Arminius

"Quintili Vare, legiones redde! (Latin: Quintilius Varus, Give me back my legions!)"

- Augustus on the loss of the Roman legions at Teutoburg Forest

Arminius, also known as Armin or Hermann was a cheiftain of the German Cherusci. Arminius was born in 17 or 18 AD, and in his younger years was sent to Rome as a tribute, and actually attained Roman citizenship and even petty noble status, training to be a commander in the Roman Army. Arminius commanded a unit of Roman-Germanic reserves in the Balkans in 4 AD, but in 7 or 8 AD, he returned to Germany. In the fall of 9 AD, Rome sent a massive military force into Germania, planning bring the region under total Roman control. Knowing of this plan, Arminius hit the Romans exactly where their military tactics were weakest, in the dense Teutoburg forest. The Roman force under Quintilius Varus were marching along a sunken road in the woods, in the middle of rainstorm, when Germanic forces felled trees behind them, preventing escape. The Germans then hurled stones, darts, and javelins at the Roman soldiers from the forests above and to either side, before charging in with their swords and framea spears, slaughtering numerous Romans at close range and forcing the rest into a retreat that brought them directly into Germanic field fortifications prepared near Kalkriese Hill. The Romans were trapped between the fortifications and the pursuing force of Germans and slaughtered, three legions being completely wiped out and 16,000-20,000 men killed. Varus was not killed in battle, but committed suicide by falling on his sword when her realized defeat was certain. The few survivors, if any, were likely taken into slavery. The Romans later retaliated, defeating Arminius in major battles and recapturing two of Rome's legionary eagles, and Arminius became involved in inter-tribal conflict, being killed under mysterious circumstance in 21 AD. In spite of this, Roman Empire would never again attempt to make an attempt to establish a permanent presence in Germania west of the Rhine River.