TheArverni (Gaulish: *Aruernoi) were aGallic people dwelling in the modernAuvergne region during theIron Age and theRoman period. They were one of the most powerful tribes of ancientGaul, contesting primacy over the region with the neighbouringAedui.[1]
They are mentioned in 207 BC as treating with Carthaginian commandantHasdrubal Barca. Headed by their chiefsLuernius andBituitus, the Arverni were at the head of an extensive empire. After Bituitus was defeated byDomitius Ahenobarbus andFabius Maximus in 121 BC, the Arvernian empire was reduced to suzerainty over some neighbouring tribes.[1]
In 52 BC, during theGallic Wars, the Arvernian chiefVercingetorix led the Gallic revolt against the armies ofCaesar. After an initial victory at theBattle of Gergovia, Vercingetorix was defeated by the Romans at theBattle of Alesia, after which the Arverni lost their power of suzerainty. They maintained however a status ofcivitas libera, and remained a prosperous tribe during the Roman period. Under emperorAugustus, their capital was moved from Gergovia to Augustonemetum (present-dayClermont-Ferrand).[1]
FollowingAlemannic invasions of the region in the 3rd century AD, Clermont-Ferrand was reduced in size but remained an important centre during the later part of the Roman period. In 475, despite a heroic struggle led by their bishop,Sidonius Apollinaris, the Arvernian territory was eventually ceded to the Visigoths.[1]
They are mentioned asArvernos byCaesar (mid-1st c. BC),[2]Arvernorum byLivy (late-1st c. BC),[3]A̓roúernoi (Ἀρούερνοι) byStrabo (early 1st c. AD),[4] and asA̓rouernō͂n (Ἀρουερνῶν) byPtolemy (2nd c. AD).[5][6]
TheethnonymArverni is a latinized form ofGaulish *Aruernoi (sing. *Aruernos). Its etymology remains unclear.Pierre-Yves Lambert has suggested to interpret it as "those who are above", by decomposing the name as *ar(e)-uer-no- (cf. Latinsupernus).[7] Alternatively, a connection with the Gaulish stem *uernā- ("alder"; c.f. Frenchvergne,Occitanverne) has also been proposed.[8]
The region ofAuvergne, attested in 511 asecclesiae Arvenicae (pagus Arvenicus orpago Alvernio in the 9th c.,Alvernhe ca. 1071–1127) is named after the Gallic tribe.[9]
It is assumed that the pre-Roman territory of the Arverni roughly corresponded to the limits of the Roman-eracivitas Arvernorum, later inherited by the early medievalDiocese of Clermont. Their territory thus would have encompassed the moderndepartements ofPuy-de-Dôme andCantal, parts ofHaute-Loire andAllier, as well as small areas ofCreuse,Loire andAveyron.[10]
They dwelled east of theLemovices andPetrocorii, south of theBituriges Cubi andAedui, north of theRuteni,Cadurci andVellavi, and west of theSegusiavi andAmbarri.[11]
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The Arverni are known to have had the most powerful tribal hegemony in Gaul during the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC under their kings,Luernius, and his sonBituitus. Their power was based on strong metallurgic technologies and weapons, elaborated and rich agriculture and catering, mining, trade and military dominance over their neighbours with tributes paid to them.[citation needed]
But when Arverni king Bituitus was defeated by theRomans ofQuintus Fabius andGnaeus Ahenobarbus in 121 BC at the climacticBattle of the Isère River, their ascendancy passed to theAedui andSequani. Unlike theAllobroges, who were brought under direct Roman rule as a result of the Celtic wars of the 120s, the Arverni negotiated a treaty that preserved their independence, though their territory was diminished.[citation needed]
No further Arvernian kings are mentioned in the historical record between 121 BC and 52 BC, and they may have adopted a constitutionaloligarchy at this time. However, there were at least two later attempts to re-establish rulership by Celtillus andVercingetorix. The defeat of the Arverni under Bituitus led directly to the establishment ofGallia Narbonensis as aRoman province, referred to simply as theProvincia so often that a part of the ancient region is today known asProvence.[citation needed]
The King Luernius was mentioned in writing by the Greek ethnographerPosidonius. Luernius was known to have scattered gold and silver coins to his followers while riding in his chariot. Under Luernius, the Arverni were at the head of a formidable Gallic military hegemony which stretched from the Rhine to the Atlantic coast.[citation needed]
They joinedBellovesus' migrations towards Italy, together with theAedui,Ambarri,Aulerci,Carnutes andSenones.[12]
The Arverni later played an important role in theGallic Wars ofJulius Caesar from 58 BC to 51 BC. At first the Arvenian nobles tried to avoid confronting Caesar during his early incursions. They executed the leaderCeltillus, evidently for trying to gain sovereignty over all the Gauls.[13] In 52 BC, Celtillus' sonVercingetorix rallied his supporters to fight the Romans, but was expelled from Gergovia by the nobles, including his uncle Gobanitio. He then raised a great army in the country, and returned to the city where he ejected his opponents and was declared king.[13] This accomplished, Vercingetorix forged an alliance with at least 15 Gallic tribes, requesting the presence of sons of chiefs to prove their alliance. He then led the majority of the Gauls and won the Gergovia battle against Julius Caesar and his cavalry did marvels in pursuing the Roman troops.Having earlier split his forces, Caesar awaited their return while receiving supplies from allied Gauls. Vercingetorix was then defeated by Caesar at theBattle of Alesia, after several months where the legions built 14 ranges of military equipment around the city to lay siege upon the Gallic soldiers. After several weeks of support from the western Gallic people with large numbers of troops coming to support Vercingetorix from outside the city, the Gauls were close to merging the inner and outer forces on 2 occasions. When the outer forces decided to depart, Vercingetorix decided to surrender himself to the Romans in order to save the people of Alesia.[14]
In the aftermath of the Gallic Wars the Arverni soldiers were pardoned and its senate was restored to power. The Arverni and the majority of other Gaulish states were pulled into the Roman political hemisphere but retained full rights and home rule. According toGregory of Tours and his bookHistoria Francorum ("History of the Franks") the Arverni senators were still active in the sixth century and were deeply involved in the politics of the nascent Frankish state.
