Sack of Rome (390 BC) 390 BC

About the battle

The first sack of Rome was the consequence of the victory of the Senone Gauls led by Brennus over the Roman troops during the Battle of the Allia, a military success allowing them to occupy the city and demand the payment of a heavy ransom from the defeated Romans, but they were soon driven out from the city. The Sack of Rome has multiple accounts, including Polybius (II, 18, 2), Livy (V, 35–55), Diodorus Siculus (XIV, 113–117), Plutarch (Camillus, 15–32) and Strabo (V, 2–3). The accounts of the Battle of the Allia and the Sack of Rome were written centuries after the events, and their reliability is disputed by modern historians, who have shown that parts of the narrative are based on mythology, and others on transfers from Greek history. Another uncertain information is the date of the start of the Siege: the historian Tacitus suggests July 18 of 390 BC (according to the Varronian calendar), while modern sources suggest July 21 of 387 BC (according to the Polybian/Greek calendar), lasting as much as seven months.

Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Sack of Rome (390 BC) (revision 1370729676), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.

Nearby battles

• Siege of Rome (472) 472 · 0 km
• Siege of Rome (537–538) 537 · 2 km
• Siege of Rome (549–550) 549 · 2 km
• Battle of the Colline Gate 82 BC · 2 km
• Sack of Rome (546) 546 · 2 km
• German occupation of Rome 1943 · 3 km

Other battles of the Roman–Gallic Wars

• Battle of the Allia 390 BC
• Battle of Arretium 284 BC
• Battle of Lake Vadimon (283 BC) 283 BC
• Battle of Faesulae (225 BC) 225 BC
• Battle of Clastidium 222 BC
• Battle of Cremona (200 BC) 200 BC
• Battle of Placentia (194 BC) 194 BC
• Battle of Mutina (193 BC) 193 BC

All 9 battles of the Roman–Gallic Wars →

Browse more: battles in Italy · Europe · Ancient battles

Further reading

• Wikipedia: Sack of Rome (390 BC)
• Wikidata Q3460799