225 BCE

by Kathleen Ní Bhriain

The Roman senate discussed the division of the land they had taken from the Senones, and decided to spread it amongst the Roman plebians, which meant that the remaining Celts in the area would be forced to leave. The Celts decided that they didn't like this idea, and marched their way through Etruria towards Rome.

For some reason, the Romans thought that the Celts would attack in an area a good way off from the place the Celts were actually planning to attack. A Roman legion came upon the Celts and followed them as a messenger went off looking for reinforcements. The plan was to attack the Celts from three sides simultaneously. The Celts discovered they were being followed and changed course suddenly. The Celts then set up camp and made as if to prepare for battle the next day. Under cover of darkness most of the Celts snuck away to prepare an ambush, leaving behind a few companies to sing loudly and keep the fires lit, as if the entire army was still there. The next morning the Roman army discovered that most of the Celts were gone, and thought that the Celts were retreating. The Roman legion took off in hot pursuit and lost 6,000 men in the Celtic ambush.

The Celts then decided to make off with their booty and return to finish the battle later, but they walked right into an unplanned, two pronged attack by the remaining Roman armies. The Celts divided into two groups, placing the spoils of the previous battle between them, and each group faced one of the Roman armies. At first, the naked and chaotic fighting style of the Celts was effective, as it confused the Roman cavalry, but then the Roman foot soldiers realized that, "Tall men with shields too small to cover them offer an excellent target." [Herm]

40,000 Celts died and 10,000 were taken captive and led to Rome in chains.

Sources:

The Celts, People Who Came Out of the Darkness, Gerhard Herm, St. Martin's Press, (c)1977, ISBN 312-1205-7

The Ancient Celts, Barry Cunliffe, Oxford University Press, 1997, ISBN 0-19-815010-5

prepared by Kathleen Ní Bhriain

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