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Battle of Gergovia | |||||||
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Part of the Gallic Wars | |||||||
![]() Ancient Gergovia was located on the plateau in the background. The main battlefield was the area in the image's center right | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Roman Republic | Gallic tribes | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Gaius Julius Caesar | Vercingetorix | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
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Strength | |||||||
Total: 20,000–45,000 Romans, auxiliaries and allies | 30,000 Gauls, mostly Arverni | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
According to Julius Caesar: 46 centurions and 700 legionaries Modern estimates: Several thousand Roman and Aedui killed | Unknown |
The Battle of Gergovia took place in 52 BC in Gaul at Gergovia, the chief oppidum (fortified town) of the Arverni. The battle was fought between a Roman Republican army, led by proconsul Julius Caesar, and Gallic forces led by Vercingetorix, who was also the Arverni chieftain. The Romans attempted to besiege Gergovia, but miscommunication ruined the Roman plan. The Gallic cavalry counterattacked the confused Romans and sent them to flight, winning the battle.
The site is identified with Merdogne, since renamed Gergovie, a village located on a hill within the town of La Roche-Blanche, near Clermont-Ferrand, in south central France. Some walls and earthworks still survive from the pre-Roman Iron Age. The battle is well known in France as an example of a Gallic victory.
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