Over the course of nearly four centuries, the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

fought a series of wars against various

Celtic tribes This is a list of ancient Celts, Celtic peoples and tribes. Continental Celts Continental Celts were the Celtic peoples that inhabited mainland Europe and Anatolia (also known as Asia Minor). In the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, Celts inhabited a la ...

, whom they collectively described as ''Galli'', or

Gauls The Gauls (; , ''Galátai'') were a group of Celts, Celtic peoples of mainland Europe in the Iron Age Europe, Iron Age and the Roman Gaul, Roman period (roughly 5th century BC to 5th century AD). Their homeland was known as Gaul (''Gallia''). Th ...

. Among the principal Gallic peoples described as antagonists by Greek and Roman writers were the

Senones The Senones or Senonii (Gaulish: "the ancient ones") were an ancient Gallic tribe dwelling in the Seine basin, around present-day Sens, during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Part of the Senones settled in the Italian peninsula, where the ...

Insubres The Insubres or Insubri were an ancient Celtic population settled in Insubria, in what is now the Italian region of Lombardy. They were the founders of Mediolanum (Milan). Though completely Gaulish at the time of Roman conquest, they were the re ...

Boii The Boii (Latin language, Latin plural, singular ''Boius''; ) were a Celts, Celtic tribe of the later Iron Age, attested at various times in Cisalpine Gaul (present-day Northern Italy), Pannonia (present-day Austria and Hungary), present-day Ba ...

, and

Gaesatae The Gaesatae or Gaesati (Latin ''Gaesati'', Greek Γαισάται) were a group of Gallic mercenary warriors who lived in the Alps and near the river Rhône in the 3rd century BC. They fought against the Roman Republic at the Battle of Telamon i ...

. The Romans first came into conflict with Gauls who entered Italy from the north. Some of these settled in the lands immediately south of the Alps, which became known as

Cisalpine Gaul Cisalpine Gaul (, also called ''Gallia Citerior'' or ''Gallia Togata'') was the name given, especially during the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, to a region of land inhabited by Celts (Gauls), corresponding to what is now most of northern Italy. Afte ...

: "Gaul this side of the Alps". Gaulish armies, some perhaps fighting as mercenaries in the service of the cities of

Magna Graecia Magna Graecia refers to the Greek-speaking areas of southern Italy, encompassing the modern Regions of Italy, Italian regions of Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata, Campania, and Sicily. These regions were Greek colonisation, extensively settled by G ...

, plundered territory in

Etruria Etruria ( ) was a region of Central Italy delimited by the rivers Arno and Tiber, an area that covered what is now most of Tuscany, northern Lazio, and north-western Umbria. It was inhabited by the Etruscans, an ancient civilization that f ...

and

Latium Latium ( , ; ) is the region of central western Italy in which the city of Rome was founded and grew to be the capital city of the Roman Empire. Definition Latium was originally a small triangle of fertile, volcanic soil (Old Latium) on whic ...

during the fourth century, famously sacking Rome ''circa'' 390 BC.Cornell, ''The Beginnings of Rome'', pp. 313–318. Following the

Samnite Wars The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars (343–341 BC, 326–304 BC, and 298–290 BC) were fought between the Roman Republic and the Samnites, who lived on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains south of Rome and north of the Lucanian tribe. ...

and the

Punic Wars The Punic Wars were a series of wars fought between the Roman Republic and the Ancient Carthage, Carthaginian Empire during the period 264 to 146BC. Three such wars took place, involving a total of forty-three years of warfare on both land and ...

, in which Gallic forces sometimes made common cause with Rome's enemies, the Romans found themselves in near-total control of Italy, including Cisalpine Gaul. As they consolidated their gains, they came into conflict with Gallic tribes on the borders of their growing empire, and subsequent conflicts occurred in and beyond the Alps. In the first century BC,

Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 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. He ...

's campaigns in Gaul brought most of the Gallic territory in western Europe under Roman control.''Oxford Classical Dictionary'', 2nd Edition, pp. 455, 456 ("Gallic Wars").

Cisalpine conflicts

Major conflicts on the Italian side of the Alps include: 390 BC: Brennus leads the Senones to

Clusium Clusium (, ''Klýsion'', or , ''Kloúsion''; Umbrian language, Umbrian:''Camars'') was an ancient city in Italy, one of several found at the same site overlapping the current municipality of Chiusi (Tuscany). The Roman city remodeled an earlier E ...

in Etruria. Rome sends an army to drive the Senones away, which the Senones defeat at the

Battle of the Allia The Battle of the Allia was fought between the Senones – a Gauls, Gallic tribe led by Brennus (leader of the Senones), Brennus, who had invaded Northern Italy – and the Roman Republic. The battle was fought at the confluence of the Tibe ...

. Brennus leads his men on to Rome, entering the city without further opposition, and plundering it. They depart laden with booty, which according to varying traditions was recovered when the Gauls were defeated by a

Caere : Caere (also Caisra and Cisra) is the Latin name given by the Romans to one of the larger cities of southern Etruria, the modern Cerveteri, approximately 50–60 kilometres north-northwest of Rome. To the Etruscans it was known as Cisra, to ...

tan army, or by Camillus.Polybius, ''Histories'', ii. 18.''Oxford Classical Dictionary'', 2nd Edition, p. 977 ("Senones"). 367 BC: A Gallic expedition is said to have been routed by Camillus, but the historicity of this episode is doubtful.Cornell, ''The Beginnings of Rome'', p. 324. 361–358 BC: Gauls allied with Tibur attack Roman territory during that city's war with Rome. Titus Manlius Imperiosus wins the surname ''Torquatus'' after defeating a Gaulish champion in single combat, and taking his

torque In physics and mechanics, torque is the rotational analogue of linear force. It is also referred to as the moment of force (also abbreviated to moment). The symbol for torque is typically \boldsymbol\tau, the lowercase Greek letter ''tau''. Wh ...

as a trophy. 350–349 BC: The Gauls ravage Latium, and the

Latin League The Latin League ( – 338 BC)Stearns, Peter N. (2001). ''The Encyclopedia of World History''. Houghton Mifflin. pp. 76–78. . was an ancient confederation of about 30 villages and tribes in the region of Latium near the ancient city of Rome, o ...

refuses direct aid to Rome. Despite various hardships, the Romans defeat their attackers, and a young Marcus Valerius Corvus wins everlasting fame by slaying a giant Gaul in single combat, aided by a raven, from which he takes his surname. 331 BC: The Romans conclude a peace with the Gauls, which holds for nearly thirty years. 302 BC: Gauls cross the Alps into Cisalpine Gaul, where previously-settled Gallic tribes allow them to pass southward. Some of the latter join the march, as do some

Etruscans The Etruscan civilization ( ) was an ancient civilization created by the Etruscans, a people who inhabited Etruria in List of ancient peoples of Italy, ancient Italy, with a common language and culture, and formed a federation of city-states. Af ...

. They pillage Roman territory and retire with the loot, but then fall to fighting among themselves.Polybius, ''Histories'', ii. 19. 295 BC: During the

Third Samnite War The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars (343–341 BC, 326–304 BC, and 298–290 BC) were fought between the Roman Republic and the Samnites, who lived on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains south of Rome and north of the Lucanians, Lucania ...

, an alliance of

Samnites The Samnites () were an ancient Italic peoples, Italic people who lived in Samnium, which is located in modern inland Abruzzo, Molise, and Campania in south-central Italy. An Oscan language, Oscan-speaking Osci, people, who originated as an offsh ...

, Gauls, Etruscans and

Umbrians The Umbri were an Italic people of ancient Italy. A region called Umbria still exists and is now occupied by Italian speakers. It is somewhat smaller than the ancient Umbria. Most ancient Umbrian cities were settled in the 9th-4th centuries BC ...

fights Rome. After an initial defeat, the Romans win a major victory at the

Battle of Sentinum The Battle of Sentinum was the decisive battle of the Third Samnite War, fought in 295 BC near Sentinum (next to the modern town of Sassoferrato, in the Marches region of Italy), in which the Romans overcame a formidable coalition of Samni ...

under the consuls

Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus (or Rullus) was a Patrician (ancient Rome), patrician, politician and soldier of the Roman Republic during the fourth and early third century BC. He was the son of Marcus Fabius Ambustus (consul 360 BC), Marcus F ...

and Publius Decius Mus, who devotes himself and perishes in the battle. 284 BC: The Gauls besiege Arretium. The Romans march to relieve the city, and the Gauls defeat them. Rome then sends a punitive expedition north which defeats the Senones and drives them out of their territory, which Rome occupies. Then in 283 BC the Boii, with Etruscan allies, march on Rome. Rome is victorious at the Battle of Lake Vadimo. 225 BC: The Insubres and Boii hire Alpine Gauls, the Gaesatae, to join them and march on Rome. The Gauls defeated the Romans at

Faesulae Fiesole () is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany, on a scenic height above Florence, 5 km (3 miles) northeast of that city. It has structures dating to Etruscan and Roman times. F ...

, but later the Romans defeated the Gauls at

Telamon In Greek mythology, Telamon (; Ancient Greek: Τελαμών, ''Telamōn'' means "broad strap") was the son of King Aeacus of Aegina, and Endeïs, a mountain nymph. The elder brother of Peleus, Telamon sailed alongside Jason as one of his Argon ...

. 223–193 BC: After this came a concerted Roman policy aimed at conquering Gallic territories south of the Alps. Rome invaded the territory of the Insubres in 223 BC, and took Clastidium, Acerrae and

Mediolanum Mediolanum, the ancient city where Milan now stands, was originally an Insubres, Insubrian city, but afterwards became an important Ancient Rome, Roman city in Northern Italy. The city was settled by a Celts, Celtic tribe belonging to the Ins ...

in 222 BC.''Oxford Classical Dictionary'', 2nd Edition, p. 548 ("Insubres"). Rome fought

Carthage Carthage was an ancient city in Northern Africa, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classic ...

in the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Ancient Carthage, Carthage and Roman Republic, Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For ...

(218–201 BC), and the Gauls typically sided with Carthage. After the war, Rome took Bononia (196 BC), Placentia (194 BC), and

Mutina Modena (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It has 184,739 inhabitants as of 2025. A town, and seat of an archbi ...

(193 BC). According to Strabo, many of the surviving Boii retreated north across the Alps to the land subsequently known as Boihaemum, but in all probability the region was already inhabited by Boii prior to their subjugation in Italy.

Transalpine conflicts

125–121 BC: Romans crossed the Alps and fought first the Salluvii and

Vocontii The Vocontii (Gaulish: *''Uocontioi''; Ancient Greek, Greek: Οὐοκόντιοι, Οὐοκοντίων) were a Gauls, Gallic people dwelling on the western foothills of the Alps during the La Tène culture, Iron Age and the Roman period. The Vo ...

, and then

Allobroges The Allobroges (Gaulish language, Gaulish: *''Allobrogis'', 'foreigner, exiled'; ) were a Gauls, Gallic people dwelling in a large territory between the Rhône river and the Alps during the Iron Age Europe, Iron Age and the Roman period. The Allob ...

and Arveni. The Gauls were decisively defeated at the Battle of Vindalium and

Battle of the Isère River The Battle of the Isère River (8 August 121 BC) took place near the modern day French town of Valence at the confluence of the Isère and Rhône rivers. A first confrontation had been won by Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus at the Battle of Vindal ...

in 121 BC. The Allobrogian territory was subsequently annexed and incorporated the Roman province known as Gallia Transalpina, later

Gallia Narbonensis Gallia Narbonensis (Latin for "Gaul of Narbonne", from its chief settlement) was a Roman province located in Occitania and Provence, in Southern France. It was also known as Provincia Nostra ("Our Province"), because it was the first ...

. 109 BC: During the

Cimbrian War The Cimbrian or Cimbric War (113–101 BC) was fought between the Roman Republic and the Germanic peoples, Germanic and Celts, Celtic tribes of the Cimbri and the Teutons, Ambrones and Tigurini, who migrated from the Jutland peninsula into Roma ...

, the

Cimbri The Cimbri (, ; ) were an ancient tribe in Europe. Ancient authors described them variously as a Celtic, Gaulish, Germanic, or even Cimmerian people. Several ancient sources indicate that they lived in Jutland, which in some classical texts was ...

defeat the consul Marcus Junius Silanus.Livy, ''Epitome'', 65. in 107 BC, the Cimbri and

Ambrones The Ambrones () were an ancient tribe mentioned by Roman authors. They are believed by some to have been a Germanic tribe from Jutland; the Romans were not clear about their exact origin. In the late 2nd century BC, along with the fellow Cimbri ...

, together with their allies Helvetii, defeat a Roman army near Agendicum in the Battle of Burdigala, in which the consul Lucius Cassius Longinus is killed. 58–50 BC:

leads a series of campaigns through Gaul, which he chronicles in detail. The result is the near-complete subjugation of the country between the Atlantic and the Rhine. After discovering that some of the Gauls are receiving aid from Britain, Caesar mounts the first Roman military expedition to that island. 40–37 BC: Prompted by unrest in Gaul,

Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (; BC – 12 BC) was a Roman general, statesman and architect who was a close friend, son-in-law and lieutenant to the Roman emperor Augustus. Agrippa is well known for his important military victories, notably the B ...

marches against the

Aquitani The Aquitani were a tribe that lived in the region between the Pyrenees, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Garonne, in present-day southwestern France in the 1st century BC. The Romans dubbed this region '' Gallia Aquitania''. Classical authors suc ...

, whom he defeats. 28–27 BC: Marcus Valerius Messalla Corvinus suppresses a revolt in

Aquitania Gallia Aquitania (, ), also known as Aquitaine or Aquitaine Gaul, was a province of the Roman Empire. It lies in present-day southwest France and the comarca of Val d'Aran in northeast Spain, where it gives its name to the modern region of Aquit ...

, for which he celebrates a triumph.''Oxford Classical Dictionary'', 2nd Edition, pp. 90 ("Aquitania"), 674 ("Messalla Corvinus").

Notes

References

Bibliography

Polybius Polybius (; , ; ) was a Greek historian of the middle Hellenistic period. He is noted for his work , a universal history documenting the rise of Rome in the Mediterranean in the third and second centuries BC. It covered the period of 264–146 ...

, '' Historiae'' (The Histories). *

Marcus Tullius Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

, ''Pro Fonteio''. * Gaius Julius Caesar, ''

Commentarii de Bello Gallico ''Commentarii de Bello Gallico'' (; ), also ''Bellum Gallicum'' (), is Julius Caesar's first-hand account of the Gallic Wars, written as a third-person narrative. In it, Caesar describes the battles and intrigues that took place in the nine yea ...

'' (Commentaries on the Gallic War). *

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus or Diodorus of Sicily (; 1st century BC) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek historian from Sicily. He is known for writing the monumental Universal history (genre), universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty ...

, ''

Bibliotheca Historica ''Bibliotheca historica'' (, ) is a work of Universal history (genre), universal history by Diodorus Siculus. It consisted of forty books, which were divided into three sections. The first six books are geographical in theme, and describe the h ...

'' (Library of History). *

Dionysius of Halicarnassus Dionysius of Halicarnassus (, ; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary style was ''atticistic'' – imitating Classical Attic Greek in its prime. ...

, ''Romaike Archaiologia'' (Roman Antiquities). * Titus Livius (

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding i ...

), ''

History of Rome The history of Rome includes the history of the city of Rome as well as the civilisation of ancient Rome. Roman history has been influential on the modern world, especially in the history of the Catholic Church, and Roman law has influenced m ...

''. *

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 "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

, ''

Geographica The ''Geographica'' (, ''Geōgraphiká''; or , "Strabo's 17 Books on Geographical Topics") or ''Geography'', is an encyclopedia of geographical knowledge, consisting of 17 'books', written in Greek in the late 1st century BC, or early 1st cen ...

''. *

Publius Cornelius Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historiography, Roman historians by modern scholars. Tacitus’ two major historical ...

, ''

De Origine et Situ Germanorum The ''Germania'', written by the Roman historian Publius Cornelius Tacitus around 98 AD and originally titled ''On the Origin and Situation of the Germans'' (), is a historical and ethnographic work on the Germanic peoples outside the Roman ...

'' (The Origin and Situation of the Germans, or "Germania"). * Appianus Alexandrinus (

Appian Appian of Alexandria (; ; ; ) was a Greek historian with Roman citizenship who prospered during the reigns of the Roman Emperors Trajan, Hadrian, and Antoninus Pius. He was born c. 95 in Alexandria. After holding the senior offices in the pr ...

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Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography'' is the last in a series of classical dictionaries edited by the English scholar William Smith (1813–1893), following '' A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'' and the '' Dictionary of G ...

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Oxford Classical Dictionary The ''Oxford Classical Dictionary'' (''OCD'') is generally considered "the best one-volume dictionary on antiquity," an encyclopædic work in English consisting of articles relating to classical antiquity and its civilizations. It was first pub ...

'', Second Edition, N. G. L. Hammond and H. H. Scullard, eds., Clarendon Press, Oxford (1970). * Timothy J. Cornell, ''The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000–264 BC)'', Routledge, London (1995). {{DEFAULTSORT:Roman-Gallic wars 4th-century BC conflicts 3rd-century BC conflicts 2nd-century BC conflicts 1st-century BC conflicts 4th century BC in the Roman Republic 3rd century BC in the Roman Republic 2nd century BC in the Roman Republic 1st century BC in the Roman Republic Wars involving the Celts Pre-Roman Gaul Wars involving the Roman Republic