#lego #legostopmotion #animation #battles #history #ancienthistory #romans
Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, (Autumn, 9 CE), conflict between the Roman Empire and Germanic insurgents. The Germanic leader Arminius organized a series of ambushes on a column of three Roman legions headed by Publius Quinctilius Varus. Roman sources indicate that over the course of four days Arminius destroyed all three legions and ultimately prevented Rome from subjugating Germania east of the Rhine River.
While modern scholarship is divided on the timeline thereafter, Cassius Dio’s account-the most detailed of the Roman sources-extends the battle over a period of four days. Dio and other sources suggest that while marching for a second day, Varus’s column reached a pass between the Kalkriese Hill and a great bog. As a whole, the column consisted of roughly 20,000 men and extended 7-8 miles (11.3-12.9 km) in length. The pass they were crossing through is reported to have been heavily forested and muddy as a result of a torrential downpour. The rebel Germanic tribesmen were stationed along the hill behind a series of fortifications. From this position on the high ground, the tribesmen began to throw javelins and fire arrows into the Roman column; some barreled down the hill and fought the legionaries hand to hand. Being on disadvantageous terrain and caught by surprise, Varus’s legions were unable to take up defensive formations, and the column may have split in two. Some continued to fight the Germanic insurgents on the Kalkriese slope, but a large wall of sand allowed the tribesmen to repeatedly attack the legionaries and then retreat behind their fortifications. A large portion of the Roman column was shattered on this day.
The remains of Varus’s legions retreated to the west, probably in the direction of modern Osnabrück, and camped on a nearby hill for the night. On the third day, they proceeded through some open terrain and into another wooded area. Here they were ambushed again, suffering heavy losses in part because the cavalry and infantry collided with each other in their efforts to coordinate attacks. Some members of those tribes who had not initially joined Arminius chose to support his cause, and so the army of the Germanic alliance grew.
On the fourth day, Varus led the shattered survivors along a familiar road in the valley of the Ems. Worsening rains and a violent wind are said to have affected the fighting capabilities of the already exhausted soldiers, however, and the Germanic tribesmen pursued them to this point. Understanding that their total defeat was inevitable, Varus and his officers fell on their swords to avoid capture by Arminius’s men. Many other Romans took their own lives, others surrendered, and still others attempted to flee. Only a few escaped to the safety of the provinces. Those who were captured were likely enslaved or sacrificed to the gods, their aquilae desecrated. In total, nearly 20,000 Romans were killed in the engagement, while German losses were minimal.
The annihilation of three veteran legions at the hands of the Germanic tribes shook the Roman Empire to its core. Rome’s previously successful wars of conquest had steadily inflated the empire’s sense of superiority over neighbouring powers, particularly those in northern and central Europe. The tragedy in the Teutoburg Forest struck fear into the hearts of the Romans. The historian Suetonius writes that Augustus went months without cutting his beard or hair-a sign of mourning in Roman religious tradition-and often wailed, “Quinctilius Varus, give me back my legions!”
Tiberius waged three subsequent campaigns against the Germanic tribes, but he chose not to occupy their land east of the Rhine. Instead, he stationed at least eight legions along the frontier to safeguard the provinces of eastern Gaul against a Germanic invasion. During the autumn of 14 CE, a Roman commander named Germanicus led a vengeful campaign into Germania in search of the fallen legions. He came upon each of the points at which Varus’s column had been attacked and buried the remains of the dead in the Teutoburg Forest at Varus’s final resting place. Germanicus subjugated several of the nearby tribes and retrieved at least one aquila. By 16 CE he had reconquered the Lippe valley and most of the coast along the North Sea. However, Tiberius, now emperor, again chose not to bring the area under Roman rule, instead hoping that Germanicus’s campaign would serve as a warning.
Music I used for this Video:
Strength of a thousand men: • Two Steps From Hell - ...
Now we are free: • Gladiator - Now We Are...