Battle of Axona

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Battle of Axona
Part of: Gallic War
date 57 BC Chr.
place On the river Aisne , in what is now the Aisne department
output Victory of the Romans
Parties to the conflict

Gallic coalition: Belger

Roman Empire

Commander

Galba from the tribe of the Suessionen

Gaius Iulius Caesar

Troop strength
allegedly 50,000 men 40,000 legionaries and archers, 300 guns
Gallic War (58–51 / 50 BC)

The Battle of Axona was a skirmish between Romans and Celts in 57 BC. In the Gallic War .

prehistory

The Celtic tribe of the Belgians sent in 57 BC. An army to besiege Bibrax , a city of the Remer . This siege failed, and the Celtic attacking army pitched their tents on the Axona River, today's Aisne , a few kilometers from the Roman camp.

Gaius Iulius Caesar , who was in the Roman camp with his legions, saw this as a threat, but wanted to avoid a battle. He therefore sent a detachment of mounted soldiers to the Belgians with the task of informing them of the seriousness of the situation. The riders were slain by the Celts, which the Romans saw as a declaration of war. Caesar therefore attacked the Belgians on the river a few days later.

The battle

Course of the battle and formation of the two armies: Romans (red) and Belger (green).

In terms of numbers, the eight Roman legions present (~ 40,000 men) were inferior to the Celts, but the two armies did not initially clash. The obstacle was a swamp on the river bank that nobody wanted to cross, as it made it an easy target for the opposing archers. The Roman artillery shelled the Belgians, but could not cause any major damage. The real battle was then initiated by the equites , who circled the swamp and disrupted the Celtic army with quick attacks. Many Belgians began to attack the Roman infantry in a disorderly manner by crossing the river via a ford. This made them an easy target for the Roman javelin throwers, who now hurled their Pila at the enemy. When the majority of the Celtic army reached the other bank, they were beaten down by the Roman swordsmen, causing a mass panic on the river. Many Belgians drowned while fleeing or were slain, the battle was thus decided in Caesar's favor.

consequences

The battle was a devastating defeat for the Celts, who lost 10,000 warriors in total, while 1,000 legionnaires fell on the Roman side. The Belgians had to evacuate the area around the river and fled north.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Caesar, De bello Gallico 2, 6.

literature