The CELTS Sack ROME! - Battle of Allia 387 BC

It is the early fourth century BC in the city of Rome. Soldiers gather in defense of their city, for the Roman Republic is faced with an ever-growing threat from the north, the Celtic peoples, descending from the region of Gaul, modern-day France. The Roman army had been called to arms in great haste, for a threat unlike any they had faced before had descended upon the Roman province of Latium. A great host of Gauls, tall warriors with wild hair, painted shields, and long slashing swords was at their doorstep, eager to sack and pillage the wealth in the region. The bulk of the invading force were the Senones, a Celtic tribe led by their chieftain Brennus. They had swept down through Etruria after destroying the Etruscan city of Clusium, whose desperate envoys had appealed to Rome for aid. The Romans, eager to display their growing influence, had sent ambassadors. But instead of mediating, they had fought alongside the Clusians, angering the Gauls. Brennus, with his large army, opted to march directly on Rome in an act of vengeance. The Roman Senate, unprepared for such a sudden war, had called upon every able-bodied man they could muster to bear arms. Veterans, young recruits, and untrained levies gathered under the command of the consular tribunes. It was not a well-drilled army, but a mass raised in panic. Confident still in their numbers, they marched to meet the barbarians before they could reach the city. They formed up into three sections. On the right flank, the untrained levies mounted the hilltop, hoping to gain an advantage from the higher ground. The center consisted of the veteran Roman phalanx infantry. By this stage in Rome's history, their army fought predominantly as hoplite soldiers, resembling more of their Greek neighbors in battle as opposed to the later adopted legion style of battle. The left flank consisted of younger, less experienced recruits, decently armed with spears and some armor. The Romans, led by their head consul, Quintus Sulpitius Longus, prepared themselves for battle. They arrayed along the sluggish waters of the river Allia, a tributary of the Tiber. The hastily assembled Roman army waited, uneasy and disordered, as the much larger force of Celtic tribes approached from the north. The Celtic tribes descending from Gaul had arrived in full force. The Senones, Boii, and Insubres tribes led by the head chieftain, Brennus. They were riled up and hungry for battle. Estimates differ on the size of their force. All we can conclude for certain was that they had a significant numerical advantage over the Romans, perhaps as much as two to one. Brennus wasted no time and took the initiative. He saw an opportunity on the Roman right flank where they had stationed their weakest reserve troops to guard the elevated hilltop. He swiftly sent forward a section of his army to give battle. The sheer size and ferocity of the Gallic advance terrified the Roman reserve troops, albeit they held their ground and did their duty. They braced themselves and prepared to fight. Brennus, perceiving the Roman right flank's weakness, sent his strongest warriors against them. The Celtic warriors smashed into the lines of Romans, sending the reserve troops back from the impact. A fierce close quarter melee ensued, with the shorter Celtic spears and swords getting the better of the longer Roman spears. The Roman reserves were not a fair match for the Celtic warriors, toppled with the fact they were outnumbered. The flank began to waver, then broke entirely. Men fled in all directions. This was a complete disaster. The Romans had not only lost the strategically significant high ground, but the entirety of their right flank. Now, before the rest of their army had even seen battle, their remaining force was in danger of complete encirclement, with morale quickly dwindling among their ranks. In this swift and brilliant maneuver by Brennus, it would all but seem that the battle was won there. And then, however, Roman consul Quintus Sulpicius Longus opted to not flee the battle, and the Roman center and left held their ground, perhaps not a wise choice given the circumstances. Nonetheless, Brennus ordered a full-scale attack on the Romans left and center, and a bloody melee ensued. Unlike the right flank, the Roman center, consisting of the veteran hoplite infantry, held their ground firmly. Their shield and spear phalanx, coupled with their superior equipment, made them more than a match against the lightly armed Celts. However, even with these advantages, the fact of the matter remained. They were drastically outnumbered. Their right flank was fully exposed, and their men's morale was quickly fading in the heat of battle. The Roman left, pinned against the Tiber River, braced themselves for impact. The Celts mercilessly smashed into their ranks with intense ferocity. The impact of the numerically superior Celtic force slowly pushed the Roman left inward, putting their backs toward the river. The Roman left, now backpedaling, struggled to maintain their cohesion. They continued to fight, but ultimately they were no match for the sheer intensity and determination of the Celtic warriors. Witnessing their comrades being cut down in droves, some of their men dropped their weaponry and began to flee across the Tiber River. With the realization that the battle was beyond saving, the Roman veteran troops at the center began to flee the battle, and with this panic spread, and the entirety of the left soon followed. What started out as a battle quickly turned into a full-scale massacre. Unfortunately for the Romans, the Celts were not in a merciful mood that afternoon. The Romans threw down their arms and plunged into the river in panic to try and escape the onslaught. Some drowned in the Tiber's currents. Others were cut down, fighting on the banks or attempting to flee. The survivors fled in two directions. Some rushed southward into the safety of the nearby town of Veii, abandoning the defense of Rome altogether. Others streamed back toward the city, bringing word of disaster. The Roman army, the shield of the Republic, had ceased to exist in a single afternoon. After the disaster at the Alia, panic gripped Rome. The survivors who had fled to the city urged immediate evacuation. The Senate, however, resolved that not all was lost. Most of the population, women, children, and the elderly, were sent away to the stronghold of Veii, or hidden in the countryside. A garrison of young soldiers withdrew into the Capitoline Hill, Rome's last defensible stronghold, carrying provisions for a siege. The priests, unwilling to abandon their sacred duties, buried or carried away the holy objects of the gods. In a solemn procession, some even marched out of Rome toward Caia, determined that the sacred rites would not perish with the city. When Brennus and the Gauls reached Rome, they found the gates undefended and the streets eerily silent. They expected resistance, but there was none. Entering cautiously, they discovered an abandoned city, its houses closed and empty. Only the Capitoline Citadel held defenders. The Gauls soon began to plunder the Fires broke out as they ransacked homes, and soon the city was in flames. For months, the Gauls besieged the Capitoline. The Romans held out stubbornly, suffering hunger and hardship. According to tradition, one night a band of Gauls attempted a secret ascent up the cliffs of the Capitoline. They might have succeeded had not the sacred geese of Juno's temple, neglected but still alive, raised a clamor. The noise roused Marcus Manlius Capitolinus, who rushed to the walls and hurled back the attackers, saving the fortress. Yet the Romans were exhausted. Brennus, realizing he could not starve them quickly, opened negotiations. The Romans agreed to pay a ransom of 1,000 pounds of gold to secure the Gauls' withdrawal. As the gold was being weighed, the Romans protested that the Gauls were using false, heavier weights. Brennus, in response, threw his own sword onto the scales and uttered the infamous words, Vi victis, woe to the vanquished.