Battle of Vesontio
The Battle of Vesontio took place in May 68 AD between the Gallic rebels of Gaius Iulius Vindex and Lucius Verginius Rufus , the governor of Upper Germany. It took place near Vesontio (Besançon) , the main town of the Sequani , and ended with the victory of Verginius Rufus.
Political context
In March of 68 the Gallic governor Vindex had started an open revolt against the Roman emperor Nero . The governor of Upper Germany, Verginius Rufus, moved against him with the two legions stationed in Mogontiacum (Mainz) , the Legio XXII Primigenia and the Legio IIII Macedonica , as well as with divisions of legions from Lower Germany.
When Vindex heard about it, he broke off the siege of the provincial capital Lugdunum (Lyon), loyal to Nero , and went against Verginius. He met him at Vesontio, who besieged Verginius Rufus because the Sequani had joined Vindex.
Course of slaughter
Due to the poor sources, the course of the battle cannot be reconstructed. Cassius Dio reports that Verginius Rufus and Vindex met for an interview and agreed on a common approach against Nero. A battle broke out against the will of the generals when the Gallic soldiers advanced on Verginius' troops to unite with them. Verginius soldiers probably thought it was an attack. Plutarch also mentions a battle against the will of the generals.
After the defeat, Vindex committed suicide. In research it is controversial whether Verginius Rufus was still fighting for Nero at this point in time or whether he had fallen away from him.
meaning
For the usurper Galba , allied with Vindex , the news of the defeat and death of Vindex led to uncertainty, as he did not know whether Verginius had triumphed for Nero or wanted to make himself emperor. Galba was in any case militarily inferior to him. Waiting, he withdrew to Clunia. Only the news from Rome that the Senate had elevated Galba to emperor in June and Nero committed suicide brought clarity.