It was a wet and cold evening in 15 AD. The Roman campaigning season was running to its end.
Somewhere north of the Rhine, the Roman commander Caecina and his senior commanders
pondered their dire situation. Local tribes surrounded their makeshift camp. For days,
their retreat had been constantly hampered by skirmishes and ambushes.
Most of his soldiers had not slept for at least two days, and during earlier fights,
many lives and equipment was lost. Several men relived the Teutoburg disaster six years earlier,
where Roman officer Arminius betrayed Rome and destroyed three legions in an ambush. From the
dense woodlands, a pair of eyes kept looking at Caecina's camp. It was Arminius, and he not
only remembered his victory six years ago. He was very eager to add another victory to that list.
[Background]
When in 9 AD news of the shocking defeat at the Teutoburg forest reached Emperor Augustus,
he became panicked. He remembered the invasions by the Germanic Cimbri a few decades earlier.
A united front of Germanic Tribes could pose a significant threat against Rome itself. He
called for volunteers, but when these did not answer the call, he instituted conscription.
In total, he sent three additional legions to augment the northern defences.
Months later, as the frontiers were protected and any Germanic invasion failed to materialise,
the Romans began planning their vengeance. In 10 AD, Augustus' heir-designate,
Tiberius, took up command in the north. Arminius, too understood the Romans
were a force to be reckoned with, especially when seeking revenge. But, to his dismay,
the direct aftermath of the victory of Teutoburg saw conflicts among tribes take over. They were
united in their collective hatred of Rome but worked together anecdotally at best.
In the next several campaigning seasons, Romans invaded the Germanic lands without occupying them.
Instead, they laid waste to any settlements they came across, intending to instil as much terror
in the population as possible. There was no silver lining to the Roman campaigns, and
without capturing much booty, the campaigns were a drain of money and manpower more than anything.
This changed in 13 AD. That year, the supreme command of regional armies fell to the young
commander Germanicus, Tiberius' adoptive son. His name referred to his legendary father Drusus,
who commanded the first Roman armies invading Germania decades earlier.
As Tiberius prepared for his new post in Illyricum, news reached him of Emperor Augustus
falling ill. After a brief, turbulent period of succession, Tiberius succeeded the Emperor.
News of Augustus' death reached the legions stationed at Germania's border as well. Rebellions
about unpaid salaries broke out. Germanicus acted fast. He increased their pay out of his pocket.
Then, he launched his first campaign north of the Rhine. He used armies from both Germania inferior
and superior. In total, this numbered around eight legions, excluding auxiliaries. They
invaded the territories of the Marsi and left "an area of fifty miles ravaged with fire and sword".
Defeating an ambush on their way back, the first campaign can be considered a moderate success,
without any noteworthy casualties for the Romans.
The following campaign season commenced in spring 15 AD. This year, Germanicus geared his attention
towards the Chatti. The Roman army was split in two, with Aulus Caecina Severus commanding four
legions and 5000 auxiliaries. Caecina was a tough and fearless leader with decades of experience.
Germanicus commanded four legions and around 10.000 auxiliaries. The Chatti
did not expect Rome's might, and for days Germanicus ravaged Chatti towns,
villages and their capital. Meanwhile, Caecina held the Cheruski and Marsi tribes at bay.
The Roman incursions rallied more tribes to Arminius' side. But one family member,
his father-in-law Segestes, remained a loyal ally to Rome. Not being able to reach the
Romans plundering the Chatti, Arminius' anger turned against Segestes. When he captured him
at a certain point, Segestes sent his son to request help from the Romans.
Germanicus wanted to encourage all dissent within Arminius' ranks.
Saving Segestes would be a great victory for Rome and hopefully have many men follow his example.
A flexible expeditionary army joined Segestes' son. Their surprise arrival led to a swift
release of him and the capture of his daughter, Thusnelda - doubling as Arminius' pregnant wife.
Germanicus, meanwhile, ordered his army to raze the Bructeri territory. Doing so with
considerable success, his army reached the site of the Teutoburg disaster six years earlier.
Reportedly, Germanicus ordered the reburial of the remains they found. And there were plenty.
Bones of men and horses littered the forest—bits of weapons amongst them. Many trees were adorned
with pinned on heads of those soldiers unfortunate enough to be sacrificed in that manner.
After reburying many remains, the Roman thirst for Arminius' blood was stronger than ever. It
just so happened that Arminius too was preparing for revenge. He managed to gather warriors from
many tribes, even those previously thought to be pro-Roman. Besides several attempted ambushes,
no decisive battle materialised as the end of campaigning season arrived.
Germanicus organised the withdrawal from Germania. With half of his army, he set out to take a
northern route and ordered Caecina to return along a trail known as the 'long bridges'. This famous
route traversed through marshy terrain. Over the years, Romans built causeways and bridges
to navigate the territory. It is safe to say many of these were destroyed if left unguarded.
With Caecina's army moving in that direction, Arminius knew exactly what route they were
about to take. Taking shortcuts, he reached the bridges before Caecina.
His warriors took their positions in the forest and on top of hills overlooking the marshes.
Caecina's army numbered around four legions, five thousand auxiliaries, and some levied locals.
In addition, several baggage trains travelled with them. In total, the Romans
army must have numbered around 30.000 total. Unfortunately for the Romans, the causeways indeed
were broken down, either by nature or sabotage. To cross the marshy area, Caecina ordered his men to
repair the bridges. He split up his army, with part of the soldiers repairing the bridges and
others standing guard to cover the working party. Caecina was well aware of the vulnerability of
his army, mainly because they were in a boggy plain hampering traditional army formations.
His feelings were reinforced when small bands of warriors charged from the surrounding woodlands,
pestering the Romans. Minor skirmishes followed, at best. It went on like this
throughout the entire day. Germanic bands of warriors would leap out of the woods or descend
from the surrounding hills. They would throw javelins and stones or charge into the Romans.
Using nature to his advantage, Arminius ordered his warriors to redirect a stream into the plain.
With the water tide rising, the Romans had even more difficulty maintaining formations
against the mobile and flexible German warriors. By the time night fell, Tacitus writes, several
legionnaires were already close to breaking. They built their camp in the plain. Still,
they would not be able to sleep in their wet tents, knowing they were entirely surrounded.
An atmosphere of uncomfortable dread hovered above the quiet camp.
Its guards saw smoke rise from the audibly celebrating German encampments. They knew they
had the upper hand. The Romans knew it as well. The following day, Caecina ordered his army to
form an infantry square around the baggage train. In theory, this was probably the best
way to protect the wagons. However, the two vanguard legions moved at a much faster pace.
As a result, the heavy wagons got their wheels stuck in the mud. Then,
as the vanguard reached the wide-open plain across the marshes, the baggage train was left exposed.
Arminius, closely monitoring from a distance, saw the fault in Rome's formation. He ordered
his warriors to charge and launched a massive attack against the wagons and the rearguard.
They clashed with the legionnaires. There was no other way but forward, and during the ferocious
and brutal fighting across the marshes, the baggage train slowly moved towards the open plain.
The unprotected areas were plundered by the warriors, who often chose to loot over fighting.
Many soldiers decided to leave the wagons behind, instead focussing on getting themselves to safety.
In the chaotic battle, Caecina's horse threw him off, and if it weren't for some legionnaires
thinking on their feet and protecting their commander, he would undoubtedly have been slain.
After many casualties on both sides, only a few baggage wagons and most legionnaires reached the
open plain across the marshes. The vanguard legions had already secured the plain and
took their strategic positions. The warriors understood facing the Romans in open battle
was a bad idea and retreated to their woods. But the Romans could not rest. They dug a ditch
and constructed their base camp. It was nothing more than a traditional square structure with four
entrances and a rampart with the tents inside. As night fell, the Romans rightly were exhausted.
They treated the wounded, and it was surprising if a soldier managed to sleep under these conditions.
After a horse broke free and caused a panic, even those who managed to get some shut-eye
were rudely awakened. Only thanks to Caecina's interference did he prevent
a mass rout from the camp. Meanwhile, outside the camp,
Arminius and other tribal chiefs figured they had already won the battle. Caecina's army was stuck,
without reinforcements, in hostile territory. They had not slept for two days and the skirmishes wore
down the discipline and morale. The chiefs had to decide how they would finish them
off. Arminius proposed to wait until Caecina and his army marched through thick woodlands again.
But other chieftains disagreed. One of them, Arminius' uncle, suggested they
let their warriors surround the camp and slowly close in. Arminius' tactic was overruled. The
following day saw a circle of warriors slowly move in on the base. Unfortunately for them,
this is exactly what Caecina prepared for. All infantry were positioned behind the four gates
within the Roman camp, ready to burst out and take on the fight. Caecina himself stood
in the front line, raising the morale of his men. He kept his legionnaires quiet until the warriors
closed in. Then, when they were close enough that escape was near impossible, he gave the order.
Trumpets sounded and battle cries filled the air. A constant stream of Roman soldiers poured from
four gates, charging at the surprised and confused warriors. Heavy combat ensued, with the momentum
clearly being in Rome's favour. Many warriors were slaughtered during hours of heavy combat.
Nearing the end of the day, the battle turned more into a rout with the warriors fleeing to
the woodlands and the Romans giving chase. Though traditionally, the battle was considered a Roman
victory, recent historical analyses argue it was more of an indecisive stalemate. Especially
because the Romans casualties numbered approximately 1/3 of their total army.
Caecina and his men did not suffer any more trouble on their way back to the Rhine.
Germanicus also made it home safely, but not before running into a severe flood along the
Dutch coast. And, well, panic spread across the Rhine. Reports of a supposed Roman defeat reached
outposts, and the standing garrisons nearly destroyed all bridges, which provided Germanicus
and Caecina safe passage. The bridges were only spared after the interference of Germanicus' wife.
The campaign season cannot be considered a success for the Romans. They suffered a
considerable number of casualties, not to mention the loss of equipment and animals. Arminius
remained in control north of the Rhine and did not suffer a defeat to unsteady his position.
This status quo was unacceptable to Germanicus.
The following campaigning season, he would surely take revenge against Arminius.
This time, every soldier at his disposal would be put to use to once and for all avenge
those Roman soldiers who lost their lives at the hands of Arminius' warriors.
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