THE SCENE: Julius Caesar recounts the dramatic play-by-play of a battle against German troops on the banks of the Rhine.
THE TEXT: Caesar placed each of his five generals ahead of a legion and details his quaestor to command the remaining legion, so that every soldier might know that there was a high officer in a position to observe the courage with which he conducted himself, and then led the right wing first into action, because he had noticed that the enemy’s line was weakest on that side.
Our troops attacked with such vigour when the signal was given, and the enemy also dashed forward so suddenly and swiftly, that there was no time to throw spears at them. So the men dropped their spears and fought hand to hand with their swords. By quickly adopting their usual phalanx formation the Germans were able to withstand the sword thrusts, but many of our soldiers actually threw themselves on the wall of shields confronting when, wrenched the shields out of the enemy’s hands, and stabbed them from above.
The Germans’ left was thus routed, but their right began to press out troops hard by weight of numbers. Their perilous position attracted the attention of young Publius Crassus, who was in charge of the cavalry and better able to move about and see what was happening than those in the fighting line. He therefore sent up the third line to their relief. This move turned the battle once more in our favour, and the enemy’s whole army broke and fled without stopping until they came to the Rhine, some fifteen miles away.
– The Conquest of Gaul, Julius Caesar, 1st Century BC
