Artifacts from the last battle between the Gauls and Julius Caesar on display through August 31, 2019 at the Museum of Uxellodunum in Vayrac, France

Artifacts from the last battle between the Gauls and Julius Caesar on display through August 31, 2019 at the Museum of Uxellodunum in Vayrac, France.
This exhibition presents objects from archaeological excavations of the hilltop oppidum of Uxellodunum including weapons and reconstructed Roman armament. Additional materials can be viewed at the Gallo-Roman Museum located in the Palais de la Raymondie in nearby Martel. The Siege of Uxellodunum was one of the last battles of the Gallic Wars. Uxellodunum was heavily fortified, both by its natural position surrounded by a river and by its impressive fortifications built by the Carduci tribe. So, Julius Caesar decided to target the city's water supply, having noticed the difficulty the Gauls had climbing down a very steep slope to reach the riverbank. Caesar stationed archers and balista near the river to cover any attempt to gather water from this main source. When the Gauls resorted to a secondary spring, Caesar ordered his engineers to build a ramp of earth and rock that could support a ten-story siege tower, which he used to bombard this spring's source while another group of engineers began to build a tunnel system that could eventually block the spring. The Gauls immediately attacked the tower, but Caesar ordered the legions around the city to feign an attack with loud shouting. The Gauls, then, pulled back to man the walls, giving the sappers time to finish the tunnel and cut off the only remaining source of water. The Gauls soon surrendered but Caesar, although known for his clemency, felt he needed to set a severe example to put an end to Gallic resistance, so he cut off the hands of every military age male in the encampment.


Image: Roman siege tower courtesy of Joseph Meyer, Guide to Ancient Roman Siege Weaponry (http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download…)

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