Battle of Mount Olympus
Battle Map of Mount Olympus | |
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Part of ) | |
Result | Roman-Pergamese Victory |
30,000 captured[1]
The Battle of Mount Olympus was fought in 189 BC between the
Prelude
In 191 BC,
In 189,
The pretext he used for the invasion was that the Galatians had supplied soldiers to the
Vulso was joined in
When the army reached the border with Galatia, the consul addressed his troops about the upcoming war and then sent envoys to
Battle
The battle began as did many battles in the Roman Republic, with the launching of missiles and skirmishing of light troops. Livy claims that the Gauls fared badly right from the start, unable to protect themselves against the number of missiles being launched at them. They tried to retaliate with stones, but were not only unskilled in throwing them, but the stones themselves were too small to be of any help.
Livy goes on to describe the panic and hopelessness of the Gallic situation, seemingly trapped in a war of missiles: a type of warfare to which they were unsuited. When the Gauls rushed the light infantry, the Roman velites, in a rarely described instance of hand-to-hand combat, slew the enraged and hysterical Gauls with their swords.
The standards of the legions began to advance on the Gauls which caused them to fall back in panic, retreating to their camp. The Romans occupied the surrounding hills and trapped their enemy, at which point the consul ordered his soldiers to rest temporarily. During this time, the light infantry gathered what missiles they could that were lying around the battlefield and prepared for a second attack. The Gauls prepared for the assault by stationing themselves in front of the walls of their camp, as the camp itself was insufficiently built to serve as a fortification.
The consul once again ordered the light infantry to commence the battle, and describes the onslaught that the Gauls faced:
They were then deluged by missiles of every kind; and since the more numerous and close-packed the defenders were, the less did any weapons fall harmlessly between them, they were at once forced within the rampart, leaving strong guards only at the very approaches to the gates. A huge number of missiles was hurled at the crowd herded into the camp, and the shouting, mingled with the lamentations of the women and children, denoted that many were wounded.[11]
At this point, the heavy infantry advanced, throwing their javelins, and causing even more panic. The Gauls fled from the camp in all directions, whom the consul ordered to pursue. Finally, the cavalry having not played any role in the battle, eventually joined the pursuit, capturing and killing many Gauls.
Aftermath
As Livy points out, calculating the number of slain was made difficult by how scattered their bodies were (from having fled the camp). The victory brought much booty for the Roman Republic, and for all the soldiers involved.
Vulso would meet the Gauls in battle again, not long afterwards at the Battle of Ancyra.
Citations
References
Primary Sources
- ISBN 0-14-044318-5.
On-line sources
- Mommsen, Theodor (2004-05-01). "A History of Rome. Vol III". Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 2007-07-16.
- Pennell, Robert (2004-11-01). "Ancient Rome : from the earliest times down to 476 A. D." Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 2007-07-16.
- Smith, William (2006-11-01). "A Smaller History of Rome". Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 2007-07-16.