Book VII Section II: The Siege of Gergovia

Conflict:

It’s getting saucy in Gaul now. After Caesar conquered Avaricum, he spent a few days basking in glory and refueling his starved troops. Trouble started brewing in the Aeduan tribe (two rival chieftains were competing for the title of magistrate), so Caesar galloped into that country for a brief stint. He then marched with his troops on the hot tail of Vercingetorix’s army towards Gergovia, the capital town of the Arverni tribe, the mother tribe of Vercingetorix.

At this pivotal point, the Aeduan people — long esteemed and paraded by Caesar as “a friend to Rome” — betrayed him and defected to the Gallic cause. But Caesar wasn’t one to take this slight lying down. He dealt with the Aedui, found a weakness in the Gergovian defenses, devised a clever ruse to draw the Gauls away and attacked ruthlessly. The Romans were overly zealous and sustained heavy casualties, but Caesar sufficiently flattened the Gauls.

The Aedui double-crossed Caesar again by razing the town of Noviodunum, Caesar’s stronghold and supply cabinet. Caesar, realizing the direness of the situation, still did not turn back and flee to the Roman Province. Him and his troops crossed the swelling Loire River on foot and marched northwards towards the Senones tribe.

Characters:

• Convictolitavis — chief of the Aedui, eventually won the contested magistrate position of the Aedui people
• Cota — other chief of the Aedui with powerful family connections; Caesar de-legitimized his claim to the Aedui magistracy
• Litaviccus — “firebrand” of the Aedui nobility, incited his tribesmen to betray the Romans
• Eporedorix and Viridomarus — two Aeduan leaders who were purportedly accused of high treason and executed by the Romans; however, this was a lie meant to cause rebellion amongst the Aedui
• C. Fabius — trusted general in Caesar’s army, in command of two Roman legions during the Gergovia siege
• Teutomatus — Gallic king was who “taking a siesta” when the Romans stormed the Gallic camp outside the walls of Gergovia
• T. Sextius — officer who commanded the lesser of the two Roman camps at Gergovia
• L. Fabius and M. Petronius — two Roman centurions who had ignored Caesar’s order to “fall back” and instead scaled the Gergovian walls to find glory — they and their “storming parties” were all cut down

Quotes:

“The two hostile armies were thus advancing on parallel courses, separated merely by the river; consequently not only did each often look on the camp of the other, but they even faced one another across the stream…” (page 191)

“‘At this moment,’ he [Litaviccus] continued, ‘there stands between Gaul and certain victory the single obstacle of the Aedui, for it is our example that holds all others to their loyalty. Remove this obstacle, and the Romans will be left without a footing anywhere throughout the country.” (page 193)

“There king Teutomatus was surprised in his tent whilst taking his siesta, and had barely time to escape from the hands of his pursuers, where were now busily hunting for loot, with his horses wounded and his shirt torn from his back.” (page 201)

“With similar panic their women began stripping off their raiment and jewelry, and tossing them down from the wall; and leaning over with bared breast and outstretched arms, implored they might be spared repetition of Avaricum.” (page 201)

“overweening self-confidence”

“Never should it be forgotten that strict obedience and a power of self-control were not less binding on a soldier than steadfast courage and a daring spirit.” (page 204)

“To break the force of the current, the horsemen made a living dam across the stream.” (page 207)

Words:

• sedulous — involving or accomplished with careful perseverance, diligent in application or pursuit
• scarp — cut or erode (a slope or hillside) so that it becomes steep, perpendicular, or precipitous
• baneful — harmful or destructive
• ignominy — public shame or disgrace
• insuperable — (of a difficulty or obstacle) impossible to overcome

Summary:

We start off with Caesar refueling and resupplying his troops at Avaricum. While he was there, he received a desperate message from the Aedui tribe — a civil war was brewing because two competing chieftains had proclaimed themselves “magistrate,” a position with regal power that only belonged to one man at a time. The two chieftains, Convictolitavis and Cota, were in a “fratricidal struggle” and the Aeduan tribe was at risk of destroying itself with infighting. Caesar, hearing out the case and facts, declared Convictolitavis to be the rightful magistrate. He then divided his legions and sent Labienus up north towards the Senones and Parisii tribes while he moved southward towards the Arverni with six faithful legions.

Vercingetorix and his army was also marching towards the Arverni stronghold— so it was that “…the two hostile armies were thus advancing on parallel courses, separated merely by the river; consequently not only did each often look on the camp of the other, but they even faced one another across the stream…” (page 191). Vercingetorix was burning down bridges so Caesar couldn’t cross over to his side of the Elaver River, but Caesar fooled him and had a few legions covertly rebuild the destroyed bridges.

The two armies finally made it to Gergovia, the capital town of the Arverni tribe. Caesar at once claimed a well-positioned hill for himself and drove out the Gallic army that was then occupying it. Let the siege begin!

Meanwhile, more pressing trouble with stirring within the Aedui tribe, the so-called “Friend of Rome” that Caesar aided and mentioned several times. Convictolitavis, who was recently named the lawful magistrate by Caesar, was bribed by the Arverni tribe to defect to the Gallic cause. Convictolitavis enlisted the help of Litaviccus, a “firebrand” among the Aedui nobility, to convince his tribe to betray the Romans. Unfortunately for the Romans, Caesar had ordered a few cavalry and infantry units from the Aedui to join him at Gergovia…and Litaviccus was named the leader of this contingent.

“At the head, therefore, of this Aeduan army Litaviccus had arrived within some thirty miles of Gergovia. When suddenly calling the troops together, he asked them, with tears rolling down his face, whether they realized to what fate they were proceeding.” (page 193)

An impassioned speech followed, complete with lies about the Romans massacring Aeduan knights and actors that Litaviccus hired to corroborate his false story.

“Indeed, if we have a spark of manhood in us, we shall, even here and now, avenge the death of our martyred countrymen, and once for all make an end of these butchers.” (page 195)

The Aeduan soldiers, not surprisingly, supported this betrayal and killed the Roman soldiers that happened to be traveling with them. Caesar was “dismayed” because he had stuck his neck out for the Aedui tribe this whole time, only to be stabbed in the back by them (hehehehe). But he extended clemency to the remainder of the tribe and got back to business with Gergovia.

A few weeks into the siege, Caesar got a nugget of positive news: there was a “weak corner” in the Gergovian defenses and all the Gallic troops had been called away from their regular posts to this weak spot. It was go time for Caesar — he deployed another clever ruse (the muleteers were disguised as real cavalry to divert Gallic attention) and got the troops into position. At his command, the infantry sprinted up the main Gergovian hill and threw the Gallic camp into bewilderment.

“There king Teutomatus was surprised in his tent whilst taking his siesta, and had barely time to escape from the hands of his pursuers, who was now busily hunting for loot, with his horses wounded and his shirt torn from his back.” (page 201)

Everyone inside Gergovia was panicking, women were stripping and throwing their garments over the battlement walls, and townsfolk thought the Romans had breached the walls and were ransacking the city. The main body of Gallic troops, which were defending and repairing the weak spot in the defenses, got wind of this attack and rushed over. Caesar recalled his troops, “observing the unequal conditions of the combat,” but several of his centurions and troops did not listen. Centurions such as L. Fabius and M. Petronius scaled the walls, hollering and searching for glory with their small band of loyal troops, and were unceremoniously overwhelmed and cut down by the Gauls. It was a bloodbath on both sides. 46 centurions were ultimately killed as well as countless unnamed Gauls.

“On the morrow the troops were assembled, and Caesar delivered himself of some criticism on their conduct. Their rashness and impetuosity had, he said, cost them dear…never should it be forgotten that strict obedience and a power of self-control were not less binding on a soldier than steadfast courage and a daring spirit.” (page 204)

The Gauls and Romans had a slight skirmish the day after, but it was more to raise the morale of the beaten Roman troops. Caesar and his legions retreated and re-crossed the Elaver River, but they were greeted with dire news. The Roman stronghold of Noviodunum, which was Caesar’s “war-chest” and contained numerous Gallic hostages, was burned to the ground by the Aedui. All the Roman troops inside were murdered as well. :{{

It was looking bleak for Caesar, but still, he did not retreat back to the Roman Province in the south. Instead, his troops crossed the Loire River by foot (“the horsemen made a living dam across the stream”) and marched north to join Labienus in the Senones territory.

Macc Reacc:

Phew! My heart was racing at several points during this heated section. The action at Gergovia was thrilling, but the most jaw-dropping part was the betrayal of the Aeduan tribe. Caesar mentions them so many times throughout this narrative and takes the time to describe their chieftains, history, religion and political organization. Hell, Aedui drama was the excuse Caesar needed to invade Gaul in the first place (remember the Aedui vs Helvetii and Aedui vs Sequani and Ariovistus showdown?) They were the poster child for “Friend of Rome,” but in the end, the Arverni bribe and tantalizing taste of freedom were too powerful.

Convictolitavis was great at fiery speeches, purportedly saying “…remember the grandeur of [your] birthright, which [is] that of a free and sovereign people.” The Aedui hadn’t been free or sovereign for a while, but the romanticized idea of it was enough. Because of this defection, many unaware Romans — civilians and troops alike — were butchered by Gauls they thought were allies. And with the destruction of Noviodunum, Caesar’s mega home base in Gaul, he was truly alone and fighting with nothing but his skin (and thousands of battle-hardened troops).

Caesar could have retreated to the Roman Province in the south but he didn’t — that choice would surely have nailed the coffin into Labienus and the legions under him. Caesar was also too proud and stubborn to admit defeat; and after all, the Romans had a better track record against the Gauls. For some unfathomable reason, the Romans continued to outdo the Gauls, despite the intense Gallic fighting spirit and their overwhelming numbers. Caesar was dogged and had his career and generational reputation at stake.

Flectere si nequeo superos, Acheronta movebom

(If I can not bend the will of Heaven, I shall move Hell)

-Virgil, The Aeneid