The Roman Massacre Of Teutoburg Forest | Varian Disaster | Timeline

It was a catastrophe beyond the scope of imagination - an entire army of 20,000 men, slaughtered by barbarians. More incredible still, the perpetrators of this massacre were German tribesmen, a conquered people whose own leaders had long been 'Romanised' and were at this time merely regarded as harmless pacifists. But the Varus disaster, as it became known, became a defining moment in world history - a turning point in the fortunes of Rome - as it marked the high water mark of Roman expansion eastwards in Europe. So what had gone wrong? For in the midst of this catastrophe, it seems that the only thing the Roman leader Varus had done right was to fall on his sword when the outcome became inevitable. Using authoritative sources and detailed reconstruction, The Lost Legions Of Varus explores the flaws in Roman imperial policy, as well as the fralities of the human condition - factors both relevant in understanding the reasons behind the massacre in the Teutoberg forest. Tactics The series examines the tactics favoured by the Roman army. How, for example, could a technologically superior army have been drawn so readily into such an unknown and hostile territory of dense forest and marshes? The Opponents Who were these Germanic tribes, the Cherusci, Marsi, Chatti, Langobardi and Bructi? To the Roman mind, they were no more than an undisciplined rabble. In reality they were born fighters on terrain they knew well. Were the Romans in fact demolished by classic 'guerrilla tactics'? Blame Was the Roman legion's leader Varis to blame at all? The loss of so many soldiers could be attributed to either his military incompetence - he was more of a glorifies tax collector than a leader of men - or was it down to pure complacency on the part of his superiors in Rome? Conditions The Roman histories record torrential rain and thunderstorms devastating the forest at the point of the barbarian attack - evil portents for the Romans, yet good omens for the worshippers of Thor who confronted them. Arminius Finally, we look at the German leader: Arminius. Who was he and how did he manage to rally the different tribal factions and lead them to victory against the all-conquering Roman war-machine? For 13 years, Major Tony Clunn has painstakingly accumulated spectaular finds and new evidence, which leads to a compelling protrait of the last days of the legion of Varus. What he has found is that the loss of legions was a military disaster on a massive scale - a body blow to the might and aspirations of Imperial Rome.
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[@TimelineChannel]

"It's like Netflix, but for history documentaries" -----> Sign up to History Hit with code 'timeline' for a huge discount! bit.ly/3rs2w3k

[@chrisomega4529]

wow how time flys,glad to find somewhere to land

[@fabbat1713]

Netflix sucks

[@parabot2]

@Odysseus Netflix is owned by the Edward Bernays family ( Propaganda master ) and you think it is just entertainment

[@ckkjgc]

@@parabot2 Netflix is a publicly owned company. One of the cofounder’s great uncle was Edward Bernays. That is pretty thin stuff for any implied secret conspiracy. Besides, every media company on the planet uses Bernays’ principles of PR and propaganda.

[@parabot2]

@@ckkjgc Go watch it all you like if you do not grasp the social, political, economic and cultural power , shaping public opinion and trends that TV / media has that's all good and well . What secret conspiracy , it's right in your face on Netflix .

[@danielsass1826]

Interesting how slaughtering 20,000 roman soldiers is called a horrific betrayal but slaughtering 1 million gaul civilians is only remembered in terms of Cesar's glorious conquest

[@ikealamp53]

All of Gaul? No, one tiny little village withstood the Roman armies....

[@erictaylor5462]

Funny how the Republicans talk of fighting to take back what they lost one week, over turning a legal election, then talk about unity the next after their boy commits a major crime and gets 5 people killed..

[@mikehannigan848]

Crazy how strong a narrative truly is when it's repeated by the masses,poignant even in today's political climate,no?

[@lolypopNL]

Rooting for ones own side and diminishing the ''other'' is one of the longest existing practices in human history. Its just about following your culture's narrative. And if there is no concept of human rights then it becomes very easy to see how to a roman losing 20000 ''brave and glorious'' legionaries is a horrific betrayal while at the same time the deaths of a million gauls is only a small price to pay in order to bring civilization to the region and glory to Rome.

[@mechcavandy986]

@@erictaylor5462 I don’t want unity. I want to secede.

[@SimonAshworthWood]

I liked this documentary in general, but some of its claims are false. E.g. the claim that Germany was "lawless". They had laws, just not Roman ones.

[@2hot2handle65]

That's right. My favorite law is, when two men have a dispute over a woman, they would duel to the death, and the winner gets the girl. The same principle of trial by combat applied to murder trials -- if the accused died, he was guilty. Such elegant simplicity.

[@igorbt6706]

Exactly. This is similar when now Western powers claim that this or that countries are not "democratic". Of course will never be, each country base their government in their unique culture, resources, religions which can't be compared with the reach countries situation.

[@phantorang]

@@igorbt6706 Democracy is a word that has a meaning, if a nation has to redefine what democracy means to fit a certain narrative, then it's not democracy, it's a lie.

[@thorthelionkingodinson4385]

@John Smith You're a f****** dummy cuz you don't know anything about the Germanic tribes? They had laws that were more ancient than any in Rome or Greece. Have you not heard of The Thing ? Cuz obviously you don't know s*** about ancient Germans . As far as their treatment of other people they were not of the tribe and we're not Germans they did not matter they were treated Lawless Lee and when people like the Romans were coming around and try and enslave them in the exact tribute from them they got what they had coming to them in the teutoburg forest didn't they ? You should probably read a little bit of History before you call someone dummy about something when you're the dummy

[@54jb3r7]

"laws"

[@danieljob3184]

A hero is only ever as good as the villain he stands opposed to. It's a miracle he managed to keep the tribes together for a year after his victory, let alone a decade!

[@magielias9647]

You call that a victory. He’s own people turned on him and assassinated him. Then they turned on themselves to tribalism to slaughter one another.

[@arminiushermann09]

We Germans believe it's better to fight an fall then to live without hope. Perseverance is our German virtue.

[@sohndervenus]

Since 1945 we've become a shadow of ourselves. But I'm still hoping for a comeback ;)

[@laughsatchungus1461]

oh brother here we go again

[@laughsatchungus1461]

nationalism is a disease

[@tripfisk4246]

Following orders is something Germans are also obsessive about. My WW2 university professor told me that.

[@johnwilletts3984]

The ninth legion was based here in Britain during the first century. In AD71 they moved into my local city, then called Eboracum, now York. Sections of the Roman fort still survive above ground level. They were last seen in 1953! It’s York’s most famous ghost story. Under the medieval Treasures House is a cellar floored with the original Roman street surface. In 1953 a young man was installing a new heating system in the cellar, when he heard music, then claims he saw Roman Soldiers marching on the level of the Roman Street. The young man became a York police officer and stuck to his story for the rest of his life. It was the accuracy of his description along with his reputation that made the story into York’s most told.

[@OutnBacker]

I'm glad to hear the references to the forests. Europe north of the Rhine was still carpeted by old growth forest of mixes groves of both evergreen and deciduous trees. The film depicts the very densest areas of forest today, but it doesn't come close to what it would have been like 2000 years ago. The trees would have been much taller, blocking much of the daylight. They would have been much thicker and much fewer as well. Undergrowth would have been very thick where it grew, but many areas were too dark to sustain undergrowth. Being very wet, there were many areas of clearing that were falsely thought to be solid, when they would have been bogs and almost impassable. The Romans were every bit as superstitious as any people of the day, and they hated dense woods, with its daytime dimness and its rain. At night, they would have been pretty unsure of themselves. Add to that, the complete lack of decent roads and byways. All they had to march on were narrow dirt paths, often as narrow as possibly three men wide. It would have been a muddy, slippery, dank and dark passage for three legions that might have been stretched out some 45 miles, at least. A full Roman legion, with baggage train, marching six abreast on a good Roman road, would be 20 miles long. But in Germany, no wide open rally points, no way to communicate to the rear, no place to encamp properly. To a set piece army, dependent upon tight unit cohesion in battle, it was a disaster waiting to happen. Add to this, the Roman legionaries did not like fighting the Germans. They would have been on average three inches taller and 20 pounds heavier, and they used spears as their primary weapon in the initial melee. In the initial closing moments, the handed spear had the advantage over the gladius. And, they were ferocious. Over the course of several days, the thin snake-like line of troops would have been slowly isolated into groups that could not move to assist their comrades, and were cut to pieces in detail. The outcome was never in doubt.

[@OutnBacker]

@@Kozak806 I agree that this is German fluff-up. I doubt that the troops were routed, thought they probably knew they were doomed by the conditions you mentioned. The Romans were believers in Fate and were quite stoic in their martial outlook. They no doubt put a lot of hurt on the tribesmen in payment for their lives. In my comment above, I mistakenly wrote "legion" but meant "army", which would be several legions - most likely three or up to five. As to the length of a Roman army: it varied greatly, depending on the road being used, and on the suttlers and other followers that were in the train. We know that they usually marched in columns of six abreast, but only on paved roads of about 14ft wide. Those roads existed only in the vicinity of larger towns or smaller cities, then quickly narrowed to about 10ft, then to dirt, with a wide degree of conditions. The physics would have dictated a plodding inch-worm as each unit encountered the "merge" just like car traffic on a freeway. Wagons and less disciplined units would be slower yet. We have to put ourselves in that period, while keeping a thought to practical application of human and animal ergonomics. The Romans were excellent at logistics, probably the best that ever existed until the US Army in the American Civil War, but they weren't chess pieces, either. At some point - especially the Teutoborg disaster - we must speculate on the physical, natural and logistical disruptions that surely would have stretch out that Army - not just a legion - for who knows how long. I do give the cinematography high marks on the depiction of the narrow thin line of troops in most scenes, but the trees would have been much larger and the light less. There was probably only a few straight stretches of path and most of the road might have been running at the bottom of banks and along ravines. I have no trouble with seeing that army strung out at 45 miles in length.

[@El-sr1id]

@@Kozak806 Rome lost because she was greedy and didn't even know why she fought anymore. Not to mention being built on at least 5 million lost souls in those catacombs alone. Countless more empire wide. One cannot create and propagate such an eschewed way of being indefinitely. All unfair things come to an end eventually. The status quo always shifts. Rome was doing it for all the wrong reasons. The Germanics were doing it for more than just themselves or a Nation. Thier steam was going to run out eventually. And if not. Thier children's. Nothing lasts forever. The tide always shifts.

[@riccardo.pratesi]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Idistaviso As you can see the Romans did not forget ... moreover the victory is due to the fact that Arminius had been a Roman official, he knew well how and where to strike, it is certainly not due to the size of the Germans, in the open field they were almost always annihilated

[@OutnBacker]

@@riccardo.pratesi I will do my best to try to find the reference to the Romans' distaste for the northern perimeters of their conquered territories. Among the comments recorded were ones that spoke of the nature and barbaric practices of the natives there. It included references to the large size and ferocity of the Britons and Germanics. As I have written prior, we cannot assume that the average Roman soldier did not have trepidation about close combat with larger opponents who made a great commotion before battle to instill fear in enemy ranks. It probably worked as well as any large street rumble. As to the Romans being defeated at Teutoborg, you are correct. Hermann knew the Romans would be strung out along a narrow, dark forest path and unable to form up their tight, disciplined battle lines or be able to maneuver to assist their comrades in force. That would place the average Roman up against the average German in clusters of combat or individual combat, with the advantage going to the Germans because they fought as individuals. Roman troops were not trained as swordsmen in the traditional sense, but as a unit behind a mobile wall of shields, stabbing and holding ground, while switching out the front wall every few minutes. The gladius was not long enough to have prevailed on average against the longer Germaninc sword, or the spear, which was the primary weapon of the Germans. Slowly and steadily, the Romans were cut down. I doubt they tried to run away, but fought bravely but with increasing futility. There were likely many dead Germans as well. Yes, you are correct: The Roman army was almost unstoppable in open field battles, with horrendous results against other Roman armies.

[@martinwarner1178]

@@El-sr1id Yes, so true, and the.....has run of steam. Will be interesting to watch the fight.

[@ripadipaflipa4672]

As a child I worried about finding out all history had to offer but have been pleasantly surprised as we dig deeper around the globe we find more every day. Now I can’t wait for new finds because every decades we not only rewrite history we also find different ways and tools to search and learn where we came from and who we were.

[@valery668]

Jim Carter narrates so magisterially I feel like I am in graduate school. He adds a sense of dread to the descriptions of the Roman legions and their history. Terrific to watch!

[@oldwomanranting]

He was great as Varson 2. His voice and diction were impeccable.

[@mizofan]

Wait until Biggus Dickus hears of this

[@yugitrump435]

I already did

[@myrddingwynedd2751]

@@yugitrump435 LMAO 😂😂😂

[@goobfilmcast4239]

he will go home and complain to his wife, Incontentia Buttucs

[@krixpop]

@@goobfilmcast4239 tlow'im on the flo'

[@spideywhiplash]

🤣🤣🤣

[@hectorheathcote9495]

The Varus disaster is the best example of the insanity of affirmative action and nepotism. Put someone in a position of authority not on their skills, knowledge or experience, but on who they are and who they know can only lead to disaster.

[@BB-bp6vn]

Those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it

[@JohnSmith-ys4nl]

I don't know. Rome did pretty well utilizing this system. Most all of their emperors were sons or nephews or in-laws of the previous emperor (and often times instigated coups and murdered family members to take power). Of course, one could argue it was others who held the empire together and not the emperors.

[@davidsault9698]

Would YOU give 20,000 veteran troops, 3 Legions, to a competent general if you were Emperor of Rome? Remember Caesar.

[@54jb3r7]

To be fair, the majority of Rome's military disasters were by the hands of generals and emperors with military experience. I think it's a far better tale of Roman hubris.

[@billbrasky6827]

Agreed. The Trump administration is the perfect example of this. Hubris and incompetence.

[@nomdeguerre7265]

Rome lost almost 70,000 in one battle against Hannibal. The magnitude of the losses in Germany were far less. Yet in one case Rome quickly recovered. In the later it retrenched. The difference speaks more to the changing character of Rome than the magnitude of the disaster.

[@kevinmalone3210]

No matter how many battles the Romans lost, they never gave in and never up.

[@joefreeman9733]

Patrick Smith That's not exactly accurate as a summation. Following the loss of the 3 legions Tiberious was sent to Germany. He was a slow meticulous campaigner but he wreaked considerable havoc among the Germanic tribes involved with Arminious. Recalled to Rome to succeed a failing Augustus he then dispatched Germanicus. Germanicus was a risk taker and ravaged the Germanic tribes. Nevertheless his losses were heavy. And twice due to very heavy weather as the Roman's were withdrawing to winter quarters he lost considerable personnel and material. Tiberious advised of these matters and feeling that Germanicus was expending troops rather needlessly rather than relying upon divid e and conquer diplomacy and alliances with the more loyal and submissive tribes recalled Germanicus and gave him a triumph. Thereafter Romes policy followed the Tiberian pattern with success. Eventually Arminius was killed by other Germans. It could be argued that the Roman's did not follow the Carthaginian model of utter destruction of a foe or potential foe.. On the other hand Tiberious saw no gain for Rome absolutely crushing the Germanic tribes in a war of extermination which would be extremely costly. Additionally Rome had significant problems to the east with the Parthians which was significant since those people were raiding Roman territory and had effectively cut Armenia away from Rome and interfered with commerce via the Silk Road. In one w a y Tiberious was correct. There were no significant resources available in the forests of Germany. Weather terrain and the nature of the Germanic tribes would have made crushing then administering the reaches of Germania and the Baltics an extremely difficult and costly enterprise with no profit. Eventually 400 years later this region did furnish the barbarian hordes that eventually sacked Rome. However by this time Rome itself had degenerated to the point that it could no longer maintain the frontiers. Corruption the destruction of the middle class farmers political instability were the major factors that led to the fall of Rome.

[@nomdeguerre7265]

@@joefreeman9733 I agree my statement was a generalization, and possibly a bit over sweeping, but I still contend it illustrates fundamental change in the character of the Roman State. Thanks for the review, it’s pretty good. Expansionist states face new challenges when there’s no where else to expand. Gaining empire is one thing, maintaining one another. 👍

[@nomdeguerre7265]

@@joefreeman9733 By the way I found Germanicus approach in the east, prior to his demise , interesting in being different from that apprehended in Germania. Was he ‘learning’ or had he benefited from counsel? Or was it a matter of changing personal agenda? Or perhaps a bit of all… 🤔

[@jaimegutier273]

Rome lost 75% of its original population in the punic wars. They never recovered from that and had to replenish their forces with foreigners from the conquered provinces. By the time they were in Germanic Europe, their legions were composed mostly of Germanic mercenaries since no even Roman citizens were willing to join. After losing Teutoburg, the influx of mercenaries drastically decreased and Rome war machine died out of attrition.

[@MustafaBaabad]

I think it is more likely the terrain and the spirit of fighting. 1. The Germans were fighting for their survival and freedom, while the Romans were fighting for the salary and the promotion. 2. The Germans, were ordinary men with lack of battle field gears for protection. It looked like disadvantage, but actually it make them lighter and more agile on such muddy and dense terrain. While the Roman might have a lot of equipment, such as steel helmets, steel shields, and other gear that make it heavy and make them less agile. 3. The Roman would have very good training and discipline to fight on the open ground where they can form all sorts of formations that will be difficult to penetrate and conquer. Unfortunately, these kind of sophisticated formation became useless on the dense and muddy jungles. 4. The German were more familiar with the terrain and the plantation, thus they know what plantation can be safely consumed and make their logistic more efficient and reliable compared to the Romans. Cheers from Indonesia.

[@jonathanturek5846]

Impressive report.. Being born of 4 grandparents each born with last names of their families... Hurtgen Graur Schindler Turek .. In other words half of my family comes from the black Forest and other half from Norther Germanic coast ... Its cool to hear understanding of our culture from someome across the globe. Honored you took time to learn and share ! Aloha

[@jonathanturek5846]

The next time u enjoy a beer 🍺 just know i would be happy to have bought it for you. Something that goes back in my family from Black Forest was beer and taverns.. My grandma Graur calls it Cold Barley Soup.

[@MustafaBaabad]

@@jonathanturek5846 thank you very much Chief!!! May happiness always surround you!

[@kimqadir7543]

The novel - Give Me Back My Legions! by Harry Turtledove is wonderful and gets better the deeper you delve into it. It also provides great insight into Germanic Customs and the difficulty in uniting the Germanic Tribes to fight the Romans.

[@stevenwolfe7101]

This was the constant cry of the Roman Emperor (was it Augustus?) - "Give me back my legions, Varus." As usual, it is the winners who write the history.

[@ricktherock]

They made a short you tube video about that book.kzbin.info/www/bejne/moLaZapvjMyLmbM

[@nivvus13]

Harry Turtledove rocks

[@JackOpulski]

I'm glad they could add some archive footage of this event, and even the ones they've colorized look very faithful.

[@dickburt69]

Yes they're using the time machine I've created.

[@tinahedge5569]

Yea.......got more of that ganga your smoking dude?

[@bloodyeyeful]

Is that you Sleepy Joe?

[@StopFear]

What do you mean "the ones they've colorized look very faithful?" You mean there is some unique black and white footage that had to be seen? Why would they colorize it? We also have no idea what anything looked like in ancient times except general ideas.

[@JackOpulski]

@@StopFear Dude it was a joke

[@Sleepy1988]

I first saw this many years ago, but watching it again I’ve come to realize that it’s one of the creepiest documentaries I’ve ever seen. The scenes of the Roman soldiers going through a very dark forest with such primitive and unnerving music, only to find bones from the previous legions spread all over, I don’t think I’ve seen any scenes that are so fear-inducing in another historical documentary.

[@mcsmash4905]

the forest scenery is rather foreboding , and keep in mind alot of these forests were cut down in ages past and they have since grown obviously , but then again it probably looked just like this , dense and dark

[@johnosman8971]

Should go visit the concentration death camps of WW2, … just knowing that those places were where, literally millions had been killed, just because of being of a specific religion, … not something uncommon, if you have read any of the battles fought in the Old Testament, either, …

[@bennieknape4857]

Then you didn't watch the documentary on Vladimir blaz and paler blue these guys away 20000 human bodies and paled for a couple of miles it's so sickened the muslims that they turned around and left the ha yeah.

[@WhyYoutubeWhy]

@@bennieknape4857 He saved Europe.

[@jaimegutier273]

That was a good deterrence that kept them away. Also, the legions by that time were mostly composed of Germanic mercenaries.

[@PObermanns]

I've personally been to the site where the British Major found the amazing relics. Wow! And I've seen the death mask which is shown in this video.

[@Paul-uc8qj]

I would very much like to go where you did and see what you saw. Unfortunately, I am too old now to travel to Europe.

[@marciocorrea8531]

The Germans have beaten Roman legions once, then, later, invaded the Western Roman Empire, then started the Middle Age, then adopted all Roman things...law system, the eagle, the emperor´s title, part of Latin, etc., etc. Who conquered who in the long term...

[@williamegler8771]

The Eagle was important in Germanic folklore and religion long before contact with Rome. There have always been differences between lands that had been part of the Roman Empire and those of Germanic tribes. The Germanic peoples expanded throughout Europe and North Africa and became the dominant culture. The Middle Ages were dominated by the Holy Roman Empire and German speaking people were the the most important people in it. Rome absorbed majority of its culture from classical Greece and of course the Germanic peoples assimilated aspects of Roman culture but not all of it.

[@bighands69]

@@williamegler8771 Roman Culture developed separately from Greek culture. It did take influences from Greece and greater Europe but it was its owns culture.

[@kpl455]

That is true. A lot of the symbols and traditions of imperial Germany and even National Socialistic Germany built on the Roman heritage.

[@manfredamann137]

yes for the long run, Germans adopted Roman law and part of culture but only what was necesary. Bur Armin stoped the state of Rome

[@ismailmukooza2005]

The Romans did sO🤔👌

[@maracohen5930]

No wonder Germany has so many stories of haunted forests...

[@claudiamarianidamato9499]

mara cohen oh wow that’s interesting!! I’d love to see a video about that

[@ALSILVERU2]

Any youtube links?

[@weisthor0815]

read about hurtgen forest, where the americans suffered their biggest defeat in ww2. more americans perished there than in the whole vietnam war.

[@jduff59]

@@weisthor0815 That was a slaughter involving clueless generals and hapless GI's. Nice comparison - similar outcome, and completely unnecessary!

[@olafkardinal4080]

I live in Germany the Woods are hauntet . Hundreds of jears many armees of all Nations fight in Germany ! Come and i Show you! You will see👻👻👻 Buh

[@RenegadeSith]

This was a very thorough and interesting presentation. Well done!

[@desioye7782]

i am here for the soothing voices....gives me comfort.

[@tjjordan9715]

Needs more ads. Every seven seconds just doesn't cut it.

[@stephenmaudsley2484]

Adblock free

[@markmitchell450]

Drag the video to the end then hit replay ads dissappear it's not rocket science

[@wonderfalg]

Love how the ads are interrupted by some story.

[@dublintvcontent2023]

Brave Browser = sorted

[@El-sr1id]

I got none.

[@christosvoskresye]

It's good to know that areas that fell within the Roman Empire, like England and France, never experienced serious or long-standing conflicts with each other.

[@caninecarp6022]

christosvoskresye, Do I sense an air of sarcasm there dude?

[@wa1ufo]

Ha Ha!

[@abderrezakghozlane4427]

pretty much those areas were invaded by the very Germans that Rome lost control over sooo

[@mmhthree]

christosvoskresye LOL

[@AngelHaycock]

Lol. 😂

[@Radiounderground]

After their tremendous victory the tribesman invented the Mercedes-Benz and dark beer.

[@charlesbukowski9836]

and the Tiger tank

[@worfoz]

@@charlesbukowski9836 Yes but beer so who cares about that tank.

[@ParcelOfRogue]

@@worfoz Dunkel Beer

[@chatryna]

Such losers...right?

[@vivians9392]

@Saul Valdivia Yes, I love my little '05 VW Jetta war wagon! Still going into battle on the freeways of America daily!

[@dardalion3199]

I first learned of this battle while playing Rome:Total War back in 2004. This was a fun encounter to play. I think it was a part of the tutorial maybe or one of the first battles you get to fight.

[@zacht1217]

Yes I remember that haha what a great game

[@tedthesailor172]

It's interesting how history can be shaped by the ideas and actions of just a few individuals.

[@KamiRecca]

"for 2000 years europe was divided by war..." eeeh... War is and always has been a constant, its absence brief and sparse. Not only in europe, this is how the world is and always have been.

[@rexremedy1733]

KamiRecca no one wants it, but everybody needs it - war...

[@utubeape]

@resigned liberal no, the EU was formed because there are regional blocs formed as a precursor to One World Government, the people in power want to consolidate their gains and cut costs, keep themselves at the top

[@stockrex]

Yup the last 10minutes of this video is exactly why I don't watch TV anymore.. Propaganda piece lol.. first 20min was cool though :-D

[@MrSimondaniel3]

well Europe is no longer divided by war. Except in a small corner.

[@stockrex]

@@MrSimondaniel3 that's cause the second 30 years war. 1914 to 1945 was so devastating to the continent. After devastation the period that follows tend to be one of peace as. Everyone rebuilds and there is lack of tension due to it and major potential threats are external the United States and Soviet Russia.

[@rogersledz6793]

Thank you so much for uploading this video. It is helping me get through the pandemic!

[@fatboyd9319]

This was a great documentary! My first "TIMELINE" documentary, and definitely not my last!

[@tjstrong3607]

"People should know when they're conquered" 'Would you Quintus, would I"

[@skinnykarlos710]

You forgot the question mark at the end of your quote.

[@lasvegasloner4621]

@@skinnykarlos710 You forgot nobody looks for perfection in youtube commentary.

[@skinnykarlos710]

@@lasvegasloner4621 You're wrong. I do. It's not that difficult if you went to school.

[@AA-nx8ki]

Not quite even among the haughty do quit

[@shirleymental4189]

@@skinnykarlos710 Nope. I'd say it was a rhetorical question.

[@Paul-uc8qj]

If you want to read a great book on this Varus disaster, read: "The Quest for the Lost Roman Legions" by Tony Clunn. This British military officer was the amateur archeologist who discovered the definitive site of the Roman slaughter, near the town of Kalkriese in Germany.

[@tchirn]

While reading the book, read the book "Germanicus" who crushed the barbarians and Arminius afterwards.

[@davehubbard4285]

@Sic Semper Tyrannis III its unfortunate that bodicca didnt have the same success

[@markmitchell450]

@@davehubbard4285 she did until drawn into open ground

[@CH-ml4rz]

Thx, added to my list.

[@TheBlackfall234]

@@tchirn im pretty damn sure that after that varus disaster rome didnt try it a second time. Im pretty sure about that, i think you mix some things together here that are not correct.

[@ottosaxo]

Violent thunderstorms are pretty dramatic. But once the summer is over, they become real rarities in Northern Germany. "Storms" in autumn use to be gale force winds accompanied by rainy weather, a lot less scenic, but strong enough to fill the air with roar and to fell trees.

[@storytimewithunclebill1998]

Got a new subscriber. Very informative and fun to watch. Great video

[@kennykomodo2576]

To me it's just amazing that we've managed to make it this far

[@joemamma416]

maybe its not really that far.

[@ericwilliams2574]

Technology can advance with war and exploit. But, with war and exploit, and ingenuity, and curiosity; Humans will be Humans. We are an imperfect species.

[@worthyofdeath]

How much farther?

[@jpm7596]

He was more than an opportunist! Arminius was an excellent strategist and commander. Many lessons learned by all. Amazing history.

[@Stinks71126]

That was great until the very end. The price paid was well worth everything lost. The people fought their would be conquerors just as anyone would at any point in history. Great plan excellently executed.

[@rogerhwerner6997]

Well, yes well executed plan. The larger question really is what this plan accomplished? Was the accomplishment positive, negative, or neutral? I've often thought about this, in light of the subsequent 2,000 years. Perhaps what occurred after AD 9 was simply inevitable. What it proves is that 'freedom,' such as it may be, is a dangerous thing.

[@evanpetelle9744]

@@rogerhwerner6997 a spoon is dangerous. Simply depends on how you wield it.

[@JD-tn5lz]

Unfortunately no, it seems the producers of this show and other people of comfort would collaborate. Better to eat my own crumbs than your cake

[@thehunter9430]

Such a good documentary. One of my favorites 👍

[@randybugger1477]

Just subbed, first saw this on SBS Aus way back in I think, 2001; never learned anything about this in history in high school; funny how I've learnt more in the past 30yrs, then in the first 18yrs. Cheers.

[@Gesundheit888]

School is just the place to teach you to sit still and listen to the historical lies they tell, besides getting you ready to join the military because you graduate being trained for absolutely nothing. Everything you want to learn, you will learn on your own.

[@alexcollins3086]

You and me both bro. You and me both

[@johnrogers9481]

Right. You sure demonstrate that in your poor grammar.!

[@compassioncampaigner7697]

@@Gesundheit888 TRUE THAT! My kid was struggling and I leaned on the school to get him some help on how to study. They delivered.....zero

[@joanofarc33]

randy bugger The first 18 was the groundwork to teach you how to learn, how to think for the next 30. Didn’t anyone tell you that?

[@thomasmccullough2719]

So unbelievably interesting....thank you.....it must be haunting to stand in those ancient locations

[@graemecouch5010]

Im amagine finding the mass graves of those Roman soldiers & their armour ! Now that would be a find !

[@erikincph]

Probably no armour was left behind..metal was highly demanded at that time and was recycled…just as today

[@louise_rose]

Most of the POWs were sold as slaves among the Germanic tribes, or sacrificed during the victory celebrations

[@tomdavies241]

am sure there is plenty left to be found with a good metal detector

[@karlp8484]

For an empire to receive such a huge loss at the very peak of their power was unprecedented. Natural disasters can happen at any time, but military power was the bedrock of Roman society, its like Toyota winning the F1 Grand Prix. At Monza. The Roman empire took a very long time to decline, but it can be measured from this point.

[@Paul-uc8qj]

Yep, Pride before the Fall.

[@salvatore5553]

No it can’t , this literally occurred during the reign of Augustus, the first Roman emperor. Are you saying you can measure the decline of the empire from its very inception? Because that is quite absurd and untrue. Also the loss was not so bad in terms of troops actually lost.

[@Lioninthenight]

Wow. This was an excellent documentary. Went perfectly with my studies of Augustus and the beginnings of the Roman Empire. Thank you!

[@mb-sw8bk]

exellent?????

[@cylon1983]

Probably decades of success made the Romans too confident in their power and could not bring themselves to believe that 'barbarians' could defeat them. Lesson- never underestimate the enemy and always prepare for worse case scenarios.

[@RayB1656]

Exactly, the Romans were told not to attack the Visigoths ( Goths ) to leave them alone... they didn't listened... and later, they destroyed ROME ....

[@dennismckown4951]

being in a close knit forest, the legions couldn't form even the simple defensive formation, got slaughtered.

[@bluesingmusic3443]

Entertaining. I personally would have liked to seen more of the archeological aspect. Of course tell us about the battle, but to me the last few minutes were the best. Just my opinion.

[@Silvanafromchester]

Thank you for uploading this. My goodness ....if that isn't Carson the butler from Downton Abbey it must certainly be a gentleman who hails from the same part of England. Beautiful voice to listen to making a terrific documentary even more enjoyable. .

[@SandraS1397]

Thought the same thing.

[@johnroche7541]

@@SandraS1397 It is Carson the butler from Downtown Abbey. He also starred in " Legionare" with Jean Claude Van Dam.

[@alanaadams7440]

He has a perfect voice for this story

[@frankhuber9912]

My back yard is kinda like the Teutoberg Forest. It took the new meter reader a week to find his way out.

[@martgregory1077]

well atleast he found his way out

[@fredflinston41]

LMAO !!

[@SimonAshworthWood]

Was he ambushed by a German army?

[@frankhuber9912]

@Simon Wood No such luck for this poor fellow -- he was set upon by BLACKFLIES!

[@suzanneyoung6273]

Frank Huber: Love some of these comments. Yours is priceless. lol 😂😂

[@patricktheplumber5482]

The man is a hero for all Germans I’m very proud of him and my German heritage !

[@transporterIII]

Name your son "Arminius"

[@patricktheplumber5482]

@@transporterIII I wish i had !

[@cristinavuscan5610]

Well I guess he was not a "Hero" to all Germans. His own tribesmen poisoned him not long time after this. If only he knew...

[@patricktheplumber5482]

@@cristinavuscan5610 Some times the strongest men are surrounded by back stabbing cowards ! Just look what happened to Trump ! 🇺🇸 in either case I’m proud my ancestors fought the romans !

[@cristinavuscan5610]

@@patricktheplumber5482 Love your comment : "Some times the strongest men are surrounded by back stabbing cowards " so this means Arminius was a coward too right ? He did backstab his fellow soldiers with whom he fought side by side for years. I guess this is what it meas "Reap what you sow".

[@lindaterrell5535]

The colonists fought from behind a similar wall at Bunker’s Hill. When they built a similar wall on Dorchester Heights a Year later, and set up the cannon brought overland from Fort Ticonderoga, the British army left town. It’s celebrated as Evacuation Day.

[@quercus5398]

During their domination period, hundreds of thousand of legionnaires were lost in battles throughout the empire. However,the Romans would never quit when it came to settle defeats and territories,until under control. After defeats Under Hannibal and his Elephants,the Romans introduced the trumpets in battles to frighten the pachiderms out of positions and dominate the battle.The Roman army was a professional united fraternity........they might suffer an ambush occasionally, but the return fight would be much different, with improved preparations and weapons additions!

[@virgilius7036]

True! Britannicus avenged Teutoburg defeat, but the emperors did not continue the conquest of Germania!

[@michaelwackers6475]

Check my commentary! Typical sensational History TV/TV History! Ridiculously biased FAKE HISTORY!

[@jasondelrosario5523]

Like that comment of yours even matters? Man just stop. The Romans never conquered Germania. Period. Later, it was the Germans that destroyed Rome sending Rome to the Middle Ages. And right now, the most powerful nation in the whole world is built by people of Anglo-Saxon descent which is a Germanic ethnicity. They speak English which is a Germanic language.

[@ivanhajko2660]

@@jasondelrosario5523 Calling modern English a Germanic language is quite brave. It started as one but evolved so much that it is language of its own. Also I didn't read Michael comment but Timeline documentaries make often some of the most ridiculous claims. Like the one at the end that "if Germania would be heavily romanized.." where in fact it was heavily romanized.

[@jasondelrosario5523]

@@ivanhajko2660 LOL!!!! What fantasy land are you from?!! It is indeed true that the English language was mostly Anglo-Saxon! As for foreign influences, that's minimal and Anglo-Saxon English is still very much Anglo-Saxon and Germanic. And Germany was never Romanized! Modern Germans clearly speak a Germanic language. It was Charlemagne that conquered them. Not the Romans or the Byzantine empire. Charlemagne was Christian and Germanic. Not Roman or Greek. You're just obsessed with ancient Greece and ancient Rome because you're some hyper-nationalistic Westerner! Ewwww!!!

[@steveinthemountains8264]

They don't make 25-year-olds like Arminius anymore.

[@scottyfox6376]

Nope they don't. Ive seen people old enough to serve military duties literally break down in tears over the loss of WiFi. Ohhh the humanity & agony of injustice of it all, woe is me..🤓

[@tchirn]

Arminius and his barbarians were later crushed by the Romans and fled with what was left of his hordes and in so doing abandoned his pregnant wife to the Romans who treated her well and took her back to live in Italy for the rest of her life. .

[@paulstone3590]

Or a 20 year old like Alexander who created a empire by destroying a empire.

[@tinoir67]

@@tchirn bs

[@tinoir67]

@@tchirn bs

[@mohammedsaysrashid3587]

Nice video introducing this foundation matter with completely critical spirit with out Partial to any side thanks for sending

[@nateb7394]

My man at 23:03 going above and beyond in his role! Twitching his leg like there might be some life left in him!

[@llewev]

A bit too much is made of the Varus defeat. It was indeed a big disaster, but minor in comparison with other defeats, by the Parthians. Within a relatively short period, the Romans had defeated the same tribes and the leader of the rebellion was dead. The reason the empire did not advance into Germany was that the German society was too removed from the urbanisation that Rome built her empire upon. Even some they described as "barbarian" such as the Dacians, Southern British and Gauls had actually started to develop towns and had trading relationships with the Romans themselves. The German tribes did not. Tacitus tells us that they were pastoral people. There were few quick benefits that Roman conquest could deliver, so the urge to expand petered out, much as it did in Scotland and Ireland where similar conditions applied.

[@blablableh724]

Never underestimate your enemy.

[@anfrankogezamartincic1161]

All superpowers make that mistake out of hubris,arogance and ignorance

[@AwankO]

@@anfrankogezamartincic1161 The person leading the expedition should have never been leading, this was mainly his debacle.

[@redbird8867]

"...and never overestimate your friends."

[@anfrankogezamartincic1161]

@@AwankO his debacle but everybody else died too. Like in other wars where your "nobility" gave you right to be a general without military skills.

[@stoopingfalcon891]

When you teach your subjects how to use your own fighting techniques, is it any surprise that they use those to defeat you?

[@Rubytuesday1569]

Interesting stuff. I enjoyed it very much.

[@nodaknegan9111]

This is neat. Theres a video game called Son of Rome that takes place around this time. I think they were fighting the Celts and Woads at Hadrians Wall in that though.

[@Hellion73]

What dispair should have been for those legionaries, and common people, who survived the first attacks, but left lost and hunted in those "magical" dark forests, and then sacrificed to Wotan in horrific ways when captured. Thought about that since ever, and still gives me the chills🥺😞

[@davidlean1060]

I would say that was tough luck for joining the army, especially the army of a power hungry empire like Rome. Just deserts I'd call it.

[@paul52eccles]

Having served in Detmold for 4 years, under the shadow of Hermannsdenkmal, I knew bits of this history but it is always nice to get the 'bigger picture'. Fascinating

[@georgehays4900]

Really well done documentary.

[@monacopoloclub7321]

I loved the Documentary among the ads !

[@jduff59]

To say this was fascinating isn't fair - this is history turned on its head. I had no idea this happened, and it truly explains the divide in European history. I studied Roman history in school in the 1970's, and we never learned of this tragic event. Thanks for the eye-opener, and it appears as if there's more to come!

[@queenfubi]

I'm pretty sure Arminius was a royal hostage surrendered to Rome as the son of a germanic chieftan to ensure an arrangement was kept. Since royal hostages were treated really well Arminius was educated and trained as a Roman soldier.

[@stevehays6403]

queenfubi you are correct. He was a hostage. He joined the army, became a roman citizen and reached the title of equestrian. Went back to German as a adviser to legate (governor) of Germany -Varus. While being his right hand man he went around Germany making the plan to ambush legions.

[@CrazyMazapan]

But never lost his Germanic heart

[@dirkhallmann8941]

100% true, Greetz from the Teutoburg Forest🙋

[@Jean-Pierre-Villard]

".. hostages were treated really well " Not a reason to get Stockholm syndrome and became a traitor to hes Tribe/Family...

[@kwoltekublai3337]

@@Jean-Pierre-Villard Well it obviously worked in some cases, presumably taking Germanic hostages and integrating them into their army/society had been used to effect in the past, the practice would not have been proliferated if it did not consistently succeed in causing stockholm syndrome.

[@StefanHaasbroek]

nice to see the roman army being portrayed here as not just a vast sea of red, but the more diverse colored tunics and shields. small details like that gives a lot of credibility. Very good

[@thinman8621]

The history we didn't learn in school.

[@frank1fm634]

Thinman I've talked to teachers from Philadelphia and in their world history classes they never mention the Roman Empire.Rome was the world at that time.

[@zoutewand]

​@@frank1fm634 I live in northern Europe, next to where this happened. About a quarter of our history classes were about the Roman empire and we definitely learned about this event

[@robbie_]

Very interesting documentary. Thank you for sharing.

[@haroldasaleksa9427]

there no war crimes back then i imagine, only fight for surviving. Sure 20k slain soldiers is a grim picture, but i imagine for poor off barbarians it felt like they are doing "right thing" slaying rich soldiers with shinny armour. I imagine there are more blood on ancient roman hands than barbarians.

[@JohnSmith-ys4nl]

It was no big deal to kill everyone in battle, loot villages, take women and kids as slaves. It was done by Rome and pretty much everyone else. It seems "honor in warfare" is a much newer invention, at least in Eurasia.

[@Vini-zv3lr]

It was standard procedure. The romans later on did punitive campaigns in which they massacred fighting men and enslaved everyone else. Warfare in those days was pretty brutal.

[@bannedagain1483]

The only crime in war is losing.

[@photo161]

Fascinating..revelatory, The ink is barely dry on this unexpected chapter in the ever-evolving story of early European history even as new evidence of unforeseen developments is just now rising to the surface...

[@HebrewsElevenTwentyFive]

Fascinating!

[@jmieles1983]

Omg watched this episode last week, and the netflix gods gifted us a series on it, with superb acting and graphics

[@Chopan8809]

Are you talking about Barbarians?

[@jmieles1983]

@@Chopan8809 yea

[@johngalt1555]

Basically the German version of Braveheart, They even have their own version of William Wallace.

[@JosephGibson]

@john bloggs Yes but William Wallace did exist and fought the english.

[@aroutledge9565]

@@JosephGibson he was a French freemason fleeing the catholic church

[@fabm6724]

@@aroutledge9565 You have more info about this?

[@ringo1692]

@@aroutledge9565 I would also like to see any information that you could pass on to us!!! I've never heard anything about that and think it would be interesting to look into!

[@aldosigmann419]

@@JosephGibson So did Arminius and he fought for Germania - keep up.

[@bigbensarrowheadchannel2739]

This whole story has me completely captivated. The Roman cavalry mask is haunting.

[@jimkamradt8387]

Rome crucified people in order to put fear in the populous, who were the barbarians?

[@davidpowell3347]

Scots had their success against attempted Roman conquest also.

[@adrielanonymous]

@@davidpowell3347 is this the reason Hadrian wall was built?

[@davidpowell3347]

@@adrielanonymous I believe so

[@RonT222]

@@adrielanonymous Hadrian's Wall was meant for a variety of tribes that have harassed the Romans or immigrated into Roman territory.

[@RonT222]

@safari mang Only ones accepted were those educated by the Romans in an effort to gain control of areas in England and especially Germany. Imagine if Romans were successful with the Germanic tribes and gained access to the Asian Steppes.

[@222Lightning]

34.03 "even to mask fear" ...……..Good one!

[@ModelTrainOutsider]

This documentary is filled with so many egregious errors and misrepresentations, if not outright misinformation. First of all, it almost exclusive quotes Tacitus, who wrote nearly 90 years after the battle and stole much of his thoughts on two of the three primary sources (Marcellus and others) who wrote 30-40 years after the battle, and whose works are largely lost. The documentary claims that Romans were told to never forget the battle, when the opposite is true (hence so few records of it). Augustus did remember it yearly, but the Romans did everything they could to downplay the loss and forget it even happened. The defeat was quickly passed off as poor leadership by Varus, the victim of a smear campaign by his political enemies and arrogant Romans. Varus is suddenly listed as a greedy, non-experienced military leader. That was post-facto Roman propaganda put out by Marcellus, as Roman egos could not accept a loss to barbarians. Varus had actually successfully defeated rebellions in Syria and campaigns against descendants of the Scythians. Varus was a qualified leader, even if a political/familial appointment to Germania. Typical of SO many English historians, they love to take the Romans at their word, as though they would never cover up. lie, exaggerate, etc. They also portray the battle as occurring in the forest, which is not accurate. While some fleeing and extended fighting would span into the nearby woods, most of the fighting occurred along the road. What is not mentioned is the works of the Germanic tribes in creating a false expansion of the local Kalkriese hill and intentionally flooding the woods north of the road to narrow the marching path. It is also quite possible that Varus had been led to believe he was on another road (located south of the battlefield), which had been used by other Roman armies in their campaigns of 4-6 AD, of which none of the current legions had been involved. The Germanic tribes, led by Hermann/Arminius, were familiar with Roman marching and battle tactics and had intentionally constricted the area, forcing the Roman army to march in narrower, more congested lines which also took away the Legions' abilities to arrange proper defenses. As the army was so trained to react to such situations, even ambushes, out of specific order, being in non-familiar files made their famous cohesion and response defenses impossible. The battle lasted 3-6 days and Germanic Tribes outnumbered the Romans 4 or 5 to 1. Ambushing from the forest to the north and from false hillsides concealing them south of the narrow road caught the Romans in unfamiliar territory against unknown enemies while unable to align their defenses cohesively. It is not so much Varus's poor leadership, but the degree of planning and execution of Arminius. The only failure was that Varus had supposedly been warned by a Germanic tribal leader not in league with Arminius to not trust him, but Varus supposedly ignored the warnings based on Arminius's long history of service and valor to Rome. The final idiocy is the claim that this Roman defeat is the specific link to all the wars of Europe up through World War Two and beyond. Only the most ignorant "intellectual" could take the words of Tacitus and run so far off course with them.

[@mrdfac]

I agree Anthony. However let's face it, this was made for entertainment purposes for the consumption of non specialists. This is a work of drama, not history. Perhaps it may inspire some to pick up a real history book. If so, those readers are in for a treat. :)

[@stevestringer7351]

Anthony, thank you for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate your depth of knowledge.

[@Redbeardian]

Thanks for pointing out the Tacitus, Marcellus, etc information. Can you suggest some better written sources that are closer to the battle's time?

[@andrzejbeze5640]

The last sentence is exactly my thoughts. The people responsible for this production wanted to leave audience with assumption, that EU and other such organisations, is the best thing that happened to Europeans.

[@Chino-bk9fd]

Daaaaaaam chill bruh

[@Greg-fs8np]

This is a very informative and artfully done documentary. Just curious, does anybody know who the narrator is? He sounds like Jim Carter of Downton Abbey fame.

[@jay-sk7bl]

Enjoyed this but I’d like to see it longer

[@lesahenderson7365]

Die free or live as a slave. I admire the decision, in spite of a delayed "modern" existence.

[@rhondaclark716]

They hate us whites in Africa America. Every race hates us and everything is now racist. I want to go live in a white nation. But no money 💴

[@robben8356]

@@rhondaclark716 Despite being from the other side of the globe, I do understand how the world works and I can sympathize with you regarding how "whites" are being treated in your nation. Modern society has a twisted idea that power/majority equals evil. So "whites" being the majority and more developed and financially able, makes you intrinsically "oppressive" against "blacks". It is the same with other social relationships. Christianity is hated, while other religions are tolerated. Men are abusers while women are victims. Parents too are abusers while children are victims. Same with teachers and students; or employers and employees. The one which is greater or older is usually oppressed deceitfully by the lesser one. I mean to say don't take this as a purely race issue. It is not at the root simply a hatred of "whites". It is a hatred of God manifesting in different ways. God bless.

[@delilahmills7192]

Since ancient history was generally written by the victors, its not surprising that the focus is so distinctly roman, however, the attempted correlation between this massacre and the world wars is absolutely ludicrous, there is no comparison.

[@Gesundheit888]

Ancient history as well as modern history is always written by the winners. That is fact. But this documentary was not written by anyone other than the person who had an interest in making it appear a certain way. Very little facts and much theatrics.

[@a.salmon8193]

@@Gesundheit888 agreed.

[@surandissidus3243]

@@Gesundheit888 Well except the losers (the romans) wrote about their loss in the territory now called germany. Not the germanic tribes who had no historical recordings at this time.

[@ingridclare7411]

I agree, this doco is full of toxic EU propaganda

[@couespursuit7350]

Unfortunately PRES Wilson was unable to derail the Franco/Anglo punitive terms imposed on Germany post WWI. That is what lead to WWII. The EROU Union is and idea to unify Europe and prevent further war. Europe was doing quite fine after the Marshal plan (thank God USA got to call the shots on post war terms) and everyone was getting along. The EU has injected tensions where there were none before. Academics trying to fix an old problem that no longer existed and now created a new problem.

[@benjaminrush4443]

Excellent ! Thank you.

[@chris.asi_romeo]

Love watching documentaries like this

[@yuwan]

It’s admirable for the Roman army risked their lives to return to the battle field and buried the dead. This is called civilisation.

[@theflame5919]

It was not done, out of humanity or even to make a point for the Germans. It was done, for same reasons any government throughout history hides evidence of it's failures. To burry the disaster in collective memories of the Romans, and to cover for loss of prestige. Where those legions, auxilia or provincial legions under command of less politically connected general, those bones would have been left to rot.

[@NoBootyBeauty]

Oh REALLY? Yu Wan you are an idiot, and should be embarrassed in your ignorance. Civility is living a peaceful life, not travelling to other's countries to kill and rule and enslave and oppress. Keep your stupid stupid comments to yourself, my friend, and not share your unworthy opinions in public.

[@charlesrast4235]

I agree

[@franciscoandaluz5265]

Yu Wan very true!

[@Paul-uc8qj]

Yes, but mainly there was the Roman desire for revenge and punishment. The German tribes suffered horribly as the Romans exacted their revenge. The Germans had a new forest created in their lands, that of crosses for men, women , and children of the rebellious tribes. However, the Romans never tried again to "civilize' the Germans east of the Rhine.

[@bradwalton3977]

The Romans were not interested in territory for the sake of territory, they were interested in wealth and power. The key to wealth and power is a sustainable economic model, and Roman conquests were nearly all focused on economics in some fashion. All conquests were attempts to find a good return on investment in the form of tribute and production, so they got their hands on the richest and most productive land - but didn’t bother with the parts that were too expensive to garrison and hold down with little promise of profit, like Scotland, Ireland, and Germany. The parts of Germany that were potentially profitable, the Romans did indeed colonize. Many cities in the southwest of Germany and along the Rhine have Roman roots, like Trier, Aachen, or most especially Cologne, whose name comes from Latin - Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium. Meanwhile they did try to colonize the rest of Germany on the cheap by trying to co-opt Germanic tribal leaders, including Arminius - only to have Arminius (also known as Hermann the Cherusker) turn on them and use his insider knowledge of their tactics gained as a former Roman hostage and later Roman citizen to destroy three legions under Quintillus Varus at the battle of the Teutoburg Forest. That shocking defeat for the Romans made them decide, not that Germany was unconquerable, but that there was little point in expanding further into Germany - the land was not terribly valuable (much of the north was little more than swampland), there were few if any natural resources they couldn’t get elsewhere, and the weather was cold and rainy, which all meant that there was little hope of making much profit. At the same time, the obviously hostile natives would make the cost of holding that land too high to bother. So they simply didn’t, and instead sowed discord amongst the German tribes as long as they could to distract them, but there was nothing in it for them to invade and conquer such a useless territory.

[@planetstupider502]

@Voracious Reader so everyone who makes a comment, they have to back it up with a list of references? Are you a lawyer or publisher.? Your asking for a bit too much here. The guy makes sense. You don't waste your precious time and resources for something that brings very little in return.

[@JohnWick-qr4yc]

So in short divide and conquer

[@rhrful]

History proves that fact is far superior to fiction. A fascinating documentary.

[@aka99]

you may enjoy a video about a battle the romans won in central germania in 235 ad. look here m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/l3rJhoCQgZJ7b5o if you think it is a trap or a fraud, search in youtube for how a horseshoe led archaeologists to romes most distant battlefield by channel toldinstone

[@fathimafarzana6091]

The Germans did not loose the saved their languages and therir way of life, they saved themselves the fate of the Celts

[@MWcrazyhorse]

That's why the Beast hates us to this day.

[@MrBusinessAsUsual]

I don't agree with this. I think the idea that had Germany been made a province it would have become another France is dubious at best. The reason why Spain, southern France or Northern Africa (ex-Carthage) saw an influx of Roman colonists and became thoroughly romanized as a result was the fact they were mediterranean countries where Romans could lead the way of life they were used to from Italy - above all I would mention that they could support two agricultural commodities Romans loved above all, the wine and olives. Austria was occupied by the Romans, as was Britain, and neither became new France or Spain, as they weren't as attractive for permanent settlement to people accustomed to life in Italy and places that resembled Italy, and neither would have been Germany which is was more nothern than France.

[@raka522]

The résumé that the Germans lost their connection to the Roman world through this battle they won and that Europe should somehow be split up to this day is kind of nonsense ;-) After all, it was Germanic tribes who founded the Western countries of Europe after the fall of Rome and continued the Roman traditions in the Holy Roman Empire of German nations.

[@bobsradio6025]

"The Holy roman Empire of German nations" failed. One of the greatest Germans that ever lived was Martin Luthor. After several attempts to convince the Catholic Church that many of their traditions and doctrines were in direct conflict with the Holy Bible, he had to found one of the first protestant churches, the Lutheran Church. As a result most of Northern Europe became protestant and enjoyed an economy based society, whereas Southern Europe remained Catholic and suffered because of it.

[@Biljoona]

The opening is just fantastic.

[@Greggee100]

12:48 truth is what is known when reality is what one learns. One will always judge a story by the chapter they choose 2 impose when one's will is greater than their words.

[@alexanderSydneyOz]

I am thinking the claim that modern European conflict can be 'traced to the Varian disaster', might be a bit of an over-reach.

[@user-hd1qx2bd1r]

Not really Alexander, at that time Rome had never lost a real battle in 400 years, so losing 20,000 (that's a lot of bodies) of the finest 400 year old War machine, astounded everybody in Europe, news travelled like wild fire. Rome was weak and beatable finally! All countries fed on it and got involved.

[@Lucky-nv2ph]

Documentary was trash. 3 years later Germanicus came with some legions and annihilated the Germans.

[@alexanderSydneyOz]

@@user-hd1qx2bd1r that maybe so but it does not in any way address what I said. It is only one sentence and it's meaning is pretty clear.

[@user-hd1qx2bd1r]

@@Lucky-nv2ph But then Luke everybody in Germany knew Rome was beatable and it was on everybody's mind until they did finally fight them out. Same thing with the British in America, the Americans lost lots of battles, but they fought back and kept winning lots of little ones, hanging in there just barely until the tide started to turn slowly in their favour. And then finally right out. Same same.

[@MarkAndersonMortgage]

I always thought Carson, from Downton Abbey, would make an excellent narrator!

[@spiritualanarchist8162]

Every documentary about the Roman empire seems to attract simplified comments on how evil the Romans where, and how noble those nations they occupied or destroyed. One can not judge a civilization that existed millennia ago , with our modern day ethics. The Greek and Macedonians where no harp playing, hippies, The Germanic tribes where no 'new age' vegetarians, etc,etc. it was brutal time, when a life was cheap. The best and smartest build their civilization, by taking over other powers who wished to do the same. .In this case it was Rome.that lasted for centuries before it fell.And when it fell, it took centuries for the chaos of their former territory to be restored. Beside all the gruesome and cruel things the roman things did, they also brought a certain peace and liberty of religion, commerce, etc,etc, As long as people not revolted and payed taxes life was relatively good.

[@gamercornelius348]

I see Rome as a civilizing force. They were in no way bad.

[@nickiseb8910]

Well..the Franks, germanic people , living in the Netherlands and Belgium took the shop over and Rome was finished.

[@ToxicallyMasculinelol]

life was relatively good for whom? don't forget the romans also took massive numbers of slaves from the european tribes they subjugated.

[@sniperelite647]

Coretta Hattereaux If romans haven't been exsisted, your language, your nation wouldn't exist niw

[@sniperelite647]

Toxically Masculine All the ancient civilizations did slaves...

[@user-rp1vu1gk5u]

cant seem to find this answer. how many lines approx did the romans have marching through the forrest? 5 or so?

[@andyrbush]

After a short while the jumbled and overlapping images become almost nauseous and really unpleasant to try and watch until I had to give up and turn it off. Pity the spoil a fascinating narrative with that.

[@michaeltaylor8835]

we never learned interesting stuff like this at school

[@josephbohme7917]

You went to a school with small classRomes, no time for Teachacus.

[@user-ul7pd7vf1l]

school is not there to learn but to indoctrinate

[@permrussiatoday]

Because too much of the curriculum is stuffed with nonsense

[@bighands69]

None of the video is true.

[@michaeltaylor8835]

@Pilot almike i was educated in Rolhidesia now Zimbabwe under a British system of education. We did european history up to ww1. Totally useless. Just learned parrot fashion. Totally useless in furure life

[@DJ-tt7tq]

Fascinating. I've always been very interested in this battle.

[@phantorang]

Wasn't much of a battle it sounds like, just a slow massacre.

[@DJ-tt7tq]

Still fascinated by it

[@devinrivers5808]

@@phantorang You’re right, basically guerilla warfare

[@robertcasey966]

I have been to hermans denkmal ... next to detmold in Germany.... it was amazing

[@apricus3155]

36:19 a bottle neck!( "trichter" is a "funnel" in English. But I think we say bottle neck in such occasions. "A narrow section of road or a junction that impedes traffic flow.")

[@erikarichards528]

How brave those Romans were to go into hostile territory to pay their fellow countrymen last respect.

[@allninelivez7631]

Stolen comment.

[@void1968able]

no, they wanted to hide the traces of their defeat.

[@arthursimsa9005]

They were there to collect taxes, lol

[@MrStehooper]

Did he check down the sofa? I'm always losing my legions there.

[@lukybell3693]

🤣🤣🤣

[@andrewriscart8244]

😂😁

[@thephantomflanflinger1108]

Or behind the fridge. Its amazing what you find there!

[@johnsxn661]

😂

[@Exedus20]

You mean your legos?

[@eddieomahony507]

Excellent video thanks