2 – Battle of Alesia (52 BC)
In the eyes of most historians, this fight ranks as Caesar’s greatest ever win. Alesia was a siege, and it demonstrated the Roman commander’s military genius. By 52 BC, the Gauls realized that a united front was essential if they were to have any hope of beating the Romans. They named Vercingetorix of the Averni as the leader of the Gallic forces and began a wave of violence after which thousands of Roman soldiers and settlers were killed in Gaul. When Caesar learned of this problem, he emerged from his winter quarters at Cisalpine Gaul to deal with the threat.
The Romans won a few minor victories before suffering defeat at Gergovia. However, they continued to harass the Gauls and Vercingetorix elected to retreat to the walled town of Alesia to plan his next move. This location offered an excellent defensive position for the Gauls as it was located on a hill and surrounded by river valleys. The Roman force of 60,000 attempted to lift the siege, but the 70,000-80,000 Gauls proved stubborn foes. Caesar knew Gallic reinforcements could arrive at any time, so he ordered his men to get to work quickly.
He began by spreading his legions into eight camps around the hill. Vercingetorix launched a surprise attack which was beaten off; the Roman suffered minimal losses in this exchange. Caesar ordered his men to dig a trench between the two rivers surrounding the town to protect themselves from future assaults. He also told the soldiers to create a variety of deadly traps while two more ditches were dug; one of which was flooded. The mud from these ditches was used to build a 15-foot wall with a ten-foot fence and watchtowers!
Vercingetorix made the mistake of allowing the Romans to complete their project because he knew an immense relief force was on its way. It arrived by the time the Romans finished their outer defenses and was comprised of up to 250,000 warriors. Caesar was surrounded, outnumbered by at least 5:1 and in desperate trouble. A lesser commander would have panicked, but Caesar showed faith in the abilities of his men.
The Gallic reinforcements launched a massive cavalry attack, and Vercingetorix ordered an infantry charge when he saw what was happening. The Gallic horses were cut down by the Roman booby traps and trenches. Vercingetorix’s men suffered the same fate on their doomed infantry assault. Eventually, the Gauls reached the Roman wall only to be attacked by waves of pila. Caesar had placed archers on top of the towers, and their arrows destroyed most of the Gallic stragglers.
The Gauls suffered heavy losses and elected to retreat. The Gauls thought it would be a good idea to launch a night attack. Unfortunately, thousands of their men once again succumbed to the booby traps but eventually, they were close to breaking through the Roman fortifications. Some Gauls broke through but Caesar, seeing how exhausted his men were, began riding up and down the walls to fight alongside the soldiers. This invigorated the army who somehow found enough energy to beat back the Gallic forces. The Gauls fell back after fighting all night and were now critically low on supplies.
They launched one last assault with 40,000 men and focused on the Roman forces on the northern side of the town. In the midst of the fighting, Caesar ordered his cavalry to leave their positions and attack the rear of the enemy. It was a decisive move as the horsemen slaughtered the Gauls and forced a retreat. The fleeing Gauls were massacred by their enemy, and the great Battle of Alesia was finally over after three intense days of fighting. Vercingetorix surrendered to Caesar, was taken to Rome as a prisoner and executed several years later. Alesia practically marked the end of the Gallic wars and established Rome’s dominance in the region for centuries.