It really is shocking how vast the fortifications at Alesia were. The 11-mile (17 km) wall encircling the town was an amazing feat of its own, but Caesar ordering an additional 13 miles (20 km) of fortifications to be built around THAT wall was pretty incredible.

Life or death at that point for Caesar and his men. What an incredibly ballsy move to make, not knowing when or how many 10’s of thousands of Gauls would come storming over the horizon to attack them. I can’t even begin to imagine how nerve-racking that would have been for everyone involved. Had the Germanic cavalry not been attached to Caesar’s legions, and had their decisive attack on the relieving force of Gauls been ordered any later than it was, history would probably look a lot different. Such a pivotal battle for European history. It’s not the most pivotal, but it is certainly up there.