The Roman History: The Gallic History (I-V)

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1

AT an early period the Gauls waged war against the [*] Romans, took Rome itself, except the Capitol, and burned it. Camillus, however, overcame and expelled them. At a later period, when they had made a second invasion, he overcame them again and enjoyed a triumph in consequence, being then in his eightieth year. A third army of Gauls which invaded Italy was destroyed by the Romans under Titus Quintius. Afterwards the Boii, the most savage of the Gallic tribes, attacked the Romans. Gaius Sulpicius, the dictator, marched against them, and is said to have used the following stratagem. He commanded those who were in the front line to discharge their javelins, and immediately crouch low; then the second, third, and fourth lines to discharge theirs, each crouching in turn so that they should not be struck by the spears thrown from the rear; then when the last line had hurled their javelins, all were to rush forward suddenly with a shout and join battle at close quarters. The hurling of so many missiles, followed by an immediate charge, would throw the enemy into confusion. The spears of the Gauls were not like javelins, but what the Romans called , four-sided, part wood and part iron, and not hard except at the pointed end. In this way the army of the Boii was completely destroyed by the Romans. [*]

2

Another Gallic force was defeated by Popillius, and [*] after this Camillus, son of the former Camillus, defeated the same tribe. Afterwards AEmilius Pappus won some trophies from the Gauls. Shortly before the consulships of Marius a most numerous and warlike horde of Celtic tribes, most formidable in bodily strength, made incursions into both [*] Italy and Gaul, and defeated some of the Roman consuls, [*] and cut their armies in pieces. Marius was sent against them and he destroyed them all. The latest and greatest war of the Romans against the Gauls was that waged under the command of Caesar, for, in the ten years that he held command there, he fought with more than 4,000,000 barbarians, taken all together. Of these 1,000,000 were captured and as many more slain in battle. He reduced to subjection 400 tribes and more than 800 towns, which had either revolted from their allegiance or were conquered for the first time. Even before Marius, Fabius Maximus AEmilianus with a very small army killed 120,000 of them in one battle, losing only fifteen of his own men; and he did this although suffering from a recent wound, urging and encouraging his troops and showing them how to fight barbarians, now borne on a litter and now hobbling on foot leaning on the arms of others.

3

Caesar began his war against them by gaining a victory over some 200,000 of the Helvetii and Tigurini. The latter at an earlier period had captured a Roman army commanded by Piso and Cassius and sent them under the yoke, as is related in the writings of Paulus Claudius. The Tigurini [*] were now overcome by Labienus, Caesar’s lieutenant, and [*] the others by Caesar himself, together with the Tricorii, who were aiding them. He also overcame the Germans under Ariovistus, a people who excelled all others, even the largest men, in size; savage, the bravest of the brave, despising death because they believe they shall live hereafter, bearing heat and cold with equal patience, living on herbs in time of scarcity, and their horses browsing on trees. It seems that they were without patient endurance in their battles, and did not fight in a scientific way or in any regular order, but with a sort of high spirit simply made an onset like wild beasts, for which reason they were overcome by Roman science and endurance. For, although the Germans made a tremendous rush and pushed the legions back a short distance, the Romans kept their ranks unbroken, and outmanœuvred them, and eventually slew 800000 of them. [*]

4

Afterwards Caesar fell upon the so-called Belgae as they were crossing a river, and killed so many of them that he crossed the stream on a bridge of their bodies. The Nervii defeated him by falling suddenly upon his army as it [*] was getting itself into camp after a march. They made a very great slaughter, killing all of his tribunes and centurions. Caesar himself took refuge on a hill with his bodyguard, and there he was surrounded by the enemy. The latter being assailed in the rear by the tenth legion were destroyed, although they were 60,000 in number. The Nervii were the descendants of the Cimbri and Teutones. [*] Caesar conquered the Allobroges also. He slaughtered [*] 400,000 of the Usipetes and Tenchteri, armed and unarmed together. The Sicambri with 500 horse put to flight 5000 of Caesar’s horse, falling upon them unexpectedly. They subsequently paid the penalty for this in a defeat.

5

Caesar was also the first of the Romans to cross the Rhine. He also passed over to Britain, an island larger than a very large continent, and still unknown to the men of Rome. He crossed by taking advantage of the movement of the tide. As it rose the fleet was impelled by the waves, slowly at first, then more rapidly, until finally Caesar was carried with great swiftness to Britain.

[*] In the 97th Olympiad, according to the Greek calendar, a considerable part of the Gauls who dwelt along the Rhine moved off in search of new land, that which they occupied being insufficient for their numbers. Having scaled the Alps they fell upon the territory of Clusium, a fertile part of Etruria. The Clusians had made a league with the Romans not long before, and now applied to them for aid. So the three Fabii were sent with the Clusians as ambassadors to the Gauls to order them to vacate the country that was in alliance with Rome, and to threaten them if they did not obey. The Gauls replied that they feared no mortal man in threat or war, that they were in need of land, and that they had not yet meddled with the affairs of the Romans. The Fabii urged the Clusians to make an attack upon the Gauls while they were heedlessly plundering the country. They took part in the expedition themselves and slew an immense number of the Gauls whom they caught foraging. Quintus Fabius, one of the Roman embassy, himself killed the chief of that band, stripped his body, and [*] carried his arms back to Clusium.

After the Fabii had slain this large number of Gauls, Brennus, their king, though he had refused to recognize the Roman embassy, for the purpose of intimidating the Romans selected as ambassadors to them certain Gauls who exceeded all the others in bodily size as much as the Gauls exceeded other peoples, and sent them to Rome to complain that the Fabii, while serving as ambassadors, had joined in war against him, contrary to the law of nations. He demanded that they should be given up to him for punishment unless the Romans wished to make the crime their own. The Romans acknowledged that the Fabii had done wrong, but having great respect for that distinguished family, they urged the Gauls to accept a pecuniary compensation from them. As the latter refused, they elected the Fabii military tribunes for that year, and then said to the Gallic ambassadors that they could not do anything to the Fabii now because they were now holding office, but told them to come again next year if they were still in a bad humor. Brennus and the Gauls under him considered this an insult and took it hard. Accordingly they sent around to the other Gauls asking them to make common cause of war with them. When a large number had collected in obedience to this summons they broke camp and marched against Rome. [*]

[*] He (Caedicius) promised to carry letters through the [*] enemy’s ranks to the Capitol.

When Caedicius bore the decree of the Senate to Camillus, by which he was made consul, he exhorted him not to lay up against his country the injury it had done him. The latter, interrupting him, said: I could not have prayed to the gods that the Romans might some time long for me if I had cherished any such feeling as that towards them. Now I pray the nobler prayer that I may render my country a service equal to the calamity that has befallen her.