Avenging Varus - The Germanic Wars [FULL DOCUMENTARY]

the devastating defeat of the legions at teuteberg would be etched into the roman psyche and haunt their nightmares for centuries to come when people spoke of the variant disaster they did so with venomous words cursing the barbarians who had wrought such a tragedy upon them for the romans such a humiliating affront could not go unpunished the empire lived and died by its martial reputation it would have its vengeance today let us embark on the campaigns to avenge varys and his legions you too can march through the lands of germania with the documentary aerial odyssey germany from above available for streaming now through our sponsor magellan tv it provides a fantastic overview of the rich landscape of the north which shaped the germanic tribes and bedevilled the roman invaders for centuries nature and history videos like this are added weekly to magellan tv which already has a collection of over 3 000 videos to choose from among categories of history science nature space and more you can watch germany from above or any documentary that catches your interest by clicking the link in the description below or going to try magellantv.com invicta from now until the end of 2021 viewers can also take advantage of a special holiday offer buy one get one free gift card for an annual membership by clicking the link in the description enjoy when the death blow was struck to the legions trapped in the toteburg forest news quickly spread back to the remaining legionary forces stationed on the ryan frontier for those on duty it must have been an eerie sight as survivors trickled in from the forests painting an ever-worsening picture of the disaster as the full scope of the defeat began to take form riders were quickly dispatched back to the capitol this was done by way of the new cursus publicus a communication network which connected the provinces of the empire to its administrative center through the use of roads weigh stations and dedicated couriers if the defeat at toyerburg were carried by horse it would have traveled around 60 kilometers per day and arrived in rome within three to four weeks if a horse relay was used this speed would have been closer to around 200 kilometers a day with the message arriving in about two weeks in either case the writer bearing the important news would have attached a feather to a spear indicating the haste of his mission not far behind the bearer of bad news would be another grim portent the severed head of varys himself which had been sent by the germanic tribes as one might imagine this raised quite the panic back in rome was a vast barbarian host now bearing down on italy would the nightmarish tales of old repeat themselves and see italy in flames to the more level-headed such a scenario was not given much credence however there certainly was a plausible threat of attack any time rome bled this invited its enemies to take advantage of its real or perceived vulnerability who knew which tribe would now launch raids which foreign king would now plan for invasion or which populace would rise up in rebellion recall that just a few years ago the great illyrian revolt had seen a reported 1 million rebels erupt upon rome's doorstep only through the greatest concentration of force seen in decades and some good luck was the disaster averted and now just as the last embers of that conflagration were being stamped out the news of toitiburg had arrived it's no wonder the typically stoic augustus began to crack under the pressure according to surtonius quote he was so greatly affected that for several months in succession he cut neither his beard nor his hair and sometimes he would dash his head against the door crying quintulius varus give me back my legions as for taking immediate action it seems that the empire's first order of business was to assume a defensive posture in anticipation of the next body blow augustus set up watches throughout rome extended the tenures of the provincial governors and began to mobilize his forces meanwhile along the rhine general lucius nunes esperance none other than the nephew of varys immediately repositioned his two legions the first germanica and the fifth alledai to secure the fortresses leading to gaul in germania arminius was busy plotting his next move with the germanic tribes they knew they had stunned rome for a brief moment and must do something with the precious time at hand it appears that they immediately went about wiping out the remaining roman presence east of the rhine settlements were cleansed outposts seized and fortresses stormed all but one garrison the fort of eliso fell here the germanic waves crashed upon the defenders but failed to dislodge them taking heavy casualties in the process for now the tribes were treated to a safe distance and opted to starve out the romans yet during a stormy night the defenders actually managed to flee to the rhine leaving the last imperial holding in germania to be plundered when the tribes next attempted to move against gaul however they found themselves blocked by the reformed roman defenses no significant invasion was attempted as it became clear that rome was beginning to regain its footing better to retreat for now and prepare for the harsh days of warfare ahead unfortunately such a shift in momentum undermined their cause in the run-up to toteburg the tribes had found unity of purpose as they all strove towards a common goal yet in the aftermath once victory had been achieved the fault lines between the tribes re-emerged when it came to plotting a course for the future long-time rivals of arminius also fought against his plans for instance suggestions of the true shi would form a pro-roman coalition while maurobotos of the marcomani refused to take his side or offer any assistance once rome shook off the effects of the initial trauma its thoughts turned to vengeance but who would serve as the harbinger of rome's wrathful justice for augustus the choice was simple his champion would be none other than his most trusted general an adopted son tiberius the man was an extremely capable commander who had once again proven his worth in decisively crushing the great illyrian revolt crucially tiberius also had extensive experience fighting the germanic tribes having led multiple campaigns against them in the last decade in fact he'd even been planning a massive campaign into germania involving 12 legions just a few years prior to torteburg before those plans were scrapped to deal with the uprising in illyria if one could find any fault with him it was perhaps that he was slow to move not out of any fear of battle but out of a dedication to the principles of methodical logistics-based warfare meant to grind the enemy down with minimal losses friend of tiberius and historian valeus peter cullis relays how the general's belief was that quote the least risky course was the most glorious in addition he states that tiberius shared in the hardships of his troops ate with them and saw to their safety above all else for this he was beloved by the men thus when tiberius was sent to germania by augustus in 1080 it is this cautious approach that he adopted the most immediate objective was to stabilize the frontier which had been thrown into chaos by the varian disaster the death of three legions had left a gaping hole in the defenses which were being further exploited by arminius and his coalition of tribes to combat this threat tiberius set about bolstering the rhine by bringing the total count of his legions up to eight and redistributing these across the area's key fortifications next he turned from a defensive stance to an offensive one after all a good offense makes a great defense this was especially true on the frontier regions of rome where signs of strength by the legions served as strong deterrence against would-be attackers in these matters tiberius chose to send the most brutal of messages when he launched retaliatory raids across the border everything in the path of the roman army was burned to the ground and every person was sold into slavery there were no crops no villages no animals that survived according to our sources so careful was tiberius in his approach that not a single roman died this was total war at its essence however to many the careful often glacial pace of this butcher's work was not quick or flashy enough and some ancient historians derided the efforts of tiberius sure some germanic blood had been spilled but the murderers of the legions remained unpunished after two long years yet it should be clear that this work was absolutely necessary as a first step to lay the foundation for future vengeance unfortunately for tiberius he would not be the one to taste the fruit of his toil and was recalled by the emperor in 12ad the reason for this early departure was that the 73 year old augustus was in declining health the emperor wished to have his 55 year old heir tiberius by his side to better manage the affairs of the empire and make preparations for a smooth transfer of power should the worst come to pass upon his return tiberius would celebrate a glorious triumph this served to reassure the roman people that toiterberg had been nothing more than a one-off event with fortune now returning to the side of the legions it also helped reinforce the idea that tiberius was a competent leader who could be trusted to take over the reins of the empire when the time came indeed this careful politicking proved to be the right move as augustus would soon die in 14ad a month before his 76th birthday tiberius was now emperor as ruler of the vast roman lands which stretched from the atlantic ocean to the red sea tiberius spared little time personally handling matters in germania this task would be left to one of his most brilliant and capable proteges a 29 year old by the name of germanicus the name was an honorific title that had been granted to his father but which as we shall see would prove more than suited for the accomplishments of his heir the young germanicus was an important figure at the time he was married to the granddaughter of emperor augustus and had effectively been made next in line to the imperial throne as such he was entrusted with significant administrative and military duties under the careful supervision of tiberius germanicus served as the elder commander's right-hand man during both the great illyrian revolt of 6 to 9 a.d and the ensuing germanic campaigns of 10 to 12 a.d in these matters he distinguished himself as a charismatic general who would feature prominently in the ensuing triumville parades but always in the shadow of tiberius thus when germanicus was granted imperium to lead the campaigns of vengeance into germania he eagerly set off to seek the limelight that had so long eluded him unfortunately for the young commander his mission would get off to a rocky start in the few short years between tiberius leaving for rome and germanicus assuming direct command the legions had grown rested from the toils of the frontier this was further exacerbated by the excessive abuses of their officers which created a vicious cycle of resentment when news of the emperor's death reached the frontier the four legions of the lower rhine rose into open mutiny out of fear that their grievances would never be addressed these amounted to the following list of demands one their promise bonuses must be paid two their base salary must be increased and three their service length must be decreased from 20 to 16 years for several months germanicus and the commanders along the rhine were caught up in a series of negotiations with the mutineers eventually it was agreed that the troops would repay their bonuses and have their salaries adjusted this would be generously paid out of the pockets of germanicus himself in addition those who had served at least 16 years would remain in service but be exempted from military tasks with the exception of battle itself this seems to have satisfied the legions who at one point even offered to make germanicus emperor the young man wisely sidestepped this traitorous act and instead decided to take on the mantle of imperator by leading them on a fresh campaign to refocus the roman armies and to restore their cohesion as a fighting force at this point however it was late in the campaigning season and not much of substance could be accomplished nonetheless germanicus opted to make the most of the small window by launching a punitive raid on the marsy people with utmost brutality his armies marched across the land burning and slaughtering whole villages as they went showing not an inch of mercy germanicus even launched an assault against the tribes in the dead of night during a religious festival the surprise absolutely wiped out the target leaving all to be massacred or sold into slavery with not a single roman killed to add insult to injury the lands of the marcy were put to the torch and their sacred shrines despoiled neighboring tribes were horrified by the sacrilege and attempted to strike back yet germanicus was prepared for such an eventuality having deliberately provoked them with his barbaric actions the romans marched under full guard at all times swatting away the raids and ambushes thrown against them with impunity thus the germanic tribes were left helpless in the face of the roman advance unable to stop the bulldozing juggernaut they were forced to abandon their lands to the invader this travesty was not just visited upon the marcy as the legions finally turned back towards their winter quarters they also ravaged the lands of the brook terry the tuvantes and the eusepties along the way the snow began to fall on a devastated germania if such horrors could be wrought in the span of just a few months what would the following year bring contemplating these matters it was clear to all that rome's vengeance was just getting started following the cold winter of 14 a.d the northern lands of germania began to look just a bit brighter with the thawing of spring unfortunately the same could not be said for the future prospects of the tribes beyond the rhine the afterglow of their victory at torterberg had begun to wane in the face of rome's vengeful wrath in just a few years the legions had carved a brutal swath through the frontier territories burning enslaving massacring all in their path but that was just the warm-up act rome now had its eyes on far greater prey vengeance against arminius and the perpetrators of the varian disaster the year old commander germanicus had spent the winter months planning his next moves this involved processing the huge number of reports from the field generated by his patrols scouts spies and informants these in turn would have been synthesized by the general and his advisors into a strategy for the campaigning season of 15ad ultimately it appears that they recognized the difficulty of taking on a united germanic confederation thus their overall strategy would revolve around dismantling that alliance in a piecemeal fashion this would primarily be achieved by unleashing a series of lightning strikes to eliminate each tribal element one by one the opening move saw the eight roman legions split into two army groups the first group would be placed under the command of alaska kina severus his role would be to launch a diversionary attack towards arminius and the terushi tribes with four legions 5000 auxiliaries and some hastily raised levees meanwhile germanicus would take the remaining four legions and roughly ten thousand auxiliaries to go after the true target of the offensive the chanti this was a powerful germanic people that tacitus describes as follows quote hearty frames close-knit limbs fierce countenances and a peculiarly vigorous courage mark the tribe for germans they have much intelligence and sagacity they promote their pick men to power and obey those whom they promote they keep their ranks note their opportunities check their impulses portion out the day entrench themselves by night regard fortune as doubtful valor as an unfailing resource and what is most unusual and only given to systemic discipline they rely more on the general than on the army their whole strength is in their infantry which in addition to its arms is laden with iron tools and provisions while other tribes you see going to battle the chatty go to campaign it would seem by this description they were a fierce opponent well worth knocking out of the fight early on in a head-on contest this would have been a tall order however the meticulous planning by rome's commanders combined with their faint against the terushi yielded a distinct advantage according to our sources germanicus executed a rapid march into their lands outpacing his own engineers who were slowly building out a network of roads and bridges such a lightning assault was apparently only possible due to a short spell of unseasonal dryness which left the streams and marshes shallower than usual altogether this meant that when rome's iron fist came crashing down on the chaati it caught them completely off guard every living thing in the path of the roman army was captured or slaughtered when the tribe attempted diplomacy their envoys were either ignored or outright killed utter chaos fell upon the region as the invaders ravaged the land some tribesmen attempted to hold their ground at the fortified capital of matyam yet even this proud bastion fell and was burned to the ground who was not chained or slain ran for their lives into the forests germanicus next marched towards the rhine ravaging this country on his way the chirushi meanwhile had heard of the attack and attempted to come to the rescue however they had been successfully delayed by kaikina who had marched tauntingly around their lands demanding their attention his job accomplished the roman subordinate now also pulled back to the frontier on his way the neighboring marsy rose to meet the legions in response kikina forced them into an open battle and utterly crushed the tribe in short order he accepted the absolute surrender of their commander and completed the return journey to the rhine the legions now regrouped their blitz had been an incredible success the chati once a mighty and powerful tribe had been utterly and completely destroyed while the marcy and the charusi had been cowed phase 1 of the 1580 strategy had been achieved and it was only may the long summer months of the campaigning season lay ahead there was much to be done after a brief moment of respite the legions were on the move again phase two of their plans involved driving a wedge between the tribal groups which by now must have been reconsidering their options in the face of rome's vengeful wrath the crack that germanicus hoped to widen existed in the form of the pro-roman faction of sagestes he was a trustee chieftain who had butted heads with arminius in the past and who had even attempted to warn varys of the betrayal at twitterburg since the uprising the faction of suggestions had existed in a tentative state of coexistence with the neighboring anti-roman groups more recently however the two had come to blows as arminius cracked down on dissent within the ranks and germanic forces actually besieged the renegade chieftain the romans saw this as a perfect opportunity to show the tribes that anyone who sided with them would receive the full protection of the legions there was also a more personal motive for this rescue mission sagestes actually harbored thus nelda his own daughter and the pregnant wife of arminius seizing her would allow germanicus to deal a deep personal blow to the enemy commander and provide leverage against an otherwise intractable foe thus the legions executed a rapid march to save their ally a battle was held before the fort of sagestes which ultimately ended in a roman victory with the siege lifted germanicus now beat a hasty retreat with his valuable refugees before the enemy could retaliate sagestes and the pro-roman allies were given a place of refuge while thus nelda was sent all the way to ravenna back in italy she is generally lauded by roman authors as being a fiercely brave woman whose spirit would never be conquered despite her captivity the rescue hostage-taking operation earned germanicus the honor of being acclaimed imperator and filled the roman world with cheers however it also served as a rallying cry for the germanic tribes many of whom now joined the cause of arminius who was driven into a frenzy but germanicus was not one to leave his enemies with any room to breathe and now launched a new wave of attacks for the summer of 15 a.d in an absolutely massive campaign germanicus chose to split his forces into three major army groups whose goal was to obliterate another major ally of arminius the brook terry kikina and lucius startinus led two prongs of the attack by land from the south while germanicus led an amphibious assault from the north the carefully choreographed pincer move completely overwhelmed the enemy all along the river m's the lands were devastated and the barbarians driven to flight stertinius's army group gave chase as the enemy attempted to burn their own possessions in a scorched earth retreat but after catching and slaughtering them to a man the legionary stumbled on an unexpected prize the eagle of the nineteenth legion one of the three that had been lost at toyerburg the reclamation of this prize was an immense boost to the morale of the legions who rejoiced in its long-awaited return perhaps as a result of this discovery germanicus decided it was finally time to lead a victorious roman army back to the site of its previous defeat thus after completing mopping up operations against the brutary germanicus consolidated the three army groups and marched them east to the toiterberg forest the gravity of the situation was not lost to those who marched in the footsteps of their doomed colleagues tacitus describes the episode with muted tones of shock giving voice to the hush scene as survivors of the battle gave a grisly tour of its six-year-old remnants for much of the day germanicus and his army buried the skeletons of their fallen comrades in mass graves many of which have been found by modern archaeology the action was frowned upon by some in rome who believed that the ghastly sites would demoralize the army germanicus however ensured that the consecration of the dead would drive home one single purpose among the living vengeance vengeance against the man who had been responsible for this the legions vowed that they would be bearing the corpse of arminius next almost immediately the entire roman force decamped and marched against the germanic warlord their renewed fury must have been felt by arminius who retreated before them however he did so quite deliberately waving a red flag before the enraged bull of the legions and leading them ever deeper into the pathless tracks of the forest eventually the ground gave way to a clearing at the end of which the germanic tribes awaited the romans eagerly formed ranks and advance against them only to see the enemy once again march off into the woods germanicus had had enough and launched his cavalry to nip at their heels if these could delay the rear guard long enough his heavy infantry might be able to close the distance and finally bring them to battle however as these approached vast numbers of tribesmen emerged from concealed positions and set upon them many of the riders were slain in a hail of slingstones arrows and javelins while the remainder broke into a panic to retreat as they thundered back across the plane the fleeing cavalry disrupted the infantry cohorts which had been following them and infected these with panic arminius now surge forward eager to devour this detachment of the roman army as it struggled to retreat over marshy ground disaster was only avoided by the arrival of germanicus and the bulk of the army at this point the two commanders must have locked eyes across the field in a tense moment of mutual respect should either of them give the command to attack thousands would die ultimately however arminius decided to back down the roman army was ready and alert now and posed too great of a threat to attack head on however there was only so long that the legions could keep up the pursuit they were weeks away from their bases on the rhine and winter was fast approaching soon the legions would have to turn their back on arminius and head home sure they could cast glances over their shoulders but it's in the moments when their guard was down that arminius the master ambusher would strike with a dagger to the back germanicus was wary of this danger and marched his unified army back to the ems river where they had previously destroyed the brutery here he felt a little bit more comfortable and split the army germanicus would embark his men on the ships that had been used in the initial assault and returned home via the northern route alongside them would ride his cavalry for mutual support stratinius would linger briefly to receive the surrender of some germanic tribes while kaikino moved swiftly south with four legions and the bulk of the remaining troops this army group would return by way of the long bridges as the name implies it was a series of narrow causeways and bridges which cut through an area of particularly marshy terrain such a route was an obvious strategic risk but at the same time provided the quickest way home thus kakina decided to mitigate the window of attack by marching his men forwards with all haste however they could ultimately only advance as fast as the baggage animals arminius meanwhile had been keeping an eye on the splintering roman forces and decided that now was his chance to strike he rallied the tribes in pursuit of kaikina shadowing the force and delaying their advance at the same time advanced units were sent ahead to outpace both armies and take up positions along the wooded hills flanking the entrance to the long bridges when the romans finally reached the valley and saw the raised causeway stretching into the distance they must have sighed with the relief however their hopes would soon be dashed when scouts reported that the long bridges were in a poor state of disrepair apparently entire sections of the decades old infrastructure project had collapsed washed away or even been sabotaged in light of this news kakina was left with a difficult choice he could pack his bags and attempt to go the long way around however doing so would mean marching into the jaws of the ever-swelling ranks of their germanic host behind him and whatever devious ambushes arminius had concocted along the avenues of escape alternatively kikina could stick with the devil of a situation he knew here and commit to the crossing after all the romans were master engineers who were more than capable of making the necessary repairs to reach safety all they needed was time the season commander thus built a camp and split his forces in two one to carry out construction and a second to establish a perimeter of defense this would be a life or death last stand looking on arminius must have been pleased by the sight of the four legions trapped against the marshes their eagle standards would make fine additions to his collection ever since they had taken the offensive the legions had dealt a punishing string of blows to the germanic tribes entire villages and towns had been wiped out with pillaging burning and mass slaughter creating a wasteland beyond the rhine the campaigns at the end of 15ad in particular had seen a massive assault by the legions which had pushed arminius deep into the forests of the east however with winter approaching the romans had finally been forced to relent and were now receding like a tide back to their bases on the frontier this critical moment opened a window of opportunity for arminius at the long bridges he had managed to trap four legions upon the retreat against the marshes and once again made ready to repeat his master stroke of toyberg forest the tribes had suffered long enough at the hands of the invader here they would make the romans pay here they would renew the hope of victory kykina had made the decision to commit to the crossing at the long bridges rather than try to force his way around this meant dividing his forces in two one for repairs and one for defense they began immediately screening forces fanned out to secure the perimeter while lignatorius collected building materials cohorts dug trenches and engineering squads planned construction works the germanic tribes meanwhile occupied the high ground above and were similarly active they set up their own positions in the hills sent out raiding parties to harass the enemy and began their own counter-engineering works to divert nearby streams towards the romans to further flood their positions that first day was an incredible site of frenzied activity like a pair of disturbed ant hills the opposing army swarmed over the area to complete their missions while thwarting that of the enemy in these contests the romans had the advantage of experience and technical expertise however the tribes had the advantage of the terrain their knowledge of the area and their vast numbers the legionary work crews were forced to trudge through wet and muddy conditions under a near-constant barrage of slingstones and light javelins what few roman fortifications managed to go up became magnets for such attacks which whittled away the defenders with incessant harassment the legionaries which attempted to strike back were said to be heavily encumbered by the mud barely able to advance or throw their pila thankfully the fearless generalship of kaikina managed to see them through to nightfall they were alive but had little to show for it much of their progress had been undone by the attacks or the unexpected flooding that had been unleashed by the barbarians food supplies were dropping the wounded or dying were piling up and morale was on the verge of collapse meanwhile on the dry ground above they could see the warm fires of the barbarian tribes and hear the raucous laughter of an enemy in high spirits tomorrow's prospects were grim taikina knew that inaction and complacency would breed despair in the situation they needed some ray of hope to cling to to fight for he therefore called a meeting of the senior leadership and consulted with the engineers on what could be done they decided that it would be possible to begin marching across the partially completed bridge works while this would not get them back home it would at least represent some forward progress and should greatly reduce the enemy's ability to strike at them the orders were passed down through the chain of command yet even he was not assured of its success tacitus writes that that night kykina was haunted by a nightmare where he had seen general varys rising out of the swamps covered in blood extending his hand and beckoning to him such an ill omen was not to be shared with the men lest they lose all hope he must trust in the plan at dawn the legions marched out they assembled into a massive square formation with the baggage train at its center and a legion on each side the advance across the long bridges was painfully slow the heavier baggage carts and cavalry forces carefully moved across the groaning causeway while the lighter infantry and auxiliaries waded through the marshes on the flanks arminius and the tribes watched like some famous bird of prey patient they merely sent forth harassing units to delay the rear guard while keeping the bulk of their troops at the ready the romans were maintaining a tight perimeter and their discipline was holding out but this would not last forever as the legions moved forward into the marshes their supply train aptly called the impedimenta became bogged down seeing this the square was forced to slow and come to a halt as the sun rose higher in the sky and the hours of the day take by it seems that the soldiers had enough of merely watching their military slaves struggling to keep the mules and wagons moving they therefore began to abandon their positions as guards to help things move along the tidy order of the defensive square broke apart it was this exact moment of weakness that arminius had been waiting for he now ordered the assault mass waves of tribal forces ran screaming down the hills and crashed upon the disoriented roman rear the attack proved devastating arminius himself led a pick force of men that cut through the legions and their animals heading for the soft innards of the baggage train which held the supplies the wounded the officer corps and the eagles as he advanced the chieftain is reported to have called out that this was varys and his legions trapped once again in their ancient doom indeed the situation was quickly spiraling into a disaster the roman force was holding together by a mere thread most of its units abandoned the long bridges fighting their way back towards the more defensible dry land from which they had come the integrity of the defensive square was thus entirely gone leaving kaikina dangerously exposed germanic forces closed in cutting the horse out from under the roman commander and almost killing him luckily the units from the vanguard came to his rescue and helped escort the remaining forces back to terra firma they did so at great cost as the wounded or isolated elements of their forces had to be abandoned in their wake the germanic troops swarmed in to engulf what was left behind they took prisoners killed stragglers and raided the abandoned tools tents supplies and valuables that clogged the sunken battlefield perhaps the only silver lining to be had was that this led the barbarians to lose their own cohesion which allowed the romans the time they needed to regroup the surviving legions had escaped the defeat with the eagles and not much else they had no food no shelter and few tools for making camp thus as the sun began to set they were left to build a most pitiful camp its walls were made of makeshift sod topped by an assortment of scavenged materials while its insides were a waterlogged field of cold drenched bloodied soldiers who mostly slept out in the elements they huddled together for warmth and ate what few rations they had in their own personal belongings within 24 hours the legions had found themselves back where they started the day before but now in a far more dire situation things truly seemed hopeless it's certain that many soldiers spent the night haunted by nightmarish visions of the aftermath of toitiburg that they had discovered just a few months earlier surely it would be their skulls next that would be pinned to the trees the men were so on edge that when at one point one of the surviving horses broke its tether and ran screaming through the camp the legions panicked and attempted to swarm out of the gate thinking that the enemy was closing in upon them the entire army was on the verge of dissolving into a route the catastrophe was only averted by the quick thinking of kykina the general aware of the latest reports and knowing that this was a false alarm threw himself before the exit vowing that the only way out would be over his dead body the sight of their commander seems to have shaken the men out of their animalistic flight response he took the opportunity to address the assembled mob in stride by proclaiming that beyond those gates lay death alone their only hope for survival was as a disciplined whole as individuals they would be picked off one by one with these careful words and perhaps an appeal to their remaining sense of honor the men were back down from the ledge of mutiny the army would hold together one more night kakina knew that he would not have many more a plan was thus devised that would make or break the legions at dawn the next morning the ramparts of the camp were all but empty some nervous sentries were posted but it was obvious to the german scouts that the legions must be exhausted and on the breaking point refusing to even commit to their usual full guard they summoned a war council in the face of this new information arminius was cautious he knew best that a cornered beast was at its most dangerous better to let it bleed out in the corner or set a trap along the escape routes than gamble on some unnecessary killing blow however his council was overruled by the other chiefs this fight was personal to them many had lost friends and family over the last few years and were eager to see them avenged they were done waiting the fighting the day before had proven the romans mortal their army bled it was battered and broken lying in a camp fortified with mere mounds of sod and a handful of guards now was the time to fulfill oaths now was the time to end this man to man the germanic tribes promptly masked their ranks and unleashed an all-out assault each tribal chief leading their contingents into the fray the vanguard moved quickly with bundles of branches to fill in trenches and with tools to tear down anything that might slow the assault soon they were at the ramparts clearing it with volleys of javelins and scaling it with their hands or prepared bladders led by arminius they flooded into the camp however it became difficult to maintain cohesion of the force as it spread out in all directions to slaughter and loot mindlessly this was exactly what kykina had counted on at this pivotal moment he sounded the trumpets ranks of troops now emerged from their hidden positions leading a counter-assault against the overflowing ramparts they reclaimed the walls with centurions carefully directing the men to repel fresh waves of tribesmen and to cut off those inside at the same time all surviving roman horsemen rode out from the rear of the camp to strike the germanic horde from the flank beyond the wall additional gates were flung open unleashing yet more formed cohorts which poured out to engage the main body of the enemy forcing them into a set piece battle the germanic tribes were caught completely off guard they had expected cowering half-armed men in a panic not disciplined organized legionaries this misjudgment would prove their undoing the legions now held the advantage of surprise and the ability to finally fight the type of battle they wanted it was said that the romans yelled out to the enemy none of your trees here none of your swamps just a fairfield and fair gods channeling pent-up frustration and a fear of what might happen should they fail the legions delivered a brutal merciless counterpunch the fighting would continue until the sun had set many germanic chieftains were injured or killed and arminius only barely managed to escape under cover of night they pulled back somehow the romans had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat yet kakina knew that his great victory had only won him a bit of breathing room with which to escape should he linger the tribes might be able to regroup and smash the legions which had expended the last of their energy in this desperate bid for survival he therefore ordered them to march out immediately for the rhine after several long days they finally arrived as a ragged bloodied exhausted column that could barely be recognized as a roman army during their absence a panic had sent in on the frontier with many fearing another toyberg had occurred some even argued that the bridge over the rhine should be destroyed to prevent a germanic invasion luckily agrippina wife of germanicus had forbidden such an action she believed in the strength of rome and dutifully awaited their return as kahina's troops finally stumbled into view the domino was there to greet them with coins clothing medicine and food they had survived germanicus meanwhile had been making his own return home along the northern coast as his fleet approached a tricky patch of sea two legions were disembarked and marched alongside the ships to facilitate the crossing for a while these advanced along a peaceful shore however strong winds soon bore down on them and a severe tie drove the swells against them i'll now quote an evocative passage from tacitus quote his army was driven and tossed hither and thither the country too was flooded sea shore fields presented one aspect nor could the treacherous quicksands be distinguished from solid ground or shallows from deep water men were swept away by the waves or sucked under by eddies beasts of burden baggage lifeless bodies floated about and blocked their way the companies were mingled in confusion now with the breast now with the head only above water sometimes losing their footing parted from their comrades or drowned the voice of mutual encouragement availed not against the adverse forces of the waves there was nothing to distinguish the brave from the coward the prudent from the careless forethought from chance the same strong power swept everything before it at last vitelius struggled out to higher ground and led his men up to it there they passed the night without necessary food without fire many of them with bare or bruised limbs in a plate as pitiable as that of men besieged by an enemy for such at least have the opportunity of a glorious death while here was destruction without honor daylight finally restored land to their sight and they pushed their way to the river circus where caesar had arrived with the fleet the legions then embarked while a rumor was flying about that they were all drowned nor was there a belief in their safety till they saw caesar and the army returned finally in this way the legions of germanicus crawled their way back to their own lines it was a dare note on which to end an otherwise glorious campaigning season his men were battered in both body and spirit in their current state it would be impossible to carry on the fight luckily this last dark chapter of the war had not yet reached the rest of the empire as far as they knew it had been nothing but inspiring tales of conquest the provinces of gaul spain and italy all now competed to offer men horses arms and gold for the war effort with these the tattered remnants of the legions were renewed morale swelled as the general and his lieutenants made the rounds of the winter camps visiting the wounded rewarding the deserving and showering all with praise veterans and raw recruits alike were assured that the ultimate victory was within their grasp all it would take was one more campaign like the last they made ready for war the campaigning season of 15 a.d had begun with the roman armies plunging deep into germanic lands bringing the enemy to the precipice of defeat yet the final death blow could not be struck as the invaders were forced to turn back with the coming of winter it is now with northern chill and barbarian steel striking at their backs that a series of catastrophic blows would be dealt to the romans in the matter of just a few weeks drowned in the storm waves or slaughtered in the bogs the romans were brought to within an inch of being wiped out virtually erasing everything they had fought for only cunning generalship luck and sheer desperation would see any of them limped back home alive to those battered survivors the prospects of carrying on such a pyrrhic war must have seemed impossible however the empire had heard of their glorious exploits and now rose to support them with fresh waves of supplies and troops thus refreshed germanicus would now prepare to leave the legions on one last herculean campaign to finish the job in germania while the legions along the rhine licked their wounds germanicus and his officers were busy assessing the situation their messages calling for support from the nearby provinces were met with overwhelming responses and now the quartermasters had their hands full receiving the vast quantities of goods making their way to the front lines over the winter many of these would be stockpiled in large depots and prepared for transport meanwhile the troops were also in a state of recovery rested fed and bandaged up they no longer feared for their lives thanks to celebrations the disbursement of spoils and awards ceremonies led by germanicus they even began to feel like champions once more good old imperial propaganda and their own fierce sense of competition ensured that many troopers now clamored for a fight the germanic tribes to the east were similarly building their forces however they would not be able to do so as quickly many of their coalition had been horribly wounded in the last campaigns those who were not dead or dying struggled merely to survive in a land that had seen its town sacked its fields burned and its herd stolen arminius and the other chiefs would have been in fierce negotiation among their ranks to keep everyone committed to the cause whilst also seeking out new allies thankfully their near winds at the end of the 15 ad campaign made for a useful rallying cry to fend the flames of the resistance thus as the months crept closer towards the start of the 16 a.d campaigning season both sides were geared up for one final climactic fight as had occurred in the last few years it would be the invading romans who set the pace for the deadly dance that followed this time though special considerations had to be made after all germanicus had at his disposal over a quarter of rome's legionary might all concentrated in one place which was too large to move as a single doom stack thus he resolved to undertake a two-pronged assault the main arm of which would consist of an amphibious assault along the north sea to this end shipwrights and laborers had spent all winter building a massive armada of warships and transport vessels which tacitus states numbered over a thousand archaeology further backs this claim with evidence of an enormous section of the forest along the rhine having been felled during this period this fleet would be key for establishing not just the initial beachhead but also the vital supply lines to keep the roman war machine running its needs were titanic germanic has commanded an estimated 50 000 soldiers with many more support units pack animals and camp followers all requiring supplies basically the equivalent of feeding a sizeable city by some estimates this would have called for 165 000 pounds of grain a day strategically moving this much material overland would have courted disaster given the ease with which germanic armies could raid and cut off such supply lines thus it would be the very life-giving rivers of germania that would serve as the arteries into which the roman invasion force would be injected while the ships were being constructed germanicus sent one of his lieutenants to once again engage the battered chatty these had not yet recovered from the previous year's beatdown and the romans had no pity in their hearts the invaders swiftly took the chatty out of the war for a second year in a row only being slightly delayed by bad weather tacitus dismisses the move as pointless considering that there really wasn't anything that they could loot but the army group took the wife of the warchief hostage ensuring that his spirit was as crippled as those of his people most of whom lay dead in the silent forests germanicus himself then marched out with a different army unit about six legions strong to relieve the siege of a roman fort that was still on the german side of the rhine when the besiegers heard that a full roman army was bearing down on them they melted away into the woods before the relief army had arrived germanicus having accomplished his goal without any bloodshed decided to take the initiative after all he was already across the rhine with no apparent resistance why not push the advantage thus while the amphibious invasion with their thousand ships got underway along the northern seas the legions immediately set to work building infrastructure for the overland assault force starting from the position of the relief fort they now built a defensive network of walls towers and bridges back to the rhine as they did so elements of the northern fleet began to push their way upstream through the waterways of germania these were quickly able to link up with germanicus now transports bearing fresh supplies and troops refresh the legions for the individual troopers hard at work with the dalabra this must have been a huge sigh of relief the dark forests and murky bogs that had haunted them the previous year were now being felled and filled meanwhile watchtowers patrols and scouting parties confirmed that there was no enemy in sight all nearby communities either fled or bent the knee the army brimmed with confidence when one tribe the angry variety attempted to buck its roman overlords germanicus immediately sent men to put it down tacitus ever the roman historian condenses this activity into a single chilling sentence quote he sent stertinius there with the cavalry and light infantry so that their betrayal would be punished with fire and blood everything was going according to plan however the germanic tribes would not go down so easily they had realized the futility of holding the western banks of the wesser and were rallying their forces on the eastern side saving their full strength for now watching waiting as the romans advanced their works to the wesser river and prepared to cross the carusi and their allies moved to intercept them with arminius at their head they were raid for battle this tense standoff would finally be broken when the leaders of both sides rode to the river in a preliminary engagement of diplomacy the river divided not just bitter enemies but families arminius the romano german trader stood opposite his brother flaus who had chosen to remain loyal to the invaders and had the scars to prove it in a scene straight out of a hollywood movie the two would come face to face tacitus sets the scene for us quote that brother flaus by name was serving in the army a conspicuous figure both from his loyalty and from the loss of an eye through a wound received during tiberius's term of command some few years before leave was granted and stertinius took him down to the river walking forward he was greeted by arminius who dismissing his own escort demanded that the archers posted along our side of the stream should also be withdrawn when these had retired he asked his brother once the disfigurement of his face on being told the place and battle he inquired what reward he had received flowers mentioned his increased pay the chain of medals the crown and other military decorations arminius scoffed at the cheap rewards of servitude they now began to argue from their opposite points of view flowers insisted on roman greatness the power of the caesar the heavy penalties for the vanquished the mercy always waiting for him who submitted himself even arminius wife and child were not treated as enemies his brother meanwhile urged the sacred call of their country their ancestral liberty the gods of their german hearths and their mother who prayed with himself that flaus would not choose the title of renegade and traitor to his people to the kindred of his wife to the whole of his race in fact before that of their liberator from this point they drifted little by little into recriminations and not even the intervening river would have prevented a duel had not started us run up and laid a restraining hand on flaus who enraged was shouting for his weapons and his horse on the other side arminius was visible shouting threats and challenging his brother to single combat he kept interjecting insults in latin as he had service in the roman camp as a captain of native auxiliaries while the exact words of this verbal joust were likely manufactured by authors and should not be taken at face value they do reveal some truths about the roman perspective based on the arguments made by flaus we see imperial propaganda at work this was not a war against the germanic people no the quarrel was merely against the traitorous elements in their ranks the romans were merciful and generous masters ready to greet any who laid down their arms as friends and allies of course the brutality of the previous years would certainly beg to differ but this was the game being played after all there were still many germanic auxiliaries serving in the roman military at this time and imperial commanders clearly found some success in winning others to their cause with words if not by steel by trotting out the loyal germanic warrior flaus perhaps they might further induce others to give up the resistance before battle was held whatever the case though it seems that the bulk of the germanic tribes remained undeterred and formed a formidable battle line across the plain on the eastern banks of the wesser seeing this germanicus spared little time on further propaganda games he immediately dispatched scouts to find a way across when a ford was located downriver a large cavalry detachment under stretinus was sent to ride out and establish a surprise flank against the germans meanwhile his primus pulis a man named emilius was sent with another detachment of cavalry to find a ford upriver forming a classic pincer maneuver germanicus anticipated that the enemy would move to counter these forces thus when he observed the enemy center begin to reform he now ordered a charge straight through the center where the river current was at its fiercest taking up the charge would be the elite batavian cavalry famed for their bravery and strength the gamble here appears to have been to use the assault to fix the enemy in place and buy time for the flanking forces and if luck would have it perhaps even route the tribes entirely however arminius was ever the clever commander he sent troops to intercept the cavalry on the sides while ordering his own forces in the center to undertake a fain flight this succeeded in drawing the batavians into a clearing surrounded by woods at which point an ambush was sprung that sealed them in the elite auxiliaries were now forced to fight on all sides they only managed to hang on due to their high levels of discipline and excellent gear slowly though they were being picked off either in close quarters or by the flurry of missiles that rained down among their packed ranks when all seemed lost the batavian commander chariot valda and his retinue made the ultimate sacrifice they suicidally plunged straight into the jaws of the germanic line whilst ordering their brethren to punch through the back thankfully their daring escape was facilitated by the arrival of roman cavalry from the wings who had come to the rescue this ragtag group of survivors now pulled back to the wesser first blood had gone to arminius however the action was not a complete disaster in the chaos germanicus had actually managed to make an uncontested crossing with the legions most of these immediately set to work constructing a camp to secure the strategic victory meanwhile others dispersed to form a protective screen while several units prepared to join the fray yet by this point germanicus could see that things were quickly falling apart and there was no need feeding yet more men into the bloody fields ahead after all who knew what other traps had been set by his wily opponent therefore the roman commander called a retreat settled down for the night and made ready to tend to the survivors as they trickled in once more germanicus and his officers huddled in a tent to plan their next moves as they did so they made sure to read all the latest reports coming in from the units of the exploratories and the speculators who acted as the eyes and ears of the army luckily fortune would smile upon them apparently a deserter from the german camp had turned traitor bringing with him the secrets of the enemy these supposedly revealed that arminius had selected a battlefield and was preparing a preliminary attack as soon as this night such important yet potentially false information had to be confirmed it seems that roman spies were able to verify the claims by creeping close to the enemy lines whereupon they heard the naying of horses and the movement of a tumultuous host a fight was imminent germanicus went into high alert and wanted to be sure that his own forces were ready to meet any challenge that might be thrown against them disguising himself he secretly slipped from the augury tent and wandered between the campfires eavesdropping on conversations and even joining in on others trying to get the measure of his men what he heard was encouraging tacitus tells us that quote germanicus enjoyed the men talk positively about himself while they acknowledged that they ought to repay him with their gratitude in battle and at the same time sacrifice the perfidious violators of peace to a glorious vengeance this was a good sign he was doubly reassured by the jeering responses of the centuries when a rider came from the germanic camp shouting to all who might hear that arminius was willing to pay any romans handsomely should they turn traitor the soldiers responded let daylight come let battle be given then we'll take your land and carry off your women as the sun rose the next day the romans were ready and waiting before their camp in battle order this seems to have thwarted an initial skirmishing attack on the camp which pulled back without any exchange of missiles both sides now prepared for a pitch battle making rousing speeches to their men germanicus spoke of the superiority of roman discipline their gear and their bravery that would see them win out the legions must only weather the initial storm and victory would be theirs meanwhile arminius roused his own men assuring them that the romans they faced were cowardly fugitives and mutineers half their backs were covered from the wounds of a treat while the limbs of the rest were battered by storms far from their fleet and their forts the romans held no hope of advantage he finished by shouting quote remember only their greed their cruelty their pride is anything left for us but to retain our freedom or to die before we are enslaved with that the two armies advanced on the plane of iristaviso as the roman forces deployed with drilled discipline the germanic tribesmen flowed down from the slopes to meet them arminius had some 50 000 or more warriors that massed in their tribes and clans along a wide front that stretched across the width of the plane up to the forest here along the slopes were posted the chirushi who aimed to rush down upon the enemy once battle was joined before them were arranged a thin screen of skirmishers as for the cavalry their strength and position are unattested too perhaps they are left out from our records because of their low numbers with protection of the flanks being yielded to the infantry and the terrain opposite them was an enormous roman army of some seventy four thousand men deployed into three lines the first was made up of several thousand gallic and germanic auxiliaries backed by archers behind these stood four legions with the two praetorian cohorts sent by tiberius at their center in the final line stood four more legions light troops and the remaining allied units some eight thousand cavalry were arranged on the roman left by the forested flank with an additional 2000 mounted archers by this point it must have been around midday the sun shone brightly overhead as over one hundred thousand men dripped with sweat in anticipation of what was to come finally the initiative was seized by the germanic tribes who now unleashed an attack on the front lines we are told that these crashed upon the romans with a mighty fury arminius and the trireushi nearly piercing through the ranks of the auxiliary and the archers however this was clearly anticipated by germanicus who had used his most disposable troops as a breaker now with the first wave having crashed he sent forth the cavalry to assault the flank and the rear the elite riders under startinius smashed into the melee by the forest's edge missiles flew in all directions and even arminius was injured though fighting on nonetheless at this point an auspicious omen was observed eight eagles one for each legion flew over the battlefield seeing this germanicus shouted to his men quote go follow the birds of rome follow the true gods of our legions and with that the colossus of the roman army advanced in mass their crushing weight added to the front in combination with the flanking maneuvers of the cavalry proved inexorable all discipline broke down within the german army those at the front tried to flee from the grim roman tide while those who had been held in reserve charged into the fray this swirling of desperate men only added further to the chaotic disintegration of the tribal battle lines the germanic commander iguomaris managed to escape while arminius also fled on horse having smeared blood on his face to hide his identity i'll now quote tacitus the rest were cut down in every direction many in attempting to swim across the vasurgis were overwhelmed under a storm of missiles or by the force of the current or by the rush of fugitives and the falling in of the banks some in their ignominious flight climbed the tops of trees and as they were hiding themselves in the boughs archers were brought up and they were shot for sport others were dashed to the ground by the felling of the trees it was a great victory and without bloodshed to us from morning to nightfall the enemy was slaughtered and 10 miles were covered with arms and dead bodies [Music] for the romans this was a most glorious victory that surely would clean the disgrace of toitiburg after all littered among the fields were the arms of many who had perpetrated that dreadful act these would now be dedicated to the emperor with the construction of a massive trophy it was a brutal monument an uprooted tree adorned with the gear of the vanquished shields spears swords and chainmail hanging from every branch and crowned with helmets but even this was not enough to convey the enormity of the victory around its base the legionaries then constructed a mound with yet more heaps of trophies taken from the fallen finally nailed to the grisly trunk would be plaques with the names of the defeated tribes surely the surviving germans would cower at this most formidable of displays yet they did not instead arminius and the tribes found themselves burning with anger at this most egregious affront to their honor they now made ready for one last attempt at victory however the germanic chieftains realized that this could not be achieved in a pitch battle their greatest and final hope was to recreate what they had achieved at toyterberg seven long years ago seven long years after the deadly humiliating disaster of the toyberg forest the romans had finally gotten the fight they were looking for a straight-up face-to-face match on a fair field before fair gods in this bloody contest both sides had traded heavy blows but it was the germanic tribes which ultimately took the fall yet even still they were not knocked out and would not tap out as the romans cheered the coalition of armenia summoned the last of their strength for one final stand this would be the climax of the germanic wars when the sun had set over the battlefield of edistavisso the beasts of the forest had a feast that would last them months the fields forests and rivers were strewn with thousands of dead while the crows picked at the eyes of once proud warriors the romans desecrated the fallen erecting a massive monument to their victory adorned with the arms of the defeated and placards calling out the names of the vanquished tribes by any stretch of the imagination they had finished this fight however the germanic people somehow managed to drag themselves out from the pits of despair it appears the very arrogance of the legion served to only harden their hearts with the grotesque monstrosity they had erected deep within germanic territory acting as a lightning rod for the enemy's defiant fury thus the allied tribes reconvened a war council though fewer number than weeks before their cries for war were just as loud for arminius the plan was simple abandon the futility of the open field pitched battles and returned to the terrain which had yielded them advantage in the past marshy hilled forests with renewed purpose the germans retreated north along the wesser river regrouping as they went until they found a place that was appropriate to their needs it was near a strategic forward in the river which they knew the enemy would likely have to cross if they wish to continue further campaigning in the region the exact location was specifically chosen at a point where the local road wound its way through tricky terrain tacitus describes it as follows quote at last they fixed on a position penned in between a stream and the forests with a narrow waterlogged plane in the center the forest too were encircled by a deep swamp except on one side where the angry vari had raised a broad earthen barrier to mark the boundary between themselves and the kurussi there is some contention from historians about whether or not this angravarian wall was a pre-existing fortification given the dubious utility of its short span in comparison to the shared 50 kilometer border between the tribes yet perhaps it had seen some limited use over the years owing to its strategic position either way though it appears that now arminius would have ordered it to be fortified the angrivari must have been more than happy to lend their labor in this regard as it was their lands which had been greeted with fire and blood at the beginning of the year and which now stood threatened as the walls went up the dramatic battle plan became clear force the romans to come to them across the bog and palisade hold the flanks using the terrain and once the moment is right unleash an ambush on committed troops rounding them with nowhere to go unfortunately such schemes were quite evident to the roman scouts who had shadowed the germanic force these exploratories kept close tabs on the construction works and the numbers of the tribes which were amassing this was all communicated back to germanicus the commander had at his disposal more cavalry than the enemy and could have easily chosen to steer clear of the obvious chokepoint raiding the enemy rear lines until they were forced to abandon the position however he smelled blood in the water and saw the concentration of enemy forces as a unique opportunity to end things once and for all no marsh or wall could stop the roman juggernaut no matter the casualties incurred this was the way germanic scouts soon reported that the romans were coming arminius and his men quickly finished the last of their works and braced themselves for the impending fight the bulk of these forces were likely arrayed across the width of the wall with substantial numbers of cavalry light troops and reserve warbands occupying the heights on the eastern flank the romans meanwhile approached in four main groups the first consisted of four legions under the command of ceus tubero these would be the bull that charged straight at the wall in a full-on frontal assault meant to occupy the enemy the second composed of the praetorian cohorts and commanded by germanicus himself would advance at their side seeking out another breaching point once fighting was underway the third included all of the roman slingers archers bolt throwers stone throwers and catapults and was meant to provide close fire support the last group consisted of the four remaining legions and the cavalry which were to be held in reserve the battlefield after all was extremely restricted and these men were no use clogging up the center instead they would serve as a fresh wave to be committed as necessary for the attack or to cover a retreat battle must have begun with the twang of the roman artillery teams firing at extreme range under the best conditions this could reach targets at some 500 meters the first volleys likely fell far from their mark giving the germans some comfort in their defenses and perhaps inviting the bravest among them to clamber atop the barricades to jeer at the enemy however the following barrages would have quickly been calibrated crunching into the woodworks and perhaps impaling the most exposed of the defenders josephus would later write of the sickening impact such projectiles could have on the human body reportedly sending heads and limbs flying across the battlefield next came the four legions of the assault force those of the left advanced through the worst of the marshy ground breaking up and slowing their formation while those on the right advance more quickly as these both approached the earthworks trumpets were sounded for the charge however they were met by an eruption of shouts from the battlements and a torrent of projectiles which had been stockpiled for the occasion these barrages and the high ground blows of the defenders wreaked havoc on the lines here and there brave centurions with knots of soldiers broke through but by and large they struggled to crest the fortifications germanicus apparently realized the dangers of pressing on and ordered the legions to pull back momentarily that he was seemingly able to do so from such a committed position speaks volumes of the discipline of the roman army now with a bit of breathing room the ranged units can be brought even closer and safely fire upon the enemy tacitus states quote spears were hurled from the engines and the more conspicuous were the defenders of the position the more the wounds with which they were driven from it thus suppressed the outnumbered and outgunned defenders could do little more than hunker in place this now allowed the roman infantry to recommence their assault up the center while germanicus led the praetorians up the right flank these elites quickly overwhelmed the fortifications in that sector before plunging into the wooded heights in an attempt to root out and envelop the enemy all across the front the battle raged fiercely as the tribes committed everything they had to holding the line not an inch of blood-soaked ground would be given without a fight for the romans the stubborn resolve of the defenders sorely disappointed those who had expected a swift repeat of idistavisso by comparison this was a battle that would see the romans plunged into the meat grinder germanicus himself was even forced to commit to the fighting in the front lines to shore up the morale of the assault arminius meanwhile still wounded from the prior battle was unable to get us close to the action but nonetheless urged on the defenders tacitus describes the situation saying that both sides in that place had hope only in their bravery salvation only in victory yet as morning turned to afternoon and the sun began to set the germanic tribe still stood strong this was deeply troubling to the roman commander it would be impossible to fight at night and if the enemy still held the fortifications then they would be in a perfect position to sally out and destroy the legions who might very well panic should victory continue to elude them he therefore sent an urgent message back to the legions in the rear for them to begin the construction of a camp was this really happening was germanicus truly about to be bled out into a draw would the rest of germania rise up in the aftermath would they wipe out the entirety of the roman presence east of the rhine would this be a toyberg 2.0 these dark thoughts began to infiltrate the minds of the romans finally however as a result of some unrecorded incident a crack finally formed the germanic dam all at once it broke the legions now bursting through the exhausted lines of the defenders as an unstoppable tide all before it were swept aside and the last of the germanic tribes now fled and mass some pursuit was given by the cavalry but this reportedly yielded little result the bulk of the roman army was in no safe to follow and pulled back to their new camp the next day these claimed dominion over the battlefield collecting their dead while despoiling those of the enemy once again germanicus used these spoils to erect another massive trophy this one was adorned with the following inscription quote the army of tiberius caesar after thoroughly conquering the nations between the rhine and the elb has dedicated this monument to mars jupiter and augustus eager to keep up the pressure germanicus next sent dirtiness with a picked force to crush the nearby tribe of the angrivari for the second time this year however on this occasion the tribesmen showed none of their usual resistance they knelt immediately and as tacitus smugly comments quote as suppliance by refusing nothing they obtained a full pardon it seems that likewise all tribes west of the wesser quickly followed suit while many to its east began similar talks arminius however and several key chiefs of the resistance fled beyond the clutches of rome rather than submit yet with all this by now the strain of rome's logistics was becoming increasingly noticeable much of the army was therefore marched back to the m's to rejoin the fleet huge numbers of troops and supplies were boarded and began to sail downstream while those who could not fit followed closely along the banks this must have been a journey of extremely high spirits unfortunately however once the ships made their way across the north sea disaster befell them once again another massive storm crashed upon the fleet those not dashed upon the shores were cast in all directions some reportedly being washed as far away as the shores of britain while others were stranded on distant islands where they starved to death tacitus records that germanicus held himself responsible for this awful ruin and would have killed himself in the sea had his comrades not restrained him rumors of the fleet and army being destroyed spread like wildfire across germania somehow once again the lands were tempted by the hope of victory this was not something the romans could allow germanicus now moved quickly tacitus recounts the following quote he ordered chiacilius with thirty thousand infantry and three thousand cavalry to march against ikati he himself with the larger army invaded the marcy whose leader malovendis who had lately admitted to surrender pointed out a neighboring wood where he said an eagle of one of varys legions was buried and guarded only by a small force immediately troops were dispatched to draw the enemy from this position by appearing in his front others to hem in his rear and open the ground fortune favored both so germanicus with increased energy advanced into the country laying at waste and utterly ruining a foe who dared not encounter him and who was instantly defeated wherever he resisted and as we learnt from prisoners was never more panic stricken than now the romans they declared were invincible rising superior to all calamities for having thrown away a fleet having lost their arms after screwing the shores with the carcasses of horses and of men they had rushed to the attack with the same courage with equal spirit and seemingly with augmented numbers the soldiers were then led back into winter quarters rejoicing in their hearts at having been compensated for their disasters at sea by a successful expedition they were helped too by caesar's bounty which made good whatever losses anyone declared he had suffered it was also regarded as a certainty that the enemy were wavering and consulting on negotiations for peace and that with an additional campaign next summer the war might finally be ended unfortunately for germanicus this was not to be his destiny while he had been gallivanting through the forests his adopted father tiberius had read incoming reports with increasing alarm the emperor himself had been one of rome's preeminent generals with a personal connection to the soldiers after all he had made a name for himself leading careful logistical campaigns that minimized losses in contrast the campaigns of germanicus were aggressively bloody affairs that left a trail of dead from both sides in their wake what was even more egregious to tiberius was that on many occasions such as at the angrivarian wall these losses could have easily been mitigated with just a pinch of caution would germanicus be willing to sacrifice yet more legions in service of his own victories this could not be allowed to stand an angry and perhaps jealous tiberius thus chose to recall germanicus from the front the field commander meanwhile argued that despite the roman military having been bogged down in germania for decades at this point all he needed was just one more year just one more and germania would kneel to rome tiberius however responded in his letter that quote enough of this success enough disaster the battles have been huge and favorable for germanicus but he should not forget those grievous and shocking losses by wind and waves i myself when i was sent into germany nine times by the divine augustus achieved more through diplomacy than through strength alone thus the tsugambri were brought into submission thus the swabi and their king moro borus were forced into peace with regards to the carusi and the other rebellious people since rome has taken her vengeance let them be abandoned to their own internal squabbling this letter would prove to be a pivotal moment in the history of roman german relations as we shall see in our final episode to follow it would have a huge impact on the ultimate fate of germania of germanicus and of arminius the dark stain of toitiburg had left quite the mark on the military record of rome remembered today as a great disaster at the time its sting was even more acutely felt however as we have seen in this series there was almost no length to which the empire would not go to seek vengeance but it wasn't just a matter of getting even in the eyes of rome the scales of justice could only be balanced with a pile of germanic corpses so large that it would eclipse that of the sons of mars thus for seven years the blood feud across the rhine was waged with unrelenting fury battles were won villages were burned and eagles were recovered yet barbarian steel and northern storms proved a formidable foe exacting a heavy toll of attrition on the romans thus when the back of the dramatic resistance was broken following the battle of the angrivarian wall the emperor deigned that the war machine had been sated a line was now drawn in the sand by the imperial throne separating both arminius and germanicus who otherwise would have eagerly dueled until the end of time today let us conclude our series by examining each of their eventual fates let us begin with the final chapter of arminius his career is quite well documented for romano german chieftain which is a great testament to the scale of his accomplishments unfortunately however this primarily revolves around his dealings with rome once war abated ancient authors seemingly lost interest with his life and we have few records of what happened after the withdrawal of the legions nonetheless we shall endeavor to piece together a story it seems that following the defeat at the agravarian wall a wounded arminius and his closest companions pulled back to the northeast they were probably unsure of just how dedicated the pursuit would be and therefore focused on putting as much distance between themselves and the legions as possible this likely meant finding refuge in the eastern lands of the carusi along the river alba here the ever diplomatic-minded arminius would have opened communications to gauge the situation in germania and find new potential allies these would have to come from the east as few tribes of the west would entertain such talks with legions still lurking in their backyards however when the roman fleet was savaged by a storm on its return journey we can speculate that our minis once again attempted to capitalize on this opportunity by riling up anti-roman sentiment across the lands yet what few advances he might have gained were soon wiped out when the romans rebounded returning in full force to squash all resistance by the end of the 16ad campaign season the following year however would see the end of the offensives and a recall of germanicus thus 17ad saw diplomats rather than armies cross the rhine now the roman policy was to treat these clans as client kingdoms maintaining the frontier with a mix of carrots and sticks meant to play the tribes off one another in this reframed geopolitical world the various germanic chiefs had much to consider one of the major positions they wrestled with was just how closely they should embrace rome arminius naturally found himself establishing a base of power as the faction which championed germanic freedoms forever swearing to oppose the hated romans while this was still an appealing message in theory the reality of nearly a decade of war meant that many were jaded by this approach therefore power in the region began to consolidate around other chiefs with a more friendly disposition towards rome one of the greatest rivals to arminis was mariborus king of the marcomani his tribe had a formidable reputation as great warriors who clashed with roman armies in the past this respect was evident in 9 a.d when arminius had actually sent the head of varus to mara botus hoping to gain his alliance however in the war that followed the marcomani king had remained neutral which now allowed him to play the peacemaker he could even boast of never having been defeated by the legions in contrast to the battered arminius who had accumulated a fair share of losses in recent years this rivalry apparently escalated to such a degree that the two chieftains came to blows normally such inner tribal spats would have involved a series of raids and skirmishes to sort out who was top dog however owing to the severity of their animosity and perhaps the degree to which the recent years had militarized the germanic peoples this war quickly escalated into a major conflict the two sides apparently meeting in a climactic pitch battle unfortunately details are frustratingly scarce with our main source tacitus depicting the battle in more symbolic terms as a clash of ideals arminius was the freedom fighter striving for a united german people and trying to excise the cancer of roman sycophants marvidus on the other hand touted his great strength and his ability to coexist with rome while arminius fought for ancient glories and freedom marvis fought to increase the size and influence of his own kingdom as for the fighting itself tacitus mentions only that it was hard fought we have no other sources or archaeological findings to go on and so must imagine a battle fought in the traditional germanic fashion perhaps though arminius may have borrowed a trick or two from his time spent fighting with and against the romans whatever the source of advantage it ultimately made him the victor of the field [Music] in the aftermath morobotus was forced to retreat into the hilly forests of bohemia here he would prove just as elusive as arminius had been to the romans in the years prior and managed to outlast his pursuer the following year though moro bodus would be challenged by a younger nobleman and forced into exile he would then flee to rome and eventually be held in captive in ravenna arminius meanwhile returned to his own tribe here he continued to plot a way to unite the disparate tribes yet after four long years of frustrating negotiations he was getting nowhere the prediction of emperor tiberius proved prescient left to their own devices the tribes would fall prey to their own petty squabbles this was of course facilitated by the favors and gold which passed over the rhine to ensure that no single chieftain grew too powerful eventually this yielded an opportunity for rome to finally rid themselves of arminius without having to expend a single drop of blood a chieftain of decanti had sent a letter to tiberius apparently offering to kill the most wanted man in the empire if poison were sent the letter was read aloud in the senate and according to tacitus quote the reply was that it was not by secret treachery but openly and by arms that the people of rome avenge themselves of their enemies a noble answer by which tiberius sought to liken himself to the generals of old who had forbidden and even denounced the poisoning of king pierce at least that's how the story gets reported in reality it's hard to know just how much truth there was to this deliberate grandstanding who knows just what schemes were being wrought by the spymasters of rome perhaps it was they who played a hand in the eventual conspiracy which led members of the carusi tribe to murder arminius in 21ad unfortunately we shall never know yet either way the demise of the war leader caused many across the lands to weep at his loss it seems that even the romans grudgingly recognized the magnitude of the man who had passed tacitus leaves the following eulogy quote assuredly he was the deliverer of germany one two who had defied rome not in her early rise as other kings and generals but in the height of her empire's glory had fought indecisive battles yet in war remained unconquered he completed 37 years of life 12 years of power and even now he remains a theme of songs among barbarous nations germanicus meanwhile was also the subject of much praise among his people in true roman fashion this would take the form of the ultimate honor a triumph such celebrations had been quite common during the republic representing the pinnacle of success for any general however in the era of augustus full triumphs had become a rarity as the emperor was wary of allowing any potential rivals to shine too brightly yet they still had their place in the realm of imperial propaganda the grant by tiberius of a full triumph for germanicus for example was a clear signal to all that the returning general was to be recognized as the successor to the throne in addition the hosting of a triumph was an excellent way to boost public support of the regime everyone loved a good parade especially those that made them feel like masters of the world and which were followed by days of feasting this one in particular was an event that none would miss as it was a chance for all to partake in the avenging of varys thus on may 26 1780 germanicus kicked off his triumph to rock us applause in true superstar fashion he rode in on a two-wheeled chariot pulled by four horses splendidly adorned in purple and gold his face painted red a laurel crown was held above his head by a slave who would gently murmur in his ear as the procession continued reminding him that he was still mortal behind the general was his wife and five children in a chariot of their own they too received great cheers as word spread of how she had been the perfect mother not just of the family but of the legions in germania behind these marched the legions who had fought through the forests and swamps of germania 50 000 veterans in their polished armor playing rousing marching songs and loudly belting rivaled songs at their general's expense behind them would be the mountains of loot that had been stolen from the german people prisoners of war and floats that gave visual representations to the battles that had been won this train included captives from every german tribe conspicuous among them was thus nelda the wife of arminius and their young son who had served as a stand-in for the yet uncaptured germanic chieftain this procession wound its way through the streets of rome ultimately ending at the temple of jupiter optimus maximus where germanicus would ceremonially sacrifice a white cow to the god symbolically beginning a festival that would last for days when these celebrations had finally abated it was time for the hero of rome's next assignment having mastered the northern border he would now be sent east in recent years this area had been of increasing importance to the empire owing to its great wealth and resource production however since the civil war it had fallen into disarray it would now be up to germanicus to bring order to the provinces and kingdoms of the region once again this was a clear sign meant to reinforce his status as the right hand of the emperor and heir apparent this was formally communicated by granting germanicus imperious mayos literally the greatest power to do as he saw fit on the way to his new post germanicus would make the most of the transit voyage he first stopped in greece visiting the famed cities of philosophers and mythical heroes one of these stops was nicopolis a name which might not necessarily be recognizable to modern ears to the romans though nycopolis was the best sort of tourist town the city whose name literally means victory town was dedicated to augustus's victory at actium it included several parks and museums dedicated to the battle with various monuments statues and memorabilia they even had a display of the types of ships that had been at the battle which were maintained at anchor and range from the smallest monorails to the hulking decareems games and celebrations known as the acting games were held there annually germanicus even visited the actual site of the battle a true retreat for any commander such as himself from there he then went to olympia and joined the olympic competition for 17 a.d amazingly tacitus doesn't discuss this bit but some inscriptions survive including this one from a statue base it reads as follows quote germanicus caesar son of imperator tiberius caesar augustus victorious in the olympic games with his chariot drawn by four fully grown horses this monument to him was erected by marcus antonius paisanas for his own patron germanicus to olympian zeus from olympia he continued on to athens another tourist city that flaunted its architecture art and elite schools of oratory and philosophy next he set off across the aegean to tour the ionian coast his ship stopped at several famous cities such as heliconrassus and the legendary city of illium better known as troy the expedition next ventured into the black sea before making a return to greece here germanicus apparently consulted the oracle of apollo at claros hoping to catch a glimpse of what the future might hold according to legend the prophecy he received contained dark tidings of impending doom likely this would have been remedied by the appropriate sacrifices and offerings to apollo thus stated germanicus then continued south across the aegean and into the mediterranean stopping by the island of rhodes it was also another great tourist site with the ruins of the famed colossus still visible in the harbor but this stop was also a great attraction to military commanders the city itself had seen its fair share of sieges and its navy held a reputation as one of the most formidable forces in the ancient world surely these sailors would have marveled at the stories of rome's 1000 ship armada that had sailed to invade germania though perhaps that last part about the storms was left off from the story from there germanicus made his way to armenia involving himself in dynastic politics and organizing the province of cappadocia in these matters he handled things with a noticeably lighter touch that had been the case with the tribes of the north favoring diplomacy over force of arms his intrusion was looked upon with some annoyance by the roman political appointees of the region who had benefited from the previous status quo among the masses though germanicus was like a touring rock star people apparently turned out in droves to embrace him wherever he went his bodyguard supposedly even voiced concerns about the security implications of this sort of exposure but brushing these concerns aside germanicus continued with his tour wintering in the lands of syria after ensuring the stability in roman asia and even meeting with the king of parthia he made his way to egypt another land of legends here he took a full tour from the legendary tomb of alexander and the wonders of alexandria to the pyramids themselves he gazed upon the creation of the pharaohs the monuments and the temples of the ancient civilization and the nile river that was mother of them all amazingly we can catch a small glimpse of what this visit was like from a fragmentary scrap of papyrus that records one of the speeches he gave to gathered crowds the interjections of the people are even recorded as well and the excitement is palpable this speaks to the propaganda power of this whole tour of the east unlike the more reserved tiberius germanicus was a young charismatic war hero who could clearly work a crowd this was helped by the fact that many in the east had long paid homage to god kings and a visiting member of the imperial family was the closest thing they would get to meeting a deity it also helped that germanicus and his entourage acted as a miniature roman government granting petitions answering prayers and showering communities in money yet everything was not all sunshine and rainbows when germanicus returned to syria that summer he found the roman administrator piso had either ignored or outright revoked the orders of the imperial heir the two had not been getting along lately and this was the final straw germanicus now ordered that the man be recalled back to rome piezo seemed to comply and made his way to the port of seleucia by the sea shortly thereafter however germanicus fell ill tacitus recounts the following quote the terrible intensity of the malady was increased by the belief that he had been poisoned by piso and certainly there were found hidden in the floor and in the walls disinterned remains of human bodies incantations and spells and the name of germanicus inscribed on leaden tablets half-burnt cinders smeared with blood and other horrors by which in popular belief souls are devoted to the infernal deities piezotwo was accused of sending emissaries to note curiously every unfavorable symptom of the illness on the 10th of october 1980 a 34 year old germanicus would succumb to his affliction just two years prior to when armenias would ultimately perish as well the sudden nature and odd circumstances of his demise sent the rumor mill into overdrive pizzo had cursed him with black magic no it was with poison that he did it well i heard the imperial guard was to blame please friend who else but the jealous emperor could have ordered such a thing from our modern perspective it seems plausible that he was merely the casualty of one of the many illnesses that routinely killed the population at the time alas the true cause shall never be known news of germanicus's death quickly made its way back to rome apparently the people immediately went into mourning somber days followed filled with funeral processions eulogies and the awarding of all manner of posthumous honors this was a tragic loss for the empire he left behind a legacy of glory which has echoed throughout the chapters of history to this very video but perhaps one of the greatest legacies left behind by germanicus would be that of his son a young boy named gaius who had grown up in the army camps of germania nicknamed affectionately by the troops as caligula he would one day succeed tiberius as the third emperor of rome but the future of his tale and that of germania shall have to wait for another video we hope you've appreciated this deep dive into the avenging virus saga it's an incredible tale of heroics and grit from one of the great bloody conflicts of antiquity that rarely gets covered i hope it's proved both educational and entertaining definitely let us know what other sagas of the past you would like to see us cover next a huge thanks to the patrons for funding the channel and to the researchers writers and artists for making this episode possible be sure to like and subscribe for more content and check out these other related videos see you in the next one

Channel: Invicta

Views: 227,757

Keywords: avenging varus, avenging varus playlist, angrivarian wall, invicta, invicta history, roman empire, teutoburg forest, varus, arminius, germanic wars rome, roman-germanic wars documentary, documentary, germanic warrior, units of history, units of history early germanic warriors, roman army, roman army structure, battle of idistaviso, idistaviso battle, animated history, full documentary, roman army documentary, teutoburg forest battle, germanic wars, history documentary

Id: ZyzY4ayG8R4

Length: 98min 41sec (5921 seconds)

Published: Sun Dec 05 2021