Definition:
The Battle of Sabis or Sambre was one of the battles in the Gallic Wars that Julius Caesar chronicles in De bello Gallico (Gallic Wars Commentaries). Caesar had 8 legions with which he fought against the Belgian Nervii and their allies. Caesar's victory was nowhere near certain.In this battle, Roman military discipline prevailed over numerical superiority and ferocity of the Belgian Nervii and allies. At least as far as propaganda went, the battle was a pre-emptive strike against a belligerent foreign enemy who were conspiring against the Romans (BG2.1.1-2). When they refused to submit to Rome, they were invaded. Caesar didn't know exatly where the Nervii were waiting for him, although he knew they were across the Sabis River. When the Sabis surprised the Romans there was no time for proper deployment of the legions. The Nervii forced a hole in the middle of the Romans and might have surrounded the right wing of the Romans. Caesar joined the front line and the two new legions still fresh arrived to help the battle-weary.
Source: "Two Caesarian Battle-Descriptions: A Study in Contrast," by Robert D. Brown. The Classical Journal, Vol. 94, No. 4. (Apr. - May, 1999), pp. 329-357.
Also Known As: Battle of Sambre, Battle against the Nervii
