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Just adding to the catalog, not sending a general distribution.September, 9 A.D., Kalkriese Hill, northern Germany: the Germanic warriors waited in grim silence. Three Roman legions, commanded by General Publius Quintilius Varus, advanced across the Rhine into Anglo-Saxon territory. The Romans hoped to expand Roman power, Roman law, and Roman culture. The Germans hoped to preserve their Teutonic laws and institutions and their way of life. Probably neither side realized that the Battle of Teutoburg Forest would decide the course of Western law and Western civilization for millennia to come. And now, in the year 2009, the 2,000th anniversary of the battle, very few Americans have even heard of the battle, and fewer still understand its significance.The facts are quite different. The Romans had occupied the area for some time already. Arminius, the "Teutonic" commander, got his military training and experience fighting *for* the Romans, and all his relatives did also. After the ambush and massacre of three Roman legions, another Roman army was moved into the area to hunt him down. They didn't succeed in getting him directly, but defeated him, and he never threatened Rome again. Within a few years, Arminius was killed by some of his relatives. Roman rule and occupation continued and expanded into what is now western and southern Germany. The destruction of the three Roman legions was a fact not preserved in any folkloric tradition, and was only rediscovered as classical sources became widely known again in recent centuries. Eventually this battle became a bit of a prop for German nationalism. |
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Thanks for the ping. Interesting article. I wonder why there’s a keyword of ‘garbage’?