Roman Germanic Wars

12 B.C. to 17 A.D.

Rome — versus — German Tribes between the Rhine and Elbe Rivers.

Introduction : 

The Retreat of the Troops of Germanicus

The Gauls were the ancient natives of Western Europe, and for 400 years the Romans had fought them, in Northern Italy, Hispania, and Gaul. The Germans were relative late-comers, ethnically and religiously different from the Gauls, and even larger and lighter skinned. They are thought to have originated in Denmark and the North Sea, but by the first century B.C., they were all over central Europe, and pressing upon Gallic territory to the west. Rome's first encounter with the Germans was in 114 B.C. during the Cimbrian War and fifty years later, Julius Caesar encountered several German tribes in the Rhine valley during the Roman Conquest of Gaul. By 52 B.C. he had established the Rhine river as the eastern boundary of the empire, but there was no notion within the Roman Government, that it should remain there permanently. There were plenty of Roman Generals still hungry for conquest, Roman had increased its territory steadily over for over 200 years, and by now the empire was stronger and richer than ever. Yet there, at the Rhine, the border remained, and the story of the Roman-Germanic Wars, fought between 11 B.C. and 16 A.D. tell the reasons why.

Roman Conquests in Germany : 12 B.C. to 9 A.D.

Germania repelling Drusus.

By about 15 B.C., Augustus had consolidated power in Rome, and was ready to turn his attention to further conquests. To this end, he sent his stepson, Nero Drusus as governor to the Rhine region of Gaul. After dealing with German incursions into Gallic territory, and pacifying regional conflicts, he pursued a tribe of Germans who had crossed the Rhine, back into their original territory. This was the first of four campaigns he led into German territory, between 12 and 9 B.C., and in spite of some difficult fighting, he was generally successful, and subdued numerous tribes. He progressed to the Elbe River, built boats and sailed to the North Sea, and built fortifications. Legend has it, that he saw a vision of the Norse goddess Germania who warned not to proceed further, and of his coming death. In any case, he died suddenly in a fall from a horse during his forth campaign, and was replace by his brother Tiberius, who later succeeded Augustus as emperor.

The German Rebellion : 9 to 17 A.D.

Hermann Calling the Germans to Arms

The Romans continued to hold their territory between the Rhine and Elbe Rivers. Two legions were stationed there and although the dense forests and swamplands were difficult to penetrate, and the forest people difficult to govern, the Romans considered the region conquered territory until they were caught entirely unaware by a large scale rebellion in 9 A.D., led by Hermann (a.k.a Arminius) . This first great German hero was a prince who had worked in service to Rome, but who desired to liberate his people from subjugation. This he did by carefully planning an ambush and wiping out two entire legions, almost to a man. This defeat, at Teutoburg forest, was the greatest military catastrophe Rome had faced in generations and it shocked the entire population. Augustus Caesar himself, was utterly stunned by it, and died calling for his lost legions.

The route of the legions and their fortifications was total—all progress made toward conquering Germany had been lost in one blow. But it would be un-Roman to give up after such a defeat. Six years later a new expedition of 50,000 with naval support was launched under Germanicus, the son of Nero Drusus. The Roman army re-took some of the lost German territory, won numerous battles, found the battlefield on which the previous legions had been lost, and gave the dead Romans, whose remains were still visible an honorable burial. They even met and defeated Hermann in battle, and captured his wife and children, but the campaign was an extremely difficult and costly one. They had lost too many men to remain so far in the interior surrounded by hostile tribes, so they retreated by boat. Tragically, a storm arose on the North Sea and destroyed much of the fleet that had come to transport them home. Although Germanicus received a triumph, and his expedition was regarded as a victory for Rome, in reality it was a victory for German. Tiberius, now emperor, declined to raise any more expeditions into Germany. The Rhine became the permanent eastern Border of Roman territory.

	Image Links
Germans going into battle  in Story of the Middle Ages	The Defeat of Varus at Teutoburg Forest  in Greatest Nations: Germany	Hermann's Triumphant procession after the defeat of Varus  in Greatest Nations: Germany
Segestes Surrendering his Daughter to Germanicus  in Greatest Nations: Germany	The Retreat of the Troops of Germanicus  in Greatest Nations: Germany	Hermann Calling the Germans to Arms  in Greatest Nations: Rome
German army of Hermann in Soldiers and Sailors	Hermann's Triumph over the Romans  in Soldiers and Sailors	Germania repelling Drusus  in Barbarian and Noble
Return of Hermann after his victory over the Romans  in Historical Tales: 5—German	Romans Destroying a Village of the Germans  in European Hero Stories	Romans Fighting with the Germans (Relief from the column of Marcus Aurelius.)  in European Hero Stories
Varus invading Germany.  in Herman and Thusnelda