Barbarians then Countries Now

For centuries the Roman Legions fought waves of "Barbarian" invaders from the East that attacked the Roman Empire looking for loot, as well as new lands to settle and claim for their own.  In the end, the Western Roman Empire was completely overrun by the Barbarian tribes and the face of Europe was changed forever. While many of the barbarian tribes have faded from history their names have come down through time in the form of countries and territories whose modern names remind us of those who brought the Western Roman Empire to her knees.  Here are a few of the most recognizable of theses once infamous (to the Romans) barbarian tribes:

Countries:

Anglo-Saxons-England
Belgae-Belgium
Bulgars-Bulgaria

Franks-France

Germani-Germany
Helvetii- Confederation Helvetica (Switzerland)
Scots-Scotland

Ottoman Turks-Turkey

 

Territories:
Bavarii-Bavaria (Germany)

Burgundians-Burgundy (France)
Lombards- Lombardy (Italy)

Jutes-Jutland (Denmark) 

Saxons-Saxony (Germany)

And while not a country, one barbarian tribal name comes down to the present-day a a word synonymous with wanton destruction for the fun of the doing the destruction, the dreaded Vandals have become the term vandalism.  

We destroyed the Empire!

Dracians

Dracians

Germans

Gaul

Gaul More pictures are at http://worldhistoryprof.blogspot.com/search/label/Barbarians At the barbarians sections of Rick's Worldhistoryprof-Miniatures from History & Fantasy

Barbarian Always More Barbarians

Seemingly endless masses of barbarian tribes attacked the Roman Empire for centuries. No sooner was one threat delt with than another would appear.
After centuries of war vs, the Republic, the Celts and Gauls were Incorporated into the empire, eventually gaining full citizenship.

After more than 100 years of raids against the Northern provinces of the Empire, the Anglo & Saxons conquered and settled Britannia.

The Franks, using their deadly Francisca axe from which the tribe received its name, overran Gaul (conquering the now "civilized" Gauls) giving a new name to their kingdom-France.

Vikings-Terror from the North

"Oh Senior Servo nos ex saevio of Nordic populus" (Oh Lord save us from the rage of the Nordic people). was the prayer uttered by thousands from the 8th to 11th centuries as Viking Raiders slashed their way through Western Europe.

The Viking Longboat was sturdy and shallow draft allowing both long distance ocean sailing and the ability to easily travel the rivers of Europe.
The most fearsome sight in the 8th & 9th centuries-Norsemen raiders swarming ashore bring death and destruction.

By the 1100's the Vikings had conquered and settled much of Europe. Yet as they were never organized under a single ruler their power quickly faded. As with so many other invaders, once the damage was done they settled down and were incorporated into the local cultures adding many of their own ideas and creating a new and in most cases stronger society.

Endless Barbarian Waves

For more than three centuries the Legions of Rome fought off seemingly endless waves of Barbarian Tribes. The high quality of the legionnaires, organization of the Empire and top-quality defenses, all helped to hold back the initial waves. Yet each successive assault was stronger than the last. No matter how many victories the Romans achieved there was always another tribe to face.


>Visigoth Warrior

Germans, Alamanni, Vandals, Goths, Suebi, Visigoths, Franks, Huns, Picts, Ostrogoths, Jutes, Anglo & Saxons all slammed into the Empire adding more and more pressure until the defenses began to crack.
>Saxon Warrior

At first a trickle and then a steady stream of Barbarians entered the Empire, some to raid, some to join the Roman Army and some to set up permanent homes.

>the dreaded Huns, terror on horseback

Finally, a flood of Barbarians broke into and overwhelmed the Western Empire. The city of Rome fell to the Ostrogoths, was looted and the last Western Emperor, Romulus Augustus, was captured in 476 CE.

>Theodoric the Ostrogoth, King of Italy, lead the barbarians that ended Western Roman Empire. The Empire and Emperor were now replaced by kings and petty states. A major turning point in world history had been reached, as the Darks Ages in Europe began.

"Quinctilius Varus Give Me Back My Legions"

>Publius Quinctilius Varus suffered the greatest defeat at the hands of the Barbarians of any Roman commander during the Pax Romana (first two centuries of the Imperium). During the later years of the Imperial reign of Augustus, Publius Quinctilius Varus was given command of the new Province of Germania Magna. With three full legions, the 17th, 18th & 19th, and the bureaucracy of Rome at his disposal, Varus was responsible for the Romanization of this barbaric territory.


>Face plate from a Roman cavalry officers helmet recently found on the battlefield.
Varus was a trusted member of the extended family of Augustus but not a good choice as a military governor. He treated the Germans poorly and was very trusting of his German officers. One of the latter, Arminius-a Romanized Germanic chieftain, lead Varus and his three legions into an ambush in the marshy Teutoburg Forest. It was a massacre, the three legions, their auxiliary troops and camp followers were wiped out. Close to 30,000 Roman soldiers were lost as were the three Legion Eagles. Open revolt spread throughout Germania Magna destroying all evidence of the Romanization of the area.


When he heard of the defeat, Augustus was seen rending his clothes while screaming,"Quintili Vare, legiones redde!" ("Quinctilius Varus, give me back my Legions!"). After some brutal reprisals (and the recapture of the three Eagles), Rome abandoned all attempts to make Germany East of the Rhine into a peaceful, rich, Roman province like Gaul. A turning point in European and World History that will have ramifications through to the 20th century had occurred. The Rhine would be the new border between the Roman World and the Barbarians.  For the next 20 centuries this line would be fought over by successive hordes, empires, kingdoms and republics, ending in the last and greatest conflict-World War Two.

This ring from an officer of the 19th Legion is mute testimony to the personal cost of the disaster.

Gaul-the Enemy of Caesar

>This map shows Caesar's campaign against the Gauls and his major battles.



Since the 4th century BCE, the Romans had faced the dangers of invasion by the fierce tribes of the Gaul's. In fact, Rome itself was pillaged by the Gaul's under Brennus in 387 BCE (although it would be more than seven centuries before another barbarian army was able to accomplish this feat-the Visigoths of Alaric in 410 CE). By the 1st century BCE, the Romans were in a position to finish the question of Gaul.  From 58 to 51 BCE, Julius Caesar waged a war of conquest against the "Barbarian Gaul's" and neighboring tribes. To the Romans this entire area was Gallia, just another area to be added as a province of the Empire. The Gaul's did not see themselves as "barbarians." They believed the Romans were invaders determined to conquer and enslave the people of Gaul.

 

 

The warriors of Gaul were brave but poorly trained and equipped. As in many barbarian societies, each man brought his own equipment to war. In many cases this was little more than a shield and sword or spear. Chieftains, as was appropriate to their rank and wealth, were the best equipped often with metal armour and higher quality weapons.

Roman soldiers were equipped by the state with high quality weapons and armor and were professionally trained. A Roman legion would include a medical detachment, combat engineers, transportation units and most importantly a highly developed officer corps and chain of command. Romans fought as a well-organized fighting machine; barbarians usually fought as a large mob.

It was not uncommon for some Gallic warriors to charge into combat without clothing. This was to impress their enemies with the bravery of the warrior and sow fear into the ranks of the enemy by the fanatic nature of these warriors of Gaul.

 

In the end, Roman military might and organization, under the leadership of Julius Caesar, overcame the strength of numbers the Gaul's held. Caesar used his victories to improve his fame and popularity with the people of Rome through his self-promoting book "Commentarii de Bello Gallico" (Commentaries on the Gallic War). Gaul some became an important province of the expanding Empire and remained so until the Fall of the Western Empire in the 5th Century CE.