Could the Celts have won?

[Felix Marcellus]

Vercingetorix didn't over estimate the advantage of numbers. That's why he took a Fabian approach against Caesar. "All he managed to do was stop him taking Gergovia". How can you chalk that up as a "That's all"?

 

Judging from Caesar's previous successes, I'd say defeating him at Gergovia was a pretty big accomplishment. Defeating him period is a major accomplishment worthy of mention in any history book. We'll never know exactly how big an accomplishment it was because we only have Caesar's clearly biased account of the event to draw from. (As far as primary sources are concerned).

 

Vercingetorix would've possibly dragged this war on indefinitely if it were solely up to him. He was under pressure from other chieftains to engage Caesar in a decisive event. Remember, he wasn't King of Gaul. He was not absolute ruler over all. He led a confederation and was obliged to heed the opinions of others if he wanted to maintain unity among his army.

 

It was not Vercingetorix who lost the war for the Gauls. It was the impatience of the Gallic tribal leaders in general. There chance to win a victory lay not necessarily in this one great general of theirs; rather it lied in their ability to remain united, which they could not in the end.

[Ursus]

So I guess Ceaser was a Geneius.....But that would be a good Alternative History book...........What if the Celts had won? What would the world be like today?

I suppose Rome would have gone on to have an empire (minus Gaul and Britain) with Pompeii or one of his successors at his head.

 

 

But the Celtic unity that existed briefly under Caesar's war would have quickly evaporated once the threat was removed. The argumentative Celtic tribes would have quickly resumed their old ways, and as Viggen mentioned would have had to eventually face Germanic invaders without the benefit of Roman organization.

 

Since France played such a pivotal role in Medieval European history, a France that had not been dominated by Roman influence and Roman Catholicism might have given birth to a different kind of Continental Europe.

[Tobias]

I agree that Vercingetorix's war chiefs didn't help things. I believe the chief druid, (named Cathbad i think) tried to have Vercingetorix crowned as king. If he had succeded, and his chiefs acknowledged him as absolute ruler, perhaps things would have been different. But he wasn't, and Gaul was not permanently united.

Yes, Gergorvia may have been a significant accomplishment against Caesar, but it didn't stop him did it? It certainly didn't cripple him. It probably had a good effect on Vercingetorix's warriors, however.

[Guest historybuff]

The celts could never have won, caesar had the best army there was and the German's to back him up. His army loved and respected him and he had the determination to go far. He would never have given up and been defeated, it wasn't in his nature