Please depict the Gauls accurately this time (duplicate from TWcenter)

[Gerula]

if you talk about a beginner soldier, whatever possible, but a veteran not approximately correctly estimate the number of enemies around, then I do not think we talk about Roman legionnaires. Herodotus wrote after what he may heard from others not after seeing him with his eyes

[quadalpha]

Considering that 50,000 deployed men would cover several miles, and considering the uneven and forested terrain, and even discounting the effect of fog and light on visibility, unless you have citations attesting to the arithmetic prowess of the veteran Roman soldier, I'd consider it quite unlikely that a challenge to the official numbers would have been taken seriously.

[Gerula]

Your opinion does not convince me with anything that at that time, professional soldiers couldn't able to approximate estimate correctly the number of enemies

[Fisherking]

There were many Romans who disputed Caesars claims on the numbers, particularly the Helvetii. Caesar says 380,000, others say 300,000 or just 200,000.
Modern archeologists surveyed all the areas. They found little to no evidence of such a mass migration from Helvetii lands and only one of the 15 cities of the area had been burned. Surveying the battlefield and known areas they estimated that the Helvetii set out with about 120,000 at most with roughly 20,000 warriors. Smaller than Caesars forces.
Caesar wanted to make a name for himself as a military commander. Beating up women and children would be a lot of bad press.

[Moros]

When it comes to numbers on the battlefield every sane historian of our time agrees they are inflated. It was not just Caesar it was common practise, which is also one of the reasons Caesar could get away with it. Ancient historians and writers also refer to the practice. The argument of the soldier being able to refute the numbers isn't very good either, first we all know the soldiers were rather loyal to him, furthermore few of them would have the possibility to speak up anyway as that was a very limited privilege. Then remains the question of when it was publicized. If it was after the civil wars, well you'd be a fool to speak up either way. Unless you wanted to end up on the capitol. Also due to the nature of the irregular peasants army and strategic situation I even bet Caesar wouldn't even have a clue about the numbers the army had.

Just applying modern day logic and possibilities, situations, reactions,... on the ancient period really doesn't work. Not at all actually.

[quadalpha]

Sources, anyone?

[Fisherking]

Okay, but remember, you asked for it.

Plutarch estimates 300,00 Appian 200,000
Commentarii de Bello Gallico book 1 gives us his count as 380,000

If you read German then:
archäologische Fundorte: Andres Furger-Gunti: Die Helvetier: Kulturgeschichte eines Keltenvolkes. Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Zürich 1984


H. Delbrück, Geschichte der Kriegskunst im Rahman der politischen Geschicte, vol. 1, 1900, pp. 428 & 459f.

Delbrük give the number of fighters as only 16,000 meaning Caesar had them outnumbered 2 to 1.

The Swiss still think of themselves as the Helvetii League and you will find much on the topic.