October 3

Chieftain Vercingetorix, who had united the tribes of Gaul, surrendered to Julius Caesar on October 3, 52 BCE, after the Battle of Alesia in what is now east-central France. He had commanded the Gauls’ last major uprising against the Romans, and his defeat marked the end of Celtic domination of what became Rome’s vast province of Gaul. Caesar’s siege of Alesia was one of his greatest military achievements and a classic example of siege warfare. Plutarch notes that Vercingetorix surrendered dramatically by riding his adorned horse around Caesar's camp before dismounting before the Roman. Caesar somehow omits this from his Gallic Wars commentaries. In 46 BCE the chieftain was paraded in Caesar’s long-delayed triumph in Rome, then executed. Pictured: Celtic gold stater (ancient coin) showing Vercingetorix.