In today’s episode we have one of the most important battles in world history: Teutoburg Forest. A loose confederation of Germanic tribes, led by a Romanized German named Arminius, seeks to stem the irresistible Roman advance into the heart of Germany. It was Arminius’s actions that saved the German language. It was his actions that saved countless Germans from Roman dominion. And Roman dominion was harsh: by 9 A.D., the Roman peninsula had undergone a massive shift. It is a land teeming with slaves and poverty-stricken freemen, where 15,000 elites rule over approximately 7,000,000 disenfranchised subjects. Rome was coming and she had perfected warfare. Her soldiers are better-trained than the Germans. Her civilization is more advanced than the Germans. It should have been an easy victory for the Romans. It wasn’t. It’s epic history and it’s all for free on Battlecast – the world’s foremost podcast on warfare and its socio-political impact.
The beer this episode is Konig Ludwig – 4.5 bullets out of 5.
References:
The Oxford History of the Classical World by Griffin Murray (ed.)
A History of Rome (3rd edition) by Marcel Le Glay, Jean-Louis Voisin and Yann Le Bohec
Roman History by Cassius Dio
The Annals by Tacitus
The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World: from Marathon to Waterloo by Edward Shepherd Creasy
Maps and Illustrations:
Map showing the Roman Empire and the rough location of the battle:
Map of the battle
Picture of the Teutoburg Forest today
Recreation of the wooden walls used by the Germans to constrict Roman movement
Monument dedicated to Arminius in modern-day Germany
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