LXI.
Igitur cupido Caesarem invadit solvendi suprema militibus ducique, permoto ad miserationem omni qui aderat exercitu ob propinquos, amicos, denique ob casus bellorum et sortem hominum. praemisso Caecina ut occulta saltuum scrutaretur pontesque et aggeres umido paludum et fallacibus campis inponeret, incedunt maestos locos visuque ac memoria deformis. prima Vari castra lato ambitu et dimensis principiis trium legionum manus ostentabant; dein semiruto vallo, humili fossa accisae iam reliquiae consedisse intellegebantur: medio campi albentia ossa, ut fugerant, ut restiterant, disiecta vel aggerata. adiacebant fragmina telorum equorumque artus, simul truncis arborum antefixa ora. Iucis propinquis barbarae arae, apud quas tribunos ac primorum ordinum centuriones mactaverant. et cladis eius superstites, pugnam aut vincula elapsi, referebant hic cecidisse legatos, illic raptas aquilas; primum ubi vulnus Varo adactum, ubi infelici dextera et suo ictu mortem invenerit; quo tribunali contionatus Arminius, quot patibula captivis, quae scrobes, utque signis et aquilis per superbiam inluserit.
61.
Germanicus, therefore, felt the desire to render the last honors to the fallen troops and their leader. The entire army was in attendance and all were moved to pity at the thought of relatives and friends and ultimately of the chances of war and of the destinies of men. Caecina was sent ahead to survey the dark recesses of the forests, build bridges and elevated roads over the waters of the swamps and the insidious terrain of the plains. As the army advanced through these forlorn lands, sinister both for their aspect and their mournful memories, they reached Varus’ initial camp, the work of the three legions, judging from the amplitude of the emplacement and the dimensions of the general’s quarters. Further on, by the partly destroyed rampart and the shallow ditch they understood where the Roman forces, already much reduced in numbers and strength, had made their last stand. In the open plain beyond whitened bones, scattered or grouped together, according as men died while fleeing or resisting. Near them the fragments of arms, the limbs of horses, skulls pinned to the trunks of trees and in the surrounding woods, primitive altars at which the Germans had sacrificed the tribunes and the senior centurions. The survivors of the disaster, who had escaped from the battle or from confinement, showed where the legates had fallen, where the eagles had been snatched away by the enemy, where Varus had received the first injury, and where the unlucky man had found death from a self-inflicted blow. They pointed out the high ground from which Arminius had urged his men to battle, the many gallows and pits he made ready for the captured, and how in his insolence he vilified the eagles and the standards.
LXII.
Igitur Romanus qui aderat exercitus sextum post: cladis annum trium legionum ossa, nullo noscente alienas reliquias an suorum humo tegeret, omnis ut coniunctos, ut consanguineos, aucta in hostem ira, maesti simul et infensi condebant. primum extruendo tumulo caespitem Caesar posuit, gratissimo munere in defunctos et praesentibus doloris socius. quod Tiberio haud probatum, seu cuncta Germanici in deterius trahenti, sive exercitum imagine caesorum insepultorumque tardatum ad proelia et formidolosiorem hostium credebat; neque imperatorem auguratu et vetustissimis caerimoniis praeditum adtrectare feralia debuisse.
62.
Thus, six years after that great debacle a Roman army was on hand to bury the remains of three legions, no one knowing whether he was covering with earth the bones of strangers or of dear ones: they treated all as relatives and kinsmen, while in their hearts anger grew against the enemy, at once sorrowful and eager for revenge. Germanicus placed the first turf to build the funeral mound, a noble gesture in honor of the dead, in communion with the grieving of all those present. The act did not meet with Tiberius’ approval, either because he took a negative view of everything Germanicus did, or he felt that the spectacle of the unburied dead would dampen the impetuosity of the soldiers, make them more afraid of the enemy, and also that a general, in his role as augur, invested with the most ancient sacerdotal attributes, had the duty to avoid officiating at funeral rites.
LXIII.
Sed Germanicus cedentem in avia Arminium secutus, ubi primum copia fuit, evehi equites campumque quem hostis insederat eripi iubet. Arminius colligi suos et propinquare silvis monitos vertit repente: mox signum prorumpendi dedit iis quos per saltus occultaverat. tunc nova acie turbatus eques, missaeque subsidiariae cohortes et fugientium agmine impulsae auxerant consternationem; trudebanturque in paludem gnaram vincentibus, iniquam nesciis, ni Caesar productas legiones instruxisset: inde hostibus terror, fiducia militi; et manibus aequis abscessum. mox reducto ad Amisiam exercitu legiones classe, ut advexerat, reportat; pars equitum litore Oceani petere Rhenum iussa; Caecina, qui suum militem ducebat, monitus, quamquam notis itineribus regrederetur, pontes longos quam maturrime superare. angustus is trames vastas inter paludes et quondam a L. Domitio aggeratus, cetera limosa, tenacia gravi caeno aut rivis incerta erant; circum silvae paulatim adclives, quas tum Arminius inplevit, compendiis viarum et cito agmine onustum sarcinis armisque militem cum antevenisset. Caecinae dubitanti quonam modo ruptos vetustate pontes reponeret simulque propulsaret hostem, castra metari in loco placuit, ut opus et alii proelium inciperent.
63.
Germanicus, at any rate, pursued Arminius during his retreat into trackless regions and, as soon as he had a chance, sent the cavalry at full gallop to clear the plain where the enemy had taken up position. Arminius first directed his men to close ranks and to fall back towards the forests, then of a sudden had them execute an about-face and soon after gave the signal to those hidden in the forests to spring to the attack. The cavalry was thrown into disorder by the unexpected new force facing them; the cohorts sent up in support and their collision with the squadrons in hasty retreat added to the confusion, and all would have been driven towards a swamp, well known to the victorious Germans, but fatally dangerous to the Romans, unfamiliar with the place, had not Caesar led forwards the legions, ready for battle. Panic now spread among the enemy and confidence returned to our troops, so that the clash ended in a draw and both sides parted company. The army soon returned to the Amisia river and the legions were taken back by ship the same way they had come; part of the cavalry was told to reach the Rhine by following the coast. Caecina, who commanded his part of the army, though he would be following a path familiar to him on the return journey, was advised to cross as quickly as possible the Long Bridges, a passage across vast swamps on a narrow bank built in the past by Lucius Domitius, the rest being muddy, gluey clay, treacherous on account of the many rivulets, with forests beyond extending all around over gently rising terrain. Arminius just then filled those forests with his men, having preceded the Romans, burdened by baggage and weapons, by using shortcuts and forced marches. Caecina, uncertain how to repair the damaged bridges and front the enemy at the same time, decided to set up camp on the spot, so that the larger part of the men would do the work, and the rest the fighting.
LXIV.
Barbari perfringere stationes seque inferre munitoribus nisi lacessunt, circumgrediuntur, occursant: miscetur operantium bellantiumque clamor. et cuncta pariter Romanis adversa, locus uligine profunda, idem ad gradum instabilis, procedentibus lubricus, corpora gravia loricis; neque librare pila inter undas poterant. contra Cheruscis sueta apud paludes proelia, procera membra, hastae ingentes ad vulnera facienda quamvis procul. nox demum inclinantis iam legiones adversae pugnae exemit. Germani ob prospera indefessi, ne tum quidem sumpta quiete, quantum aquarum circum surgentibus iugis oritur vertere in subiecta, mersaque humo et obruto quod effectum operis duplicatus militi labor. quadragesimum id stipendium Caecina parendi aut imperitandi habebat, secundarum ambiguarumque rerum sciens eoque interritus. igitur futura volvens non aliud repperit quam ut hostem silvis coerceret, donec saucii quantumque gravioris agminis anteirent; nam medio montium et paludum porrigebatur planities, quae tenuem aciem pateretur. deliguntur legiones quinta dextro lateri, unetvicesima in laevum, primani ducendum ad agmen, vicesimanus adversum secuturos.
64.
The barbarians, in their effort to break through the defensive line and pounce on the men at work, tried harassment, encirclement, and direct attacks. The shouts of both the workers and of the combatants mingled in one huge uproar. Everything was equally against the Romans: the deep mud of the place, at once giving way under their feet and slippery if they moved, the burden of their armor, the water preventing them, half submerged, from taking proper aim. The Cherusci, on the other side, were practiced in doing battle in swamps and, being taller, used their enormous spears with deadly accuracy, even from afar. The night finally subtracted the Roman legions, already weakened, from a fight turning ugly for them. The Germans, rendered indefatigable by success and not taking time to rest, channeled towards the lower ground all the waters that flowed down from the surrounding heights. The terrain now being flooded and the repair work ruined, the soldiers had to face a labor twice as heavy. Caecina, with forty years of service behind him, both as subaltern and later as commander, having known both successes and adverse situations, was not in the least disheartened. Weighing his next move, therefore, he found no better plan than to force the assailants to remain within the forest, until the wounded and the part of the column with the heaviest loads had moved past the critical spot. In fact, right in the middle between the swamps and the heights stretched a narrow band of level ground that might permit the deployment of a thin line of attack. Each legion was assigned a position: to the Fifth was given the right flank, the Twenty-first the left, the First the van, and the Twentieth the defense from pursuers.
LXV.
Nox per diversa inquies, cum barbari festis epulis, laeto cantu aut truci sonore subiecta vallium ac resultantis saltus complerent, apud Romanos invalidi ignes, interruptae voces, atque ipsi passim adiacerent vallo, oberrarent tentoriis, insomnes magis quam pervigiles. ducemque terruit dira quies: nam Quintilium Varum sanguine oblitum et paludibus emersum cernere et audire visus est velut vocantem, non tamen obsecutus et manum intendentis reppulisse. coepta luce missae in latera legiones, metu an contumacia, locum deseruere, capto propere campo umentia ultra. neque tamen Arminius quamquam libero incursu statim prorupit: sed ut haesere caeno fossisque impedimenta, turbati circum milites, incertus signorum ordo, utque tali in tempore sibi quisque properus et lentae adversum imperia aures, inrumpere Germanos iubet, clamitans ‘en Varus eodemque iterum fato vinctae legiones!’ simul haec et cum delectis scindit agmen equisque maxime vulnera ingerit. illi sanguine suo et lubrico paludum lapsantes excussis rectoribus disicere obvios, proterere iacentis. plurimus circa aquilas labor, quae neque ferri adversum ingruentia tela neque figi limosa humo poterant. Caecina dum sustentat aciem, suffosso equo delapsus circumveniebatur, ni prima legio sese opposuisset. iuvit hostium aviditas, omissa caede praedam sectantium, enisaeque legiones vesperascente die in aperta et solida. neque is miseriarum finis. struendum vallum, petendus agger, amissa magna ex parte per quae egeritur humus aut exciditur caespes; non tentoria manipulis, non fomenta sauciis; infectos caeno aut cruore cibos dividentes funestas tenebras et tot hominum milibus unum iam reliquum diem lamentabantur.
65.
Neither side slept that night for opposite reasons: the Germans filled the low-lying valleys and the echoing forests with their carousing, festive songs, and savage clamor. Among the Romans, mournful fires, halting talk; the men lay dispersedly near the vallum or moved among the tents, sleepless rather than vigilant. An ominous dream terrified Caecina: it seemed to him that he saw Quintilius Varus emerging from the swamps covered in blood and heard his voice as if calling out to him. He, however, did not follow and even refused the hand Varus was offering. At first light he sends the legions to take position on the wings, but these, either from fear or from wilful breach of discipline, abandoned their posts and ran instead to occupy the strip of land beyond the swamp. Fortunately, Arminius, though he had safe approach, did not attack at once, but as he saw the baggage waggons stuck in the muddy holes, the commotion of men around them, the disordered succession of Roman units — as happens in such cases when everyone looks out for himself and ears are deaf to commands – he gave the signal to rush to the attack, at the same time shouting that there they had Varus and, by the same fate, the legions in their hands again! With his best men he at once broke through the column, aiming his strikes at the horses before all else. These, sliding in their own blood and in the mud of the swamps, threw their riders, swept away anyone in their path and trod underfoot those on the ground. The disarray was greatest around the eagles, which could neither be carried forward, under the hail of darts, nor be planted in the gooey soil. Caecina, intent on encouraging his men, had his horse killed under him; forced to the ground, he was being surrounded had the First legion not rescued him. What ultimately helped our side was the avidity of the enemy: they left fighting and gave themselves up to plundering. Towards evening, the legions managed to reach more open and solid ground, though that was not the end of their misery: a rampart had to be erected, material for the embankment had to be found, but most of the tools with which to dig earth and cut sod had gone lost; there were no tents for the men, no medicine for the wounded. Dividing the scanty food among themselves, splattered with blood and mud, they now grieved over the funereal dusk presaging the end of so many thousands of men on the morrow.
LXVI.
Forte equus abruptis vinculis vagus et clamore territus quosdam occurrentium obturbavit. tanta inde consternatio inrupisse Germanos credentium ut cuncti ruerent ad portas, quarum decumana maxime petebatur, aversa hosti et fugientibus tutior. Caecina comperto vanam esse formidinem, cum tamen neque auctoritate neque precibus, ne manu quidem obsistere aut retinere militem quiret, proiectus in limine portae miseratione demum, quia per corpus legati eundum erat, clausit viam: simul tribuni et centuriones falsum pavorem esse docuerunt.
66.
As chance would have it, a horse broke loose in the camp and, terrified by the confused noise, was running down anyone attempting to restrain it. Such a great commotion ensued (many thought the Germans had stormed the camp), that all rushed towards the gates, especially the decuman gate, farthest from the enemy, hence safest to those fleeing. Caecina saw there was no reason for the hubbub, yet he could not stop the soldiers, let alone bring them back, by using his authority, entreaties, or even force. So, he threw himself on the ground across the gate and in the end blocked the passage by rousing their pity, for the soldiers would not dare pass over the body of their legate to run out of camp. Meanwhile the tribunes and the centurions went around explaining it was nothing but a false alarm.
LXVII.
Tunc contractos in principia iussosque dicta cum silentio accipere temporis ac necessitatis monet. unam in armis salutem, sed ea consilio temperanda manendumque intra vallum, donec expugnandi hostis spe propius succederent; mox undique erumpendum: illa eruptione ad Rhenum perveniri. quod si fugerent, pluris silvas, profundas magis paludes, saevitiam hostium superesse; at victoribus decus gloriam. quae domi cara, quae in castris honesta, memorat; reticuit de adversis. equos dehinc, orsus a suis, legatorum tribunorumque nulla ambitione fortissimo cuique bellatori tradit, ut hi, mox pedes in hostem invaderent.
67.
Some time later, Caecina held an assembly of the legions in the general’s quarters and told the audience to listen to him in silence. He warned that their situation was serious and that safety was only to be secured by force of arms. Yet they were to use force in an intelligent way by staying inside the rampart until the enemy would come closer in the hope of carrying the camp by storm. That would be the moment to burst out from every side: that sudden outbreak would open the way to the Rhine for them. If instead they tried to flee, they would face more forests, deeper swamps, and the savagery of the enemy. Besides, if they prevailed, glory and acclaim would be awaiting them. He reminded his troops of all that was dear to them at home and of their honor as soldiers, but he made no reference to the reverses they had just suffered. Next, without any preference, he assigned horses, beginning with his own and those of the legates and tribunes, to the most gallant of his men, who were to spearhead the attack, followed by the infantry.
LXVIII.
Haud minus inquies Cermanus spe, cupidine et diversis ducum sententiis agebat, Arminio sinerent egredi egressosque rursum per umida et inpedita circumvenirent suadente, atrociora Inguiomero et laeta barbaris, ut vallum armis ambirent: promptam expugnationem, plures captivos, incorruptam praedam fore. igitur orta die proruunt fossas, iniciunt cratis, summa valli prensant, raro super milite et quasi ob metum defixo. postquam haesere munimentis, datur cohortibus signum cornuaque ac tubae concinuere. exim clamore et impetu tergis Germanorum circumfunduntur, exprobrantes non hic silvas nec paludes, sed aequis locis aequos deos. hosti facile excidium et paucos ac semermos cogitanti sonus tubarum, fulgor armorum, quanto inopina tanto maiora offunduntur, cadebantque, ut rebus secundis avidi, ita adversis incauti. Arminius integer, Inguiomerus post grave vulnus pugnam deseruere: vulgus trucidatum est, donec ira et dies permansit. nocte demum reversae legiones, quamvis plus vulnerum, eadem ciborum egestas fatigaret, vim sanitatem copias, cuncta in victoria habuere.
68.
No less restlessness vexed the minds of the Germans, tossed between anticipation, cupidity, and the discordant views of the leaders. Arminius’ counsel was to allow the Romans to leave camp and then surround them when they were again amid the swamps and on treacherous terrain. Inguiomerus favored instead a more aggressive approach, one that was more appealing to the mass of the barbarians, that is, to envelop the camp and scale the rampart: the camp, he said, would be swiftly overrun, the prisoners more numerous, the plunder intact. Thus, at dawn they strived to fill in the ditch by forcing the brink to collapse and throwing in fascines, and labored to grasp at the top of the palisade, where the soldiers were few and seemingly half paralyzed with fear. When the Germans were all absorbed in scaling the wall, the signal was given to the cohorts, the horns and trumpets blared in concert. Thereupon, with loud clamor and a sudden lunge forward the Romans fell on the Germans from behind, yelling angry taunts that now they no longer had swamps and forests to assist them, but a level field equal for all and equal help from the gods. The sudden din of trumpets, the flashing of steel, more alarming the less expected they were, spread wide terror among the Germans, who had counted on an easy conquest, against a few under-armed soldiers, and now fell as helpless in adversity as they were overconfident in success. Arminius abandoned the battle unscathed, Inguiomerus seriously wounded; the slaying of the enemy went on unabated until the soldiers’ fury and the light of day lasted. Finally, the legions came back to camp in the night. Though they suffered more wounds and were harried by the same scarcity of food, they had all they needed in their victory, strength, health, and supplies in abundance.
LXIX.
Pervaserat interim circumventi exercitus fama et infesto Germanorum agmine Gallias peti, ac ni Agrippina inpositum Rheno pontem solvi prohibuisset, erant qui id fiagitium formidine auderent. sed femina ingens animi munia ducis per eos dies induit, militibusque, ut quis inops aut saucius, vestem et fomenta dilargita est. tradit C. Plinius Germanicorum bellorum scriptor, stetisse apud principium ponti laudes et grates reversis legionibus habentem. id Tiberii animum altius penetravit: non enim simplicis eas curas, nec adversus externos [studia] militum quaeri. nihil relictum imperatoribus, ubi femina manipulos intervisat, signa adeat, largitionem temptet, tamquam parum ambitiose filium ducis gregali habitu circumferat Caesaremque Caligulam appellari velit. potiorem iam apud exercitus Agrippinam quam legatos, quam duces; conpressam a muliere seditionem, cui nomen principis obsistere non quiverit. accendebat haec onerabatque Seianus, peritia morum Tiberii odia in longum iaciens, quae reconderet auctaque promeret.
69.
During this time, the news spread that the army had been encircled and that the Gallic provinces were about to be invaded by the German hordes. There were those who, out of fear, would have destroyed the bridge across the Rhine, had not Agrippina prevented such iniquity. Instead, being a woman of indomitable spirit, she took on the responsibilities of command and distributed to the soldiers who were wounded or in rags medicine and clothes. Gaius Plinius, the historian of the German wars, reports that she stood at the head of the bridge to speak words of praise and thanks to the returning troops. Her conduct deeply offended Tiberius: those cares were not selfless, he mused, not against foreign enemies was she seeking the soldiers’ favor. No authority was left to army commanders when a woman was inspecting the maniples, stood by the standards, and tampered with discipline by offering gifts, as if it were not enough already that she was sowing around, to gain popularity, the army commander’s son dressed as a common soldier and wanted that a Caesar be called Caligula. She already had more influence among the rank and file than the legates, than the general, and a rebellion, that the name of the sovereign was powerless to quell, had been contained by her, a mere woman. Sejanus added weight and vigor to Tiberius’ malevolence, knowing the nature of the prince quite well, sowing the seeds of hatred with the future in mind. Tiberius nursed this hatred to let it out later magnified beyond measure.
LXX.
At Germanicus legionum, quas navibus vexerat, secundam et quartam decimam itinere terrestri P. Vitellio ducendas tradit, quo levior classis vadoso mari innaret vel reciproco sideret. Vitellius primum iter sicca humo aut modice adlabente aestu quietum habuit: mox inpulsu aquilonis, simul sidere aequinoctii, quo maxime tumescit Oceanus, rapi agique agmen. et opplebantur terrae: eadem freto litori campis facies, neque discemi poterant incerta ab solidis, brevia a profundis. sternuntur fluctibus, hauriuntur gurgitibus; iumenta, sarcinae, corpora exanima interfluunt, occursant. permiscentur inter se manipuli, modo pectore, modo ore tenus extantes, aliquando subtracto solo disiecti aut obruti. non vox et mutui hortatus iuvabant adversante unda; nihil strenuus ab ignavo, sapiens ab inprudenti, consilia a casu differre: cuncta pari violentia involvebantur. tandem Vitellius in editiora enisus eodem agmen subduxit. pernoctavere sine utensilibus, sine igni, magna pars nudo aut mulcato corpore, haud minus miserabiles quam quos hostis circumsidet: quippe illic etiam honestae mortis usus, his inglorium exitium. Iux reddidit terram, penetratumque ad amnem [Visurgin], quo Caesar classe contenderat. in positae dein legiones, vagante fama submersas; nec fides salutis, antequam Caesarem exercitumque reducem videre.
70.
Now, of the legions that were to be sent back by ship, Germanicus had entrusted the Second and the Fourteenth to Publius Vitellius with orders to lead them back home by land, so that the fleet, made thereby lighter, could navigate a rather shallow sea or gently touch ground during low tide. Vitellius had an easy journey at the start on terrain that was dry or moderately affected by the incoming waves, but further on, under the force of the north wind and also the influence of the equinoctial star, which swells the ocean to its maximum size, the marching column was badly battered and dragged off course. The land was flooded: the sea, the shore, the plain beyond, everything looked the same. Impossible to tell solid ground from perilous waters, shallows from deep sea; men were thrown off-balance by the waves, vortices sucked them down, draft animals, baggage waggons, inanimate bodies floated on the surface all around and got in the way of the struggling soldiers. In the confusion, maniples became mixed, with the water now up to their waist, now with only their heads above it, at times swept off their feet by the lack of a foothold or submerged. Cries and mutual incitement were of no avail against the fury of the ocean, no distinction possible between the brave and the coward, the cautious and the reckless, conscious choice and sheer chance: all was equally at the mercy of the giant waves. In the end Vitellius managed to reach higher ground and to lead the column to it; the night was spent without food, without fire, with clothes in tatters and bodies bruised. Their condition was no better than being surrounded by an enemy, nay, worse, for in that case a man would at least die an honorable death, not one without glory. The light of day brought back the land, and they succeeded in reaching the river [Visurgis], where Germanicus had conducted the fleet. So, the legions, which rumor said had drowned, were taken aboard ships, but no one believed they were safe until Caesar and the army were seen come back to base.