Vercingetorix and the Conquest of Celtic Gaul
In 52 BC, in Eastern France a struggle between two war leaders sealed the fate of Celtic Europe. The victor, Julius Caesar, needs no introduction, but his opponent, Vercingetorix, a leader of Celtic resistance to Rome, is mainly known today through his comic alter-ego: Asterix the Gaul.
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| Statue of Vercingetorix at Mont Auxois |
Four years ago, I cycled across Europe, visiting Gergovie, in southern France, where Vercingetorix won the first round of that struggle. Caesar’s troops were forced to flee, but that wasn’t the end of the story. The next chapter played out further north, on the hilltop settlements of Bibracte and Alésia. A long-distance footpath runs between the two, crossing the Morvan Regional Park, a sparsely-populated mountainous area I knew many years ago. The official path goes through the middle of the mountains, with few places to stay or find food. So I designed my own route: 164 km, still with a lot of climbing but stopping in ten small settlements with accommodation. You can see more about it on my website, here.
The Morvan usually has a cooler, damper climate than most of France but records were tumbling all over Europe when I arrived in late May. Local temperatures were forecast to rise to 34OC (93OF) and the TV news was warning people to avoid the heat of the day.
I took a train to Etang-sur-Arroux, the nearest station to Bibracte, and set my alarm for 5 am, aiming to leave at dawn. The walk began gently enough. The paths were wide and easy to follow, and the morning sun was caressing the corn on the rolling fields. I had forgotten how beautiful this landscape could be.
The mountains here are not like the Alps; the slopes are gently rounded, and mostly covered with trees, providing welcome shade. I was carrying too much weight, as usual, but I managed to stay cool enough until I arrived at St-Leger-sous-Beuvray, my next stay, by mid-morning. People were drinking under the trees surrounding its central green. I checked into the auberge, where I seemed to be the only guest, and took a long cool shower.
Bibracte - Ancient Capital of the Aedui
It was 7km from there to Bibracte, with two more climbs and one descent. Bibracte was an oppidum, a fortified hilltop settlement. In Gaulish times, the area would have been more open; today it is entirely surrounded by forest. The museum, a huge modern rectangular building, nestles between the trees at the foot of Mont Beuvray. There is an access road with a small car park near the summit, and a network of footpaths linking several excavated sites. I hid my heavy pack and started to climb.
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| Bibracte from the air (c) Bourgogne Live-Aurélien Ibanez |
The ramparts surrounding the settlement stretch a long way down the slopes. The road cuts through what used to be the main entrance, where the ramparts have been reconstructed. Most of the other remains have been left as they were found, during excavations which began in the Nineteenth Century and continue today. There are no buildings, only foundations and low walls.
On the eve of the Roman conquest, Bibracte was the capital of the Aedui, rivals of the Arverni led by Vercingetorix. The Aedui were allied to Rome, but the gradual expansion of Roman control was alienating their allies. In the summer of 52 BC, the Aedui hosted an Assembly of all Gaul at Bibracte, which confirmed Vercingetorix as Commander in Chief, to lead a war of resistance.
I was hoping to see some structures from that period, but apart from the ramparts, the Gauls mainly used wood, which leaves only traces in the soil. The forum and huge aristocratic houses all post-date the Roman victory, but their familiar design conceals a mystery, as I would discover.
At the summit, in a clearing between the trees stood a monument and a viewpoint looking southeast towards the morning sun. No towns or human structures interrupted the green panorama below. Back down the hill, in the museum, I had an appointment with Director General Vincent Guichard. I asked him about sources. After Caesar’s final victory he travelled to Bibracte and wrote The Gallic Wars, which is the best source we have, but is it serious history or fake news?
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| Vincent Guichard at Bibracte Museum |
“These were the early reports to the Roman Senate. A lot of information was coming to Rome about the campaign. It took two weeks for a letter to arrive. The officers around him were not all supporters, so he could not have got away with lying.”
I ask him whether any of the archaeological finds challenge or corroborate Caesar’s account.
“There’s not much. We know that Vercingetorix existed, because there are coins bearing his name. The coins discovered here tell us that contact between the Aedui and the Arverni was limited.”
There is no evidence of fighting at Bibracte. It was a meeting place and home to several thousand people. Shortly after the Roman victory, new buildings began to appear. The Gallo-Roman remains I had just seen?
“No. Gallo-Roman civilisation started later. They are pure Roman buildings - from central Italy. That forum was the expression of a community organised in the Roman way, but they were not yet part of a Roman Province when it was built. They were still an independent people.”
When the war was over, Caesar “forgave” the Aedui and renewed their old alliance. Direct Roman rule came much later. So who built those buildings?
“They must have been architects and builders trained in Italy but there’s no evidence of permanent settlement of Romans, from Italy, here. They were probably commissioned by local elites, but that's one of the things we still need to find out.”
The museum display begins with the earliest discoveries on the site, then objects from across Celtic Europe. The finds from Gaulish Bibracte are displayed on the floor below. There are more everyday items than military hardware. Coins and amphorae, for wine or olive oil, tell of trade with the Roman world, which began long before the Gallic Wars.
I stayed that night in a lone house high in the forest. Opening the windows after dark, shades of hills and valleys were still visible in the moonlight. The only sound to break the silence was the “too-woo” of a tawny owl.
My Trek Across the Morvan
On the fourth day I reached another ancient site, the Gallo-Roman theatre of Les Bardiaux. Two centuries after the Gallic Wars, the Aedui were becoming Romanised, even in small settlements. This theatre could seat 600 spectators, which was small compared to the major towns. The base of the perimeter walls and the stage at the bottom of the slope are still visible through the grass. One woman was walking a dog but there was no-one else around. The ancient settlement, wherever it was, has long since disappeared.
The temperatures gradually dropped and it rained a little, but the forecast thunderstorms never arrived. The middle of the Morvan is full of lakes, large and small. The biggest one, Lac des Settons, is man-made. A raised walkway carries the perimeter path over an inlet, where baby coots were following their mother through the weeds.
On Vincent’s suggestion, I started reading the Gallic Wars. In its famous opening passage, Caesar explains how most of Gaul was inhabited by “those who in their own language are called Celts, in ours Gauls.” He has much to say about Vercingetorix’s tactics, but little about the man. We know he was young, from an aristocratic family, and his father was executed because he aspired to royalty, but not much else.
After Caesar’s retreat from Gergovie, Vercingetorix sensed an opportunity. He was still waiting for reinforcements when he made a fateful decision to attack the main Roman army, a day’s march from the oppidum of Alésia. The Romans repulsed the attack, killing 3,000 Gauls. The rest sought refuge in Alésia. The scene was set for the final showdown.
On the ninth day, I left the Morvan Regional Park and crossed a motorway. The landscape softened into lower hills, larger fields and smaller patches of woodland. Later that afternoon, I arrived at the most spectacular small town on the route: Semur-en-Auxois. Towers and ramparts guard the clifftops overlooking the River Armançon. A bend in the river surrounds its medieval centre, full of narrow twisting streets and wooden-framed houses. That abortive attack occurred somewhere in this area, yet to be found.
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| Medieval tower at Semur-en-Auxois |
Alésia - the Final Siege
After ten days of walking, I reached my final stay, near the station in Les Laumes, where I could leave my backpack to visit Alésia the next day. My first stop was the museum on the edge of the town. It was different from Bibracte’s, with more use of interactive technology and hands-on displays for children. That seemed to be working well: school parties were lining up at the entrance when I arrived.
An outdoor viewing gallery looks towards Mont Auxois, where Alésia was discovered, 3 km away. I asked Maud Goldscheider, Cultural Assistant, why they built the museum so far away. “Because this was where the fighting took place,” she replied. In the grounds, they have reconstructed two parallel fortifications, illustrating what made this battle unique. After encircling Alésia with fortifications facing inward, Caesar ordered an outer ring, 21 km in diameter, to guard against the relief army, which he knew was coming. It was a massive undertaking.
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| Maud Goldscheider at the MuseoPark of Alésia |
Between the oppidum and the inner fortifications was a vast no-mans-land, where an appalling atrocity occurred. As food was running low and the relief army had not yet arrived, the Gauls decided to expel the women, children and old men. They went to the Romans lines, begging for food or safe passage. Caesar refused, leaving them to wander through the no-mans-land until they collapsed and died.
Eventually, the relief army did arrive, vastly outnumbering the Roman forces, according to Caesar, but they failed to break the siege. One room in the museum shows the weapons recovered from both sides. They were very similar, so why did the Romans prevail? Maud said:
“They had a professional army, under Caesar’s direct command. The Gaulish army came from 40 independent peoples with their own commanders. They had some professional soldiers - the aristocratic elite - but most of them were peasants and artisans. They had to learn on the job and provide their own equipment. Some of the Gaulish peoples didn’t respond to Vercingetorix’s appeal, but he also made a tactical mistake, creating this trap which turned against him.”
It was a 40 minute walk and a steep climb to the plateau at the top of Mont Auxois. The remains you can see today are from the Gallo-Roman period, long after the battle of Alésia. They are more substantial than at Bibracte, including a temple to the gods of the many metalworkers who worked there.
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| Gallo-Roman Remains on Mont Auxois |
The Fate of Vercingetorix
When the relief army fled in disarray, Vercingetorix offered his commanders two choices: to hand him over, dead or alive. They chose to deliver him alive. Caesar held him captive for six years during the Roman civil war, then paraded him through the streets of Rome in chains and ordered his execution.
Three years ago I visited the miserable dungeon of Rome’s Mamertine prison, where prominent captives were incarcerated. A small plaque commemorates his passing, written in Breton, the closest living language to Gaulish.
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| Plaque in the Mamertime Prison, Rome |
