November 2011

 

Helvetios bonus DVD - Transcription of Chrigels narration with lyric samples and links included:

 

We try to tell the whole story from the Helvetians’ point of view which is not easy because we don’t know that much about the Gallic war, we mainly need to rely on Caesars “de bello gallico” …….  However, since we don’t know that much about that time, we are dependent on sources like that [government propaganda]  but we try to interpret it keeping a neutral view, many things remain unclear and speculative.  We tried to empathize with these people and to imagine how things could have been happened.

 

2:26 Helvetios and Luxtos The first two songs open the story and describe the Helvetian tribe especially the second song which has a gaulish refrain that was translated by Armin.  It is kind of a self-portrayal based on how they are presented in literature that is available today.  In my opinion there are some marginal notes about the helvetians where they are described as very proud and almost childish-naive.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3:39 Home   Ceasar describes it as megalomaniac raid ….I think that was caesar’s first tactical propaganda that he tried to describe the helvetians as a threat …. The Helvetians were definitely a martial tribe which is also described in the song however, they  told Caesar many times that they don’t want a war but simply want to leave.  I can imagine that besides the growing population the helvetians were kettled on the other side of the Rhine there were the suebians who started more and more raids against the Helvetians ……

 

And we should not forget that besides that danger from the north there was the empire trying to expand its territory as you mentioned a big part of Gallia was already garrisoned by the Romans including the area in the south that bordered directly on the Helvetian territory and I could imagine that this was an additional reason for the helvetians’ wish to leave.  When you see your home territory threatened by two parties from two different directions who both try to desperately enforce their claims to your land at some point you have to choose between war and moving away and I can imagine that this was reason enough for their decision to leave

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7:32 Santonian Shores and Scorched Earth The next song is about the beginning of the helvetians move-out.  As you said before, when they started their move-out they tried to leave nothing behind.  They burned their houses, fields and food leftovers.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9:44 Meet the Enemy The Helvetians started their move-out and went towards Geneva first and this song is about what happened there.  As you said the Helvetians went to Geneva where the first big surprise was waiting for them……the area they tried to cross had been gallic territory but was already garrisoned by the Romans … the Helvetians sent some noblemen to negotiate with Caesar.  They begged for the permission to walk through and Caesar just told them that he needs a month to think it over.  However, Caesar didn’t need that time for consideration but to move more forces from Rome to Geneva. 

 

After that month the Helvetians were told that they are not allowed to cross.  They accepted and decided to walk North avoiding the Roman territory which was way more difficult but they wanted to avoid trouble so they had to cross a river in today’s French area.  We don’t know if they were aware of the fact that they were already chased by the Roman legions……..Ceasar had to legitimate his plans and therefore he tried to portray the Helvetians as a threat.  We need to consider that the senate had no clue about Gallia and what was happening there.   They didn’t know if Gallia is far or close. 

 

The Helvetians’ journey is described as very martial ….but I doubt that they first wanted to walk North in peace and then suddenly changed their minds and decided to fight against another Gallic tribe.  Seems like propaganda again ……When the Helvetians crossed the river there was the first real battle.  At night when three-quarter of the tribe crossed the river, the Roman legions attacked the unarmed remaining quarter.  It was a huge massacre and everyone left was killed …….so Caesar describes the event as a destiny and a stroke of faith and this is what the song ‘Meet the Enemy’ is about.  That’s the point where the Helvetians realized Caesar’s real intentions and where negotiations turned into war.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

22:50 Neverland  The next song is called ‘Neverland” and is about what happened afterwards.  After that nightly fight the Helvetians moved on but were chased by the roman forces who followed them with a six km distance ……The Helvetians moved towards the town Bibracte and entrenched themselves.  They built some corrals with roofs to protect the soldiers who moved the vehicle from archers and then there was another fight between the two parties which was decided by the Romans.  And that was probably a crucial turning point for many Helvetian civilians. 

 

You need to consider that the tribe didn’t only consist of soldiers but that lots of them were civilian people.  Not every man was a warrior, many of them were bargainers for instance who dreamed of a better life in a new home country, and the battle of Bibracte was clearly decided by the Romans and that was the point where the Helvetians realized the state of war and the fact that they would never reach the land of the Santones.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

26:27 A Rose for Epona  Rose for Epona tries to express the feelings and thoughts many Helvetians might have had at that time.  The Story is told from a young woman’s point of view who had to leave her home and maybe had just started a family and dreamed of a new life in the Santonian land until all these dreams went up in smoke with the battle.  Her husband might have been killed in the fight and praying to the goddess Epona she expresses all her sorrow.  We assume that she was kind of a gallic goddess for horse riders.  In a huge Gallic area some small Epona temples were found where roses had been immolated for that goddess.  That is the topic of the song, the young Gallic woman who is facing her life broken into pieces and accusing Epona.  As you said that Gallic woman is really young, which was quite normal at that time.  When she has a one year old child for instance she might not be older than 16 and has spent most time of her life for that journey…..Of course stories like that are completely speculative but if you deal with historical topics you should never forget that all the related characters were human beings just like you and me…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

31:28 Havoc  The next song called 'Havoc’ is about what happened the following 18 months.  Caesar expanded his campaigns in Gallia, especially in the Northern part which is Belgium today.   He fought several Gallic tribes there and even exterminated one of them which is explicitly described in ‘de bello gallico’.  He moved on to the area of today’s Bretange and then back to today’s central France and so on.  So, actually whole Gallia was prevailed by war. 

 

What I think is interesting is Caesar describes these campaigns as punishment although it’s clear that they were conquests instead.  One example is that he explicitly called the campaign against a tribe that lived in today’s Belgium a ‘campaign of punishment’.  So that tribe apparently did something against one of his commands or simply something that did not suit his plans…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

34:46 The Uprising  The next song called ‘The Uprising’ is about an important person in Gallic history, a young man called Vercingetorix.  Whole Gallia was prevailed by war, the empire conquered more and more Gallic tribes of which some had even been exterminated.   And I think that on the one hand the Gallic underestimated the situation and on the other hand were inferior by not being one united force.  

 

Rome was a huge empire but reigned by central power and Gallia consisted of several tribes which were partly huge, too but didn’t care that much about the other tribes.   They were not ‘one’ Gallia……and I think that was one of the reasons why Rome could successfully fight the Gallics because they never fought against Gallia but always against single tribes instead.  And that was the point where Vercingetorix became important because he realized that Gallia would have never had a chance to defeat Rome as Long as these tribes did not appear as one unit.  [and what is important to know is that it was not a revolt.  A revolt is usually a fight against an established government…therefore not a revolt but a kind of defense]   ‘we are free men and we fight for our freedom’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

38:42 The Siege The next song describes the important battle of Avaricum.  After Vercingetorix had built up his force there were several fights between him and the roman legions and after some there fights had been decided by the Romans Vercingetorix changed his tactic to a strategy he called ‘strategy of the scorched earth’.  He burned down all fields behind him and his forces to remove all food sources and hereby force the Romans to give up…..

 

Vercingetorix made king of an example; he united some tribes and started fighting against the romans and by that some other tribes which already had to pay tribute started to oppose them, too.  And the battle of Avaricum, where the forces of Vercingetorix entrenched themselves, marked kind of a climax. 

 

The Roman legions built two impressive ridges around the town, including dikes and obstacles, and huge mobile towers which were moved by trunks and had roofs that secured the archers.  That was something the Gallics had never seen before and impressed, probably even frightened them a lot…. [Caesar describes that only ten percent of the Gallics survived…figures taken with a pinch of salt].

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

44:30 Alesia  The next song is about the battle of Alesia 52 B.C. which was quite a dramatic one.   Vercingetorix army entrenched itself in Alesia after the battle of Avaricum, he had at least managed to send his cavalry out of the town, assuming that he will be besieged and knowing that a cavalry in town would be useless. 

 

And the Roman legions sieged the town in order to let the Gallics starve out.  That worked pretty well.  They built a ridge directed towards the town and another one behind them, assuming the cavalry would return – so they actually equipped themselves for a war in two directions – and this is what became reality.   However, they succeeded in letting the Gallics starve out and it ended up in a very dramatic situation which is described in the song.  

 

The Gallics had no food and water left so they decided to bar all their non-warriors from town ensuring that at least the force would have enough resources to survive.  Of course they assumed that the Romans would let these unarmed civilians go.  However, Caesar commanded not to let them go so they were forced to die of hunger between the two ridges virtually watched by the Romans and their own people and this is very cruel in my opinion.  Caesar mentions that he didn’t let the civilians go just because opening the ridge would have been a potential opportunity for the Gallics to attack.  And that might be true, we don’t know.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

49:59 Tullianum  The battle was one of the Gallic war’s bloodiest ones and was critical for what happened afterwards.  Vercingetorix himself walked out of the town and faced up to Caesar.   He hoped that if he would face up to the enemies they might spare the rest of the survivors.  Yes, that sounds a bit heroic, but he thought that he might be able to rescue his force by yielding as the leader himself. 

 

That did not work out, there was another massacre, most of the Gallics in Alesia were killed and Vercingetorix was arrested in Tullianum Rome for six years.  When Ceasar returned to Rome he performed his triumphal procession carrying Vercingetorix along in chains, afterwards Vercingetorix was returned to Tullianum and sentenced to death by strangulation.  [it’s not sure if he was beheaded or strangulated].

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

52:10 Uxellodunon  [there are several figures existing but estimations assume that in eight years of Gallic war about 1 million people were killed]  The next song is about the battle of Uxellodunon which was the final one.  After Alesia whole Gallia was garrisoned by the empire and Uxellodunon was kind of a final uprise.  The battle was again decided by the Romans, Caesar chopped up the hands of all Gallic warriors – we don’t have exact figures but it was pretty sure a couple of thousand people.  And this is the end of the story and of our album as well.  Although it tells quite a morbid story its end, however, contains something positive.  It stands for fighting spirit and courage – even if the situation seems to be hopeless it is worth battling on and struggling against the occupying power.