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Perhaps the most important archaeological find regarding this long massacre was discovered in 1987. It lies 16 kilometers northeast of Osnabrück on the northeast edge of Wiehengebirges and is therefore a good way from Teutoberg Forest. The Kalkrieser-Niewedder swale stretches over six kilometers in an east-west direction between the rivers Hase and Hunte, not far from Bramsche. Even today one must recognize Arminius for the strategic selection of this place, for the great bog to the North and the Kalkrieser mountain in the South form a bottleneck that is barely a kilometer wide at the narrowest place on the swale. Varus’s army had to pass through this area on the return from the Weser. They traveled along an important route that led from the Roman boundary along the Rhine toward the interior of the area of the Germans, and on which the barbarian tribes also traveled. This pass between the Ems and the Weser must have been well known to the Roman troops. Thus Varus was not traveling in unknown wilderness, but along the customary way.

The right place for battle was decisive for the Cherusker tribe and its allies. Here the Romans were only able to march forward, for to the right lie the impassable swamp and to the left the slope of the mountains. There the German tribes could have charged their opponents, but they had a plan: They had erected a two meter high wall a half kilometer long from reeds, behind which they hid, and from which they could throw their spears. Therefore, the trap was perfect. The German warriors narrowed the entrance to the swale to the east and at the western exit, they waited in readiness. Within the swale, the Legions and their auxiliary troops were blocked by the mountains, defenseless in the face of the attacks. In despair, they attempted to take the rampart. Communications between Varus and his officers seems barely possible. Ancient writers tell of inconsistencies, failures, cowardice and flight. The survivors, even though they were able to escape the swale, were disoriented or confused. Their steps spread them in the direction of the wind. A part found themselves in impassable terrain and were destroyed. Another part, who managed to last longer, nevertheless had no chance. For Varus and his army, it was a terrible catastrophe.

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