Talk:Bituitus

loot from the Auvergne

I'm not sure Fabius actually entered the Auvergne; I was thinking the fighting occurred south of the actual territory of the Arverni, who were then pushed back into their homeland — and retained their independence, an often overlooked fact. The Allobroges were brought under direct Roman rule as a result of the wars in the 120s, but not the Arverni, who appear to have reorganized as an oligarchy or proto-republic after Bituitos's surrender ended the monarchy. Their neighbors (and rivals) the Aedui had a well-developed system of election laws and public officials apparently aimed at preventing the concentration of power in the hands of individuals or a 'royal' family. No other "king" is mentioned for the Arverni after Bituitos, at least until Celtillus, the father of Vercingetorix, attempts (according to Caesar) to establish himself as some kind of 'supreme king.'

It's good not to jump to conclusions about what the end of the monarchy might have meant to a majority of Arvernians, or to the aristocracy. They might have regarded the end of monarchy as political progress, and their willingness to form a new kind of government may have been one reason they could negotiate to keep their independence — no megalomaniac kings around seizing other people's land, since from the perspective of smaller Gallic polities to the south such as the Gabali and Helvii, the Arverni might have been seen as invaders. Cynwolfe (talk) 19:11, 10 June 2009 (UTC)