A Wisdom Archive on Bellovaci

Beauvais was known to the Romans as Caesaromagnus (though the post-Renaissance Latin rendering is Bellovacum) and took its present name from the Belgic tribe of the Bellovaci, whose capital it was. In the 9th century it became a countship, which about 1013 passed to the bishops of Beauvais, who became peers of France from the twelfth century. At the coronations of kings the Bishop of Beauvais wore the royal mantle and went, with the bishop of Langres, to raise the king from his ...

Read more here: » Beauvais: Encyclopedia II - Beauvais - History

In 52 BC the Atrebates joined the pan-Gaulish revolt led by Vercingetorix, and Commius was one of the leaders of the army that attempted to relieve Vercingetorix at the Siege of Alesia. After Vercingetorix was defeated Commius joined a revolt by the Bellovaci and persuaded some 500 Germans to support them, but this too was defeated and Commius sought refuge with his German allies. In 51 BC he returned to his homeland with a small mounted war-band for a campaign of agitation and guerrilla warfare. That winter Mark Antony, a legionary l ...

Read more here: » Commius: Encyclopedia II - Commius - Enemy of Caesar

Image:Belgicaromana.gif The Belgae were a group of nations or tribes living in north-eastern Gaul, on the west bank of the Rhine, in the 1st century BC, and later also attested in Britain. Their name survives in modern Belgium. Julius Caesar in his De Bello Gallico divided the people of Gaul at the time of his conquests (58 - 51 BC) into three broad groups: the Aquitani, Galli (who in their own language were called Celtae) and Belgae, all of whom had their own customs and language. He n ... Including:

• Belgae - Origins of the Belgae
• Belgae - Conquest of the Belgae
• Belgae - The Belgae outside Gaul

Read more here: » Belgae: Encyclopedia - Belgae

The Battle of the Sabis, also known as the Battle of the Sambre, was fought in 57 BC between the forces of the Roman Republic and an association of Belgic tribes in Gaul. Julius Caesar, commanding the Roman forces, was surprised and nearly defeated. However, a combination of determined defense, skilled generalship, and the timely arrival of reinforcements allowed the Romans to turn a near-defeat into a crushing victory. Battle of the Sabis - Prelude. In the year 57 BC, a large group of Belgic and Ce ... Including:

• Battle of the Sabis - Prelude
• Battle of the Sabis - Battle
• Battle of the Sabis - Source

Read more here: » Battle of the Sabis: Encyclopedia - Battle of the Sabis

• Beauvais - History
• Beauvais - Geography
• Beauvais - Cathédrale de Saint-Pierre
• Beauvais - Bishops of Beauvais
• Beauvais - Other highlights
• Beauvais - Economy

Read more here: » Beauvais: Encyclopedia - Beauvais

Commius (Commios, Comius) was a historical king of the Belgic nation of the Atrebates, initially in Gaul, then in Britain, in the 1st century BC. Commius - Ally of Caesar. When Julius Caesar conquered the Atrebates in Gaul in 57 BC, as recounted in his Commentarii de Bello Gallico, he appointed Commius as king of the tribe. Before Caesar's first expedition to Britain in 55 BC, Commius was sent as Caesar's envoy to persuade the Britons not to resist him, as Caesar believed he would have ... Including:

• Commius - Ally of Caesar
• Commius - Enemy of Caesar
• Commius - King in Britain
• Commius - Sources

Read more here: » Commius: Encyclopedia - Commius

Caesar conquered the Belgae, beginning in 57 BC. He writes that the Belgae were conspiring and arming themselves in response to his earlier conquests, and in response to this threat he raised two new legions and ordered his Gallic allies the Aedui to invade the territory of the Bellovaci. Wary of the numbers and bravery of the Belgae, he initially avoided a pitched battle, resorting mainly to cavalry skirmishes to probe their strengths and weaknesses. Once he was satisfied his troops were a match for them, he made camp on a low hill protected by a marsh at the front and the river Aisne behind, near Bibrax (between mod ...

Read more here: » Belgae: Encyclopedia II - Belgae - Conquest of the Belgae

Whether the Belgae were Celts or Germanic tribes occupied 19th century and early 20th century historians. Caesar claims that most of the Belgae were descended from tribes who had long ago crossed the Rhine from Germania. However most of the tribal and personal names recorded are identifiably Celtic. It seems likely that the Belgae had a mixture of Celtic and Germanic ancestry. Perhaps they were Germanic people ruled by a Celtic élite, or were a political alliance of Celtic and Germanic tribes, or, like the later Normans, were a formerly Ger ...

Read more here: » Belgae: Encyclopedia II - Belgae - Origins of the Belgae

By about 30 BC Commius had established himself as king of the Atrebates in Britain, and was issuing coins from Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester). It is possible that Commius and his followers founded this kingdom, although the fact that, when Caesar was unable to bring his cavalry to Britain in 55 BC, Commius was able to provide a small detachment of horsemen from his people, suggests that there were ...

Read more here: » Commius: Encyclopedia II - Commius - King in Britain

Main article: Cathédrale Saint-Pierre de Beauvais Its cathedral of St Pierre, in some respects the most daring achievement of Gothic architecture, consists only of a transept and choir with apse and seven apse-chapels. The vaulting in the interior exceeds 150 ft. in height. The small Romanesque church of the 10th century known as the Basse Oeuvre occupies the site destined for the nave. Begun in 1247, under Bishop Guillaume de Grez, an extra 16 feet were added to the height, to make it the tallest cathedral in Eu ...

Read more here: » Beauvais: Encyclopedia II - Beauvais - Cathédrale de Saint-Pierre