The Gallic War - World History

The Gallic War ( 58 ) Julius Caesar conquers all of Gaul.

In 58 Julius Caesar went to Gaul as proconsul. He didn't seem up to the job. He was already 44 years old and had very little military experience. Quite the contrary, he was a man who liked luxury and refinement, and it did not seem possible that he would adapt to military life. Probably many thought that he was going to be absent from Rome for five years without doing anything relevant or that if he, on the contrary, decided to take military action, he would soon die or return humiliated. However, Caesar was an intelligent man in the broadest sense of the word, and his will was iron.

The Helvetii were one of the rudest and most bellicose Gallic tribes. They had occupied land in present-day Germany until they joined the Cimbri and Teutons in their attack on Roman Gaul, eventually settling in a part of present-day Switzerland. Now they judged that their territory was very narrow, bounded by the Rhine, Lake Lemann, Mount Jura and the Roman province, so they planned to emigrate to the west, for which they had to cross northern Gaul Narbonensis, the territory of the Allobrogues, recently incorporated into the province, and Caesar, who remembered the history of the Helvetii, was not willing to consent. The Helvetii sent an embassy to him, claiming they were only passing through, but Caesar stalled, fortifying the area, and repelled them when they tried to pass anyway. They then undertook an alternate path through Aeduan territory. Caesar had only one legion in Gaul Narbonensis, but he quickly moved another three that he had in Cisalpine Gaul plus another two that he recruited there. With them he crossed the Rhone, which marked the border of his province and prevented the passage of the Helvetii, shortly after the Aedui asked Caesar for help, and this request was taken as a justification for his attack. The Helvetii were not long in being reduced to their original territory.

His display of power over the Helvetii silenced the voices of the Aeduans who were suspicious of Roman aid, and thus the Aeduan leaders, with Diviciaco at the helm, asked Caesar to protect them from the Suevi. They explained to him how Ariovistus had demanded a third of the Sequan fields and now demanded a third more. He was continually ferrying men across the Rhine and, at this rate, he would soon be master of all of Gaul. For some strange reason, the Senate had declared Ariovistus the year before "a friend of the Roman people", so Caesar could not attack without further justification. He sent her an arrogant and provocative message, with which he managed to get Ariovistus to reply in equally defiant and derogatory terms. This was enough so that Caesar could justify his intention to occupy Vesontio (Besançon), the capital of the Sequani, before Ariovistus did.

The plan caused panic among the soldiers, who remembered the fights against the Cimbri and the Teutons, but Caesar gave another sample of his incredible rhetoric. After shaming them for his fear and his inappropriate attitude, he stated that the next day he would leave alone with those who wanted to follow him, because he was sure that the tenth legion (the one he initially had) would not fail him. The result was that those of the tenth legion immediately placed themselves under his command, proud of the high esteem in which Caesar held them, while the rest did the same to show that they were worth no less. When his army met Ariovistus's, the two leaders had an interview without dismounting from the horses. Ariovistus claimed his right of war over Gaul, while Caesar argued that Rome could claim the same right, but had decided that Gaul must be free, and he was there to guarantee Gaul's freedom. After the disagreement, Caesar won a crushing victory, so Ariovistus had to go to the other side of the Rhine and only small German detachments remained in Gaul. and he was there to guarantee the freedom of Gaul. After the disagreement, Caesar won a crushing victory, so Ariovistus had to go to the other side of the Rhine and only small German detachments remained in Gaul. and he was there to guarantee the freedom of Gaul. After the disagreement, Caesar won a crushing victory, so Ariovistus had to go to the other side of the Rhine and only small German detachments remained in Gaul.

Now Rome dominated (or protected) Central Gaul. He set up winter camps for his legions and he returned to Cisalpine Gaul to attend to his duties as proconsul and, above all, to find out about the state of affairs in Rome. In his absence, the conservatives were gaining ground. in 57 Cato returned from Cyprus bringing a large amount of money that he had legally collected and deposited in the public treasury without taking anything for himself. Cicero's friends began to maneuver so that he could return from his exile and finally succeeded with the help of Pompey (who had always been Cicero's friend). One of those who participated most actively so that Cicero could return was the tribune Tito Annio Milo Papiniano, married to a daughter of Sulla. Milo organized a gang of thugs similar to the one Clodius had, but with conservative sympathies, with which the streets of Rome saw constant disputes and revenge similar to those of theAmerican gangsters .

To the north of Gaul were the Belgae, who were originally Gauls, but had mixed with groups of German invaders and were just as barbaric as they were. The Belgae viewed the presence of Rome in central Gaul with uneasiness, and their various tribes formed an alliance in anticipation of a possible advance of the Romans to the north. Only one of its towns, the oars (from which the name of Reims derives), decided that it was better to be on good terms with Rome and they agreed with César, who soon occupied his territory with the five legions of the previous year plus another three that he recruited for the occasion. At first the Belgae opted to raise as large an army as possible, and it was so large that it was easy for Caesar to disrupt it. Then they decided that each tribe would defend itself, and that allowed Caesar to defeat them one by one.

Caesar ended up dominating the Belgae, although some of their tribes put up fierce resistance, especially the Nerves, to the point that the battles so impressed the Gauls that those in present-day Brittany sent embassies to surrender without resistance. Even some towns on the other side of the Rhine sent emissaries to establish diplomatic relations with Caesar. Now Rome controlled two-thirds of Gaul. Only Aquitaine remained free,the southern area, bordering on the Pyrenees. Caesar distributed his legions throughout the territory in winter camps and again went to Cisalpine Gaul.

Meanwhile, the Parthian king Phraates III was poisoned by his sons, who divided up the empire and reigned as Mithridates III and Orodes II, respectively.

During the winter there were two uprisings in Gaul, a minor one in the Alps and a more serious one at the opposite end, in Brittany, where a Roman delegation sent to request supplies was taken prisoner. This spark sparked several neighboring tribes who allied against the Romans. The most prominent were the Veneti, a seafaring people who populated the southern coast of Brittany. They also received help from the Celts of Britannia (present-day Great Britain).

In early 56, Caesar was in Lucca in Cisalpine Gaul and could not immediately go to attend to the rebellion because he was meeting with his associates Pompey and Crassus. Both viewed Caesar's military successes with envy and suspicion. Especially Pompey, who was theoretically the one who should have military glory. The agreement they reached was that Pompey and Crassus would be consuls the following year, so both could achieve military success if they wanted. Caesar would keep Gaul, Crassus could go to Syria and Pompey to Spain.

As soon as the loose ends were tied, Caesar hastily marched north, determined to fight the rebels on land and sea. He built a fleet on the Loire with which he fought the first known naval battle in the Atlantic. Roman galleys were propelled by oars, while Venetian ships had sails, better suited for the ocean. The Romans adapted a device used in sieges to destroy the rigging of enemy ships and deprive them of maneuverability, which allowed them to be boarded and fought in hand-to-hand combat. After the surrender, the Venetian warlords were executed, and the rest were sold into slavery. MeanwhilePublius Licinius Crassus, son of Marco, conquered Aquitaine with more diplomacy than brute force.

That year De rerum natura (on the nature of things) was published, a long poem composed by Tito Lucrecio Caro, in which he captured the atomism of Leucippus in a rational, materialistic and almost atheistic conception of the Universe. Of all the ancient writings that survive, the work of Lucretius is the one that comes closest to the point of view of modern science.

Antigonus Mattathias, the son of the Maccabean king Aristobulus II, deposed by Pompey, and who was a prisoner in Rome with his father and older brother, managed to escape and began a painful journey east.

In 55 Pompey and Crassus were elected consuls as planned. In Gaul some Germanic tribes crossed the Rhine, and Caesar prepared to repel them. He went to meet him and arranged an interview on Belgian territory, captured his bosses and then made a surprise attack on his men, who they trusted were on truce for the duration of the interview.

Caesar wanted to make it clear to the Germans that the Rhine should be their natural limit, so after he had annihilated those who had trespassed, he built a stout wooden bridge over the river in ten days, a superb piece of engineering, and crossed the Rhine, but the Germans who lived on the other shore fled to the territory of the Ubios, that they had made an alliance with Caesar, so the Romans simply plundered the abandoned lands and turned back. Caesar had no interest in occupying territories beyond the Rhine, he just wanted to make a show of power. Similarly, late in the summer he made a small foray into southern England to discourage its inhabitants from sending forces back to Gaul. Although it was not a big deal, the landing on an unknown island caused a sensation in Rome.

When the news reached Rome of how Caesar had betrayed the Germans, Cato rose to denounce it, stating that the honor of Rome would not be washed until Caesar was handed over to the Germans. But it wasn't the first time Rome had used such means, and no one else cared much.

From this year Cicero devoted most of his time to writing treatises on rhetoric and politics. This year he published El de oratore, and began work on De re publica, which would take him four years. Cicero's prose, both in his treatises and in his speeches, is considered the model of classical Latin and the pinnacle of Latin literature.

Meanwhile, the Parthian king Mithridates III was deposed by the nobles, had to flee and became strong in Mesopotamia, but his territory came to be ruled by his brother Orodes II, bringing the Parthian Empire back together. The king made Ctesiphon the Parthian capital. King Tigranes I of Armenia also died.

Finally, Ptolemy XII was able to convince the senators that if Rome restored the throne of Egypt to him, he could provide them with great wealth, looting his country's many temples and starving his subjects to death. He was sent to Egypt accompanied by an army with which he was able to recover the government and sentence his daughter and usurper Berenice to death. Her husband Archelaus continued to reign in Cappadocia. Rome left a bodyguard in Egypt for Ptolemy XII.

In 54 Caesar's army was joined by a twenty-nine-year-old officer named Mark Antony. His adoptive father was one of those executed by Cicero as a result of Catiline's conspiracy, so Mark Antony hated Cicero. He soon became one of Caesar's most loyal supporters. That year Caesar led another expedition to Britain on the excuse of aid the Britons had given the Veneti two years earlier. He built a fleet on the Loire capable of transporting five legions and two thousand horsemen. The horsemen were mostly Gallic hostages that Caesar took to prevent rebellions in his absence. Dumnorix,Diviciaco's brother, headed the Aedu faction against the Romans and refused to provide the required hostages. This pitted him against Caesar and he was killed in combat. The incident not only did not appease, but rather fanned currents against Rome among the Gauls, especially in the north. Despite this, Caesar landed in Britain and made his way to the Thames fighting the natives, who were led by Cassivelaunus,but they were defeated and undertook to pay a tribute annually. However Caesar never returned to Britain, and the tribute was never paid. However, the Britons did not contact Gaul again, even suspending trade relations.

Meanwhile Crassus prepared to leave for Syria, because the previous year, during his consulship, he had had the territory assigned as he had agreed with Caesar and Pompey. The Senate tried at all costs to avoid his departure. With the excuse of the Gallic War, Caesar had more and more legions under his command and was more and more loved and admired by his soldiers. His return to Rome could be like Sulla's, and if this was enough of a concern for the senators, now Crassus intended to march east to become a new Pompey or a new Caesar. There was actually no conflict in the East, but it was clear that Crassus was going to provoke it. Until now, his only merit was having put down a slave rebellion, which didn't look like much. His goal was deliveries. There were also superstitious fears that discouraged Crassus's departure: until then Rome had never attacked anyone without reason, however small. For the first time Crassus shamelessly went out with a desire to conquer without any reason to legitimize it. The gods could deny her his support. For the first time Crassus shamelessly went out with a desire to conquer without any reason to legitimize it. The gods could deny her his support. For the first time Crassus shamelessly went out with a desire to conquer without any reason to legitimize it. The gods could deny her his support.

When he arrived in Syria, the weakest point of the Parthian Empire was Mesopotamia. There the overthrown king Mithridates III had made a stronghold and had just been captured and executed. Crassus made several forays into the region and met little resistance. On the contrary, many Greek cities welcomed him. He left detachments and returned to Syria to spend the winter and prepare a larger expedition for the following year to the Parthian capital. The Parthians sent an embassy to negotiate a reasonable peace settlement (after all, they had done nothing and had no interest in confronting Rome), but Crassus haughtily dismissed the envoys.

Pompey had been assigned a Spanish province, also as planned, but he did not go personally. He decided that, with his associates so far removed from him, this was his chance to make a stronghold in the capital. Around this time, Julia, the daughter of Caesar and wife of Pompey, died in childbirth, thus breaking the strongest bond that united the two generals. The poet Catullus also died.

That year the harvest in Gaul was poor, and Caesar had to spread his troops into many small camps to get through the winter. As a precaution, he himself wintered in the country. The Gauls considered it an excellent opportunity to rebel. The Eburones tricked a legion and a half from their camp and then exterminated them in an ambush. Nerves immediately revolted, in whose region a legion commanded by Quintus Tullius Cicero was stationed,Mark's brother. He was surrounded by nerves and eburones. Caesar hastily assembled several legions and sent a messenger to him who crossed the enemy lines with the message: "Take courage! I come to your aid", and managed to lift the siege. In many Gallic tribes, supporters of the Romans were deposed or killed.

Already entered in 53, the revolts continued. Caesar enlisted two more legions and Pompey sent him a third, with which he had ten legions under his command (about 60,000 men), with which Caesar was able to gradually quell the revolts. He was merciful to all except the Eburones (who had killed more than one legion). His territory was systematically combed by the legions, who murdered or imprisoned its inhabitants, and then had the area repopulated with other tribes to erase the name "of the people guilty of such a heinous crime." Caesar then convened an assembly of all the Gallic tribes in the capital of the oars, where he tried the ringleaders of the revolts.

Meanwhile Crassus undertook his campaign against the Parthians. The Parthian army was one of the most powerful in the world. His main force was the cavalry. Parthian horses were the largest and strongest in existence, and their riders had incredible maneuverability. His specialty was attacking by surprise and retreating quickly. In addition, when fleeing, the riders were able to turn on their horses and launch a volley of arrows that caught their pursuers off guard. Over time the expression "birth arrow" became proverbial to refer figuratively to any unexpected blow at the last moment. The locution "

In addition to light cavalry, the Parthians had a heavy cavalry, in which the riders and sometimes also the horses were protected by heavy armor. Some attacked with heavy spears, like a kind of equestrian phalanx, and others attacked with arrows while their armor made them immune to enemy arrows. The heavy cavalry was slow, but the combination of the two made for a fearsome army quite unlike anything the Romans had encountered before.

Crassus wanted to reach the Parthian capital quickly, and found an Arab guide who offered to take him through Mesopotamia to a point where he could catch the Parthian army by surprise. The Arab certainly took him to the Parthian army, but he turned out to be in the service of the Parthians, who were waiting for him. The greater part of the army was concealed, and Crassus charged confidently against the small part that he found, apparently in a surprise attack. But when they engaged in combat the "surprised" horsemen threw off their cloaks and armor gleamed beneath them. The armored horsemen began to wreak havoc. Crassus ordered his son Publius to attack with the cavalry. The Parthians fled, shooting arrows over their shoulders. As the Roman cavalry was catching up with them, they found that they had been led into the hiding of the Parthian light cavalry, far more numerous than the Romans and much more skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Almost all the Roman horsemen were killed, including Publius Crassus. The Parthians cut off his head and stuck it on the point of a spear. The Parthian cavalry rallied and turned towards the main body of the Roman army, brandishing the head of Publius. Seeing her, the morale of the army collapsed, although Crassus did not stop shouting As the Roman cavalry was catching up with them, they found that they had been led into the hiding of the Parthian light cavalry, far more numerous than the Romans and much more skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Almost all the Roman horsemen were killed, including Publius Crassus. The Parthians cut off his head and stuck it on the point of a spear. The Parthian cavalry rallied and turned towards the main body of the Roman army, brandishing the head of Publius. Seeing her, the morale of the army collapsed, although Crassus did not stop shouting As the Roman cavalry was catching up with them, they found that they had been led into the hiding of the Parthian light cavalry, far more numerous than the Romans and much more skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Almost all the Roman horsemen were killed, including Publius Crassus. The Parthians cut off his head and stuck it on the point of a spear. The Parthian cavalry rallied and turned towards the main body of the Roman army, brandishing the head of Publius. Seeing her, the morale of the army collapsed, although Crassus did not stop shouting much more numerous than the Romans and much more skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Almost all the Roman horsemen were killed, including Publius Crassus. The Parthians cut off his head and stuck it on the point of a spear. The Parthian cavalry rallied and turned towards the main body of the Roman army, brandishing the head of Publius. Seeing her, the morale of the army collapsed, although Crassus did not stop shouting much more numerous than the Romans and much more skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Almost all the Roman horsemen were killed, including Publius Crassus. The Parthians cut off his head and stuck it on the point of a spear. The Parthian cavalry rallied and turned towards the main body of the Roman army, brandishing the head of Publius. Seeing her, the morale of the army collapsed, although Crassus did not stop shouting The Parthian cavalry rallied and turned towards the main body of the Roman army, brandishing the head of Publius. Seeing her, the morale of the army collapsed, although Crassus did not stop shouting The Parthian cavalry rallied and turned towards the main body of the Roman army, brandishing the head of Publius. Seeing her, the morale of the army collapsed, although Crassus did not stop shouting"Don't be discouraged! The loss is mine, not yours!" The Romans fled headlong and the Parthians continued to harass them, until Crassus himself was assassinated in negotiations a few months later. Only a quarter of the men were able to return, battered, to Syria. In command was Gaius Cassius Longinus, who managed to repel the Parthians when they tried to invade Syria. The Parthian troops had been brilliantly led by General Surena, but Orodes II was suspicious of him and his reward was assassination.

The defeat of Crassus produced a great political crisis in Rome, which resulted in an increase in street fighting between the bands of Milo and Clodius. Consular elections had to be suspended, and the Senate decreed that in 52 Pompey would be sole consul. The senators saw in Pompey a good means to counteract the power of Caesar. Pompeyo married again, now with Cornelia, from the Scipio family, which meant a new link between Pompeyo and the conservatives.

A confrontation between the bands of Milo and Clodio ended with the death of the latter. Milo was put on trial and Cicero defended him, but an angry mob reduced him to hoarseness, and he was barely able to deliver his speech. Milo was sentenced to exile. All in all, the situation for the conservatives had improved. In a few months, Pompey managed to pacify the city.

Caesar tried to intervene in all these events, but hardly left for Italy when a new rebellion broke out in Gaul that forced him to leave hastily, but left Mark Antony in Rome.

The insurrection arose in central Gaul, but it was quickly joined by the Arvene Vercingetorix, that he was proclaimed king and was soon joined by many neighboring tribes, with whom he planned to attack Gallia Narbonensis. Caesar fortified the province and then risked his way through the insurgent territories to join up with his legions to the north. Vercingetorix won some victories that finally decided the Aedi (until then pro-Romans) to join the rebellion. An assembly was held in which the leadership of Vercingétorix was ratified, who finally set out to carry out his plan to invade the province. Caesar recruited men from among the Germans to counter the Gallic cavalry. When the armies met, the Gauls launched a cavalry attack from the front and sides simultaneously and threw the Roman ranks into confusion. (In this combat, Caesar lost his short sword, which was then proudly exhibited in an Arvenian temple. Caesar visited the temple and when someone in his entourage wanted to take it, he smiled and prevented him saying "leave it, it is no longer mine, but of the gods".) But the legions' greatest strength was their ability to rally, and when Caesar launched the German cavalry, the Gallic attack was pulverized. Vercingetorix had to hastily retreat to the fortress of (In this combat, Caesar lost his short sword, which was then proudly exhibited in an Arvenian temple. Caesar visited the temple and when someone in his entourage wanted to take it, he smiled and prevented him saying "leave it, it is no longer mine, but of the gods".) But the legions' greatest strength was their ability to rally, and when Caesar launched the German cavalry, the Gallic attack was pulverized. Vercingetorix had to hastily retreat to the fortress of (In this combat, Caesar lost his short sword, which was then proudly exhibited in an Arvenian temple. Caesar visited the temple and when someone in his entourage wanted to take it, he smiled and prevented him saying "leave it, it is no longer mine, but of the gods".) But the legions' greatest strength was their ability to rally, and when Caesar launched the German cavalry, the Gallic attack was pulverized. Vercingetorix had to hastily retreat to the fortress of Alesia. Caesar prepared to surround her, and Vercingetorix had just time to send out his cavalry with orders to go through Gaul in search of help.

Caesar surrounded the city with a ring of fortifications 10 miles in perimeter. Along this front line he placed outposts, and strategically distributed his camps a little further back so that his men could rush to any point in the ring where they were required. He then created a second ring with a perimeter of 21 kilometers to protect himself from outside attacks. He arranged towers at regular intervals, specially guarded the most propitious points for attack, dug moats and filled them with water where possible, and filled the outline with traps, traps, and thorns.

The inhabitants of the city began to feel the hunger, and Vercingetorix expelled all those who could not wield a weapon, mainly women, the elderly and children. The Romans did not yield to their pleas, and they starved to death halfway between the city and the fortifications.

Then the army they had sent for arrived. The first encounter was favorable to the Romans, thanks in large part to the German cavalry. The next day calm reigned, while the Gauls prepared for a new attack. At night they attacked simultaneously from outside and inside. They tried to surprise the Romans, but they could with the traps interposed by Caesar. The fighting lasted from midnight until well into the morning, and the Gauls had to withdraw without having achieved anything. The next day, Another joint attack took place in which César reached the top of his strategy that allowed him to lead each man where he was most needed at each moment. The Gauls abroad suffered heavy losses and were dispersed, and the next day Vercingetorix capitulated and was taken prisoner, while his men were enslaved.

In 51 Caesar ended the last isolated resistance and Gaul was finally pacified. That same year Ptolemy XII died, who bequeathed his kingdom to his sons Ptolemy XIII, ten years old, and Cleopatra, seventeen. He also entrusted the guardianship of his son to the Roman Senate and this in turn entrusted the guardianship to Pompey. Cicero spent the year in Cilicia, as proconsul.

early 50 's Caesar made Gaul a Roman province. He established the tributes of each tribe according to the usual hierarchy based on the loyalty or resistance that he had shown towards Rome. The submission was absolute, so that there were no more riots and the province was quickly Romanized. It is estimated that a third of the population died in the war and another third was enslaved. The spoils of war enriched even the common soldiers, and Caesar obtained enough money to pay off the debts he had incurred during his consulship. In addition, he now had the best army in Rome and his fame far exceeded that of Pompey.Commentaries on the Gallic War, which also revealed him as the most famous author of Latin literature, on a par with Cicero.

Milo's wife was caught in adultery with a follower of Clodius named Gaius Salustius Crispus. He came from a wealthy commoner family and was a senator, but following this incident he was expelled from the Senate.

Around this time China's rule over Korea became merely nominal. Korea was divided into three kingdoms that soon became embroiled in endless border disputes: Koguryo (to the north), Paikche (to the southwest) and Silla (to the southeast).

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