The Aedui or Haedui (Gaulish: *Aiduoi, "the Ardent"; Ancient Greek: Aἴδουοι) were a Gallic tribe living in the area that is now Burgundy during the Iron Age and the Roman period.

The Aedui had a complicated relationship with the Roman Republic and other Gallic tribes. In 121 BC, they asked Rome for help against the Arverni and Allobroges. During the Gallic Wars (58–50 BC), they provided helpful but not fully supportive aid to Caesar. Later, in 52 BC, they gave only weak support to Vercingetorix. Although they took part in uprisings led by Iulius Sacrovir in 21 AD and Vindex in 68 AD, their leaders became very influenced by Roman culture under the Empire.

Name

They are called Ardues (Ἄρδυες) by Polybius (second century BC), Haedui by Cicero (middle of the first century BC) and Caesar (middle of the first century BC), Haeduos by Livy (late first century BC), Aedui by Pliny (middle of the first century AD), Aidúōn (Αἰδύων) by Ptolemy (second century AD), and Aídouoi (Aἴδουοι) by Cassius Dio (third century AD).

The name Aedui comes from the Gaulish word Aiduoi, which means "the Ardent ones." This name is based on the Celtic word aidu-, meaning "fire" or "passion." The word aidu- is connected to the Proto-Indo-European root h₂eydʰos, which also relates to "firewood." Similar words appear in Old Irish (áed, meaning "fire") and Welsh (aidd, meaning "passion").

Geography

The land of the Aedui was located between the Saône and Loire rivers, in an important area for trade. It covered most of the modern regions of Saône-et-Loire and Nièvre, the southwestern part of Côte-d'Or between Beaune and Saulieu, and the southern part of Yonne near Avallon. This area included the Saône plains, the Morvan granite hills, and the low Nivernais plateau, stretching from east to west. The Aedui lived between the Arverni to the west, the Segusiavi and Ambarri to the south, the Sequani to the east, and the Lingones and Senones to the north.

Three ancient settlements, called oppida, are known from the end of the La Tène period: Vieux-Dun (Dun-les-Places), Le Fou de Verdun (Lavault-de-Frétoy), and Bibracte. These sites were central to the Aedui’s economy.

During the Roman period, Bibracte was no longer used, and its people moved to Augustodunum, which means "fortress of Augustus" and is now called Autun.

The Aedui’s land is described in ancient writings. Their western border was the upper Liger River, which separated them from the Bituriges. Their eastern border was the Arar River, which separated them from the Sequani. The Sequani did not live in the area where the Dubis and Arar rivers meet, nor where the Arar flows into the Rhodanus. Julius Caesar wrote that the Helvetii, traveling south through a mountain pass between the Jura Mountains and the Rhodanus, which belonged to the Sequani, attacked the Aedui’s land. This explains a confusing part in Strabo’s writings, where he says the Aedui lived between the Arar and Dubis in one sentence and claims the Sequani lived east of the Arar in another.

History

Burgundy is located in the central area of the early La Tène culture (see Vix Grave). By the early 3rd century BC, the development of settlements with varied purposes, along with the building of places of worship, indicates the start of a civilization centered around the oppidum.

Before Roman rule, Gaul was divided into self-governing tribes organized into regions called cantons. Each canton was further split into smaller communities called communes. The Aedui, like other strong tribes such as the Arverni, Sequani, and Helvetii, had replaced their kings with a group of leaders known as grand-judges. These grand-judges were supervised by a senate composed of descendants from ancient royal families. Free men in the tribes were subjects of these family leaders, in exchange for military, financial, and political support.

According to Livy (v. 34), the Aedui participated in an expedition led by Bellovesus into Italy in the 6th century BC. Before Julius Caesar’s time, they had formed an alliance with the Romans and were given the title of "brothers and kinsmen" of the Roman people. In 63 BC, the Sequani, their rivals, defeated the Aedui at the Battle of Magetobriga with the help of the German leader Ariovistus. The Aedui sent the druid Diviciacus to Rome to ask for help, but his request was not successful.

When Caesar arrived in Gaul in 58 BC, he restored the Aedui’s independence. Despite this, they later joined a group of Gallic tribes opposing Caesar (B. G. vii. 42). After the defeat of Vercingetorix at the Battle of Alesia, the Aedui returned to supporting the Romans. Augustus destroyed their capital, Bibracte, on Mont Beuvray, and built a new town named Augustodunum (modern Autun), combining Roman and Gallic names.

In AD 21, during the reign of Tiberius, the Aedui rebelled under Julius Sacrovir and captured Augustodunum, but they were quickly defeated by Gaius Silius (Tacitus Ann. iii. 43–46). The Aedui were the first Gauls to be granted the right to hold public office by Emperor Claudius, allowing them to become senators.

Until Claudius’s reign (41–54 AD), the Aedui were the first northern Gauls to send senators to Rome.

A speech by Eumenius, in which he asked for the restoration of schools in his hometown of Augustodunum, suggests the area was neglected at the time. The main leader of the Aedui during Caesar’s time was called the Vergobretus (according to Mommsen, "judgment-worker"). This leader was chosen each year and had the power to make life-or-death decisions but was not allowed to leave the tribe’s territory. Some smaller communities, called clientes, also relied on the Aedui for support.

Religion

The Temple of Janus was located just outside the Aeduan town of Augustodunum. It was probably built in the second half of the 1st century AD.

At the end of the La Tène period, the Aedui, Lingones, and Sequani tribes near the Saône-Doubs area shared similar religious practices. This is shown by the similar practices found at the sanctuaries in Nuits-Saint-Georges (Aedui), Mirebeau-sur-Bèze (Lingones), and Mandeure (Sequani).

Political organization

According to Julius Caesar, the Aedui were one of the strongest Gallic tribes, competing with the Helvetii, Sequani, Remi, and Arverni. The Aedui had a type of government where a leader called the Vergobret had some power but also listened to the people's wishes, similar to how Roman senators made decisions in Rome.