|
<Home> <The Problem> <Translated Sections> <Timeline> <Museum Tour> <List of Tribes> |
| The Catastrophe in Teutoberg Forest | <table of contents> <previous page> <next page> page 1 of 4 |
|
| Varus must have been boundlessly trusting. Clearly, he was forewarned by someone on the German side. They reported agreements between the conspirators and named Arminius as the leader: “This was reported by a loyal member of the well-known Cherhusky family, Segestes. However, fate concealed any understanding of the message. Varus refused to place any faith in the messenger and declared that he preferred the assumption of loyalty after having enjoyed the services of Arminius to Rome.” And so Varus trusted Arminius because he knew that hostile relationships can develop between father-in-law and son-in-law and he saw in the former only coarse and brazen aggressiveness. Segestes, who always remained loyal to Rome, must have taken the brusque rejection bitterly. In the Summer, Varus, along with the 17th, 18th, and 19th Legions, accompanied by many mounted troops and infantrymen as auxiliary troops, pulled out from the camps along the Rhine and the Lippe into the land of the Cheruskers. The kilometer long military snake was made up of 20,000 to 30,000 men. Following them was a train of women, children and civilians. These latter were perhaps a sign that the leader had a mere presentation of war. For, on the Germanic side, one had asked him for assistance. He wished to send troops into remote tribal areas to secure peace and order. Also, they were to pursue roving gangs of robbers and provide food supplies to the Teutonic tribes. Varus therefore divided up his troops, which, from a military perspective, was an unforgivable act of carelessness. But the Roman understood himself less as a soldier than as one who would establish order within a law-abiding society. |
||
page 1 of 4 |
||
|
<Home> <The Problem> <Translated Sections> <Timeline> <Museum Tour> <List of Tribes> |