Atlas of Battles

battle, major, ancient

Battle of Bibracte

Battle of Bibracte was a battle fought in 58 BC at Saône-et-Loire, in what is now France. It was part of the Gallic War, which ran from 58 BC to 51 BC. The recorded result: Roman victory.

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Mapa de l'oppidum de Bibracte.
Mapa de l'oppidum de Bibracte.. Bashar, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought58 BC
WhereSaône-et-Loire, France46.917N, 4.033E
OutcomeRoman victory
BelligerentsRoman RepublicagainstHelvetii; Boii; Tulingi; Rauraci
Casualties and lossesCaesar: unknownandTribes: 238,000 killed or captured
Part ofGallic War58 BC to 51 BC

Where it sits in the Gallic War

Battle of Magetobria, 63 BCBattle of Bibracte, 58 BCBattle of the Arar, 58 BCBattle of Vosges, 58 BCBattle of Cavillonum, 58 BCBattle of Vesontio, 58 BCBattle of the Sabis, 57 BCBattle of the Axona, 57 BCBattle of Octodurus, 57 BCSiege of Bibrax, 57 BCSiege of the Atuatuci, 57 BCBattle of Morbihan, 56 BCBattle of Vernix, 56 BCBattle against the Aquitanians, 56 BCSiege of Namur, 54 BCBattle of the Sambre, 54 BCAmbiorix's Revolt, 54 BCBattle of the Semois River, 53 BCBattle of Gergovia, 52 BCBattle of Lutetia, 52 BCBattle of Noviodunum, 52 BCBattle of the Saône, 52 BCSiege of Avaricum, 52 BCBattle of Alesia, 52 BCBattle of Vingeanne, 52 BCSiege of Uxellodunum, 51 BC63 BC51 BCBattle of Bibracte, 58 BC
26 placed engagements of the Gallic War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date58 BC (year precision)
PlaceSaône-et-Loire, France
46.917N, 4.033E
KindBattle, ancient
StrengthCaesar: 40,000 troops: 25,000–30,000 legionaries; unknown number auxiliaries; unknown number allied infantry; 4,000 allied cavalry; Engaged: 30,000 troops; 4 legions and auxiliariesTribes: 368,000 people: 90,000 warriors; 278,000 non-combatants; Ancient historians: Pollio: 157,000 people; Orosius: 157,000 people; Livy: 157,000 people; Modern historians: Delbrück: 12,000 warriors; Gilliver: 50,000 warriors
Casualties and lossesCaesar: unknownTribes: 238,000 killed or captured
Commanders
  • Divico
Battle of BibracteBattle of BibracteSiege of Augustodunum HaeduorumBattle of AutunSiege of AutunBattle of ChateauneufBattle of CavillonumSiege of Augustodunum HaeduorumBattle of ChateauneufBattle of CavillonumGenevaLyonOrléansDijonBourgesVichyAuxerreClermont-Ferrand100 km46.917N, 4.033E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Bibracte
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Bibracte today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2023-09-24. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2023.

The recorded site stands at about 662 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 0 to 870 m, 870 m of relief, steep country and today it is 72% tree cover, 26% grassland.

tree cover: 72%grassland: 26%tree cover 72%grassland 26%
west to east, 10.0 km0 to 749 mnorth to south, 10.0 km391 to 808 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Battle of Bibracte is one of 159 engagements of the 1st century BC in the atlas and one of 1,383 in present-day France.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q635028, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Bibracte, revision 1379367433, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.