Geese of Rome

The Temple of Juno, located on the citadel of the Capitoline Hill of Rome, had always kept Geese, which were considered a sacred animal.
During Brennus' invasion of Italy in 390 BCE, his Gallic soldiers climbed over the top of the cliff in the night, whilst the Roman soldiers were sleeping. When the geese started honking loudly, the sleeping soldiers were awoken and able to repulse the Gauls, thus saving Rome.

In 390 BCE, Brennus, Chieftain of the Senones, invaded Italy with an army of Cisalpine Gauls and challenged the Roman Republican army near Rome.
On the 18 July 390 BCE Brennus completely routed the Roman Republican Army at the Battle of the Allia and then marched through Rome which was left undefended.
However, some of the defendants had regrouped on the Capitoline Hill which the Gauls now surrounded and laid siege to.
The defendants were able to communicate with a nearby exiled Roman General called Camillus and his army via a secret path on the vertical cliff side of the Capitoline.
The Gauls discovered this secret path and waited for a full moon before sending their men to scale the cliff.

The Temple of Juno had always kept Geese which were considered a sacred animal. Whilst the Roman soldiers were sleeping, the first Gallic soldiers climbed over the top of the cliff, but the geese started honking loudly. This woke up the sleeping Roman soldiers who were then able to repulse the Gauls, who were vulnerable as they climbed the cliff and the attack failed.

As the siege had become a stalemate, both sides decided to agree to a truce and the Romans agreed to pay the Gauls to retire by giving them a large amount of gold.
As the gold was being weighed, the Romans accused the Gauls of falsely adding weights to extract more gold at which point Brennius threw his sword on the scales and said Vae Victis meaning ‘Woe to the Vanquished’.
At this point the exiled Roman General Camillus finally appeared and stopped the exchange of Gold and told the Gauls they preferred to fight than pay.
A battle followed in which the Gauls were completely defeated and Rome was saved.