The Forgotten Roman Wall. [13:35]

What amazes me about this aspect of Rome is the sheer scale of human sweat involved. The Aqueducts are astonishing because you wouldn’t expect that sort of precise engineering — a slope of one foot per mile of canal — 200 years ago, but those were made by professional engineers. The walls and roads and earthworks were built by common soldiers (the manpower part anyway). The earthworks at Alesia was 150 acres+, ringed with palisades and ditches, all made by common squaddies. Imagine how many wheelbarrows of soil that must’ve involved.

They built a bridge across the Rhine where the water was 30-ish feet deep an finished it in 10 days. And they built it “under fire.”

There was no need to do PT because Caesar kept his armies fighting fit by digging ditches! And this had to be common knowledge back in Rome, which makes you wonder why anyone would want to join. Bad food, severe discipline and hard physical toil most every day. And if you manage to live 30 years, you get to retire. What’s not to love???

HIDEOUS robotic narration.
Caesar's Rhine bridges | 4:25
WikiAudio (author: Lo Scaligero) | 38.5K subscribers | 1,863 views | December 28, 2015

Transcript
0:00 · seizes bridge across the Rhine the first
0:02 · two bridges to cross the Rhine River on
0:05 · record were built by Julius Caesar in
0:07 · his legionaries during the Gallic war in
0:10 · 55 BC and 53 BCE strategically
0:15 · successful they are also considered
0:17 · masterpieces of military engineering
0:20 · background during Caesars conquest of
0:23 · Gaul it became necessary to secure the
0:26 · eastern border of the new provinces
0:28 · against marauding Germanic tribes the
0:31 · tribes felt safe on the eastern side of
0:33 · the Rhine River trusting the river as a
0:36 · natural border which offered cover from
0:38 · retaliatory attack after they're
0:40 · opportunistic raids into the province
0:42 · Caesar decided to confront him he also
0:45 · wanted to show support for the ub ins an
0:48 · allied german tribe across the rhine
0:51 · while he could have crossed the river by
0:53 · boats which the ub ins had offered to
0:55 · provide he decided to build a bridge
0:58 · thus demonstrating Rome's ability to
1:01 · bring the fight at anytime to the
1:02 · Germanic tribes and additionally as he
1:05 · indicated in his commentary on the
1:07 · Gallic war this approach conformed more
1:10 · to his own dignity and style than to
1:12 · anything else Construction the first
1:15 · bridge the actual construction of
1:17 · Caesars first bridge took place most
1:20 · likely between and an ashen no word
1:22 · downstream of Coblenz on the Rhine River
1:25 · book four of his commentaries gives
1:28 · technical details of this wooden beam
1:30 · bridge double timber pilings were rammed
1:33 · into the bottom of the river by winching
1:35 · up a large stone and releasing it
1:38 · thereby driving the supporting posts
1:40 · into the riverbed the most upstream and
1:43 · downstream pilings were slanted and
1:45 · secured by a beam and multiple segments
1:48 · of these then linked up to form the
1:50 · basis of the bridge conflicting models
1:53 · have been presented based on his
1:54 · description separate upstream pilings
1:57 · were used as protective barriers against
2:00 · flotsam and possible attacks while guard
2:03 · towers protected the entries the length
2:05 · of the bridge has been estimated to be
2:08 · 140 to 400 metres and its width 7 to 9
2:13 · the depth of the river can reach up to
2:15 · nine point one meters the construction
2:18 · of this bridge showed that Julius Caesar
2:20 · in Rome could go anywhere if only for a
2:23 · few days since he had over 40,000
2:27 · soldiers at his disposal they built the
2:29 · first bridge in only ten days using
2:31 · local lumber he crossed with his troops
2:34 · over to the eastern site and burned some
2:36 · villages but found that the tribes of
2:39 · the sug amberyan suby had to move
2:41 · eastward the tribes had come together
2:43 · and were prepared to meet Caesars Army
2:46 · in battle but when Caesar heard of this
2:48 · he quickly left the region taking down
2:51 · the bridge behind him he was only in the
2:54 · area for 18 days and without her he made
2:56 · a battle he returned to Gaul and cut the
2:59 · bridge down the second bridge two years
3:01 · later close to the site of the first
3:04 · bridge possibly at today's erm its
3:06 · Caesar erected a second bridge built in
3:09 · a few days as described in book six his
3:12 · expeditionary forces raided the
3:15 · countryside but did not encounter
3:17 · significant opposition as the sube
3:19 · retreated upon returning to Gaul the
3:22 · bridge was again taken down results
3:25 · Caesar strategy was effective as he was
3:28 · able to secure the eastern border of
3:30 · Gaul he demonstrated that Roman power
3:33 · could easily and it will cross the Rhine
3:35 · and henceforth for several centuries
3:38 · significant Germanic incursions across
3:40 · the Rhine were halted further his feat
3:44 · served him in establishing his fame at
3:46 · home with Roman colonization of the
3:49 · Rhine Valley more permanent bridges were
3:52 · built later at Castro Vitara Colonia
3:54 · Claudia are a group in nzm confluent s
3:58 · and Mogan Shechem controversies about
4:00 · the location speculation about the
4:03 · location of the bridges is due to the
4:05 · temporary nature of the construction and
4:08 · the lack of a precise location and
4:10 · Caesars report however diggings in the
4:13 · and a national wide area found residual
4:16 · pilings that are considered to be
4:18 · remnants of Caesars bridges as an
4:20 · alternative site a place south of Bonn
4:22 · has been mentioned

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Transcript
0:00	·	seizes bridge across the Rhine the first
0:02	·	two bridges to cross the Rhine River on
0:05	·	record were built by Julius Caesar in
0:07	·	his legionaries during the Gallic war in
0:10	·	55 BC and 53 BCE strategically
0:15	·	successful they are also considered
0:17	·	masterpieces of military engineering
0:20	·	background during Caesars conquest of
0:23	·	Gaul it became necessary to secure the
0:26	·	eastern border of the new provinces
0:28	·	against marauding Germanic tribes the
0:31	·	tribes felt safe on the eastern side of
0:33	·	the Rhine River trusting the river as a
0:36	·	natural border which offered cover from
0:38	·	retaliatory attack after they're
0:40	·	opportunistic raids into the province
0:42	·	Caesar decided to confront him he also
0:45	·	wanted to show support for the ub ins an
0:48	·	allied german tribe across the rhine
0:51	·	while he could have crossed the river by
0:53	·	boats which the ub ins had offered to
0:55	·	provide he decided to build a bridge
0:58	·	thus demonstrating Rome's ability to
1:01	·	bring the fight at anytime to the
1:02	·	Germanic tribes and additionally as he
1:05	·	indicated in his commentary on the
1:07	·	Gallic war this approach conformed more
1:10	·	to his own dignity and style than to
1:12	·	anything else Construction the first
1:15	·	bridge the actual construction of
1:17	·	Caesars first bridge took place most
1:20	·	likely between and an ashen no word
1:22	·	downstream of Coblenz on the Rhine River
1:25	·	book four of his commentaries gives
1:28	·	technical details of this wooden beam
1:30	·	bridge double timber pilings were rammed
1:33	·	into the bottom of the river by winching
1:35	·	up a large stone and releasing it
1:38	·	thereby driving the supporting posts
1:40	·	into the riverbed the most upstream and
1:43	·	downstream pilings were slanted and
1:45	·	secured by a beam and multiple segments
1:48	·	of these then linked up to form the
1:50	·	basis of the bridge conflicting models
1:53	·	have been presented based on his
1:54	·	description separate upstream pilings
1:57	·	were used as protective barriers against
2:00	·	flotsam and possible attacks while guard
2:03	·	towers protected the entries the length
2:05	·	of the bridge has been estimated to be
2:08	·	140 to 400 metres and its width 7 to 9
2:13	·	the depth of the river can reach up to
2:15	·	nine point one meters the construction
2:18	·	of this bridge showed that Julius Caesar
2:20	·	in Rome could go anywhere if only for a
2:23	·	few days since he had over 40,000
2:27	·	soldiers at his disposal they built the
2:29	·	first bridge in only ten days using
2:31	·	local lumber he crossed with his troops
2:34	·	over to the eastern site and burned some
2:36	·	villages but found that the tribes of
2:39	·	the sug amberyan suby had to move
2:41	·	eastward the tribes had come together
2:43	·	and were prepared to meet Caesars Army
2:46	·	in battle but when Caesar heard of this
2:48	·	he quickly left the region taking down
2:51	·	the bridge behind him he was only in the
2:54	·	area for 18 days and without her he made
2:56	·	a battle he returned to Gaul and cut the
2:59	·	bridge down the second bridge two years
3:01	·	later close to the site of the first
3:04	·	bridge possibly at today's erm its
3:06	·	Caesar erected a second bridge built in
3:09	·	a few days as described in book six his
3:12	·	expeditionary forces raided the
3:15	·	countryside but did not encounter
3:17	·	significant opposition as the sube
3:19	·	retreated upon returning to Gaul the
3:22	·	bridge was again taken down results
3:25	·	Caesar strategy was effective as he was
3:28	·	able to secure the eastern border of
3:30	·	Gaul he demonstrated that Roman power
3:33	·	could easily and it will cross the Rhine
3:35	·	and henceforth for several centuries
3:38	·	significant Germanic incursions across
3:40	·	the Rhine were halted further his feat
3:44	·	served him in establishing his fame at
3:46	·	home with Roman colonization of the
3:49	·	Rhine Valley more permanent bridges were
3:52	·	built later at Castro Vitara Colonia
3:54	·	Claudia are a group in nzm confluent s
3:58	·	and Mogan Shechem controversies about
4:00	·	the location speculation about the
4:03	·	location of the bridges is due to the
4:05	·	temporary nature of the construction and
4:08	·	the lack of a precise location and
4:10	·	Caesars report however diggings in the
4:13	·	and a national wide area found residual
4:16	·	pilings that are considered to be
4:18	·	remnants of Caesars bridges as an
4:20	·	alternative site a place south of Bonn
4:22	·	has been mentioned