_The Unelli_, the people of the ancient
Contentin
(department of La
Manche).
Manche).
Napoleon - History of Julius Caesar - b
Müller.
)--“Belgica esseda,
Gallicana vehicula. Nam Belga civitas est Galliæ in qua hujusmodi
vehiculi repertus est usus. ” (Servius, _Commentaries on the Georgics_ of
Virgil, lib. III. v. 204. --Cæsar, _De Bello Gallico_, IV. 33, and
_passim_.
[56] _De Bello Gallico_, II. 5.
[57] _De Bello Gallico_, I. 7.
[58] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 11.
[59] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 34, 53.
[60] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 58.
[61] The reckoning of these contingents is the most positive element for
estimating the state of the population. We find in the “Commentaries”
three valuable statements: 1st, the numerical state of the Helvetian
immigration in 696 (_De Bello Gallico_, I. 29. ); 2nd, that of the Belgic
troops, in the campaign of 697 (_De Bello Gallico_, II. 4. ); 3rd, the
census of the Gaulish army which, in 702, attempted to raise the siege
of Alesia (_De Bello Gallico_, VII. 75. ) Of 368,000 men, composing the
agglomeration of the Helvetii and their allies, 92,000 were able to bear
arms; that is, about a quarter of the population. In the campaign of
697, the Belgic coalition counted 296,000 combatants, and, in 702, at
the time of the blockade of Alesia, the effective force of a great part
of Gaul amounted to 281,000 men. But, in order not to count twice the
different contingents of the same states, we suppress from the
enumeration of the year 702 the contingents of the countries already
mentioned in the census of 697, which reduces the effective force to
201,000 men. Yet this number cannot represent the total of men fit for
war; it comprises only the troops which could easily be sent out of the
territory, and which were more numerous accordingly as the people to
which they belonged were nearer to the theatre of military operations.
Thus Cæsar informs us that the Bellovaci, who could bring into the field
100,000 men, only furnished 60,000 picked men in 697, and 10,000 in 702.
The contingent of the Atrebates, which had been 15,000 men in 697, was
reduced to 4,000 in 702; that of the Nervii, of 50,000 in the former
year, sank to 5,000; and that of the Morini similarly from 25,000 to
5,000. From these circumstances we may be allowed to infer that the
Gauls armed three-fifths of their male population when the enemy was
near their territory, and only one-fifth, or even one-sixth, when he was
more distant.
If, then, we would form an idea of the total number of men able to carry
arms in Gaul, we must augment the contingents really furnished,
sometimes by two-fifths, sometimes in a higher proportion, according to
the distances which separated them from the seat of war. By this
calculation, the levies of 697 represent 513,600 men capable of carrying
arms, and those of 702, at least 573,600; we add together these two
numbers, because, as stated above, each army comprises different
populations, which gives 1,087,200 men, to whom we must add 92,000
Helvetii; moreover, it is indispensable to take into account the
contributive capability of the populations which are not mentioned in
the “Commentaries” among the belligerents at the two epochs indicated
above, such as the Pictones, the Carnutes, the Andes, the Remi, the
Treviri, the Lingones, the Leuci, the Unelli, the Redones, the
Ambivareti, and the peoples of Armorica and Aquitaine. By an approximate
estimate of their population according to the extent of their territory,
we shall obtain the number of 625,000 men. Adding together these four
numbers, to obtain the total number of men capable of bearing arms, we
shall get 513,600 + 573,600 + 92,000 + 625,000 = 1,804,200 men.
Quadrupling this number to get, according to the proportion applied to
the Helvetii, the total of the population, we shall have 7,216,800
inhabitants for Gaul, the Roman province not included. In fact, Diodorus
Siculus, who wrote in the first century of our era, says (lib. V. , c.
25) that the population of the different nations of Gaul varies from
200,000 to 50,000 men, which would make a mean of 125,000 men. If we
take the word ἁνδρες in the sense of inhabitants, and if we admit with
Tacitus that there were in Gaul sixty-four different nations, we should
have the number of 8,000,000 inhabitants, very near the preceding.
[62] Pliny expresses himself thus: “The country comprised under the name
of _Gallia Comata_ is divided into three peoples, generally separated by
rivers. From the Scheldt to the Seine is Belgic Gaul; from the Seine to
the Garonne, Celtic, called also _Lyonnese_; from thence to the Pyrenees
is Aquitaine. ” (_Hist. Nat. _, IV. xxxi. 105. )
[63] PEOPLES COMPOSING THE ROMAN PROVINCE:
_The Albici_ (the south of the department of the Lower Alps, and the
north of the Var). (_De Bello Civil. _, I. 34; II. 2. )
_The Allobroges_, probably of Celtic origin, inhabited the north-west of
Savoy, and the greater part of the department of the Isère.
_The Helvii_, inhabitants of the ancient Vivarais (the southern part of
the department of the Ardèche), separated from the Arverni by the
Cévennes. (_De Bello Gallico_, VII. 8. )
_The Ruteni_ of the province (_Ruteni Provinciales_), a fraction of the
Celtic nation of the Ruteni, incorporated into the Roman province, and
whose territory extended over a part of the department of the Tarn.
_The Sallyes_, or _Salluvii_ (the Bouches-du-Rhône, and western part of
the Var). (_De Bello Civil. _, I. 35, edit. Nipperdey. )
_The Vocontii_ (department of the Drôme and Upper Alps, southern part of
the Isère, and the northern part of the Ardèche).
_The Volcæ_ occupied all Lower Languedoc, from the Garonne to the Rhone.
They had emigrated from the north of Gaul. They were subdivided into the
Volcæ Tectosages, who had Tolosa (_Toulouse_) for their principal town;
and the Volcæ Arecomici.
_The Deciates_ (western part of the department of the }
Maritime Alps). }
}
_The Oxybii_ (eastern part of the department of the } Not mentioned by
Var). } Cæsar.
}
_The Sordones_, of the same race as the Aquitainians, }
inhabiting the Eastern Pyrenees and the Aude. }
_The Caturiges. _ } Independent peoples on the upper channels of the Durance
_The Centrones. _ } and the Isère, and in the mountains of the
_The Graioceli. _ } Tarentaise.
[64] _De Bello Gallico_, III. 10.
[65] Four hundred, according to Appian (_Civil War_, II. 150); three
hundred and five, according to Flavius Josephus (_Wars of the Jews_, II.
xxviii. 5); three hundred, according to Plutarch (_Cæsar_, 15); about a
hundred and forty, according to Pliny (_Hist. Nat. _, III. 5; IV. 31-33).
[66] “Nevertheless, it was said at Rome that it was not only the Treviri
and the Ædui who revolted, but the sixty-four states of Gaul. ” (Tacitus,
_Annal. _, III. 44. )--The revolt in question was that of Sacrovir, under
Tiberius.
[67] Strabo, IV. , p. 163, edit. Didot.
[68] Although of Germanic origin, like the Nervii, and glorying in it
(Tacitus, _Germania_, 28), the Treviri were often at war with the
Germans. (Cæsar, _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 68. )
[69] PEOPLES OF BELGIC GAUL:
_The Aduatuci_, who occupied a part of the province of Namur.
_The Ambiani_, a people of the department of the Somme. Their chief town
was Samarobriva (_Amiens_).
_The Ambivareti_, established on the left bank of the Meuse, to the
south of the marsh of Peel.
_The Atrebates_, the people of the ancient Artois, and a part of French
Flanders. Their principal _oppidum_ was Nemetocenna (_Arras_).
_The Bellovaci_, occupying the greater part of the department of the
Oise (the ancient Beauvaisis), and who extended, probably, to the sea.
(Pliny, _Hist. Nat. _, IV. 17. )
_The Caletes_, whose territory answered to the ancient Pays de Caux (the
western and central part of the department of the Seine-Inférieure).
_The Leuci_, who occupied the southern part of the department of the
Meuse, the greater part of that of the Meurthe, and the department of
the Vosges.
_The Mediomatrices_. They extended from the upper course of the Meuse to
the Rhine (department of the Moselle, and part of the departments of the
Meuse, the Meurthe, the Upper Rhine, and the Lower Rhine).
_The Menapii_, who occupied the territory comprised between the Rhine
and the mouths of the Scheldt.
_The Morini_, who inhabited the western part of the department of the
Pas-de-Calais, and extended to near the mouths of the Scheldt.
_The Nervii_, established between the Sambre and the Scheldt (French and
Belgic Hainaut, provinces of Southern Brabant, of Antwerp, and part of
Eastern Flanders). The writers posterior to Cæsar mention Bagacum
(_Bavay_) as their principal town.
_The Ceutrones_, }
_The Geiduni_, } Clients (or dependents) of the Nervi, whose territories
_The Grudii_, } appear to have been situated on the left of
_The Pleumoxii_, } the Meuse, from Mézières to near Hasselt.
_The Levaci_, }
_The Remi_, whose territory embraced the greater part of the departments
of the Marne and the Ardennes, a fraction of the departments of the
Aisne and the Meuse, and of the province of Luxemburg. Their principal
town was Durocortorum (_Rheims_).
_The Suessiones_, the people of the ancient Soissonais, whose territory
comprised the greater part of the department of the Aisne. Principal
_oppidum_, Noviodunum (_Soissons_).
_The Treviri_, separated from Germany by the Rhine, and occupying the
whole lower basin of the Moselle (Rhenish Luxemburg, Prussia, and
Bavaria). The Treviri had for clients--
_The Condrusi_, established to the south of the Meuse, in the
ancient Condroz, and who reached almost to Aix-la-Chapelle.
_The Eburones_, occupying part of the provinces of Liége and
Limburg, and reaching to the Rhine through the ancient duchy of
Juliers.
_The Ceresi_, }
_The Pæmani_, } whose territories extended on the east of the Meuse,
_The Segni_, } to the north of the Remi and the Treviri.
_The Triboces_, established on both banks of the Rhine, occupied the
central part of the Grand Duchy of Baden and the north of the department
of the Lower Rhine, perhaps already invaded, on the left bank. Their
presence on the left bank of the Rhine appears from Cæsar’s account.
(_De Bello Gallico_, IV. 10. )
_The Veliocasses_, whose territory embraced the ancient Vexin, and who
occupied part of the departments of the Seine-Inférieure and the Eure.
_The Veromandui_, occupying the ancient Vermandois, the northern part of
the Aisne, and the eastern part of the Somme.
[70] “Qui belli gloria Gallos omnes Belgasque præstabant. ” (_De Bello
Gallico_, II. 4, and VIII. 6. )
[71] Pliny, _Hist. Nat. _, IV. xxxi, 17.
[72] PEOPLES OF CELTIC GAUL:
_The Arverni_ extended over a vast region, comprising the present
departments of the Puy-de-Dôme and Cantal, and part of those of the
Allier and the Upper Loire. Gergovia was their principal town. The
Arverni had for clients--
_The Cadurei Eleutheri_, whose territory answered to the ancient Quercy
(department of the Lot). [This epithet of Eleutheri, which is found in
Cæsar (_De Bello Gallico_, VIII. 75) leads us to believe that in
southern Quercy there existed Cadurci placed under the dominion of
Rome. ]
_The Gabali_, who occupied the ancient Gévaudan (the department of the
Lozère).
_The Vellavi_, whose territory answered to the ancient Velay (department
of the Upper Loire).
_The Aulerci_ formed an extensive nation, which was subdivided into
three great tribes, established over the country from the lower course
of the Seine to the Mayenné.
1. _The Aulerci Cenomanni_, a fraction of whom was, as early as the
sixth century of Rome, established in Cisalpine Gaul, between the
Oglio and the Adige, and who occupied in Gaul the greater part of
the territory now forming the department of the Sarthe;
2. _The Aulerci Diablintes_, the northern and central parts of the
department of the Mayenne.
3. _The Aulerci Eburovices_, the central and southern part of the
department of the Eure.
_The Bituriges_, a nation which had more than twenty towns. Avaricum
(_Bourges_) was the principal. Their territory embraced the ancient
Berry (departments of the Cher, the Indre, and part of the Allier).
_The Carnutes_ occupied the greatest part of the present departments of
Eure-et-Loir, Loir-et-Cher, and Loiret. Genabum (_Gien_) was one of
their most important towns.
_The Ædui_ occupied the modern departments of Saône-et-Loire and the
Nièvre, and a part of the Côte-d’Or and the Allier. Their principal
_oppidum_ was Bibracte (_Mont-Beuvray_), the place of which was
subsequently taken by Augustodunum (_Autun_). Cabillonum
(_Chalon-sur-Saône_), Matisco (_Mâcon_), and Noviodunum, afterwards
called Nivernum (_Nevers_), were also reckoned among their most
important places. The _Ædui_ had for clients--
_The Ambarri_, a small tribe situated between the Saône, the Rhone, and
the Ain (department of the Ain).
_The Ambluaretes_, a people occupying a district around Ambierle
(arrondissement of Roanne, department of the Loire). (? )
_The Aulerci Brannovices_, a tribe which dwelt between the Saône and the
Loire, occupied the ancient country of Brionnais.
_The Blannovii_, who occupied a territory round Blanot (Saône-et-Loire).
(? )
_The Boii_, a fraction of a great nomadic nation of this name, of Celtic
origin, authorised by Cæsar to establish themselves on the territory of
the Ædui, between the Loire and the Allier.
_The Segusiavi_, who occupied the ancient Forez (departments of the
Rhône and the Loire), and extended to the left bank of the Saône.
_The Essuvii_, established in the department of the Orne.
_The Helvetii_, who were subdivided into four tribes or _pagi_; their
territory occupied the part of Switzerland which extends from the north
shore of the Léman to the Lake of Constance.
_The Lemovices_, whose territory answered to the Limousin (departments
of the Upper Vienne and the greater part of the Corrèze and the Creuse).
_The Lingones_, whose territory embraced the greatest part of the
department of the Haute-Marne and a fraction of the departments of the
Aube, the Yonne, and the Côte-d’Or.
_The Mandubii_, established between the Ædui and the Lingones
(department of the Côte-d’Or), occupied the ancient country of Auxois.
Alesia (_Alise_) was their principal _oppidum_.
_The Meldœ_ occupied the north of the department of the Seine-et-Marne
and a small part of the department of the Oise.
_The Nitiobriges_ occupied the greatest part of the department of the
Lot-et-Garonne and a fraction of the Tarn-et-Garonne.
_The Parisii_, whose territory embraced the department of the Seine and
a great part of the department of the Seine-et-Oise. Their principal
town was Lutetia (_Paris_).
_The Petrocorii_, established in the ancient Périgord (department of the
Dordogne).
_The Rauraci_, whose origin is perhaps German, established on both banks
of the Rhine, towards the elbow which the river forms at Bâle.
_The Ruteni_ occupied the ancient province of Rouergne (department of
the Aveyron).
_The Senones_, established between the Loire and the Marne. Their
principal town was Agedincum (_Sens_). Their territory comprised a part
of the departments of the Yonne, the Marne, the Loiret, Seine-et-Marne,
and the Aube.
_The Sequani_, whose territory embraced the ancient Franche-Comté (Jura,
Doubs, Haute-Saône, and part of the Haut-Rhin). Principal town, Vesontio
(_Besançon_).
_The Turones_, who occupied Touraine (department of Indre-et-Loire).
The peoples whom Cæsar calls _maritime_, or _Armorican_, were--
_The Ambibari_, established at the point where the departments of
La Manche and Ille-et-Vilaine join.
_The Ambiliates_, whose territory comprised the part of the
department of Maine-et-Loire situated to the south of the Loire.
_The Andes_, occupying Anjon (department of Maine-et-Loire and a
fraction of the department of the Sarthe).
_The Curiosolitæ_, occupying the greatest part of the department of
the Côtes-du-Nord.
_The Lemovices Armorici_, fixed to the south of the Loire, in the
southern part of the department of the Loire-Inférieure and the
west of that of Maine-et-Loire.
_The Lexovii_, occupying the department of Calvados, and a fraction
of that of the Eure.
_The Namnetes_, who occupied, in the department of the
Loire-Inférieure, the right bank of the Loire.
_The Osismii_, whose territory answered to the department of
Finistère.
_The Pictones_, occupying Poitou (departments of La Vendée, the
Deux-Sèvres, and the Vienne).
_The Redones_, whose territory embraced the greatest part of the
department of Ille-et-Vilaine.
_The Santones_, occupying Saintonge, Aunis, and Angoumois
(department of the Charente and the Charente-Inférieure, and a part
of the department of the Gironde).
_The Unelli_, the people of the ancient Contentin (department of La
Manche).
_The Veneti_, whose territory included the department of Morbihan.
To these maritime peoples we must add--
_The Caletes_, }
_The Essuvii_, } mentioned above.
_The Morinu_, }
We may also join to the Celtic populations--
_The Nuntuates_, }
_The Seduni_, } Alpine tribes, established on the upper course of the
_The Veragri_, } Rhone, in the Valais and the Chablais.
[73] Tacitus. _Germania_, 28.
[74] PEOPLES OF AQUITAINE:
_The Ausci_, who occupied the central part of the department of the
Gers, the most powerful of the nations of Aquitaine, according to
Pomponius Mela (III. 2).
_The Bigerriones_ occupied Bigorre (department of the Hautes-Pyrénées).
_The Cocosates_, established on the coasts of the Gulf of Gascony, in
the Landes (the southern part of the department of the Gironde and the
northern of the department of the Landes).
_The Elusates_ occupied the north-west part of the department of the
Gers and part of that of the Lot-et-Garonne.
_The Gates_, at the confluence of the Gers and the Garonne.
_The Garumni_, in the south of the department of the Haute-Garonne.
_The Ptianes_, probably towards Pau and Orthez.
_The Sibuzates_ appear to have occupied the ancient country of Soule
(Basses-Pyrénées).
_The Sotiates_ occupied the south-west part of the department of
Lot-et-Garonne and a part of the departments of the Landes and the Gers.
_The Tarbelli_ occupied all the territory bordering upon the head of the
Gulf of Gascony (departments of the Landes and the Basses-Pyrénées).
_The Tarusates_, established on the Adour, in the ancient Tursan (the
south-east part of the department of the Landes). PEOPLES OF AQUITAINE
(_continued_).
_The Vasates_ or _Vocates_, established in the country of Bazas (the
south-east part of the department of the Gironde).
_The Bituriges Vivisci_, the most northern of the peoples }
of Aquitane (department of the Gironde). }
}
_The Convenes_ (a confederacy of small tribes established } Not mentioned by
in the valleys of the Hautes-Pyrénées and the } Cæsar.
southern part of the department of the Haute-Garonne). }
[75] “Pagus, pars civitatis. ” (_De Bello Gallico_, I. 12. )
[76] Cæsar mentions in different pasages the existence of _vici_ among
the Helvetii (I. 5), the Allobroges _trans Rhodanum_ (I. 11), the Remi
(II. 7), the Morini (III. 29), the Menapii (IV. 4), the Eburones (VI.
43), the Boii (VII. 14), the Carnutes (VIII. 5), and the Veragri (III.
1).
[77] _De Bello Gallico_ VII. 15, 25, 68.
[78] The “Commentaries” name twenty-one _oppida_: Alesia, Avaricum,
Bibracte, Bibrax, Bratuspantium, Cabillonum, Genabum, Genava, Gergovia,
Gorgobina, Lutetia, Lemonum, Melodunum, Noviodunum Æduorum, Noviodunum
Biturigum, Noviodunum Suessionum, Uxellodunum, Vellaunodunum, Vesontio,
the _oppidum_ Aduatucorum, and the _oppidum_ Sotiatum.
[79] “Oppidum dictum quod ibi homines opes suas conferunt. ” (Paulus
Diaconus, p. 184, edit. Müller. )
[80] The Gauls lived in houses, or rather in huts, constructed of wood
and with hurdles, tolerably spacious and of a circular form, covered
with a high roof. (Strabo, IV. 163, edit. Didot. )--The Gauls, to avoid
the heat, almost always built their habitations in the neighbourhood of
woods and rivers. (Cæsar, _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 30. )
[81] See a very curious passage in Solinus, chap. 25, on the practice of
tattooing among the Gauls.
[82] Diodorus Siculus (V. 28) says that the Gauls were of tall stature,
had white flesh, and were lymphatic in constitution. Some shaved; the
majority had beards of moderate size. --According to Titus Livius, the
Gauls possessed a tall stature (_procera corpora_), flowing hair of an
auburn colour (_promissæ et rutilatæ comæ_), a white complexion
(_candida corpora_). (Titus Livius, XXXVIII. 17, 21, and Ammianus
Marcellinus, XV. 22. ) The latter adds that the Gauls had generally a
threatening and terrible tone of voice, which is also stated by Diodorus
Siculus (V. 31). --The skeletons found in the excavations at
Saint-Etienne-au-Temple are 1·80m. to 1·90m. in length.
[83] Strabo, p. 163, edit. Didot.
[84] Isidorus Hispalensis, _Origines_, I. 19, 24.
[85] Diodorus Siculus, V. 30.
[86] Diodorus Siculus, V. 33.
[87] Pliny, XXXIII. 24. --Gold was very abundant in Gaul; silver was much
less common. The rich wore bracelets, rings on the leg, and collars, of
the purest gold and tolerably massive; they had even breastplates of
gold. (Diodorus Siculus, V. 27. )--A great number of these rings and
circles of gold, of very good workmanship, have been found in the
Gaulish burying-places. The Museum of Saint-Germain contains bracelets
and earrings of chased gold, found, in 1863, in a tumulus situated near
Châtillon-sur-Seine.
[88] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 14.
[89] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 13.
[90] Pliny, _Hist. Nat. _, VIII. xlviii. lxxiii. , p. 127, edit. Sillig.
[91] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 22. --Pliny, XXXIV. xvii. , p. 162, edit.
Sillig.
[92] “Deinde et argentum incoquere simili modo cœpere, equorum maxime
ornamentis, jumentorumque ac jugorum, in Alesia oppido. ” (Pliny, XXXIV.
xvii. , p. 162. --Florus, III. 2. )
[93] Milk and the flesh of wild or domestic animals, especially swine’s
flesh fresh or salted, formed the principal food of the Gauls. (Strabo,
IV. , p. 163. )--Beer and mead were the principal drink of the Gauls.
(Posidonius quoted by Athenæus, IV. , p. 151, _Fragmenta Historicum
Græc. _, III. 260. )--This statement is made also by Diodorus Siculus (V.
26), who informs us that this beer was made with barley.
[94] Cicero already remarked the propensity of the Gauls to drunkenness
(_Orat. pro Fonteio_), and Ammianus Marcellinus (XV. 12) also addresses
the same reproach to them, which is again stated in Diodorus Siculus (V.
26).
[95] “The Gauls, in their great hospitality, invited the stranger to
their meal as soon as he presented himself, and it was only after
drinking and eating with them that they inquired his name and country. ”
(Diodorus Siculus, V. 28. )
[96] Strabo (IV. , p. 162) says that the Gauls were of a frank character
and good-hearted (literally, without malice). --Ammianus Marcellinus (XV.
12), who wrote at the end of the fifth century, represents the Gauls as
excessively vain. --Strabo (IV. , p. 165) assures us that they were much
inclined to disputes and quarrels.
[97] Cæsar often speaks of the fickleness of temper of this people,
which, during a long period, gave great trouble to the Roman people.
“Omnes fere Gallos novis rebus studere, et ad bellum mobiliter
celeriterque excitari. ” (_De Bello Gallico_, III 10. )--Lampridius, in
his _Life of Alexander Severus_, 59, expresses himself thus: “But the
Gauls, those tempers hard to deal with, and who regret all they have
ceased to possess, often furnished grave cares to the
emperors. ”--“Gallorum subita et repentina consilia. ” (_De Bello
Gallico_, III. 8. )
[98] _De Bello Gallico_, III. 19.
[99] Diodorus Siculus (V. 31) says that the language of the Gauls was
very concise and figurative, and that the Gauls made use of hyperbole in
blaming and praising.
[100] Diodorus Siculus, V. 32. --Strabo, IV. , p. 165. --Athenæus, XIII. ,
p. 603.
[101] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 47 and 48. --Among the Gauls, the women
were equal to the men, not only in size, but also in courage. (Diodorus
Siculus, V. 32. )--The Gaulish women were tall and strong. --Ammianus
Marcellinus (XV. 12) writes: “Several foreigners together could not
wrestle against a single Gaul, if they quarrelled with him, especially
if he called for help to his wife, who even exceeds her husband in her
strength and in her haggard eyes. She would become especially formidable
if, swelling her throat and gnashing her teeth, she agitated her arms,
robust and white as snow, ready to act with feet or fists; to give blows
as vigorous as if they came from a catapult. ”
[102] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 18: “Ab Dite patre prognatos. ”
[103] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 18.
[104] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 19.
[105] The Gauls, like most of the barbarian peoples, looked upon the
other life as resembling the present. And with this sentiment, at the
funeral, they threw into the funereal pile, letters addressed to the
dead, which they imagined he read. (Diodorus Siculus, V. 28. )
[106] Titus Livius tells us (XXXVIII. 17) that the Gauls had long swords
(_prælongi gladii_) and great bucklers (_vasta scuta_). In another
passage (XXII. 46) he remarks that the swords of the Gauls were long and
without point (_prælongi ac sine mucronibus_). --Their bucklers were
long, narrow, and flat (_scuta longa, cœterum ad amplitudinem corporum
parum lata et ea ipsa plana_). (Titus Livius, XXXVIII. 21. )--“Et Biturix
longisque leves Suessones in armis. ” (Lucan, _Pharsalia_, I.
422. )--Didorus Siculus (V. 30) says that the Gauls had iron coats of
mail. He adds: “Instead of glaive (ξἱφος), they have long swords
(σπἁθη), which they carry suspended to their right side by chains of
iron or bronze. Some bind their tunics with gilt or silvered girdles.
They have spears (λὁγχη or λογχἱς) having an iron blade a cubit long,
and sometimes more. The breadth is almost two palms, for the blade of
these _saunions_ (the Gaulish dart) is not less than that of our glaive,
and it is a little longer. Of these blades, some are forged straight,
others present undulated curves, so that they not only cut in striking,
but in addition they tear the wound when they are drawn out. ”
[107] Strabo, IV. , p. 163, edit. Didot. --Pseudo-Cicero (_Ad Herennium_,
IV. 32) writes _materis_.
[108] The _amentum_ was a small strap of leather which served to throw
the javelin and doubled its distance of carriage, as recent trials have
proved. In the _De Bello Gallico_, V. 48, there is mention of a Gaul
throwing the javelin with the _amentum_; but this Gaul was in the Roman
service, which explains his having more perfect arms. Strabo says that
the Gauls used javelins like the Roman _velites_, but that they threw
them with the hand, and not by means of a strap. (Strabo, edit. Didot,
II.
Gallicana vehicula. Nam Belga civitas est Galliæ in qua hujusmodi
vehiculi repertus est usus. ” (Servius, _Commentaries on the Georgics_ of
Virgil, lib. III. v. 204. --Cæsar, _De Bello Gallico_, IV. 33, and
_passim_.
[56] _De Bello Gallico_, II. 5.
[57] _De Bello Gallico_, I. 7.
[58] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 11.
[59] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 34, 53.
[60] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 58.
[61] The reckoning of these contingents is the most positive element for
estimating the state of the population. We find in the “Commentaries”
three valuable statements: 1st, the numerical state of the Helvetian
immigration in 696 (_De Bello Gallico_, I. 29. ); 2nd, that of the Belgic
troops, in the campaign of 697 (_De Bello Gallico_, II. 4. ); 3rd, the
census of the Gaulish army which, in 702, attempted to raise the siege
of Alesia (_De Bello Gallico_, VII. 75. ) Of 368,000 men, composing the
agglomeration of the Helvetii and their allies, 92,000 were able to bear
arms; that is, about a quarter of the population. In the campaign of
697, the Belgic coalition counted 296,000 combatants, and, in 702, at
the time of the blockade of Alesia, the effective force of a great part
of Gaul amounted to 281,000 men. But, in order not to count twice the
different contingents of the same states, we suppress from the
enumeration of the year 702 the contingents of the countries already
mentioned in the census of 697, which reduces the effective force to
201,000 men. Yet this number cannot represent the total of men fit for
war; it comprises only the troops which could easily be sent out of the
territory, and which were more numerous accordingly as the people to
which they belonged were nearer to the theatre of military operations.
Thus Cæsar informs us that the Bellovaci, who could bring into the field
100,000 men, only furnished 60,000 picked men in 697, and 10,000 in 702.
The contingent of the Atrebates, which had been 15,000 men in 697, was
reduced to 4,000 in 702; that of the Nervii, of 50,000 in the former
year, sank to 5,000; and that of the Morini similarly from 25,000 to
5,000. From these circumstances we may be allowed to infer that the
Gauls armed three-fifths of their male population when the enemy was
near their territory, and only one-fifth, or even one-sixth, when he was
more distant.
If, then, we would form an idea of the total number of men able to carry
arms in Gaul, we must augment the contingents really furnished,
sometimes by two-fifths, sometimes in a higher proportion, according to
the distances which separated them from the seat of war. By this
calculation, the levies of 697 represent 513,600 men capable of carrying
arms, and those of 702, at least 573,600; we add together these two
numbers, because, as stated above, each army comprises different
populations, which gives 1,087,200 men, to whom we must add 92,000
Helvetii; moreover, it is indispensable to take into account the
contributive capability of the populations which are not mentioned in
the “Commentaries” among the belligerents at the two epochs indicated
above, such as the Pictones, the Carnutes, the Andes, the Remi, the
Treviri, the Lingones, the Leuci, the Unelli, the Redones, the
Ambivareti, and the peoples of Armorica and Aquitaine. By an approximate
estimate of their population according to the extent of their territory,
we shall obtain the number of 625,000 men. Adding together these four
numbers, to obtain the total number of men capable of bearing arms, we
shall get 513,600 + 573,600 + 92,000 + 625,000 = 1,804,200 men.
Quadrupling this number to get, according to the proportion applied to
the Helvetii, the total of the population, we shall have 7,216,800
inhabitants for Gaul, the Roman province not included. In fact, Diodorus
Siculus, who wrote in the first century of our era, says (lib. V. , c.
25) that the population of the different nations of Gaul varies from
200,000 to 50,000 men, which would make a mean of 125,000 men. If we
take the word ἁνδρες in the sense of inhabitants, and if we admit with
Tacitus that there were in Gaul sixty-four different nations, we should
have the number of 8,000,000 inhabitants, very near the preceding.
[62] Pliny expresses himself thus: “The country comprised under the name
of _Gallia Comata_ is divided into three peoples, generally separated by
rivers. From the Scheldt to the Seine is Belgic Gaul; from the Seine to
the Garonne, Celtic, called also _Lyonnese_; from thence to the Pyrenees
is Aquitaine. ” (_Hist. Nat. _, IV. xxxi. 105. )
[63] PEOPLES COMPOSING THE ROMAN PROVINCE:
_The Albici_ (the south of the department of the Lower Alps, and the
north of the Var). (_De Bello Civil. _, I. 34; II. 2. )
_The Allobroges_, probably of Celtic origin, inhabited the north-west of
Savoy, and the greater part of the department of the Isère.
_The Helvii_, inhabitants of the ancient Vivarais (the southern part of
the department of the Ardèche), separated from the Arverni by the
Cévennes. (_De Bello Gallico_, VII. 8. )
_The Ruteni_ of the province (_Ruteni Provinciales_), a fraction of the
Celtic nation of the Ruteni, incorporated into the Roman province, and
whose territory extended over a part of the department of the Tarn.
_The Sallyes_, or _Salluvii_ (the Bouches-du-Rhône, and western part of
the Var). (_De Bello Civil. _, I. 35, edit. Nipperdey. )
_The Vocontii_ (department of the Drôme and Upper Alps, southern part of
the Isère, and the northern part of the Ardèche).
_The Volcæ_ occupied all Lower Languedoc, from the Garonne to the Rhone.
They had emigrated from the north of Gaul. They were subdivided into the
Volcæ Tectosages, who had Tolosa (_Toulouse_) for their principal town;
and the Volcæ Arecomici.
_The Deciates_ (western part of the department of the }
Maritime Alps). }
}
_The Oxybii_ (eastern part of the department of the } Not mentioned by
Var). } Cæsar.
}
_The Sordones_, of the same race as the Aquitainians, }
inhabiting the Eastern Pyrenees and the Aude. }
_The Caturiges. _ } Independent peoples on the upper channels of the Durance
_The Centrones. _ } and the Isère, and in the mountains of the
_The Graioceli. _ } Tarentaise.
[64] _De Bello Gallico_, III. 10.
[65] Four hundred, according to Appian (_Civil War_, II. 150); three
hundred and five, according to Flavius Josephus (_Wars of the Jews_, II.
xxviii. 5); three hundred, according to Plutarch (_Cæsar_, 15); about a
hundred and forty, according to Pliny (_Hist. Nat. _, III. 5; IV. 31-33).
[66] “Nevertheless, it was said at Rome that it was not only the Treviri
and the Ædui who revolted, but the sixty-four states of Gaul. ” (Tacitus,
_Annal. _, III. 44. )--The revolt in question was that of Sacrovir, under
Tiberius.
[67] Strabo, IV. , p. 163, edit. Didot.
[68] Although of Germanic origin, like the Nervii, and glorying in it
(Tacitus, _Germania_, 28), the Treviri were often at war with the
Germans. (Cæsar, _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 68. )
[69] PEOPLES OF BELGIC GAUL:
_The Aduatuci_, who occupied a part of the province of Namur.
_The Ambiani_, a people of the department of the Somme. Their chief town
was Samarobriva (_Amiens_).
_The Ambivareti_, established on the left bank of the Meuse, to the
south of the marsh of Peel.
_The Atrebates_, the people of the ancient Artois, and a part of French
Flanders. Their principal _oppidum_ was Nemetocenna (_Arras_).
_The Bellovaci_, occupying the greater part of the department of the
Oise (the ancient Beauvaisis), and who extended, probably, to the sea.
(Pliny, _Hist. Nat. _, IV. 17. )
_The Caletes_, whose territory answered to the ancient Pays de Caux (the
western and central part of the department of the Seine-Inférieure).
_The Leuci_, who occupied the southern part of the department of the
Meuse, the greater part of that of the Meurthe, and the department of
the Vosges.
_The Mediomatrices_. They extended from the upper course of the Meuse to
the Rhine (department of the Moselle, and part of the departments of the
Meuse, the Meurthe, the Upper Rhine, and the Lower Rhine).
_The Menapii_, who occupied the territory comprised between the Rhine
and the mouths of the Scheldt.
_The Morini_, who inhabited the western part of the department of the
Pas-de-Calais, and extended to near the mouths of the Scheldt.
_The Nervii_, established between the Sambre and the Scheldt (French and
Belgic Hainaut, provinces of Southern Brabant, of Antwerp, and part of
Eastern Flanders). The writers posterior to Cæsar mention Bagacum
(_Bavay_) as their principal town.
_The Ceutrones_, }
_The Geiduni_, } Clients (or dependents) of the Nervi, whose territories
_The Grudii_, } appear to have been situated on the left of
_The Pleumoxii_, } the Meuse, from Mézières to near Hasselt.
_The Levaci_, }
_The Remi_, whose territory embraced the greater part of the departments
of the Marne and the Ardennes, a fraction of the departments of the
Aisne and the Meuse, and of the province of Luxemburg. Their principal
town was Durocortorum (_Rheims_).
_The Suessiones_, the people of the ancient Soissonais, whose territory
comprised the greater part of the department of the Aisne. Principal
_oppidum_, Noviodunum (_Soissons_).
_The Treviri_, separated from Germany by the Rhine, and occupying the
whole lower basin of the Moselle (Rhenish Luxemburg, Prussia, and
Bavaria). The Treviri had for clients--
_The Condrusi_, established to the south of the Meuse, in the
ancient Condroz, and who reached almost to Aix-la-Chapelle.
_The Eburones_, occupying part of the provinces of Liége and
Limburg, and reaching to the Rhine through the ancient duchy of
Juliers.
_The Ceresi_, }
_The Pæmani_, } whose territories extended on the east of the Meuse,
_The Segni_, } to the north of the Remi and the Treviri.
_The Triboces_, established on both banks of the Rhine, occupied the
central part of the Grand Duchy of Baden and the north of the department
of the Lower Rhine, perhaps already invaded, on the left bank. Their
presence on the left bank of the Rhine appears from Cæsar’s account.
(_De Bello Gallico_, IV. 10. )
_The Veliocasses_, whose territory embraced the ancient Vexin, and who
occupied part of the departments of the Seine-Inférieure and the Eure.
_The Veromandui_, occupying the ancient Vermandois, the northern part of
the Aisne, and the eastern part of the Somme.
[70] “Qui belli gloria Gallos omnes Belgasque præstabant. ” (_De Bello
Gallico_, II. 4, and VIII. 6. )
[71] Pliny, _Hist. Nat. _, IV. xxxi, 17.
[72] PEOPLES OF CELTIC GAUL:
_The Arverni_ extended over a vast region, comprising the present
departments of the Puy-de-Dôme and Cantal, and part of those of the
Allier and the Upper Loire. Gergovia was their principal town. The
Arverni had for clients--
_The Cadurei Eleutheri_, whose territory answered to the ancient Quercy
(department of the Lot). [This epithet of Eleutheri, which is found in
Cæsar (_De Bello Gallico_, VIII. 75) leads us to believe that in
southern Quercy there existed Cadurci placed under the dominion of
Rome. ]
_The Gabali_, who occupied the ancient Gévaudan (the department of the
Lozère).
_The Vellavi_, whose territory answered to the ancient Velay (department
of the Upper Loire).
_The Aulerci_ formed an extensive nation, which was subdivided into
three great tribes, established over the country from the lower course
of the Seine to the Mayenné.
1. _The Aulerci Cenomanni_, a fraction of whom was, as early as the
sixth century of Rome, established in Cisalpine Gaul, between the
Oglio and the Adige, and who occupied in Gaul the greater part of
the territory now forming the department of the Sarthe;
2. _The Aulerci Diablintes_, the northern and central parts of the
department of the Mayenne.
3. _The Aulerci Eburovices_, the central and southern part of the
department of the Eure.
_The Bituriges_, a nation which had more than twenty towns. Avaricum
(_Bourges_) was the principal. Their territory embraced the ancient
Berry (departments of the Cher, the Indre, and part of the Allier).
_The Carnutes_ occupied the greatest part of the present departments of
Eure-et-Loir, Loir-et-Cher, and Loiret. Genabum (_Gien_) was one of
their most important towns.
_The Ædui_ occupied the modern departments of Saône-et-Loire and the
Nièvre, and a part of the Côte-d’Or and the Allier. Their principal
_oppidum_ was Bibracte (_Mont-Beuvray_), the place of which was
subsequently taken by Augustodunum (_Autun_). Cabillonum
(_Chalon-sur-Saône_), Matisco (_Mâcon_), and Noviodunum, afterwards
called Nivernum (_Nevers_), were also reckoned among their most
important places. The _Ædui_ had for clients--
_The Ambarri_, a small tribe situated between the Saône, the Rhone, and
the Ain (department of the Ain).
_The Ambluaretes_, a people occupying a district around Ambierle
(arrondissement of Roanne, department of the Loire). (? )
_The Aulerci Brannovices_, a tribe which dwelt between the Saône and the
Loire, occupied the ancient country of Brionnais.
_The Blannovii_, who occupied a territory round Blanot (Saône-et-Loire).
(? )
_The Boii_, a fraction of a great nomadic nation of this name, of Celtic
origin, authorised by Cæsar to establish themselves on the territory of
the Ædui, between the Loire and the Allier.
_The Segusiavi_, who occupied the ancient Forez (departments of the
Rhône and the Loire), and extended to the left bank of the Saône.
_The Essuvii_, established in the department of the Orne.
_The Helvetii_, who were subdivided into four tribes or _pagi_; their
territory occupied the part of Switzerland which extends from the north
shore of the Léman to the Lake of Constance.
_The Lemovices_, whose territory answered to the Limousin (departments
of the Upper Vienne and the greater part of the Corrèze and the Creuse).
_The Lingones_, whose territory embraced the greatest part of the
department of the Haute-Marne and a fraction of the departments of the
Aube, the Yonne, and the Côte-d’Or.
_The Mandubii_, established between the Ædui and the Lingones
(department of the Côte-d’Or), occupied the ancient country of Auxois.
Alesia (_Alise_) was their principal _oppidum_.
_The Meldœ_ occupied the north of the department of the Seine-et-Marne
and a small part of the department of the Oise.
_The Nitiobriges_ occupied the greatest part of the department of the
Lot-et-Garonne and a fraction of the Tarn-et-Garonne.
_The Parisii_, whose territory embraced the department of the Seine and
a great part of the department of the Seine-et-Oise. Their principal
town was Lutetia (_Paris_).
_The Petrocorii_, established in the ancient Périgord (department of the
Dordogne).
_The Rauraci_, whose origin is perhaps German, established on both banks
of the Rhine, towards the elbow which the river forms at Bâle.
_The Ruteni_ occupied the ancient province of Rouergne (department of
the Aveyron).
_The Senones_, established between the Loire and the Marne. Their
principal town was Agedincum (_Sens_). Their territory comprised a part
of the departments of the Yonne, the Marne, the Loiret, Seine-et-Marne,
and the Aube.
_The Sequani_, whose territory embraced the ancient Franche-Comté (Jura,
Doubs, Haute-Saône, and part of the Haut-Rhin). Principal town, Vesontio
(_Besançon_).
_The Turones_, who occupied Touraine (department of Indre-et-Loire).
The peoples whom Cæsar calls _maritime_, or _Armorican_, were--
_The Ambibari_, established at the point where the departments of
La Manche and Ille-et-Vilaine join.
_The Ambiliates_, whose territory comprised the part of the
department of Maine-et-Loire situated to the south of the Loire.
_The Andes_, occupying Anjon (department of Maine-et-Loire and a
fraction of the department of the Sarthe).
_The Curiosolitæ_, occupying the greatest part of the department of
the Côtes-du-Nord.
_The Lemovices Armorici_, fixed to the south of the Loire, in the
southern part of the department of the Loire-Inférieure and the
west of that of Maine-et-Loire.
_The Lexovii_, occupying the department of Calvados, and a fraction
of that of the Eure.
_The Namnetes_, who occupied, in the department of the
Loire-Inférieure, the right bank of the Loire.
_The Osismii_, whose territory answered to the department of
Finistère.
_The Pictones_, occupying Poitou (departments of La Vendée, the
Deux-Sèvres, and the Vienne).
_The Redones_, whose territory embraced the greatest part of the
department of Ille-et-Vilaine.
_The Santones_, occupying Saintonge, Aunis, and Angoumois
(department of the Charente and the Charente-Inférieure, and a part
of the department of the Gironde).
_The Unelli_, the people of the ancient Contentin (department of La
Manche).
_The Veneti_, whose territory included the department of Morbihan.
To these maritime peoples we must add--
_The Caletes_, }
_The Essuvii_, } mentioned above.
_The Morinu_, }
We may also join to the Celtic populations--
_The Nuntuates_, }
_The Seduni_, } Alpine tribes, established on the upper course of the
_The Veragri_, } Rhone, in the Valais and the Chablais.
[73] Tacitus. _Germania_, 28.
[74] PEOPLES OF AQUITAINE:
_The Ausci_, who occupied the central part of the department of the
Gers, the most powerful of the nations of Aquitaine, according to
Pomponius Mela (III. 2).
_The Bigerriones_ occupied Bigorre (department of the Hautes-Pyrénées).
_The Cocosates_, established on the coasts of the Gulf of Gascony, in
the Landes (the southern part of the department of the Gironde and the
northern of the department of the Landes).
_The Elusates_ occupied the north-west part of the department of the
Gers and part of that of the Lot-et-Garonne.
_The Gates_, at the confluence of the Gers and the Garonne.
_The Garumni_, in the south of the department of the Haute-Garonne.
_The Ptianes_, probably towards Pau and Orthez.
_The Sibuzates_ appear to have occupied the ancient country of Soule
(Basses-Pyrénées).
_The Sotiates_ occupied the south-west part of the department of
Lot-et-Garonne and a part of the departments of the Landes and the Gers.
_The Tarbelli_ occupied all the territory bordering upon the head of the
Gulf of Gascony (departments of the Landes and the Basses-Pyrénées).
_The Tarusates_, established on the Adour, in the ancient Tursan (the
south-east part of the department of the Landes). PEOPLES OF AQUITAINE
(_continued_).
_The Vasates_ or _Vocates_, established in the country of Bazas (the
south-east part of the department of the Gironde).
_The Bituriges Vivisci_, the most northern of the peoples }
of Aquitane (department of the Gironde). }
}
_The Convenes_ (a confederacy of small tribes established } Not mentioned by
in the valleys of the Hautes-Pyrénées and the } Cæsar.
southern part of the department of the Haute-Garonne). }
[75] “Pagus, pars civitatis. ” (_De Bello Gallico_, I. 12. )
[76] Cæsar mentions in different pasages the existence of _vici_ among
the Helvetii (I. 5), the Allobroges _trans Rhodanum_ (I. 11), the Remi
(II. 7), the Morini (III. 29), the Menapii (IV. 4), the Eburones (VI.
43), the Boii (VII. 14), the Carnutes (VIII. 5), and the Veragri (III.
1).
[77] _De Bello Gallico_ VII. 15, 25, 68.
[78] The “Commentaries” name twenty-one _oppida_: Alesia, Avaricum,
Bibracte, Bibrax, Bratuspantium, Cabillonum, Genabum, Genava, Gergovia,
Gorgobina, Lutetia, Lemonum, Melodunum, Noviodunum Æduorum, Noviodunum
Biturigum, Noviodunum Suessionum, Uxellodunum, Vellaunodunum, Vesontio,
the _oppidum_ Aduatucorum, and the _oppidum_ Sotiatum.
[79] “Oppidum dictum quod ibi homines opes suas conferunt. ” (Paulus
Diaconus, p. 184, edit. Müller. )
[80] The Gauls lived in houses, or rather in huts, constructed of wood
and with hurdles, tolerably spacious and of a circular form, covered
with a high roof. (Strabo, IV. 163, edit. Didot. )--The Gauls, to avoid
the heat, almost always built their habitations in the neighbourhood of
woods and rivers. (Cæsar, _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 30. )
[81] See a very curious passage in Solinus, chap. 25, on the practice of
tattooing among the Gauls.
[82] Diodorus Siculus (V. 28) says that the Gauls were of tall stature,
had white flesh, and were lymphatic in constitution. Some shaved; the
majority had beards of moderate size. --According to Titus Livius, the
Gauls possessed a tall stature (_procera corpora_), flowing hair of an
auburn colour (_promissæ et rutilatæ comæ_), a white complexion
(_candida corpora_). (Titus Livius, XXXVIII. 17, 21, and Ammianus
Marcellinus, XV. 22. ) The latter adds that the Gauls had generally a
threatening and terrible tone of voice, which is also stated by Diodorus
Siculus (V. 31). --The skeletons found in the excavations at
Saint-Etienne-au-Temple are 1·80m. to 1·90m. in length.
[83] Strabo, p. 163, edit. Didot.
[84] Isidorus Hispalensis, _Origines_, I. 19, 24.
[85] Diodorus Siculus, V. 30.
[86] Diodorus Siculus, V. 33.
[87] Pliny, XXXIII. 24. --Gold was very abundant in Gaul; silver was much
less common. The rich wore bracelets, rings on the leg, and collars, of
the purest gold and tolerably massive; they had even breastplates of
gold. (Diodorus Siculus, V. 27. )--A great number of these rings and
circles of gold, of very good workmanship, have been found in the
Gaulish burying-places. The Museum of Saint-Germain contains bracelets
and earrings of chased gold, found, in 1863, in a tumulus situated near
Châtillon-sur-Seine.
[88] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 14.
[89] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 13.
[90] Pliny, _Hist. Nat. _, VIII. xlviii. lxxiii. , p. 127, edit. Sillig.
[91] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 22. --Pliny, XXXIV. xvii. , p. 162, edit.
Sillig.
[92] “Deinde et argentum incoquere simili modo cœpere, equorum maxime
ornamentis, jumentorumque ac jugorum, in Alesia oppido. ” (Pliny, XXXIV.
xvii. , p. 162. --Florus, III. 2. )
[93] Milk and the flesh of wild or domestic animals, especially swine’s
flesh fresh or salted, formed the principal food of the Gauls. (Strabo,
IV. , p. 163. )--Beer and mead were the principal drink of the Gauls.
(Posidonius quoted by Athenæus, IV. , p. 151, _Fragmenta Historicum
Græc. _, III. 260. )--This statement is made also by Diodorus Siculus (V.
26), who informs us that this beer was made with barley.
[94] Cicero already remarked the propensity of the Gauls to drunkenness
(_Orat. pro Fonteio_), and Ammianus Marcellinus (XV. 12) also addresses
the same reproach to them, which is again stated in Diodorus Siculus (V.
26).
[95] “The Gauls, in their great hospitality, invited the stranger to
their meal as soon as he presented himself, and it was only after
drinking and eating with them that they inquired his name and country. ”
(Diodorus Siculus, V. 28. )
[96] Strabo (IV. , p. 162) says that the Gauls were of a frank character
and good-hearted (literally, without malice). --Ammianus Marcellinus (XV.
12), who wrote at the end of the fifth century, represents the Gauls as
excessively vain. --Strabo (IV. , p. 165) assures us that they were much
inclined to disputes and quarrels.
[97] Cæsar often speaks of the fickleness of temper of this people,
which, during a long period, gave great trouble to the Roman people.
“Omnes fere Gallos novis rebus studere, et ad bellum mobiliter
celeriterque excitari. ” (_De Bello Gallico_, III 10. )--Lampridius, in
his _Life of Alexander Severus_, 59, expresses himself thus: “But the
Gauls, those tempers hard to deal with, and who regret all they have
ceased to possess, often furnished grave cares to the
emperors. ”--“Gallorum subita et repentina consilia. ” (_De Bello
Gallico_, III. 8. )
[98] _De Bello Gallico_, III. 19.
[99] Diodorus Siculus (V. 31) says that the language of the Gauls was
very concise and figurative, and that the Gauls made use of hyperbole in
blaming and praising.
[100] Diodorus Siculus, V. 32. --Strabo, IV. , p. 165. --Athenæus, XIII. ,
p. 603.
[101] _De Bello Gallico_, VII. 47 and 48. --Among the Gauls, the women
were equal to the men, not only in size, but also in courage. (Diodorus
Siculus, V. 32. )--The Gaulish women were tall and strong. --Ammianus
Marcellinus (XV. 12) writes: “Several foreigners together could not
wrestle against a single Gaul, if they quarrelled with him, especially
if he called for help to his wife, who even exceeds her husband in her
strength and in her haggard eyes. She would become especially formidable
if, swelling her throat and gnashing her teeth, she agitated her arms,
robust and white as snow, ready to act with feet or fists; to give blows
as vigorous as if they came from a catapult. ”
[102] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 18: “Ab Dite patre prognatos. ”
[103] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 18.
[104] _De Bello Gallico_, VI. 19.
[105] The Gauls, like most of the barbarian peoples, looked upon the
other life as resembling the present. And with this sentiment, at the
funeral, they threw into the funereal pile, letters addressed to the
dead, which they imagined he read. (Diodorus Siculus, V. 28. )
[106] Titus Livius tells us (XXXVIII. 17) that the Gauls had long swords
(_prælongi gladii_) and great bucklers (_vasta scuta_). In another
passage (XXII. 46) he remarks that the swords of the Gauls were long and
without point (_prælongi ac sine mucronibus_). --Their bucklers were
long, narrow, and flat (_scuta longa, cœterum ad amplitudinem corporum
parum lata et ea ipsa plana_). (Titus Livius, XXXVIII. 21. )--“Et Biturix
longisque leves Suessones in armis. ” (Lucan, _Pharsalia_, I.
422. )--Didorus Siculus (V. 30) says that the Gauls had iron coats of
mail. He adds: “Instead of glaive (ξἱφος), they have long swords
(σπἁθη), which they carry suspended to their right side by chains of
iron or bronze. Some bind their tunics with gilt or silvered girdles.
They have spears (λὁγχη or λογχἱς) having an iron blade a cubit long,
and sometimes more. The breadth is almost two palms, for the blade of
these _saunions_ (the Gaulish dart) is not less than that of our glaive,
and it is a little longer. Of these blades, some are forged straight,
others present undulated curves, so that they not only cut in striking,
but in addition they tear the wound when they are drawn out. ”
[107] Strabo, IV. , p. 163, edit. Didot. --Pseudo-Cicero (_Ad Herennium_,
IV. 32) writes _materis_.
[108] The _amentum_ was a small strap of leather which served to throw
the javelin and doubled its distance of carriage, as recent trials have
proved. In the _De Bello Gallico_, V. 48, there is mention of a Gaul
throwing the javelin with the _amentum_; but this Gaul was in the Roman
service, which explains his having more perfect arms. Strabo says that
the Gauls used javelins like the Roman _velites_, but that they threw
them with the hand, and not by means of a strap. (Strabo, edit. Didot,
II.
