Comments on the War of Gaules

the War of Gaules or Commentaires on the War of Gaules (in Latin Commentarii de Bello Gallico ) is a work of history in seven books of Jules César consisted of notes written progressively of the war and gathered towards 52-51 av. J. - C. in which the dictator reports his military operations (for a good portion it is in fact the collation of the relationship that it wrote, partly with its lieutenants, to send them to the Senate which supervises the activity of the proconsuls such César) at the time of the Guerre of Gaules which was held of 58 with 52 av. J. - C. and it was the victorious généralissime. An eighth book writes later by Aulius Hirtius described the last ones fights of 51 av. J. - C. and the situation as a Gaulle in 50 av. J. - C.

Summary

Deliver I (58): Description of the Gallic People, rising of the Helvètes, countryside against Helvètes, then against the German of Arioviste.
Deliver II (57): Countryside against the Belgian .
Deliver III (56): Countryside of César against the Armorican and of Crassus in Aquitanian.
Deliver IV (55): Battle against the German ones, the first forwarding in insular Brittany.
Deliver V (54): The second forwarding in Brittany, combat against the Trévires.
Deliver VI (53): The second crossing of the the Rhine, continuation of the engagements in the North of Gaule.
Deliver VII (52): General rising of the Gallic people, seats of Avaricum, Gergovie and Alésia.
Deliver VIII (51-50): Completion of the conquest, situation in 50.

Deliver I (57 av. J. - C.)

It opens on a description of Gaulle and his inhabitants. Helvètes are already described like courageous but quarrelsome people. Dissatisfied of the territorial situation of its people, which it considers unworthy of his size, Orgétorix the noblest man and richest gathers forces under its control. This one made a de Gaulle turn to convince the various chiefs to be combined with him, and makes prepare corn reserves. Helvètes learn this attempt to seize the capacity and condemn it. Orgétorix comes with thousands from partisans to withdraw itself from the judgment, but ends up dying, perhaps it committed suicide. With its death, the projects of conquests do not die out therefore and Helvètes, after having burned their villages, leave. But César prevents this migration of Helvètes envisaged until at Santons, on the Atlantic coast, and pushes back the Germain Arioviste who had been installed on part of the territory of Séquanes and constantly increased his influence on the area by attracting more and more Germanic tribes under his orders.

Deliver II

Book II starts with the evocation of a new danger: for various reasons, according to César, the Belgians prepare to attack the legions stationed as a Gaulle. In 57, it anticipates this attack while moving towards the Belgian territory, where it is combined with local people, Rèmes to get informed about the state of the Belgian armies. The Belgians surprised by the fast arrival of the Roman legions concentrate and go towards the Romans who did not succeed in preventing the regrouping of the various people. After each one assembled a camp and awaits a clumsy movement of the other, the Belgians decide on a retirement. Continued by Césars, they must undergo engagements and are massacred. César subjects then Suessions, Bellovaques, not by the force but, listening to its great leniency, by accepting that they go. What Nerviens and their neighbors refused to do. After a series of difficult battles told in detail, the Roman armies overcame. Atuatuques, frightened by the Roman power, went, but were raised in the night. They were massacred per thousands. César returned then to Italy for a time while several of its centurions continued to subject the Gallic ones in various areas.

Deliver III

Thus Galba it was sent in the Alps, at Nantuates, Véragres and Sédunes to facilitate the trade there, then at Allobroges for the rest of winter. On the way, they were attacked by Vénagres which feared to be in their subjected turn, and which intended to benefit from the numerical inferiority of the Romans. Their attacked camp, they tried a daring exit which surprised the adversary and allowed them to carry it. Whereas César thought Gaulle entirely subjected (but César known as pacatam, “pacified”) and that it left for Illyrie, several people of Armorique, on the initiative of Vénètes, raised themselves to recover the hostages entrusted to the young person Publius Crassus, that César had sent. Each camp prepared the war, which was announced naval. César insists much on the superiority of the fleet and the knowledge to make nautical of Vénètes. But thanks to the strategy developped at the point to attack a boat after the other they triumphed and reflect fine with the war. The following war took place in Aquitaine, against Sotiates and under the command of Crassus. Were beaten various people not without difficulty and with the assistance of combined of Hispanie close citérieure. Remained only two unsubdued people as a Gaulle, Morins and Ménapes, that César made track: it went as far as making cut down all the trees of the forest in which they hid!

Deliver IV

The book four, which starts with beginning of the year -55, under the consulate of Crassus and Pompée, is that of the wars of Germanic. It starts with one terrifying portrait of Suève, populates as dangereous because of its quarrelsome character as powerful by its number, its bravery, and the roughness and its manners. Suèves, aggressive, had driven back several German people on banks of the Rhine. Fearing that the Gallic ones, “people pusillanime”, do not make a pact with the German ones, César took the initiative and engaged towards the Rhine or it set up a fight plan against Suèves. But the German ones betrayed it and made lose many men of value to the cavalry. After having made their captive chiefs, it overcame the remainder of the troops easily. César then decided to cross the Rhine, in order to neutralize any threat being able to come people like Suèves or Sugambres. After having manufactured a bridge of a new type, taking into account the difficulty of the medium, it crossed the river, punishes Sugambres, frightened Suèves and thus delivered the Ubiens allies of the threat which weighed on them. Its mission accomplished it returned as a Gaulle and cut the bridge. It decided to use the end of the summer to leave in recognition Brittany (British Isles), that nobody knew and who had sent reinforcements to Gallic during the wars. Casus Volusenus sent in recognition, César and its armies leave to be equipped at Morins. At the time to unload, the Breton ones waited out of weapons on the coasts. In spite of the difficulties related to the combat in water, they unloaded and fought until the rendering of the Breton ones. But the Romans were blocked on the island because of the tides which destroyed their boats. The indicator thus weakened, without reinforcement, corn and as reduced manpower, the Breton ones took again the fight. The Romans beat them and returned as a Gaulle.

Deliver V

As each César year returns to Italy, while its men constitute a new fleet, according to a schedule of conditions that César itself established. After a turning by Illyrie to regulate a problem with Pirustes, it turns over as a Gaulle, orders with his troops to mass in a port to prepare with a new attack on the island of Brittany. In spite of the insubordination of some, quickly corrected, César is made accompany in Brittany per many the Gaulois chiefs. A fleet of eight hundred ships arrived to Brittany. A storm obliged to put the dry ships, and during this time the enemy gathered his forces. César makes then a description geographical and ethnographic of Brittany surprisingly right, although coarse (it gives him the shape of a triangle, but the evoked orientation and islands are easily identifiable). The continuation of the enemies carried out the legions to the Thames which they crossed. The Trinovantes then other people according to the example joined in César against Cassivellaunos, the chief of the Breton forces, who after several failures went. It set out again and made winter its troops in various areas of the North of Gaulle. The Romans had then to face a rising of all the Gallic people carried out by the Eburon Ambiorix. The Gallic ones, by trick, succeeded in trapping several Roman chiefs come to discuss and the Roman army lost also many men. A Roman camp undergoes a seat during more than one week, and finally succeeded in alerting César which dispatched reinforcements and subjected its adversaries; but was with the turn of the Trévires to plot against Rome. Their chief Indutiomaros was pursued and killed, and Gaulle saw himself from now on about quiet.

Deliver VI

However César was still wary and was made send reinforcements by Pompée. Good intuition because the Gallic ones were reforming a league to take again the fight. When César, after having crushed Nerviens, brings together all the Gaulois chiefs, Sénons, Carnutes, Ménapes and Trévires refused to go there. The two first joined frightened by the Roman legions moving. Ménapes were fought and beaten easily. Trévires required a real trick of Labienus which had the load of the local legion, to pretend the fear and to then better overcome them. Suèves, which was to arrive in reinforcement, returned on their premises, but that is enough to decide César to refranchir the Rhine. He learns by Ubiens that Suèves await it in ambush in a forest. César makes a pause in the account to analyze the differences in manners between Gaulois and German. The Gallic ones, on all the levels, are divided into two rival parties. In the social hierarchy, only are estimated the druids, men of religion, and the knights, men of war. The druids are also used as referees in the private conflicts. Their prestige is large, their function difficult to reach to the layman. According to César, the origin of the druidic practices would be Brittany. César adds to its description a cruel practice, that of the human sacrifice practiced at the time of rites. The Gallic ones are very monk. They honor Mercure, mainly. Their calendar is lunar, and their social organization very centered on the community and the division. The German ones, them, less civilized, live quasi naked, practice primarily hunting and the breeding to be nourished. To avoid a sedentarisation which would soften them and would divert them war, their possessions land are limited to one year. To live in a desert is the mark of the size, since that means that nobody dares to live close to such a powerful people. They are the chiefs of clans which make justice. Formerly dominated by the Gallic ones, they are more powerful time of César, because the latter, in contact with civilization hellénistico-Roman would have been accustomed to comfort and the luxury (it is the old woman rengaine of the decline of expensive manners, for example, in Caton the Old one, which appears here in a more or less buckled way). César then describes with a scientific concern of the detail the Hercynienne forest which extends from Helvétie in Dacie, and the animals rare which live there. César refusing to follow the German ones in this forest, it makes supervise the area while it leaves to eliminate Ambiorix in the Ardennes. The Roman legions all and especially their resources piled up in the fort of Atuatuca attracted the German ones which inflicted heavy losses with the Romans before being withdrawn. César arrived and begun again in hand the situation, before returning to Rome.

Deliver VII (52 av. J. - C.)

The rumor running that César, occupied to Rome by the quarrels of parties, would not return before a long time, the Gallic ones programmed a new revolt. It is with this new war that very long book VII is devoted. Vercingétorix, Arverne, raised all its customers and gathered finally all the people under its orders. Invested supreme capacities, it showed a rigorous and effective commander. The Gallic project to take Narbonne made leave César for the Province. To the wholesale price efforts, it crossed the Cevennes in full winter and arrived to Arvernes with its army. After multiple operations in the valleys of the Rhone, of the Loire, in the Massif Central and of the difficulties of rejoining certain people the engagements took place, in particular around Avaricum (Bourges) and of its area. A rumor ran to Eduens according to which the Romans would have massacred allies, which made them be turned over against César, which lastly succeeds in maintaining them on its side to go to take Gergovie. The attempt at catch of the oppidum of Gergovie, very difficult because of the configuration of the ground, showed a failure: the attack, disordered, made them lose many valorous men, and the Romans had to withdraw themselves. The legion which was with dimensions one of Lutèce, carried out by Labienus, have to support combat against the Gallic ones perked up by the Roman defeat of Gergovie. With Bibracte, Vercingétorix was confirmed in its command with the head of the Gallic league. César prepared twenty two troops to face there. After multiple troop movements, César taken drives out of it the Gallic coalition which moved towards Alesia, where the two armies were found to establish camps there. The Gallic ones were put in rout in a first battle of cavalry in the plain by the German ones combined of César. The preparations of each camps are then lengthily described: which configuration of the camps, which people and how much men took part etc Twice the Gallic ones were pushed back, but the losses were important on the two sides. Vercingétorix, finally overcome, returned the weapons.

Deliver VIII

Addition subsequently by Aulus Hirtius, this eighth book makes the transition with the account from the civil wars. He tells the events until into -50. He underlines in a prolog, at least by convention, his embarrassment to supplement a so masterly work. Like he says it, César, contrary to his intention to provide matter to the historians, their removed any possibility of working on the war of Gaules by making an account of the events which is sufficed for itself by its purity. César agreed at rest of its troops which had fought hard for a whole year. Then, to prevent all new attempt at rising it furrowed Gaulle with forced march, being shown everywhere and thus meaning with Gallic that it would be vain to try anything. But is especially to arbitrate the conflicts between Gallic people that he undertook this round, repressing whoever tried to invade its neighbor. Thus Bellovaques, which wanting to attack Suessions, attracted itself the Roman lightnings: after a long seat, Bellovaques decided to attack, to be crushed by the Roman cavalry. In the same way Pictons, populates center of Gaulle, were demolished by the cavalry with the support of the infantry. Sénon Drappès and Cadurque Luctérios then tried to rejoin the Gallic ones for a new revolt. The legate Caius Caninius was charged to fight them, which it does before undergoing of new affronts on behalf of the town of Uxellodunum. César was informed by it, and decided to go itself there, not because the danger was large, but to punish in an exemplary way obstinacy of this small town. By besieging them and by depriving them of water, one forced them to go. César went finally to Aquitaine, which he had never visited, then turned over to winter near its troops, in Belgium, before returning to Italy, haloed glory. But already the civil war is profiled, since many were those which in Rome were frightened by the prestige which enjoyed César and the support that the army lavished to him. Confrontation between the partisans of César and those of Pumped was posted more and more openly, in particular with the Senate.

An atypical work of history

The acknowledged intention of César is, according to Aulius Hirtius, “to provide documents to the historians on so considerable events”. The Guerre of Gaules is thus not a traditional work of history but belongs to the kind of the Commentarii , collection of rough notes ( commentarius ) taken on the ground intended to be used as a basis factual, from where the strictly chronological organization of the eight books, their strictly factual aspect and their extremely concise style. Thanks to the “workshop of production” of which it lays out, César can work out its work in three months, the shortly after the rendering of Alésia, and thus immediately show the importance of its victory. Between the death of César, in 44, and his in 43, Aulius Histius writes an eighth book in order to ensure the transition with the Civil war .

As of its publication, the work is judged like a chief of literary work. Cicéron admires these “ naked, simple, elegant Commentaires (...), stripped (...) of any oratorical ornament”, and affirms that “while proposing to provide materials where those would draw which would like to write the history (...) the desire removed for writing, because there is nothing more pleasant in the history than a pure and luminous brevity”.

A discussed reliability

The Guerre of Gaules is the only first hand source available for those which are interested in the Guerre of Gaules: the texts of Tite-Live are lost, and no other preserved contemporary work evokes the subject. Its author being the main character of the conquest, his reliability was often questioned. First of all by other witnesses of the entourage of César having a different vision (in particular Asinius Pollion, whose unfortunately only some fragments remain), then by the destroyers of the cesarism, like Montaigne, which in its Essais denounces to them “false colors with what wants to cover its bad cause and the refuse of its pestilent ambition”. Starting from the middle of the 19th century, the debate passes from the ideological plan in the scientific plan.

Michel Rambaud analyzes in his thesis the subtle processes rhetorics which make it possible to present César under one day which is appropriate for the interests of then of the proconsul: systematically mélioratives descriptions of the general, decrease of the role of its legates, valorization of the valiancy of the adversaries with an only aim of developing its victory, etc the Guerre of Gaules is thus a work of propaganda, intended to develop the victorious general with the eyes of the Senate, so that it can strengthen his influence in Rome. However, this somewhat hasty judgment should be moderated: the factual value of the work is recognized, and the specialists in Antiquity consider that César could not too much have deformed reality, being given the multiplicity of the information sources its contemporaries had (in particular by its lieutenants at the time of the countryside, chosen by the Senate, sometimes opponents with César on the political scene). As always, out of historical matter in particular, it is necessary to take essential precautions vis-a-vis an instrument of work impossible to circumvent.

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