European Kingdoms

Atuatuci / Aduatuci (Belgae)

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In general terms, the Romans coined the name 'Gaul' to describe the Celtic tribes of what is now central, northern, and eastern France. The Gauls were divided from the Belgae to the north by the Marne and the Seine, and from the Aquitani to the south by the River Garonne, while also extending into Switzerland, northern Italy, and along the Danube (see feature link for a discussion of the origins of the Celtic name).

By the middle of the first century BC, the Atuatuci were located in what is now central Belgium on the plain to the north of Namur and eastwards of Brussels. They were neighboured to their north by the Eburones, to the north-east by the Cugerni, to the east by the Tungri, to the south by the Caerosi and Condrosi, and to the west by the Nervii.

The Belgae appear to have been formed of tribes which were seaborne and which lived along the North Atlantic and/or Baltic coastlines. They would seem to have been a branch of Celts who had established themselves in Northern Europe, although precisely where is entirely open to speculation (not to mention some heated debate).

Their dialect probably used a 'b' or a 'v' sound where their western cousins in Gaul used a 'w' sound, opening up different interpretations for their names. This tribe's name is formed of two elements, 'atua' or 'adua' and 'tuc'. The last element is probably a mention of the god Dagda ('dag'), which frequently crops up in tribal names.

The first element is much tougher to understand. It may be an unknown Celtic word which is related to the Latin 'adduco' which means 'to lead, induce, persuade'. Perhaps the tribe were led by Dagda, although this is a guess which is based on very flimsy evidence.

L'Arbre Celtique (abbreviated as LAC) provides a different interpretation for that first element, with 'adua' coming from the root word, 'udua', meaning 'prophecy, divination', to which the prefix 'ad' has been added to signify a people who practised divination and prophecy. This could make them 'diviners of Dagda', perhaps altered to mean 'Dadga's oracle'.

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(Information by Peter Kessler and Edward Dawson, with additional information by Trish Wilson, from The La Tene Celtic Belgae Tribes in England: Y-Chromosome Haplogroup R-U152 - Hypothesis C, David K Faux, from A Genetic Signal of Central European Celtic Ancestry, David K Faux, from Celts and the Classical World, David Rankin, from The Civilisation of the East, Fritz Hommel (Translated by J H Loewe, Elibron Classic Series, 2005), from Europe Before History, Kristian Kristiansen, from The History of Rome, Volume 1, Titus Livius, translated by Rev Canon Roberts, from the Encyclopaedia of European Peoples, Carl Waldman & Catherine Mason, from Caesar's Conquest of Gaul, TR Holmes, from Roman History, Cassius Dio, from Geography, Strabo, translated by H C Hamilton Esq & W Falconer, M A, Ed (George Bell & Sons, London, 1903), from The Celtic Encyclopaedia, Harry Mountain, from Geography, Ptolemy, from Encyclopaedia of the Roman Empire, Matthew Bunson (1994), from Reallexicon der Germanischen Altertumkunde, J Hoops & H Beck (1968-2008, in German), from De voorgeschiedenis der Lage Landen, S J Laet (J B Wolters, 1959, in Dutch), from Keltisch en Germaans in de Nederlanden, Lauran Toorians (Belgisch Genootschap voor Keltische Studies, 2005, in Dutch), from Histoire de la Gaule, Danièle Roman & Yves Roman (Fayard, 1997, in French), from La civilization de la Tene/en Champagne, le faciès marnie, Denise Bretz-Mahler (CNRS, 1997, in French), from Gallia Belgica, Edith Wightman (Batsford, 1985), and from External Links: The Works of Julius Caesar: Gallic Wars and The Natural History, Pliny the Elder (John Bostock, Ed), and Jones' Celtic Encyclopaedia, and L'Arbre Celtique (The Celtic Tree, in French).)

113 - 109 BC

Teutobod and Boiorix lead a large-scale migration of Cimbri and Teutones from their homeland in what later becomes central and northern Denmark. Along the way they pick up Celto-Germanic Helvetii peoples (in territory which later becomes Franconia) and the Tigurini, but they also drop off tribal fragments such as the Atuatuci.

An illustration depicting the Teutones wandering in Gaul, part of a large-scale migration from modern Denmark into northern Italy in the second century BC

Their passage sparks a partial tribal movement by elements of the Boii who invade the Norican region south of the Danube. It possibly also sparks a secondary migration of Belgic peoples from the Netherlands and northern Gaul into south-eastern Britain.

57 BC

The Belgae enter into a confederacy against the Romans in fear of Rome's eventual domination over them. They are also spurred on by Gauls who are unwilling to see Germanic tribes remaining on Gaulish territory and are unhappy about Roman troops wintering in Gaul. The Senones are asked by Julius Caesar to gain intelligence on the intentions of the Belgae, and they report that an army is being collected.

Caesar marches ahead of expectations and the Remi, on the Belgic border, instantly surrender, although their brethren, the Suessiones remain enthusiastic about the venture.

This vast map covers just about all possible tribes which were documented in the first centuries BC and AD, mostly by the Romans and Greeks, and with an especial focus on 52 BC (click or tap on map to view at an intermediate size)

The Bellovaci are the most powerful amongst the Belgae, but the confederation also includes the Ambiani, Atrebates, Atuatuci, Caerosi, Caleti, Condrusi, Eburones, Menapii, Morini, Nervii, Paemani, Veliocasses, and Viromandui, along with some unnamed Germanic units on the western side of the Rhine.

Caesar encourages his ally, Diviciacus of the Aeduii, to attack the Bellovaci and divert part of the Belgic forces. The remaining Belgae march en masse against the Romans. The Bellovaci are defeated at the Battle of the Axona, and the Suessiones are forced to surrender, as are the surviving Bellovaci and Ambiani.

The Nervii, refusing any surrender, assemble with the Atrebates and Viromandui to offer battle. The Atuatuci are expected to join them, but the Nervii launch an early surprise attack at the Battle of the Sabis (probably the River Selle). The attack surprises the Romans, but they rally and turn potential defeat into a near-massacre of the Nervii.

The Atuatuci, who had been marching to the assistance of the Nervii, return home once they hear that they have missed the battle. They are attacked there by the Romans and are completely defeated.

The Battle of the (River) Axona (the modern Aisne in north-eastern France) witnessed the beginning of the end of the Belgic confederation in its fight against Rome

The region which is inhabited by the Atuatuci on the western side of the Rhine is left entirely depopulated when Caesar sells all surviving tribal members into slavery, which amounts to something like fifty-three thousand individuals.

With this action, northern Gaul has been brought under Roman domination, while the victorious legions winter amongst the Andes, Carnutes, and Turones.

54 BC

The recent assassination of Tasgetius of the Carnutes, born of very high rank and a descendant of chiefs of the tribe, raises the fear in the Romans that the tribe will revolt. Lucius Plancus takes a legion to winter amongst them, but his investigations into the murder are interrupted.

About fifteen days after the legions enter winter quarters, Ambiorix and Cativolcus of the Eburones instigate the revolt mentioned above, prompted primarily by pressure from their people. A legion under Quintus Titurius Sabinus and Lucius Aurunculeius Cotta is defeated, with both generals being killed and the survivors committing suicide in their fort to avoid capture.

This print of Ambiorix, king of the Eburones, is inspired by his statue of 1866 in Tongeren in Belgium, with both statue and print reflecting the nineteenth century revival of the Celts in the young Belgian nation state

Only a few men escape to relate the news to Caesar. Ambiorix marches his cavalry to the Atuatuci, with the infantry following on. Despite what cannot be more than a rag-tag guerrilla force of warriors after their complete dismemberment by the Romans in 57 BC, the Atuatuci are roused by tales of his victory and then so are the Nervii.

Together they launch an attack on the legion of Cicero, razing much of his fort and hard-pressing the defenders. Word of this reaches Marcus Crassus amongst the Bellovaci, just twenty-five miles away, and Caius Fabius also marches from the lands of the Morini, with both forces having to negotiate their way through the lands of the Atrebates along the way.

Caesar arrives to relieve Cicero and is attacked by about sixty thousand Gauls. Despite the massive disparity in numbers compared to Caesar's own seven thousand, the Gauls are put to flight with great losses, although the Romans suffer casualties of ten percent. This defeat must surely signal the end for what little remains of the Atuatuci.

The gentle rolling landscape of the Limberg region would have made idea pasture and farming land for the Belgic tribes, but its proximity to the Maas would have provided the woods and swamps which served as a refuge in times of need

53 BC

The Atuatuci are not mentioned again in history but, curiously, a tribe called the Tungri appear in this year, occupying very similar territory once they take over the land of the Eburones. Could they be formed of an amalgamation of the Atuatuci and Eburones survivors, both of whom have a Germanic element to their make-up, just like the Tungri?

This becomes even more likely when it is remembered that the Tungri have a capital at Atuatuca (modern Tongeren), which is also attested as being the tribal centre of the Atuatuci.