 1863,
have brought to light, in nearly all points, the fosses of the Roman
retrenchments. The following is the result:—
Camps.—Cæsar debouched upon Alesia by the mountain of Bussy (see Plate
25), and distributed his army round Mont Auxois: the legions encamped
on the heights, and the cavalry was established on the lower grounds,
near the streams.
There were four camps of infantry, two of them, A and B, on the
mountain of Flavigny. Their form depends on that of the ground: they
were shaped in such a manner that the retrenchments should, as far as
possible, command the ground situated before them. On the side where it
could have been attacked, that is, to the south, the camp A presented
formidable defences, to judge from the triple line of fosses which
surround this part. (See Plates 25 and 28.) We must, perhaps, suppose
that it was occupied by Cæsar in person. The camp B is more extensive.
The vestiges of its remblai are still visible at the present day, in
the greatest part of its circuit, in consequence of this land having
never been touched by the plough. It is the only known example of
visible traces of a camp made by Cæsar. None of the camps of the
mountain of Flavigny having been attacked, the excavations have only
brought to light in the fosses a small number of objects. The entrances
to the camps are at the places marked by arrows on Plate 25. A third
camp of infantry was situated on the mountain of Bussy, at C.
The fourth infantry camp was established on the lower slopes of Mont
Réa, at D. It is the one occupied by the two legions of Reginus and
Rebilus, and which Vercasivellaunus attacked with 60,000 men. Indeed, it
will be observed that the spur situated to the north of Mont Auxois,
between the Rabutin and the Brenne, is much farther from Alesia than the
other mountains which surround it, and Mont Réa, which is the nearest
part of it, is still more than 2,000 mètres distant from it. Hence it
follows that Cæsar could not have included Mont Réa in his lines without
giving them an excessive development. Consequently, he was obliged to
establish one of his camps on the southern slope of that hill. This
camp was on the point of being forced, and an obstinate battle was
fought there. The excavations have led to the discovery in the fosses of
a multitude of interesting objects, and, among them, more than 600 Roman
and Gaulish coins. (See the list in Appendix C.)[537] The extremity of
the upper fosse, represented by dots on Plates 25 and 28, has not
been discovered, because earthfalls have taken place on that part of
Mont Réa, which would have obliged the excavators to dig too deep to
arrive at the bottom of the fosse. The strength of the retrenchments of
the infantry camps was very variable, as may be seen by inspecting the
various profiles of the fosses. (See Plate 28.) For each camp, they
have larger dimensions on the side which is not defended by the
escarpments, as may easily be conceived.
There were four cavalry camps, G H I K, placed near the different
streams: three in the plain of Laumes, and one in the valley of the
Rabutin. The fosses of these camps took greatly varied shapes. (See
Plate 28.) In general, their dimensions were decidedly less than those
of the fosses of the infantry camps. Camp G, however, had rather deep
fosses; no doubt because it was farthest from the lines. The fosse which
enclosed camp I towards the side of the Brenne has disappeared by the
inundations of the river.
Redoubts, or Castella.—Of the twenty-three redoubts or blockhouses
(castella), five only have been discovered; they were the most
considerable; they are represented on Plate 25, by the numbers 10, 11,
15, 18, 22. The others, built of wood, and forming blockhouses, would
not have left any trace; they are marked by circles on the most
convenient places.
Distribution of the Army. Development of the Line of Investment.—We
know, from the “Commentaries,” that camp D, on the slopes of Mont Réa,
contained two legions. By comparing its superficies with that of the
other camps, we may admit that these were occupied in the following
manner: in camp A, one legion; in camp B, two legions; in camp C,
three legions; total, eight legions. The three remaining legions would
have been distributed in the twenty-three redoubts. As we have said, the
number of 11,000 paces can evidently only apply to the line of
investment formed by the eight camps and the twenty-three redoubts
established round Alesia immediately after the arrival of the army, and
not, as has been believed, to the countervallation properly so called,
which was only constructed subsequently (VII. 72). This number is
rigorously exact, for the circuit of ground surrounded by the camps
measures a little more than sixteen kilomètres, which represents 11,000
Roman paces.
The Fosse of Twenty Feet.—This fosse has been discovered in its whole
extent: it barred the plain of Laumes, following a direction
perpendicular to the course of the Ose and the Oserain, and did not go
round Mont Auxois. Plate 28 represents two of its most remarkable
sections. It was not exactly twenty feet in width, as stated in the
“Commentaries;” neither was it everywhere 400 paces distant from the
countervallation. This measurement is only exact towards the extremities
of the fosse, near the two rivers.
Countervallation.—Vercingetorix, having retired to the plateau of
Alesia, could only have escaped by the plain of Laumes, and, at the
worst, by the valley of the Rabutin; for the spurs situated to the
south, the east, and the north of Mont Auxois are surmounted by a belt
of perpendicular rocks, which form insurmountable barriers, and the
valleys of the Oserain and the Ose, which divide them, constitute
veritable defiles. It became important, therefore, to bar the plain of
Laumes with impregnable works. Hence Cæsar accumulated there the means
of defence; but he simplified them everywhere else, as the excavations
have shown.
These are the works, peculiar to the plain of Laumes, which Cæsar
describes in chapters 72 and 73. The traces of the two fosses exist
over the whole extent of the plain, from one river to the other. They
had not the same form: the one nearest to Mont Auxois is
square-bottomed; the other is triangular. (See Plates 27 and 28.) The
width of the first is fifteen feet, as stated in the text; that of the
triangular fosse is fifteen feet at certain points, but more frequently
a little less. The two fosses have the same depth; but it does not reach
fifteen feet, as the translators have wrongly understood it. To dig a
fosse of fifteen feet deep is so considerable a work, on account of the
two stages of workmen which it requires, that it has, perhaps, never
been executed for a temporary fortification. Moreover, the result of the
excavations leaves no doubt on this subject: the two fosses of the
countervallation have both only a depth of from eight to nine feet.
The fosse which is nearest Mont Auxois was filled with water. The Romans
had naturally introduced the water into that of the two fosses which,
owing to its square bottom, could contain the most considerable volume.
A careful level made in the plain of Laumes has proved that this water
was derived from the Oserain. During the excavations, the gravel has
been found which the water of this river had carried with it, at the
time of the investment of Alesia, almost to the middle of the length of
the fosse.
To the left of the Oserain, the countervallation cut the first slopes of
the hill of Flavigny for a length of 800 mètres; thence it continued,
having but one fosse, the various sections of which are indicated on
Plate 28. It ran at first along the left bank of the river, at a mean
distance of fifty mètres, as far as the mill of Chantrier, then cut the
western extremity of Mont Penneville, between the Oserain and the Ose,
followed the right bank of the latter river, along the slopes of the
mountain of Bussy, and, after having crossed the small plain of
Grésigny, joined the camp established at the foot of Mont Réa. Nearly
everywhere the Romans had the advantage of a commanding position to
defend the countervallation. The excavations have proved that in the
plain of Grésigny the fosse of the countervallation had been filled with
water from the Rabutin. They have led to the discovery in the ancient
bed of this stream (see Plate 25), at the very point where the fosse
joined it, of a wall of unhewn stones, which barred the waters so as to
conduct them into this fosse.[538]
Circumvallation.—Over the extent of the plain of Laumes, and on the
slopes of the mountain of Flavigny, the circumvallation was parallel to
the countervallation, at a mean distance of 200 mètres. It had only one
single fosse, which in the plain was square-bottomed, so as to allow
more soil to be dug out; everywhere else its form was triangular. (See
Plate 28.) The circumvallation of the mountain of Flavigny ceased
towards the escarpments, where the defences became useless; then, again,
it continued on the plateau, where it formed the connection between the
camps. After this, it descended towards the Oserain, cut the point of
Mont Penneville, re-ascended the slopes of the mountain of Bussy, where
it similarly united the camps, descended into the plain of Grésigny,
which it crossed in a direction parallel to the countervallation, and
ended at camp D. On the heights it was made to follow the undulations
of the ground, so that its defenders should occupy as much as possible a
commanding position with respect to that of the assailants. Moreover,
the works of the circumvallation were not everywhere the same. Thus,
near the escarpments and ravines which cut this line, the Romans had
made no fosse with epaulment, but only accessory defences, such as
abatis and wolf-pits, which even alternated on divers points.
Above the castellum 21, between Grésigny and Mont Réa, the excavations
have brought to light a fosse of great dimensions, the bottom of which
was full of bones of animals of divers kinds. Its position, near a small
ravine in which runs a brook, may lead us to suppose that here was the
abattoir of the Roman army. In considering this fosse, and those which
have been discovered on the top and on the slopes of Mont Réa, as
forming part of the circumvallation, there will be found for the
development of this line about twenty kilomètres, which represents with
sufficient accuracy the fourteen miles of the text of the
“Commentaries.”[539]
Wolf-pits.—In the plain of Laumes, at the top of the circumvallation,
and close to the exterior bank of the fosse, there have been counted
more than fifty wolf-pits, in five rows. Others have been cleared out on
the heights—nine between the camp A and the escarpments, twenty-seven
on the mountain of Bussy, near the castellum 15; they are dug in the
rock, and in such a perfect state of preservation that they appear as
though they had been made but yesterday. At the bottom of some of these
last, fifteen arrow-heads were picked up. All these wolf-pits are three
feet deep, two feet in diameter at the top, and a little less than one
foot at the bottom.
Gaulish Camp.—During the first days of the investment, the besieged
encamped on the slopes of Mont Auxois, towards the eastern part of the
hill. They were protected by a fosse and a wall of unhewn stones six
feet high. We have traced the site of this camp at P Q R S on Plate
25. The excavations have brought to light, in the direction of Q R on
the slopes which shelve towards the Oserain, traces of fosses and
remains of walls. On the plateau of Mont Auxois it might be interesting
to attempt to discover the ancient Gaulish wall. It has been uncovered
in pieces here and there over the whole space of the declivities; hence
it may be concluded that the town occupied the whole of the plateau.
A remarkable specimen of this wall is visible at a point of Mont Auxois,
near the spot where recently the statue of Vercingetorix has been
erected.
As to the camps of the army of succour, it is probable that the Gauls
did not form any retrenchments on the hills where they established
themselves.
Expedition against the Bituriges and Carnutes.
I. THE capture of Alesia and that of Vercingetorix, in spite of the
united efforts of all Gaul, naturally gave Cæsar hopes of a general
submission; and he therefore believed that he could leave his army,
during the winter, to rest quietly in its quarters from the hard labours
which had lasted, without interruption, during the whole of the past
summer. But the spirit of insurrection was not extinct among the Gauls;
and convinced by experience that, whatever might be their number, they
could not, in a body, cope with troops inured to war, they resolved, by
partial insurrections, raised on all points at once, to divide the
attention and the forces of the Romans, as their only chance of
resisting them with advantage.
Cæsar was unwilling to leave them time to realise this new plan, but
gave the command of his winter quarters to his quæstor Mark Antony,
quitted Bibracte on the day before the Calends of January (the 25th of
December), with an escort of cavalry, joined the 13th legion, which was
in winter quarters among the Bituriges, not far from the frontier of the
Ædui, and called to him the 11th legion, which was the nearest at hand.
Having left two cohorts of each legion to guard the baggage, he
proceeded towards the fertile country of the Bituriges, a vast
territory, where the presence of a single legion was insufficient to put
a stop to the preparations for insurrection.
His sudden arrival in the midst of men without distrust, who were spread
over the open country, produced the result which he expected. They were
surprised before they could enter into their oppida, for Cæsar had
strictly forbidden everything which might have raised their suspicion,
especially the application of fire, which usually betrays the sudden
presence of an enemy. Several thousands of captives were made; those who
succeeded in escaping sought in vain a refuge among the neighbouring
nations. Cæsar, by forced marches, came up with them everywhere, and
obliged each tribe to think of its own safety before that of others.
This activity held the populations in their fidelity, and, through fear,
engaged the wavering to submit to the conditions of peace. Thus the
Bituriges, seeing that Cæsar offered them an easy way to recover his
protection, and that the neighbouring states had suffered no other
chastisement than that of having to deliver hostages, did not hesitate
in submitting.
The soldiers of the 11th and 13th legions had, during the winter,
supported with rare constancy the fatigues of very difficult marches, in
intolerable cold. To reward them, he promised to give, by way of
prize-money, 200 sestertii to each soldier, and 2,000 to each centurion.
He then sent them into their winter quarters, and returned to Bibracte,
after an absence of forty days. Whilst he was there dispensing justice,
the Bituriges came to implore his support against the attacks of the
Carnutes. Although it was only eighteen days since he returned, he
marched again, at the head of two legions, the 6th and the 14th, which
had been placed on the Saône to ensure the supply of provisions.
On his approach, the Carnutes, taught by the fate of others, abandoned
their miserable huts, which they had erected on the site of their burgs
and oppida destroyed in the last campaign, and fled in every
direction. Cæsar, unwilling to expose his soldiers to the rigour of the
season, established his camp at Genabum (Gien), and lodged his
soldiers partly in the huts which had remained undestroyed, partly in
tents, under penthouses covered with straw. The cavalry and auxiliary
infantry were sent in pursuit of the Carnutes, who, hunted down
everywhere, and without shelter, took refuge in the neighbouring
countries.[541]
Campaign against the Bellovaci.
II. After having dispersed some rebellious meetings and stifled the
germs of an insurrection, Cæsar believed that the summer would pass
without any serious war. He left, therefore, at Genabum, the two legions
he had with him, and gave the command of them to C. Trebonius.
Nevertheless, he learnt, by several intimations from the Remi, that the
Bellovaci and neighbouring peoples, with Correus and Commius at their
head, were collecting troops to make an inroad on the territory of the
Suessiones, who had been placed, since the campaign of 697, under the
dependence of the Remi.
He then considered that it regarded his interest, as well as his
dignity, to protect allies who had deserved so well of the Republic. He
again drew the 11th legion from its winter quarters, sent written orders
to C. Fabius, who was encamped in the country of the Remi, to bring into
that of the Suessiones the two legions under his command, and demanded
one of his legions from Labienus, who was at Besançon. Thus, without
taking any rest himself, he shared the fatigues among the legions by
turns, as far as the position of the winter quarters and the necessities
of the war permitted.
When this army was assembled, he marched against the Bellovaci,
established his camp on their territory, and sent cavalry in every
direction, in order to make some prisoners, and learn from them the
designs of the enemy. The cavalry reported that the emigration was
general, and that the few inhabitants who were to be seen were not
remaining behind in order to apply themselves to agriculture, but to act
as spies upon the Romans. Cæsar, by interrogating the prisoners, learnt
that all the Bellovaci able to fight had assembled on one spot, and that
they had been joined by the Ambiani, the Aulerci,[542] the Caletes, the
Veliocasses, and the Atrebates. Their camp was in a forest, on a height
surrounded by marshes (Mont Saint-Marc, in the forest of Compiègne)
(see Plate 29); their baggage had been transported to more distant
woods. The command was divided among several chiefs, but the greater
part obeyed Correus, on account of his well-known hatred to the Romans.
Commius had, a few days before, gone to seek succour from the numerous
Germans who lived in great numbers in the neighbouring countries
(probably those on the banks of the Meuse). The Bellovaci resolved with
one accord to give Cæsar battle, if, as report said, he was advancing
with only three legions, for they would not run the risk of having
afterwards to encounter his entire army. If, on the contrary, the Romans
were advancing with more considerable forces, they proposed to keep
their positions, and confine themselves to intercepting, by means of
ambuscades, the provisions and forage, which were very scarce at that
season.
This plan, confirmed by many reports, seemed to Cæsar full of prudence,
and altogether contrary to the usual rashness of the barbarians. He
took, therefore, every possible care to dissimulate the number of his
troops; he had with him the 7th, 8th, and 9th legions, composed of old
soldiers of tried valour, and the 11th, which, formed of picked young
men who had gone through eight campaigns, deserved his confidence,
although it could not be compared with the others with regard to bravery
and experience in war. In order to deceive the enemies by showing them
only three legions, the only number they were willing to fight, he
placed the 7th, 8th, and 9th in one line; whilst the baggage, which was
not very considerable, was placed behind, under the protection of the
11th legion, which closed the march. In this order, which formed almost
a square, he came unawares in sight of the Bellovaci. At the unexpected
view of the legions, which advanced in order of battle and with a firm
step, they lost their courage; and instead of attacking, as they had
engaged to do, they confined themselves to drawing themselves up before
their camp, without leaving the height. A valley, deeper than it was
wide (magis in altitudinem depressa quam late patente), separated the
two armies. On account of this obstacle and the numerical superiority of
the barbarians, Cæsar, though he had wished for battle, abandoned the
idea of attacking them, and placed his camp opposite that of the Gauls,
in a strong position (the camp of Saint Pierre-en-Chatre [in Castris],
in the forest of Compiègne).[543] (See Plates 29 and 30.) He caused it
to be surrounded with a parapet twelve feet high, surmounted with
accessory works, proportioned to the importance of the retrenchment
(loriculamque pro ratione ejus altitudinis),[544] and preceded by a
double fosse, fifteen feet wide, with a square bottom;[545] towers of
three stories were constructed from distance to distance, and united
together by covered bridges, the exterior part of which was protected by
hurdle-work. In this manner, the camp was protected not only by a double
fosse, but also by a double row of defenders, some of whom, placed on
the bridges, could, from this elevated and sheltered position, throw
their missiles farther and with a better aim; while the others, placed
on the vallum, nearer to the enemy, were protected by the bridges from
the missiles which showered down upon them. The entrances were defended
by means of higher towers, and were closed with gates.
These formidable retrenchments had a double aim: to increase the
confidence of the barbarians, by making them believe that they were
feared; and, next, to allow the number of the garrison to be reduced
with safety, when they had to go far for provisions. For some days there
were no serious engagements, but slight skirmishes in the marshy plain
which extended between the two camps. The capture, however, of a few
foragers did not fail to swell the presumption of the barbarians, which
was still more increased by the arrival of Commius, although he had
brought only 500 German cavalry.
The enemies remained for several days shut up in their impregnable
position. Cæsar judged that an assault would cost too many lives; an
investment alone seemed to him opportune, but it would require a greater
number of troops. He wrote thereupon to Trebonius to send him as soon as
possible the 13th legion, which, under the command of T. Sextius, was in
winter quarters among the Bituriges; to join it with the 6th and the
14th, which the first of these lieutenants commanded at Genabum, and to
come himself with these three legions by forced marches. During this
time he employed the numerous cavalry of the Remi, the Lingones, and the
other allies, to protect the foragers and to prevent surprises. But this
daily service, as is often the case, ended by being negligently
performed; and one day the Remi, pursuing the Bellovaci with too much
ardour, fell into an ambuscade. In withdrawing, they were surrounded by
foot-soldiers, in the midst of whom Vertiscus, their chief, met with his
death. True to his Gaulish manner, he would not allow his age to
dispense him from commanding and mounting on horseback, although he was
hardly able to keep his seat. His death and this feeble advantage raised
the self-confidence of the barbarians still more, but it rendered the
Romans more circumspect. Nevertheless, in one of the skirmishes which
were continually taking place within sight of the two camps, about the
fordable places of the marsh, the German infantry, which Cæsar had sent
for from beyond the Rhine, in order to mix them with the cavalry, joined
in a body, boldly crossed the marsh, and, meeting with little
resistance, continued the pursuit with such impetuosity that fear seized
not only the enemies who fought, but even those who were in reserve.
Instead of availing themselves of the advantages of the ground, all fled
cowardly; they did not stop till they were within their camp, and some
even were not ashamed to fly beyond it. This defeat caused a general
discouragement, for the Gauls were as easily damped by the least reverse
as they became arrogant on the smallest success.
Day after day was passing in this manner, when Cæsar was informed of the
arrival of C. Trebonius and his troops, which raised the number of his
legions to seven. The chiefs of the Bellovaci then feared an investment
like that of Alesia, and resolved to quit their position. They sent away
by night the old men, the infirm, the unarmed men, and the part of the
baggage which they had kept with them. Scarcely was this confused
multitude in motion, embarrassed with its own mass and its numerous
chariots, when daylight surprised it, and the troops had to be drawn up
in line before the camp, to give the column time to move away. Cæsar saw
no advantage either in giving battle to those who were in position, or,
on account of the steepness of the hill, in pursuing those who were
making their retreat; he resolved, nevertheless, to make two legions
advance in order to disturb the enemy in his retreat. Having observed
that the mountain on which the Gauls were established was connected with
another height (Mont Collet), from which it was only separated by a
narrow valley, he ordered bridges to be thrown on the marsh; the legions
crossed over them, and soon attained the summit of the height, which was
defended on both sides by abrupt declivities. There he collected his
troops, and advanced in order of battle up to the extremity of the
plateau, whence the engines, placed in battery, could reach the masses
of the enemy with their missiles.
The barbarians, rendered confident by the advantage of their position,
were ready to accept battle, if the Romans dared to attack the mountain;
besides, they were afraid to withdraw their troops successively, as, if
divided, they might have been thrown into disorder. This attitude led
Cæsar to resolve on leaving twenty cohorts under arms, and on tracing a
camp on this spot, and retrenching it. When the works were completed,
the legions were placed before the retrenchments, and the cavalry
distributed with their horses bridled at the outposts. The Bellovaci had
recourse to a stratagem in order to effect their retreat. They passed
from hand to hand the fascines and the straw on which, according to the
Gaulish custom, they were in the habit of sitting, preserving at the
same time their order of battle, placed them in front of the camp, and,
towards the close of the day, on a preconcerted signal, set fire to
them. Immediately a vast flame concealed from the Romans the Gaulish
troops, who fled in haste.
Although the fire prevented Cæsar from seeing the retreat of the enemy,
he suspected it. He ordered his legions to advance, and sent the cavalry
in pursuit; but he marched only slowly, for fear of some stratagem, as
the barbarians might have formed the design of drawing the Romans to a
disadvantageous ground. Besides, the cavalry did not dare to ride
through the smoke and flames; and thus the Bellovaci were able to pass
over a distance of ten miles, and halt in a place strongly fortified by
nature, Mont Ganelon, where they pitched their camp. In this position,
they confined themselves to placing cavalry and infantry in frequent
ambuscades, thus inflicting great damage on the Romans when they went to
forage.[546]
Battle on the Aisne.
III. After several encounters of this kind, Cæsar learnt by a prisoner
that Correus, chief of the Bellovaci, with 6,000 picked infantry and
1,000 horsemen, were preparing an ambuscade in the places where the
abundance of corn and forage was likely to attract the Romans. In
consequence of this information, he sent forward the cavalry, which was
always employed to protect the foragers, and joined with them some
light-armed auxiliaries; and he himself, with a greater number of
legions, followed them as near as possible.
The enemy had posted themselves in a plain (that of Choisy-au-Bac) of
about 1,000 paces wide in every direction, and surrounded on one side by
forests, on the other by a river which was difficult to pass (the
Aisne). The cavalry were acquainted with the designs of the Gauls;
feeling themselves supported, they advanced resolutely, in squadrons,
towards this plain, which was surrounded with ambushes on all sides.
Correus, seeing them arrive in this manner, believed the opportunity
favourable for the execution of his plan, and began by attacking the
first squadrons with a few men. The Romans sustained the shock, without
concentrating themselves in a mass on the same point, “which,” says
Hirtius, “happens usually in cavalry engagements, and leads always to a
dangerous confusion.” There, on the contrary, the squadrons remained
separated, fought in detached bodies, and, when one of them advanced,
its flanks were protected by the others. Correus then ordered the rest
of his cavalry to issue from the woods. An obstinate combat began on all
sides, without any decisive result, until the enemy’s infantry,
debouching from the forest in close ranks, forced the Roman cavalry to
fall back. The lightly-armed soldiers, who preceded the legions, placed
themselves between the squadrons, and restored the fortune of the
combat. After a certain time, the troops, animated by the approach of
the legions and the arrival of Cæsar, and ambitious of obtaining alone
the honour of the victory, redoubled their efforts, and gained the
advantage. The enemies, on the other hand, were discouraged and took to
flight; but they were stopped by the very obstacles which they intended
to throw in the way of the Romans. A small number, nevertheless, escaped
through the forest and crossed the river. Correus, who remained unshaken
under this catastrophe, obstinately refused to surrender, and fell
pierced with wounds.
After this success, Cæsar hoped that, if he continued his march, the
enemy, in dismay, would abandon his camp, which was only eight miles
from the field of battle. He therefore crossed the Aisne, though not
without great difficulties.
The Bellovaci and their allies, informed by the fugitives of the death
of Correus, of the loss of their cavalry and the flower of their
infantry, fearing every moment to see the Romans appear, convoked, by
sound of trumpets, a general assembly, and decided by acclamation to
send deputies and hostages to the proconsul. The barbarians implored
forgiveness, alleging that this last defeat had ruined their power, and
that the death of Correus, the instigator of the war, delivered them
from oppression, for during his life it was not the Senate who
governed, but an ignorant multitude. To their prayers, Cæsar replied,
“that last year the Bellovaci had revolted in concert with the other
Gaulish peoples, but that they alone had persisted in the revolt. It was
very convenient to throw their faults upon those who were dead; but how
could it be believed that, with nothing but the help of a weak populace,
a man should have had sufficient influence to raise and sustain a war,
contrary to the will of the chiefs, the decision of the Senate, and the
desire of honest people? However, the evil which they had drawn upon
themselves was for him a sufficient reparation.”
The following night the Bellovaci and their allies submitted, with the
exception of Commius, who fled to the country whence he had recently
drawn succours. He had not dared to trust the Romans for the following
reason: the year before, in the absence of Cæsar, T. Labienus, informed
that Commius was conspiring and preparing an insurrection, thought that,
without accusing him of bad faith, says Hirtius, he could repress his
treason. Under pretext of an interview, he sent C. Volusenus Quadratus
with some centurions to kill him; but, when they were in the presence of
the Gaulish chief, the centurion who was to strike him missed his blow,
and only wounded him; swords were drawn on both sides, and Commius had
time to escape.[547]
Devastation of the Country of the Eburones.
IV. The most warlike tribes had been vanquished, and none of them dreamt
of further revolt. Nevertheless, many inhabitants of the
newly-conquered countries abandoned the towns and the fields in order to
withdraw themselves from the Roman dominion. Cæsar, in order to put a
stop to this emigration, distributed his army into different countries.
He ordered the quæstor Mark Antony to come to him, with the 12th legion,
and sent the lieutenant Fabius with twenty-five cohorts into an opposite
part of Gaul (to the country situated between the Creuse and the
Vienne), where it was said that several peoples were in arms, and where
the lieutenant Caninius Rebilus, who commanded with two legions,
appeared not to be sufficiently strong;[548] lastly, he ordered T.
Labienus to join him in person, and to send the 15th legion,[549] which
he had under his command, into Cisalpine Gaul, to protect the colonies
of Roman citizens there against the sudden inroads of the barbarians,
who, the summer before, had attacked the Tergestini (the inhabitants of
Trieste).
As for Cæsar, he proceeded with four legions to the territory of the
Eburones, to lay it waste; as he could not secure Ambiorix, who was
still wandering at large, he thought it advisable to destroy everything
by fire and sword, persuaded that this chief would never dare to return
to a country on which he had brought such a terrible calamity: the
legions and the auxiliaries were charged with this execution. Then, he
sent Labienus with two legions to the country of the Treviri, who,
always at war with the Germans, were only kept in obedience by the
presence of a Roman army.[550]
Expedition against Dumnacus.
V. During this time, Caninius Rebilus, who had first been appointed to
go into the country of the Ruteni, but who had been detained by partial
insurrections in the region situated between the Creuse and the Vienne,
learnt that numerous hostile bands were assembling in the country of the
Pictones; he was informed of this by letters from Duratius, their king,
who, amid the defection of a part of his people, had remained invariably
faithful to the Romans. He started immediately for Lemonum (Poitiers).
On the road, he learnt from prisoners that Duratius was shut up there,
and besieged by several thousand men under the orders of Dumnacus, chief
of the Andes. Rebilus, at the head of two weak legions, did not dare to
measure his strength with the enemy; he contented himself with
establishing his camp in a strong position. At the news of his approach,
Dumnacus raised the siege, and marched to meet the legions. But, after
several days’ fruitless attempts to force their camp, he returned to
attack Lemonum.
Meanwhile, the lieutenant Caius Fabius, occupied in pacifying several
peoples, learnt from Caninius Rebilus what was going on in the country
of the Pictones; he marched without delay to the assistance of
Duratius. The news of the march of Fabius deprived Dumnacus of all hope
of opposing at the same time the troops shut up in Lemonum and the army
of succour. He abandoned the siege again in great haste, not thinking
himself safe until he had placed the Loire between him and the Romans;
but he could only pass that river where there was a bridge (at Saumur).
Before he had joined Rebilus, before he had even obtained a sight of the
enemy, Fabius, who came from the north, and had lost no time, doubted
not, from what he heard from the people of the country, that Dumnacus,
in his fear, had taken the road which led to that bridge. He therefore
marched thither with his legions, preceded, at a short distance, by his
cavalry. The latter surprised the column of Dumnacus on its march,
dispersed it, and returned to the camp laden with booty.
During the night of the following day, Fabius again sends his cavalry
forward, with orders to delay the march of the enemy, so as to give time
for the arrival of the infantry. The two cavalries are soon engaged; but
the enemy, thinking that he had to contend only with the same troops as
the day before, draws up his infantry in line, so as to support the
squadrons, when, suddenly, the legions appear in order of battle. At
this sight, the barbarians are struck with terror, the long train of
baggage is thrown into confusion, and they disperse. More than 12,000
men were killed, and all the baggage fell into the hands of the Romans.
Only 5,000 fugitives escaped from this rout; they were received by the
Senonan Drappes, the same who, in the first revolt of the Gauls, had
collected a crowd of vagabonds, slaves, exiles, and robbers, to
intercept the convoys of the Romans. They took the direction of the
Narbonnese with the Cadurcan Lucterius, who, as has been seen in the
preceding chapter (p. 275), had before attempted a similar invasion.
Rebilus pursued them with two legions, in order to avoid the shame of
seeing the province suffering any injury from such a contemptible
rabble.
As for Fabius, he led the twenty-five cohorts against the Carnutes and
the other peoples, whose forces had already been reduced by the defeat
they had just experienced with Dumnacus. The Carnutes, though often
beaten, had never been completely subdued; they gave hostages; the
Armorican peoples followed their example. Dumnacus, driven out of his
own territory, went to seek a refuge in the remotest part of Gaul.[551]
Capture of Uxellodunum.
VI. Drappes and Lucterius, when they learnt that they were pursued by
Rebilus and his two legions, gave up the design of penetrating into the
province; they halted in the country of the Cadurci, and threw
themselves into the oppidum of Uxellodunum (Puy-d’Issolu, near
Vayrac), an exceedingly strong place, formerly under the dependence of
Lucterius, who soon excited the inhabitants into revolt.
Rebilus appeared immediately before the town, which, surrounded on all
sides by steep rocks, was, even without being defended, difficult of
access to armed men. Knowing that there was in the oppidum so great a
quantity of baggage that the besieged could not send them secretly away
without being overtaken by the cavalry, and even by the infantry, he
divided his cohorts into three bodies, and established three camps on
the highest points. (See Plate 31.) Next, he ordered a
countervallation to be made. On seeing these preparations, the besieged
remembered the ill fortune of Alesia, and feared a similar fate.
Lucterius, who had witnessed the horrors of famine during the investment
of that town, took especial care for the provisions, and, with the
consent of all, having 2,000 men in Uxellodunum, he left by night, with
Drappes and the rest of the troops, to procure them.
After a few days they collected, by good-will or by force, a great
quantity of provisions. During this time the garrison of the oppidum
attacked the redoubts of Rebilus several times, which obliged him to
interrupt the work of the countervallation, which, indeed, he would not
have had sufficient forces to defend.
Drappes and Lucterius established themselves at a distance of ten miles
from the oppidum, with the intention of introducing the provisions
gradually. They shared the duties between them. Drappes remained with
part of the troops to protect the camp. Lucterius, during the
night-time, endeavoured to introduce beasts of burden into the town, by
a narrow and woody path. The noise of their march gave warning to the
sentries. Rebilus, informed of what was going on, ordered the cohorts to
sally from the neighbouring redoubts, and at daybreak fell upon the
convoy, the escort of which was slaughtered. Lucterius, having escaped
with a small number of his followers, was unable to rejoin Drappes.
Rebilus soon learnt from prisoners that the rest of the troops which had
left the oppidum were with Drappes at a distance of twelve miles, and
that, by a fortunate chance, not one fugitive had taken that direction
to carry him news of the last combat. The Roman general sent in advance
all the cavalry and the light German infantry; he followed them with one
legion without baggage, leaving the other as a guard to the three camps.
When he came near the enemy, he learnt by his scouts that the
barbarians, according to their custom, neglecting the heights, had
placed their camp on the banks of a river (probably the Dordogne); that
the Germans and the cavalry had surprised them, and that they were
already fighting. Rebilus then advanced rapidly at the head of the
legion, drawn up in order of battle, and took possession of the heights.
As soon as the ensigns appeared, the cavalry redoubled their ardour, the
cohorts rush forward from all sides, the Gauls were taken or killed, the
booty was immense, and Drappes fell into the hands of the Romans.
Rebilus, after this successful exploit, which cost him but a few
wounded, returned under the walls of Uxellodunum. Fearing no longer any
attack from without, he set resolutely to work to continue his
circumvallation. The day after, C. Fabius arrived, followed by his
troops, and shared with him the labours of the siege.
While the south of Gaul was the scene of serious troubles, Cæsar left
the quæstor Mark Antony, with fifteen cohorts, in the country of the
Bellovaci. To deprive the Belgæ of all idea of revolt, he had proceeded
to the neighbouring countries with two legions, had exacted hostages,
and restored confidence by his conciliating speeches. When he arrived
among the Carnutes, who, the year before, had been the first to revolt,
he saw that the remembrance of their conduct kept them in great alarm,
and he resolved to put an end to it by causing his vengeance to fall
only upon Gutruatus, the instigator of the war. This man was brought and
delivered up; and although Cæsar was naturally inclined to indulgence,
he could not resist the tumultuous entreaties of his soldiers, who made
that chief responsible for all the dangers they had run, and for all the
misery they had suffered. Gutruatus died under the stripes, and was
afterwards beheaded.
It was in the land of the Carnutes that Cæsar received news, by the
letters of Rebilus, of the events which had taken place at Uxellodunum,
and of the resistance of the besieged. Although a handful of men shut up
in a fortress was not very formidable, he judged it necessary to punish
their obstinacy, for fear that the Gauls should acquire the conviction
that it was not strength, but constancy, which had failed them in
resisting the Romans; and lest this example might encourage the other
states, which possessed fortresses advantageously situated, to recover
their independence.
Moreover, it was known everywhere amongst the Gauls that Cæsar had only
one summer more to hold his command, and that after that they would
have nothing more to fear. He left, therefore, the lieutenant Quintus
Calenus[552] at the head of his two legions, with orders to follow him
by ordinary marches, and with his cavalry he hastened by long marches
towards Uxellodunum.
Cæsar, arriving unexpectedly before that town, found it completely
invested on all accessible points. He judged that it could not be taken
by assault (neque ab oppugnatione recedi videret ulla conditione
posse), and, as it was abundantly provided with provisions, he
conceived the project of depriving the inhabitants of water. The
mountain was surrounded nearly on every side by very low ground; but on
one side there existed a valley through which a river (the Tourmente)
ran. As it flowed at the foot of two precipitous mountains, the
disposition of the localities did not admit of turning it aside and
conducting it into lower channels. It was difficult for the besieged to
come down to it, and the Romans rendered the approaches to it still more
dangerous. They placed posts of archers and slingers, and brought
engines which commanded all the slopes which gave access to the river.
The besieged had thenceforth no other means of procuring water but by
fetching it from an abundant spring which arose at the foot of the wall,
300 feet from the channel of the Tourmente. (See Plate 31.) Cæsar
resolved to drain this spring, and for this purpose he did not hesitate
to attempt a laborious undertaking: opposite the point where it rose, he
ordered covered galleries to be pushed forwards against the mountain,
and, under protection of these, a terrace to be raised, labours which
were carried on in the middle of continual fights and incessant
fatigues. Although the besieged, from their elevated position, fought
without danger, and wounded many Romans, yet the latter did not yield to
discouragement, but continued their task. At the same time they made a
subterranean gallery, which, running from the covered galleries, was
intended to lead up to the spring. This work, carried on free from all
danger, was executed without being perceived by the enemy; the terrace
attained a height of sixty feet, and was surmounted by a tower of ten
stories, which, without equalling the elevation of the wall, a result it
was impossible to obtain, still commanded the fountain. (See Plate
32.) Its approaches, battered by engines from the top of this tower,
became inaccessible; in consequence of this, many men and animals in the
place died of thirst. The besieged, terrified at this mortality, filled
barrels with pitch, grease, and shavings, and rolled them in flames upon
the Roman works, making at the same time a sally, so as to prevent them
from extinguishing the fire; soon it spread to the covered galleries and
the terrace, which stopped the progress of the inflammable materials.
Notwithstanding the difficulty of the ground and the increasing danger,
the Romans still persevered in their struggle. The battle took place on
a height, within sight of the army; loud cries were raised on both
sides; each individual sought to rival his fellows in zeal, and the more
he was exposed to view, the more courageously he faced the missiles and
the fire.
Cæsar, as he was sustaining great loss, determined to feign an assault,
in order to create a diversion: he ordered some cohorts to climb the
hill on all sides, uttering loud cries. This movement terrified the
besieged, who, fearing to be attacked on other points, called back to
the defence of the wall those who were setting fire to the works. Then
the Romans were able to extinguish the fire. Nevertheless, the siege
span out in length; the Gauls, although exhausted by thirst and reduced
to a small number, did not cease to defend themselves vigorously. At
length, the subterranean gallery having reached the veins of the spring,
they were taken and turned aside. The besieged, seeing the fountain all
at once dried up, believed, in their despair, that it was an
intervention of the gods, submitted to necessity, and surrendered.
Cæsar considered that the pacification of Gaul would never be completed
if the same resistance was encountered in many other towns. He thought
it indispensable to spread terror by a severe example, so much the more
as “the well-known mildness of his temper,” says Hirtius, “would not
allow this necessary rigour to be ascribed to cruelty.” He ordered all
those who had carried arms to have their hands cut off, and sent them
away, as living witnesses of the chastisement reserved for rebels.
Drappes, who had been taken prisoner, starved himself to death;
Lucterius, who had been arrested by the Arvernan Epasnactus, a friend of
the Romans, was delivered up to Cæsar.[553]
Excavations made at Puy-d’Issolu.
VII. The excavations made at Puy-d’Issolu in 1865 leave no further doubt
as to the site of Uxellodunum. (See Plates 31 and 32.)
The Puy d’Issolu is a lofty mountain, situated not far from the right
bank of the Dordogne, between Vayrac and Martel; it is isolated on all
sides except towards the north, where it is joined by a defile of 400
mètres wide (the Col de Roujon) to heights named the Pech-Demont. Its
plateau, crowned by a circle of perpendicular rocks, commands, almost in
every direction, the low ground which surrounds it. This is what the
author of the VIIIth book De Bello Gallico expresses by these words:
Infima vallis totum pæne montem cingebat in quo positum erat præruptum
undique oppidum Uxellodunum. This plateau, with a surface of eighty
hectares in extent, presents strongly-marked undulations: its general
incline lies from the north to the south, in the direction of the length
of the mountain mass; its highest point is 317 mètres above the level of
the sea, and it rises 200 mètres above the valleys which surround it.
The whole eastern slope of the mountain, that which looks towards Vayrac
and the Dordogne, is surmounted with rocks, which have a height of as
much as forty mètres; consequently, no operation took place on this side
during the time of the siege. The western slope alone was the theatre of
the different combats. Its declivities are not inaccessible, especially
between the village of Loulié and the hamlet of Leguillat, but they are
sufficiently abrupt to make the Latin author say: Quo, defendente
nullo, tamen armatis ascendere esset difficile. At the very foot of
this declivity, and at 200 mètres beneath the culminating point of the
plateau, the Tourmente flows, a little river ten mètres broad, embanked
between this declivity and that of the opposite heights: Flumen infimam
vallem dividebat, &c. Such a disposition of the localities, as well as
the slight descent of the Tourmente (one mètre in 1,000), rendered it
impossible to turn off that river. (Hoc flumem averti loci natura
prohibebat, &c.)
There is no spring on the plateau of Puy-d’Issolu; but several issue
from the sides of the mountain, one of which, that of Loulié, is
sufficiently abundant to provide for the necessities of a numerous
population. This was the spring which the Romans succeeded in turning
off. At the time of the siege, it issued from the side of the mountain
at S (see Plate 31), at twenty-five mètres from the wall of the
oppidum, and at a distance of about 300 mètres from the Tourmente.
These 300 mètres make about 200 Roman paces. We see, therefore, that in
the Latin text the word pedum must be replaced by passuum. We also
see that the word circuitus (VIII. 4) must be taken in the sense of
the course of the river.
The “Commentaries” say (VIII. 33) that Rebilus established three camps
in very elevated positions. Their sites are indicated by the nature of
the localities: the first, A, was on the heights of Montbuisson; the
second, B, on those of the Château de Termes; the third, C, opposite
the defile of Roujon, on the Pech-Demont. It appears from the
excavations that the Romans had not retrenched the two first, which is
easily explained, for the heights to the west of the Puy-d’Issolu are
impregnable. Moreover, the Romans at Uxellodunum were not in the same
situation as at Alesia. There they had before them 80,000 men, and in
their rear a very numerous army of succour; here, on the contrary, it
was only a question of reducing a few thousand men. The camp C
required to be protected, because it was possible for troops to descend
from the tableau of the Puy-d’Issolu towards the defile of Roujon,
which, being situated fifty mètres lower down, gives an easy access to
the heights of Pech-Demont. The excavations have, in fact, brought to
light a double line of parallel fosses, which barred the defile behind,
and formed at the same time a countervallation.
The Gauls could only quit the town by this defile, and by the western
slope of the mountain. It became, consequently, interesting to ascertain
if the Romans made a countervallation along the Tourmente, on the slopes
of the heights of the castle of Termes and of Montbuisson.
Unfortunately, the railway from Perigueux to Capdenac, which passes over
the very site where the countervallation might have been made, has
destroyed all traces of the Roman works: the excavations made above this
line have produced no result.
The most interesting discovery was that of the subterranean
gallery.[554] Until the moment when the excavations were commenced, a
part of the rain-water absorbed by the plateau of the Puy-d’Issolu
issued near the village of Loulié by two springs, A and A´. (See
Plate 32.) The spring A´ flows from a ravine, and corresponds to the
thalweg of the slope; as to the source A, it is easily seen by the
appearance of the ground that it has been turned from its natural
course. The excavations, in fact, have proved that it is produced by the
waters which run in the Roman gallery. This gallery has been opened over
an extent of forty mètres. It was dug in a solid mass of tufa nearly ten
mètres thick, which had been formed in the centuries anterior to Cæsar.
Its form is that of a semicircular vault, supported by two perpendicular
sides; its average dimensions are 1·80m. in height, by a width of 1·50
mètres. The mud carried along by the waters, and accumulated since the
time of the siege of Uxellodunum, had almost filled the gallery, leaving
only at the top of the intrados an empty space in the form of a
segment of a circle, with 0·50m. chord by 0·15m. for the absciss of its
curve. Through this empty space the water ran at the time of the
excavations.
Before reaching the tufa, the first subterranean works of the Romans had
been made in the pure soil, which had to be propped: fragments of
blindage have been found, some of them fixed in silicious mud, corroded
or reduced to the state of ligneous paste, others petrified by their
long contact with the waters charged with calcareous sediments. A
considerable number of these petrified blocks, and remains of wood,
collected in the interior of the gallery, are deposited in the museum of
Saint-Germain.
The gallery does not lead directly to the spring which existed in the
time of the Gauls. The Roman miners, after having made their way
straightforward for a length of six mètres, came upon a thick bed of
blue marl of the lias: they turned to their left to avoid digging
through it, and advanced four mètres farther, following the marl, which
they left to the right. When they reached the end of the marls, a
horizontal layer of hard rock, one mètre thick, obliged them to bring
the gallery back to its former direction, and to raise it, in order to
avoid this new obstacle without going out of the tufas, which, formed by
the waters, would necessarily lead towards the spring. (See Plate 32.)
From this second turning, the gallery continued close to the line of
separation of the marls and the tufas. It rose rapidly, until it reached
the limit of the deposits of tufa. At this point blindage had again been
necessary. It was there chiefly that the blocks of petrification
presented a peculiar character: some lay thrown down in the gallery,
pierced by sockets with a rectangular section, which show the dimensions
and the way in which it had been worked; others, with a rounded base,
are veritable uprights, still standing on the rock.
Independently of the excavations made to find the Roman fosses and the
subterranean gallery, others have been made on the slope of Loulié, in
the soil which is near the spring. They have brought to light numerous
fragments of Gaulish pottery and of amphoræ, and, which is a further
confirmation of the identity of the Puy d’Issolu with Uxellodunum,
remains of arms similar in all respects to those found in the fosses of
Alesia.[555] Under the earthfalls which during nineteen centuries have
taken place on the slope of Loulié, all the traces of the fire described
in the “Commentaries” have been also found. The site of the terrace and
the covered galleries which were fired were also traced on the ground.
Plate 32 represents the slope which was the scene of the struggle: the
terrace, the tower, and the covered galleries are represented on it, as
well as the subterranean gallery, according to a very exact survey made
on the spot.
Complete Submission of Gaul.
VIII. Whilst these events were taking place on the banks of the
Dordogne, Labienus, in a cavalry engagement, had gained a decisive
advantage over a part of the Treviri and Germans, had taken prisoner
their chief, and thus subjected that people, who were always ready to
support any insurrection against the Romans. The Æduan Surus fell also
into his hands: he was a chief distinguished for his courage and his
birth, and the only one of that nation who had not yet laid down his
arms.
From that moment Cæsar considered Gaul to be completely pacified; he
resolved, however, to go himself to Aquitaine, which he had not yet
visited, and which Publius Crassus had partly conquered. Arriving there
at the head of two legions, he obtained the complete submission of that
country without difficulty: all the tribes sent him hostages. He
proceeded next to Narbonne with a detachment of cavalry, and charged
his lieutenants to put the army into winter quarters. Four legions,
under the orders of Mark Antony, Caius Trebonius, Publius Vatinius, and
Q. Tullius, were quartered in Belgium; two among the Ædui, and two among
the Turones, on the frontier of the Carnutes, to hold in check all the
countries bordering on the ocean. These two last legions took up their
winter quarters on the territory of the Lemovices, not far from the
Arverni, so that no part of Gaul should be without troops. Cæsar
remained but a short time in the province, presiding hastily over the
assemblies, determining cases of public contestation, and rewarding
those who had served him well. He had had occasion, more than any one,
to know their sentiments individually, because, during the general
revolt of Gaul, the fidelity and succour of the province had aided him
in triumphing over it. When these affairs were settled, he returned to
his legions in Belgium, and took up his winter quarters at Nemetocenna
(Arras).
There he was informed of the last attempts of Commius, who, continuing a
partisan war at the head of a small number of cavalry, intercepted the
Roman convoys. Mark Antony had charged C. Volusenus Quadratus, prefect
of the cavalry, to pursue him; he had accepted the task eagerly, in the
hope of succeeding this time better than the first; but Commius, taking
advantage of the rash ardour with which his enemy had rushed upon him,
had wounded him seriously, and escaped; he was discouraged, however, and
had promised Mark Antony to retire to any spot which should be
appointed him, on condition that he should never be compelled to appear
before a Roman.[556] This condition having been accepted, he had given
hostages.[557]
Gaul was henceforth subjugated; death or slavery had carried off its
principal citizens. Of all the chiefs who had fought for its
independence, only two survived, Commius and Ambiorix. Banished far from
their country, they died unknown.
