The actual number of the Helvetii engaged in this operation cannot have been very great, for their wagon train was in a very short time collected, formed, and turned into an improvised citadel. Their movements before, during, and after battle show that the number 368,000 given by Cæsar is enormously exaggerated. Altogether, including allied forces, Cæsar’s army may be reckoned at 40,000 men. There were six legions (36,000 men) and allied cavalry to the number of 4000. When the Helvetii approached, the brunt of the fighting was assigned to four legions of veterans; the rest, the fresh recruits and the allies, were placed behind the line of battle and directed to protect the camp. As the Helvetii attacked the four legions, who were advantageously stationed on the slope of a hill, they were thrown back; but, as the legions advanced, these in turn were vigorously attacked on their flanks. The battle was hotly contested, the Romans taking the offensive both in the front and on the sides. Slowly the enemy withdrew, and it was dark before the Roman army took the massed wagons by assault. After the victory, Cæsar remained on the field of battle for three days. The Helvetii fled towards the east and a few days later surrendered, most of them being sent back to their old homes. The Helvetian overthrow was a useful stroke; it made a decided impression on the Gauls, who were now able to take the measure of the new commander of the Romans. The next move was to break the power of Ariovistus. Cæsar represents the suggestion as coming from various Gallic deputations, who besought him to help them cast off the German yoke. But it is obvious that the presence of Ariovistus in Gaul was incompatible with the purpose of Cæsar to subjugate the entire country. All negotiations with the German chieftain proved futile; he insisted on keeping the Gallic tribes as his tributaries, and simply asked to be let alone. Cæsar took his army to the east and came into contact with the Germans in the neighborhood of Belfort or in southern Alsace; it is impossible to determine the locality with precision. Ariovistus collected his wagons into a fortified camp on an elevation a short distance from the position of the Romans, using his advantage to break up by cavalry sorties the Roman line of communication. His plan appears to have been to force the Romans to withdraw and to attack them on their march. The German leader took full advantage of the mobility of his troops, and his cavalry proved too strong for the Gallic horse on the side of the Romans. All attempts to draw Ariovistus from his camp failed, until Cæsar divided his army, placing two legions in a fortified position, where they could more efficiently protect the line of communications. This smaller camp Ariovistus tried to take by storm, and failed.