Ambiorix's revolt facts for kids

Ambiorix's revolt was a big rebellion during the Gallic Wars (54 to 53 BC). It happened when the Eburones tribe, led by Ambiorix, fought back against the powerful Roman Republic.

Many Gauls were unhappy with Roman rule. This led to a major uprising among the Belgae tribes in the winter of 54–53 BC. The Eburones, from what is now northeastern Gaul, started the rebellion. They were led by their chief, Ambiorix. During this revolt, 15 Roman cohorts (small army units) were completely wiped out. This happened near Atuatuca Tungrorum, which is modern Tongeren in Belgium. A Roman camp led by Quintus Tullius Cicero barely survived. Julius Caesar arrived just in time to save them. The rest of 53 BC was spent with the Romans punishing the Eburones and their allies. The Romans said they almost completely destroyed the Eburones tribe.

How the Revolt Began

In 57 BC, the famous Roman general Julius Caesar conquered Gaul. This included Belgica, which is now parts of Northern France, Belgium, and the southern Netherlands. Caesar defeated several tribes, like the Nervii, in the battle of the Sabis. After that, he attacked the Atuatuci tribe. He captured their main fort and sold the entire tribe into slavery.

The Eburones tribe used to be under the control of the Atuatuci. After the Atuatuci were destroyed, the Eburones were led by Ambiorix and Catuvolcus. In 54 BC, there wasn't enough food because of a bad harvest. Caesar usually took food from local tribes. Because of the shortage, he had to spread his Roman legions (large army units) out among more tribes. To the Eburones, he sent two commanders, Quintus Titurius Sabinus and Lucius Aurunculeius Cotta. They had a newly formed 14th Legion and five extra cohorts. This was a total of 9,000 Roman soldiers.

The Eburones Fight Back

First Attack and a Clever Trick

Caesar wrote that Ambiorix and his warriors had about the same number of fighters as Sabinus and Cotta's men. The Eburones attacked and killed several Roman soldiers who were looking for wood nearby. The soldiers who survived ran back to their camp. Ambiorix and his men followed them.

When the Romans fought back, Ambiorix offered to talk. He told the Romans that he owed Caesar a favor because Caesar had helped him in past arguments with other Gallic tribes. But he said that even though the Eburones were not very strong, other tribes forced him to act. They wanted to be free from Roman rule. Ambiorix also claimed that a huge army of Germans was about to cross the Rhine River. He said these Germans were very angry about Caesar's victories. He offered to let the Romans safely leave their camp and go to another Roman fort nearby. He said this would help them fight the combined Gallic and German forces better.

A Big Debate Among Roman Leaders

Two Roman officers, Quintus Junius and Gaius Arpineius, took Ambiorix's message back to the Roman fort. The Roman commanders held a meeting to decide what to do. Two different ideas came up.

Cotta spoke first. He argued that they should not move without an order from Caesar. He reminded them that they had successfully defended forts against Germans before. He also said they had plenty of supplies and that other Roman legions were close enough to help. Cotta believed they should not trust anything an enemy said.

Quintus Titurius Sabinus said he wasn't afraid. He believed Caesar was already on his way to Italy. He also thought the Germans would soon join the Eburones who were surrounding them. Sabinus felt they were about to face the anger of both Germans and Gauls. He argued that the Eburones, who were not strong militarily, would not dare to attack a Roman legion alone. He thought it would be better to join a nearby legion and face the trouble with more soldiers. He worried they would run out of food if they stayed in the fort for too long. The other officers told their commanders that it was important for them to agree on a plan, no matter which idea they chose. Cotta finally gave in, and Sabinus's plan was chosen.

Roman Soldiers Defeated

The Romans spent the night getting their belongings ready to leave the fort in the morning. The enemy heard all the noise and prepared an ambush. When dawn came, the Romans marched out in long columns, carrying more gear than usual.

When most of the Roman column entered a narrow valley, the Gauls attacked them from both sides. They tried to stop the soldiers at the front from leaving the valley and attacked the soldiers at the back. Caesar wrote that Sabinus became very confused. He ran from one unit to another, giving orders that didn't help. Cotta, however, stayed calm and fought bravely like a good commander and soldier.

Because the Roman column was so long, the commanders couldn't give orders easily. They passed messages along the line for the units to form a square. The Roman troops fought bravely, even though they were scared. They had some success in clashes. So, Ambiorix ordered his men to throw spears at the Romans. He told them to fall back if the Romans attacked them, and then chase the Romans when they tried to get back into formation. During the fight, Cotta was hit in the face by a sling-shot.

Then Sabinus sent a message to Ambiorix, offering to surrender. Ambiorix agreed to talk. Cotta refused to surrender and kept fighting. Sabinus went ahead with his plan to give up. However, Ambiorix promised Sabinus his life and the safety of his troops. But while he was giving a long speech, his men slowly surrounded Sabinus and his soldiers and then killed them all. The Gauls then rushed down onto the remaining Romans. They killed Cotta, who was still fighting, and most of the other soldiers. Only a few men managed to escape and tell Titus Labienus about the terrible defeat. In total, one legion and five cohorts, about 7,500 Romans, were killed. We don't know how many Gauls were killed.

What Happened Next

Statue of Ambiorix in Tongeren. This is an artistic idea of what he might have looked like, not based on old artifacts.

After defeating Cotta and Sabinus, Ambiorix tried to start a bigger rebellion across Belgica. The Belgae tribes attacked Quintus Tullius Cicero (the younger brother of the famous speaker Cicero). Cicero was stationed with a legion in the land of the Nervii tribe. The Belgae surrounded the Roman camp. During this siege, Ambiorix tried to trick the Romans again, just like he did before, but it didn't work. The attack failed because Caesar arrived just in time to help.

Titus Labienus, the commander of the Fourth Legion, was in the southern Ardennes. He found out that Indutiomarus and the Treveri tribe were also rebelling. The Treverian leader asked for help from the Senones and German tribes east of the Rhine River. The Fourth Legion successfully defended their camp, and Indutiomarus was killed after an attack that failed. His relatives escaped across the Rhine.

Before attacking the Eburones themselves, Caesar first attacked Ambiorix's allies. He forced them to promise they would not help the tribe that had destroyed Cotta and Sabinus. The Nervii were the first to suffer Roman revenge. That winter, four Roman legions destroyed their fields and took many cattle and prisoners.

Then, five legions attacked the Menapii tribe. Caesar sent so many legions because, he said, they were the only tribe in Gaul who had never sent messengers to him to discuss peace. They also had friendly ties with Ambiorix. A new campaign of destruction finally forced them to surrender. Caesar put his ally, Commius of the Atrebates tribe, in charge of them. After this, Caesar built a bridge across the Rhine River and campaigned in Germania. He wanted to punish the German tribes who had helped the Treveri.

When the Roman Senate heard about the revolt, Caesar promised to crush all the Belgic tribes. The Roman campaigns against the Belgae took a few years. But in the end, the Belgae were no match for 50,000 trained Roman soldiers. The tribes were killed or driven out, and their fields were burned. The Eburones tribe stopped existing after this campaign.

The leaders of the revolt had different fates. Neither of them was captured to be paraded in Caesar's victory celebration. Cativolcus was old and weak. He couldn't handle running away. He angrily blamed Ambiorix for starting the rebellion, and then he poisoned himself. Ambiorix and his men, however, managed to cross the Rhine River and were never seen again.