The siege of Uxellodunum was one of the last battles of the Gallic Wars. It took place in 51 BC at Uxellodunum. It was the last major military confrontation of the Gallic Wars and marked the pacification of Gaul under Roman rule. The battle resulted in a decisive Roman victory.
Actions leading up to the siege
Lucterius, the chief of the Carduci, and Drapes, chief of the Senones, had retired to the hill fort of Uxellodunum to remain in the relative safety of the fortifications until the governorship of Gaius Julius Caesar ended in Gaul. The group had apparently planned to then begin a new rebellion against their Roman conquerors. Uxellodunum was heavily fortified both by its natural position (a river almost entirely surrounded the hill upon which it was built) and by its impressive fortifications built by the Carduci tribe. Additionally, one side of the fort was protected by a mountainside which prevented any approach from that direction. For these reasons, it was impossible to besiege it in the same manner the Romans had used at the Battle of Alesia a year before.
The Legatus in charge of Uxellodunum, Gaius Caninius Rebilus, conscious that his two legions were anxious to commence an action to repeat the glories Julius Caesar had won at Alesia, divided his legions into three camps in areas around the fort where the terrain was high enough to ensure that any attempt by the Gauls to escape the fort would likely be unsuccessful. By this manner, he planned to effectively seal off the city.
Gallic blunders
The Gauls trapped inside the oppidum (Latin for "town" or "city"), having learned the lessons of starvation from the disaster at the Siege of Alesia (where Lucterius had been present), made plans to leave the settlement by night to forage for food and provisions. Climbing over the ramparts, Lucterius and Drapes left a garrison of around 2,000 men inside Uxellodunum, taking the remainder of their force to forage en masse. Some of the local Carduci Gauls in the surrounding areas freely gave the rebels supplies, but much of the provisions were taken by force. The Gauls then tried to again sneak past the Roman sentries set by Caninius Rebilus, but were spotted. Caninius Rebilus, upon learning of the Gauls' plans, concentrated the bulk of his legions and unleashed them on the Gaulish convoy. Lucterius, who was in charge of the convoy, immediately took flight with his war-bands without informing Drapes. The rest of the Gauls were massacred almost to a man, some sources saying that as many as 12,000 Gauls were killed in the action.
Caninius Rebilus left one of his legions behind to defend his three camps and gathered the rest of his soldiers to pursue Drapes. He destroyed the remaining Gaulish forces in the area under Drapes (Lucterius having already fled), capturing Drapes, who was executed shortly thereafter.
Safe in the knowledge that further Gallic reinforcements would not likely be coming to the aid of Uxellodunum due to the blunders of Lucterius and Drapes, Gaius Caninius Rebilus intensified his siege works around Uxellodunum. Shortly after, Gaius Fabius, another of Caesar's legates in Gaul who had been tasked with subduing the Senones, arrived fresh from his victory at the Battle of the Loire with a full 25 cohorts of legions (roughly two and a half legions). These reinforcements put the Roman forces at four and a half legions, enough to construct competent siege works and completely encircle the fort.
Arrival of Gaius Julius Caesar and the cutting of the water supply
While these actions had been ongoing, Gaius Julius Caesar was in the territory of the Belgae in Gaul. There he was informed by courier of the revolt of the Carduci and Senones. Determined to ensure that there would be no more rebellions in Gaul after the expiration of his tenure as governor, Caesar set out immediately for Uxellodunum with his cavalry, leaving behind his legions, even though his two legates had the situation under control. Indeed, Caesar made his way so quickly to Uxellodunum that he surprised his two legates.