Six years after their slaughter by Germanic tribesmen, the remains of governor Varus and three Roman legions – 15 000 men – lay scattered among the brushwood and bracken of the Teutoburgian Forest. Pausing in the middle of a retaliatory campaign across the Rhine, Germanicus and his legionaries solemnly surveyed at the location of this disaster.

It must have been a chilling series of discoveries: Heaps of bleached bones and splintered weapons. On surrounding tree trunks the skulls of Roman prisoners had been nailed as a ferocious warning that Arminius, Cherusci chieftain, still dominated the forest. Survivors of the butchery pointed out the forest altars upon which captured tribunes and centurions have had their throats slit, in sacrifice to the northern Gods of War. 

Today, the 9'th of September, it is 2000 years since Varus and his troops had crossed the Rhine and entered what they believed to be friendly territory, on their way to putting down an uprising. This guarantee was given by Arminius (the name Arminius is a Latin form of his Germanic name, but the original name is probably Erminameraz, or just Ermin – rather than the later form Hermann), a young chieftain of the Cherusci, who had served with the Romans on several expeditions, and been granted citizenship. Arminius, however, was a deceiver and wished to crush the governor Varus, for hastily trying to impose Roman laws and taxes upon his people.

The secret forest paths proved insufficient, and trees were felled and undergrowth cleared. Heavy rainfall made the ground slippery and treacherous. Ravines and marshland had to be bridged. As Varus advanced deeper into the dismal woods, Arminius excused himself from the main force, and secretly joined his gathering warriors. With the Roman soldiers scattered across amongst wagons and pack animals, and bogged down into a sludge of roots and mud - the Cherusci went into guerilla style action.
Howling and screaming, the Cherusci pounced upon the isolated groups of legionaries. At first, spears were hurled from the thickets. But then, as the Romans fell back in disarray, the tribesmen closed in and used the same spears as stabbing weapons. The dense forest and the shock of ambush prevented the Romans from assuming their usual battle formations, and allowed the Germans to catch legionaries by themselves. In close combat, the physical presence of the Germans undoubtedly proved intimidating to those recruits from Mediterranean countries. Of a notably larger build, with an alien pale skin and reddish hair, the Germans frequently fought semi-naked, with chests adorned only with scars or tattoos, or wrapped in animal skins. Other wild sights confronted the Romans too: Some young tribesmen, having let their hair and beards grow long so as to cover their face in accordance with a vow of manhood, now stood over a slain enemy and slashed at their hair. At last, through this blood of their foe, they had become worthy of their parents and their homeland, and could proudly show their face. Exposed to such dreadful attacks in a chaotic four-day running battle of relentless ambush, it is little wonder that few survivors of those original three legions emerged from the Teutoburgian forests. Varus killed himself before capture, by falling on his own sword – so did also a large number of other high ranking legion officers. Varus head was cut off and sent to Roman leaders south of the Rhine, as an example to what other people with similar intentions could expect, when moving into Germanic territories. A number of Romans were also held hostage – among them 14 military tribunes – and were later released for a high ransom. The golden eagles of the three legions also fell into Germanic possession, a terrible disgrace for the entire Roman state, and something which by Roman standards might have been seen as among the worst losses beside the legions themselves.

Of course, the Romans could not leave this humiliation as it stood, and over the next years conducted many retaliatory campaigns across the Rhine, not least of them the expedition of Germanicus. But essentially the German tribes remained unconquered. Some Roman “victory parades” were organized through the years, a number of them with previously bought Germanic slaves, posing as prisoners of war before the cheering masses along the streets of Rome.

Hermanns Denkmal – the monument

The nearly 54 meters tall monument, was unveiled on August 16'th in 1875, in the small village of Detmold. The completion of the monument took the constructor Ernst von Bandel 37 years of hard physical labour. With a workforce of 15 men, Bandel was always the first to arrive for work at 5 o'clock in the morning, and the last to leave – despite the hour long walk he had to undertake in order to get there. For periods of time Bandel even lived in a small simple shed at the site, just to be able of spending more time working on the monument.
During the whole time, there was always close to a shortage of funds to keep the work running properly, even though there were financial contributors even from New York, Baltimore, Rio de Janeiro and Havana, aside from the ones of the German homeland. Some notable foreign donors were the King of Greece, and Prince Albert of Great Britain. In Germany, about 300 grammar schools showed their youthful idealism, by collecting and donating money for the completion monument; 10 000 talers, about as much as donated by the German Reichstag itself. The building costs were about 90 000 talers in total, but would probably have been a lot higher if it were not for the kindness of material providers and others involved.
The raising the sword against alien tyranny, was the basis of the idea von Bandel had in mind for his monument. The inscription on the sword reads: “Deutsche Einigkeit, meine Stärke – meine Stärke, Deutschlands Macht” (German unity, my strength - my strength, Germany's might), while the shield reads: “Treufest” (Steadfast). The forming of Germanic unity, was the basis of the strength, through which Germania was able to stay free from Roman overlordship - which is also symbolized by the eagle and the fasces trampled under Hermann's left foot.

The Hermanns Denkmal has got a baby brother as well, standing proud and strong in New Ulm, Minnesota in USA. The over 31 meters high monument was built by the architect Julius Berndt, and unveiled on September 25'th in 1897, through the initiative of the Order of Sons of Hermann. The monument is cared for by The Hermann Monument Society, who also celebrates the 2000 year anniversary of the victory in the Teutoburger Battle.

Many poets and historians alike have told the story of Arminius, the liberator of Germania; however, very few have told the story of his wife, Thusnelda, and his son, Thumelicus. Thusnelda married Arminius against the will of her father, the Cheruscan prince Segestes. Segestes sought the aid of Germanicus, who led eight legions into Germania in order to restore Roman rule. Thusnelda, then pregnant with the son of Arminius, was captured and handed over to Germanicus. She was shamefully dragged around during Germanicus' victory parade in Rome, while Segestes watched as an esteemed spectator. The son of Arminius – Thumelicus – was taken to Ravenna and trained as a gladiator; there he was able to meet his end with a sword clenched tightly in his fist.

In the honour of this great day, and the great memory of the liberator Arminius and his family, we present to you the song Thumelicus, free for download, courtesy of the Flemish metal band Theudho – along with the old song Die Teutoburger Schlacht, composed by Joseph Viktor von Scheffel in 1847.

Download:
Theudho - Thumelicus.mp3
Traditional song - Die Teutoburger Schlacht.mp3