The Bellovaci (

Gaulish Gaulish was an ancient Celtic languages, Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium ...

: ''Bellouacoi'') were a

Belgic Belgic may refer to: * an adjective referring to the Belgae, an ancient confederation of tribes * a rarer adjective referring to the Low Countries or to Belgium * , several ships with the name * Belgic ware Aylesford-Swarling pottery is part of a ...

tribe dwelling in the modern

Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hi ...

region, near the present-day city of Beauvais, during the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

and the Roman period. After they were defeated by

Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...

in 57 BC, they gave lukewarm support to the Gallic revolt led by

Vercingetorix Vercingetorix (; Greek: Οὐερκιγγετόριξ; – 46 BC) was a Gallic king and chieftain of the Arverni tribe who united the Gauls in a failed revolt against Roman forces during the last phase of Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars. Despite h ...

in 52 BC. The Bellovaci nonetheless organized resistance against Rome in 51 BC.

Name

They are mentioned as ''Bellovacos'' and ''Bellovaci'' by

(mid-1st c. BC), ''Belloákoi'' (Βελλοάκοι) by

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

(early 1st c. AD), ''Bellovaci'' by

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

(1st c. AD), and as ''Belloúakoi'' (Βελλούακοι) by

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...

(2nd c. AD). The

ethnonym An ethnonym () is a name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (whose name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms, or endonyms (whose name is created and used ...

''Bellovacī'' is a latinized form of

''Bellouacoi'' (sing. ''Bellouacos''). The latter derives from the stem ''bello-'' ('strong, forceful'), but the translation of the suffix -''uaco-'' is uncertain. It could mean 'curved' (cf. Lat. ''uaccilare''), or else be related to the

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

''fachain'' ('striving') and the

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

''fachail'' ('fight, strife'). The city of Beauvais, attested ca. 400 AD as ''civitas Bellovacorum'' (' civitas of the Bellovaci', ''Belvacus'' in 874, ''Biauvais'' in 1132), is named after the Belgic tribe.

Geography

The territory of the Bellovaci was located in the

Thérain The Thérain () is a river in France, tributary of the Oise. It is long. It rises between Saint-Michel-d'Halescourt and Grumesnil in Seine-Maritime at 175 meters elevation. It flows generally southeast, through Songeons, Milly-sur-Thérain, ...

valley, south of the

Ambiani The Ambiani (Gaulish: ''Ambiāni'', 'those around') were a Belgic coastal tribe dwelling in the modern Picardy region during the Iron Age and Roman periods. They settled in the region between the 4th century and the second part of the 2nd centur ...

. They dominated on wooded heights, which constituted a natural frontier with the

Veliocasses The Veliocasses or Velocasses (Gaulish: *''Weliocassēs'') were a Belgic or Gallic tribe of the La Tène and Roman periods, dwelling in the south of modern Seine-Maritime and in the north of Eure. Name They are mentioned as ''Veliocasses'' by ...

. To the east lived the more powerful Suessiones, who were probably able to contain potential expansions of the Bellovaci beyond the

Oise Oise ( ; ; pcd, Oése) is a department in the north of France. It is named after the river Oise. Inhabitants of the department are called ''Oisiens'' () or ''Isariens'', after the Latin name for the river, Isara. It had a population of 829,419 ...

river. The capital of their '' civitas'' was known as ''Caesaromagus'' (present-day Beauvais) during the Roman era. The Bellovaci most likely controlled the hill-fort

Gournay-sur-Aronde Gournay-sur-Aronde () is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. Gournay-sur-Aronde is best known for a Late Iron Age sanctuary that dates back to the 4th century BCE, and was burned and levelled at the end of the 1st century BCE. ...

, in which sanctuary may have been a site of fairs welcoming the

and

Viromandui The Viromanduī or Veromanduī (Gaulish: *''Uiromanduoi'') were a Belgic tribe dwelling in the modern Vermandois region (Picardy) during the Iron Age and Roman periods. During the Gallic Wars (58–50 BC), they belonged to the Belgic coalition of ...

Economy

Their territory straddled the route from the

Seine ) , mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur , mouth_coordinates = , mouth_elevation = , progression = , river_system = Seine basin , basin_size = , tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle , tributarie ...

to the Somme valleys. They were clients of the

Aedui The Aedui or Haedui (Gaulish: *''Aiduoi'', 'the Ardent'; grc, Aἴδουοι) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the modern Burgundy region during the Iron Age and the Roman period. The Aedui had an ambiguous relationship with the Roman Republic ...

in central Gaul by the first century BC. The lack of specific gold coinage related to the Bellovaci also suggests a moderate economic power.

History

Roman conquest

This campaign occurred in the

Compiègne Forest Compiègne (; pcd, Compiène) is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. It is located on the river Oise. Its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois''. Administration Compiègne is the seat of two cantons: * Compiègne-1 (with 19 c ...

, in an area that had been occupied by the Suessiones. The Bellovaci intended to conquer this territory, a situation that

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...

feared would expand into a greater threat and he decided it would be useful to intervene to prove

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

superiority. Bellovaci employed

guerrilla warfare Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or Irregular military, irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, Raid (military), raids ...

, in particular targeting

foragers. Meanwhile,

's strategic plan was to draw the Bellovaci forces out into open ground.

Conquest

Caesar ordered troops into the territory of the Suessiones, but chose to confront the Bellovaci himself. The Bellovaci, led by Correus, camped at Mount St. Marc, intending to attack head on if Caesar brought three legions, and to use guerrilla tactics if he brought more. The Roman camp was located at Mount St. Pierre, and heavily fortified with two ditches and two lines of defences. The events of this campaign were recorded by

Aulus Hirtius Aulus Hirtius (; – 43 BC) was consul of the Roman Republic in 43 BC and a writer on military subjects. He was killed during his consulship in battle against Mark Antony at the Battle of Mutina. Biography He was a legate of Julius Caesar's sta ...

, though his findings do not entirely correspond with the geography of the region – he provided only that the Bellovaci camped at a “high wooded place surrounded by marsh”. The Bellovaci were surprised by the arrival of Roman troops, and

was intimidated by the size of enemy forces, even though he (Caesar) had a large force of about 30,000 men with him, including four

legion Legion may refer to: Military * Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army * Spanish Legion, an elite military unit within the Spanish Army * Legion of the United States, a reorganization of the United States Army from 179 ...

s, tribes, and a few baggage trains. Neither initiated battle. The battles were initially small confrontations with varying success across the marsh surrounding Bellovaci territory. The

warriors set traps in the woods for

foragers, and maintained an immensely advantageous position to the point that Caesar was forced to call for reinforcements of three legions from

Trebonius Gaius Trebonius (c. 92 BC – January 43 BC) was a military commander and politician of the late Roman Republic, who became suffect consul in 45 BC. He was an associate of Julius Caesar, having served as his legate and having fought on his side du ...

. Intimidated by the pending arrival of Roman reinforcements and fearing a siege, Correus sent many of his battle-incapable troops to escape in the night. They accomplished this successfully, though Caesar's troops may have been able to catch them had they attempted to intervene.

Defeat and post-conquest period

Eventually, Caesar built a bridge crossed the marsh by Mount St. Marc, positioning his troops within missile range of the Bellovaci camp. Correus and the Bellovaci retreated in the night to a stronger camp 10 miles away, using a line of fire to blind the Roman troops, leaving traps in their wake to impede Roman pursuit. Correus then attempted an ambush on Caesar's troops, though not their entire number, sending about 6000 of his men to a spot where he believed Caesar would forage for food. Caesar heard of this, although it is not clear how, and has reinforcements ready to attack once the ambush is set off; however by the time he arrives, the Bellovaci were defeated, and their general Correus killed. After the battle, the Bellovaci were allegedly impressed by Caesar's

clemency A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...

, which was secured through unclear means by Diviciacus; according to the ''Bello Gallico'' the leaders of the revolt fled to

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

, ''

Commentarii de Bello Gallico ''Commentarii de Bello Gallico'' (; en, Commentaries on the Gallic War, italic=yes), also ''Bellum Gallicum'' ( en, Gallic War, italic=yes), is Julius Caesar's firsthand account of the Gallic Wars, written as a third-person narrative. In it Ca ...

'' 2.14

References

Bibliography

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