Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • Concord - Barbarians PDF

    Uploaded by

    Any Amariutza
    225 views47 pages

    Original Title

    Concord - Barbarians.pdf

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    Report this Document

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    Download as pdf
    225 views47 pages

    Concord - Barbarians PDF

    Uploaded by

    Any Amariutza

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    Download as pdf
    of 47
    Copyright © 1998 by CONCORD PUBLICATIONS CO. 603-609 Castle Peak Road Kong Nam Industrial Building 10/F, B1, Tsuen Wan New Terttories, Hong Kong All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Concord Publications Co. We welcome authors who can help expand our range of books. If you would like to submit material, please feel free to contact us, We are always on the look-out for new, unpublished photos for this series. If you have photos or slides or Information you feel may be useful to future volumes, please send them to us for possible future publication. Full photo credits will be given upon pubiication. ISBN962-361-634-1 printed in Hong Kong ARR I NR RRO times also gene! ally breed great leaders among peoples. In 1933, the same politician was more open about his inspiration gained from these ancient peoples. ‘Yes, we are barbarians" he declared, ‘We want to be barbarians! It is an honourable title, We shall rejuvenate the world! ‘This world is near its end, 1 is our mission to cause unrest The politician was now Chancellor of the German nation and his name was Adolf Hitler When the Panzers rolled into France and taly, the code-names Hitler che and Alaric, both mighty barbaria sought 0 outdo them in both conquest and brutality. In Ise for thes > campaigns were Attila warlords, and he this Hitler succeeded, adding his own name to that long, list of barbarian warlords that have terrorised civilisation, ‘That Hitler chose to identify himself with the violence and destruction of these barbarian peoples is in direct opposition {© our late 20h cer sibilities in which historians seek 10 show how these ancient tribesmen wee actually quite sophisticated people adept at trade and other peaceful activities, These two opposing views of the barbarians say as much about our own times as they do of the tribesmen who Ii 4 iwo thousand years. ago. Today, the West wishes to be viewed as a tolerant culture in which stereotypes are revealed as bogus. Seventy years ago, the West believed it had become 100 civilised, was decadent in its own prosperity and comfort, and deserved a war led by energetic new forces. Hitler was one of only many people at that time that believed in the refreshing nature of barbarian invasions. With these two widely differing interpretations lodged in our minds, itis thus very difficult t@ view the Germanic and Asian barbarians with any objectivity. indeed, any attempt at trying to see them through their own eyes is almost impossible as they left barely any writen evidence of thelr own lives. In the 1st or the 5th centuries AD, we invariably sec them through the eyes of Greeks or Romans. To begin with, they viewed these alien tribesmen as strangers speaking incomprehensible languages, but as the tnbesmen grew more confident and demanded more from the and Greek Mediterranean, L scholars demonised them as destroyers of civilisation ‘and this is largely the view that has survived today in the popular imagination. In teality, though the barbarians certainly overtumed the ancient political state of Rome, they nevertheless maintained much of Roman and eek culture and if they failed 10 reach any new heights of civilisation in the so- called Dark Ages, it was more out of incompetence rather than malice. The Modemist belief fashionable atthe beginning of this century that Dark Ages Christian culture was simply cilferent, andi not inferior to, Classical Pagan culture, might again say more about the desire of Modemist artists, than about a reality that does seem 10 point at 2 loss of skills from the 4th century onwards in such endeavours as art and science. But such an investigation might well point at uncomfortable truths in our own postliterate society in which Images triumph. ‘over the written word and formal education is swamped by non-judgemental philosophies, Such is the continuing, impact of the barbarians and their assault on the ancient This book is essentially a military review of the barbarian Invasions from the Sth century BC 10 the 10th century AD in Europe, In it we see successive waves of barbarian peoples from the Celis and the Scythians to the: Vikings and Magyars. All these were considered barbaric by their victims who also understood the way they fought aS something different from their own organised and more formal attitudes to battle. ‘The barbarian was a hit ancerun warrior. He was not paid to fight, but lived off his. loot. Thus, raiding against soft targets suited his sense of survival much more than a ck h of hopiites or legionaries. Whenever possible, he avoided a set batile. Horse riding suited this mode of warfare best and from the Celts in the West 10 the Huns in the East, the majority of barbarians were excellent horse warriors. The main difference within barbarian warfare was that Western warriors such as the Celts and Germans. preferred 10 use spears and swords in close combat wherea the Huns and other Turkic warriors preferred 10 fight ata distance with bow and arrow. That said, such was the Interconnection between these two m » fighting, cultures. that barbarian armies invariably incorporated both styles side by side, the Ostrogoths, or Eastem Goths, being a classic example, combining beth steppe warrior harassment and a Germanic aristocratic desire for handtochand combat Celtic warriors leave their home for Tere the Celts the very fist barbarians? The word ‘barbarian’ originated a a Greek term describing any foreigner. It was in Imitation of their babbing incomprehensible speech, but it could equaly apply to a Scythian or a Persion as well as @ Cet t was not then a derogatory term, describing someone who Is uncivlised or savage. That came later and derived from the Latin association of [barbari with the Germonie and Eurasian tibes that eventually brought down the Roman Empire To the ancient Greeks, the Celts were not necessotly any loss ‘civilsed or cultured than they were. Indeed, Greek philosophy is sald to be in part derived ftom the wisdom of Cattic sages. They were, however, regarded as an especially fierce race of warriors and as such were both feared as roiders and respected os mercenaries. The Romans had a similarly ambivalent attitude fo the Celts. They feared them os fighters, but they also gained much from thei culture, Including the use of armour, both mail and various forms of helmets copied directly frorn the Celts. in later centuries, the Celts would settle most easly Into the world of the Roman Empire, ‘@dopting its culture and styles for thelr own and helping the Romans fight against the Germanic barbarians, But despite this equality of culture and mutual respect, there were two great incidents which were barbaric in nature—in the later, brutal senso of the word. which do present the Celts asthe original barbarians from the north. The first was the sack and destruction of Delphi in Greece, the holiest of ancient Greek religious sites. n the 3rd century BC (this has been described in the previous tle Ancient Cells). he second came earlier in 390 BC when Rome was attacked and lis people humiliated, The Celtic assault on Rome, foreshadowing events almost thousand years later. began with ther entry into northem italy. For years previously they had extended thelr grip on this land, fighting the Ettuscans as they went. In 391 BC, the Eftuscans called on the Romans for help and the Romans warned the Celts fo go no further. The Colts, under the leadership of a chieftain called Brennos (detived from a Celtic word meaning ‘king’ ond possibly not refering to an individual but a tile, as it was another Brennos who sacked Delphi), took this as a challenge. The next year, the Celts arrived in force and clashed with «Roman army on the banks of the Alla, borely ten miles from their capital. The Celts attacked in their Usual style, a bellowing charge with swords and spears. Panic spread through the Roman ranks ‘at the fst sound of the Celtic war cry on thelr flank and in their rear,’ records Livy. The Roman soldiers "hardly (Plate 1) ‘walted even to see their strange enemy trom the ends of the earth None fell fighting, cut down from behind as they struggled to force {a way to safely through the heaving mass of their felow fugitives. It was a classic Celtic victory, obtained in that fist furious onslaught. The toad to Rome was now wide open. The citizens of Rome retreated fo the core of thek city around the Capitol and the Celts laid siege to it for seven months. Eventually, the Romans decided to buy thelr way out of trouble and presented an enormous ransom to Brennos. When the Romans Compiained at the weights used to measure their gold, Brennos threw hi iron sword on fo the balonce and declared ‘woe fo the conquered’. t was a brutal uth the Romans would never forget or forgive and this legend underpinned much of the ferocity of thelr later conquest of Celtic lands. The Cetts depicted in the painting are Of this period, described os La Tene culture in their history. They are Clad in bronze armour and are armed with iron swords and spears They are leaving a lake-side dweling typical of those inhabited ‘long the banks of lakes in Central Europe, the homeland of the Celts before they invaded northern Italy. Phe Scythians were the fist great tribe of warior horsemen from the steppes to make an impact on the Westem imagination. So ‘much so that they became a generic term for nomadic horsemen ftom the lands north and east of the Black Sea and the name of their country, Scythia, appeared on maps long atter their culture hod been swept away by other confederations of steppe warriors, Their clothing of 2ig¢-209 patterned trousers and hoods and their ‘archetypal weapon the bow made them an Instantly recognisobie type of barbatian appearing on countless Greek vases and scepters. Later Roman writers, perhaps hoping to give thelr histories some of the authority of those written by the ancient Greaks, even called the Huns by the name Scyth and this would have been Clearly understood by their readers. Arrian, writing in the second Century AD, describes their classic tactics in a confrontation with ‘Alexander the Great: “They made cicies around the small attacking force, shooting as they rode, and then galloped off to a sate distance." This method of “safe” warfare in which the Scythians harassed weaker formations with showers of arrow was in stark Contrast fo the method of contact warfare devised by the Greeks, in which formations clashed in hand-to-hand fighting, and served to ‘make them the classic barbarians of the steppes with every other later horse-bome raider fighting in the same siyie. Archaeological and iiterary evidence places the Scythians noth of the Black Sea in southern Russia in the land now known as the Ukraine. Unike later waves of steppe nomads, they did not speak a Turkic language and were not related 10 Turkic or Mongol (groups, They were Indo-European in appearance and spoke on Iranian tongue which brought them more closely to the Medes ond Persians. Herodotus is the fist great Greek chronicler of the Scythians in the 5th century BC and It I from him that we have some of the Clossc images of steppe life, such as when a great Scythian leader ‘wos butled his horses were kiled and stutfed, being supported on Poles around his tomb, oF the skulls of thelr enemies being used as Atinking goblets, His greatest military account Isto tell the story of Dati, the Persian emperor, and his attempt to invade Scythia, ‘Around 512 8C, Dartus crossed into Europe from the Persion ‘empire, his intention being to conquer Greece. Before he could do this, he needed to secure Thrace from the raids of the Seythions Using a pontoon bridge fo cross the Danube, he entered Scythian tettory. The Persian army was of considerable size and the Scythian leadership employed the classic strategy of the Russion steppes. Retreating before it, they burned grass, polsoned well, and drove: 6 (Plate 2) off cattle. One hat of the Scythian force drew the army on, deeper Into their temtory, while the other half shadowed it, preventing it from turning away to more vulnerable land. After several weeks of this, the Persian emperor grew tied and sent a messenger to the Seythian King “Strange man.” asked Darius, “why do you always run away? You could choose to stand and fight if you consider yourself strong enough. But If you believe you ore weak, then why not stop this running ond make your submission to me, bringing me gifts of land and water?” have never fled for fear of any man.” replied the king of the Scythians. “I do not flee trom you now, ul travel as | always do in peace. But if you wish to know why we do not fight you, itis becouse we do not possess towns o: farmlands that woul force us to protect them. But if you do wish to battle with us, then seek our fathers tombs for then you wil find out whether we fight or not. Untl then we shall not battle you.” Instead of gifts, the Scythians sent parties of horse-archers to harass the Persians while they searched for food. Finally, Darius gave up and turned his army back towards the Danube. It wos then the Scythians stuck In force. Their horse-archers galloped forward, {followed by more heavily armoured Scythian nobles. Darius hurriedly ‘ordered his warriors into their formations and awaited battle, but a: the two armies faced each other, a hare popped up and bounded ‘actoss the plain. The Scythians liked nothing better than to hunt Despite being prepared for battle, they could not resist the tiny ‘creature and a body of horsemen broke away trom the Scythian ‘army, chasing it wialy with whoops of excitement. Darius asked his ‘adviser for an explanation and was greatly depressed by the ‘answer. “Do the Scythians regard us with such contempt?” he sighed. “They have had nothing but sport with us.” Without waiting any further opportunity of battle Darius ordered his men home. The Scythians had won and the steppes would remain free from the Conquest of any western empire, even the Romars. ‘The painting shows a heavily armed party of Scythian racers in Thrace. They wear scale armour, typical of their culture and later woin by Sarmatians as depicted by the Romans. They carry bows, spears, swords, and an axe called a sagatis Their equipment is elaborate and expensive, putting a le to the Bellet that nomads are Poor—raiders such as this could draw not only on their own wealth derived from their extensive herds of livestock, but also that extracted from the Greeks y the Eider describes the appeal of Italy for the Celts in a sutprkingly contemporary and trivial manner, much more in tune with our own consumer world, “The Celts, imprisoned as they were by the Alps.” he says, “fist found a mative for entering into Italy from Celt of the Helvetti named Helico who lived in Rome as a craftsman and brought back with him some dried figs ond grapes {and samples of ol and wine. itis no surprise then they should seek to obtain these things by war!” Plutarch, taking a similar tone, ascribes their advance into Italy to their love of wine, not the fist time that ‘alcohol would be seen to play a special role In the affairs of the Cots. ‘though it would be the Romans who would eventually fee! the ower of the Celts, it was the Etruscans who suffered most ftom their ®early incursions and, indeed, may well have been fatally weakened by them in their own competition with Rome, cllowing the Roan to.utimately overtake their own lands. Starting in the Sth century the Celtic Invasion of northern Italy grew more intense by the beginning of the 4th century. Sites near present-day Milan and Bologna became principal Celtic settlements. Further south, they contested Etruscan land, fought great bales, and burial sites featuring La Tene Iron swords have been found. The Rornans now referred to northem Italy o& Cisalpine Gaul Seeing themselves sandwiched between the growing powers of the Colts and the Romans, the Etruscans decided to form an Alliance with the Celts and paid the tribesmen money to march on Rome, but at the last moment the Celts pulled out, claiming the Etruscans had paid them protection money. not for fighting against the Romans, athough they were wiling to consider this in turn for {grants of Euscan land. Polybius records another occasion when the Cetts did join with the Etruscans in a raid on Roman temtory, “but no sooner had they artived home than they began to argue about obtaining 2 larger share of the spoils and in the end destroyed the {eater Part of thelr own army and even the loot itselt.” By the 3id century BC, not even the alliance of Etruscan and Celt could stop the expansion of the Roman state and several joint {armies were annihilated by a now resurgent Roman army used 10 dealing with Cettic warriors, Dionysius describes how the new Roman short stabbing sword could be used more effectively against the long iron slashing swords of the Celts: “agile their foes were, stil Talking thelr swords aloft, but the Romans would duck under their ‘rms, holding up thet shields. and then stooping ond crouching low. they would render vain and useless the biows of others. which were (Plate 3) ‘med to0 high, while waiting for thelr own part, holding thelr swords straight out, they would stke their opponents in the groin, pierce their sides, and drive their blows through their breasts into their vitals." With armour and long body shields adopted from the Celts, the Romans had reached a miltary maturity. gained from these battles with Etruscans ond Celts thet would allow them to ropialy conquer the rest of the Mectterranean, ‘The pointing depicts a war band of Celts in northein aly in the first half of the 4th century BC. They are about to descend on an Etruscan settlement. Their arms and armour is typical of the La Tene Culture. The chief warrior’ helmet is adorned with wings, a favourte Cettic motif. “On their heads they wear bronze helmets.” records Diodorus Siculus, "which possess large projecting figures of enormous stature fo the wearer. In some cases hoins form one part with the helmet, while in other cases i is relief figures ofthe fore parts of birds or animals.” The homed helmet, so beloved of early representations of Vikings. Is thus presented as o Celtic invention, Diodorus also describes their characteristic shields: “for arms they have man-sized shields decorated in a manner peculiar to them. Some of these have projecting figures in bronze, skifuly wrought not only for decoration but for protection.” lexander the Great considered himself a god. When he chose 0 immortalse his image on coins, he was portrayed with horns, the sign of the god Dionysus. Dionysus was the wild god, the god of the impetuous, violent spit that lurks inside men and women and is berated by alcohol. A son of Zeus, Dionysus left his homeland to roam across the world accompanied by a licentious army of satyrs {and maenads. spreading the use of wine, conquering armies in Egypt and Asia, and marching as far afield os India. Here was ‘model for Alexander's ambition and a sign that the way he lived ‘could lead to remarkable conquests. Even his passion for alcohol \was central fo this. the chroniciets telling of his wild drinking sessions In which even his fiends sometimes fel victim to his violence. A man such as this was not Ikely to expect arvthing other than complete submission from barbarian tibesen—but then Alexander had ever mat Celtic warriors before, ‘Alexander's campaign to the land of the Celts occurred early in his miltary career and was a prelude to his conquest of Asia. It was very much an operation fo secure the northern borders of his homeland of Macedonia from the tribes that raided across the Danube river, the traditional dividing ine between the chilled south ‘and the barbarian north, At fist, he subdued the Thracians, lyrians, ‘and Trballans, and then he closed on the Danube. Battle ships ‘awaited him, having been sent up river from Byzantium, but these proved ineffective in dealing with the switt currents and steep banks Of the river ond so he resorted to gathering simple dug-out boats, Used by the locals for fishing, and thus fered his army across. The crossing took place at night, but on the other side awaiting him was ton army of the Getae. Variously described as Dacian, Germanic, or Cettic trbesmen, the Getae were probably a mixture of all three Cultures, Perhops surprised by the speed of the crossing. the Getae proved @ poor foe for Alexander who used both cavairy and the Macedonian phalanx to clear them out of the way. He then looted thelr town and burn it fo the ground. Alexander had proved his domination of the area and now awaited the submission of other tribes from further ofiel. ‘Among the barbarian envoys that visited Alexander's encampment on the Danube was a gioup of Cels—'men of haughty demeanour and fall in proportion’ Is how Arian describes them, our principal source for this encounter. Sensioly the Celts were there to offer thelr tiendship to the Macedonian warlord and mutual vows of peace were made, but Alexander just had to push ita litle futher. Fish with hs recent victories, he asked the Celts what they 10 (Plate 4) Were atraid of most in the world, expecting them to submit further ‘and deciare "You, my lord.” But the Celts were a practical and sttaight-taking race. taking the subject of the'r fears very seriously “We fear onty that the sky fall and crush us." they announced, “or the earth open and swallow us, oF the seq rise and overwhelm us.” ‘Alexander was furious, but he let the slight go, remarking instead Under his breath that the Celts thought too much of themselves, A peace was made, but the Celts had simply bought themselves time, Some tity years later, the Celts would ride info Macedonia and Greece and devastate the very heartland of Alexander's empire The success of the Cettic raiding campaign of 279 8C is all the more remarkable when one bears in mind that just c few decades eartler, the Greek war machine had subdued much of Asia. The difference, of course, was Alexander and with his achievements in disarray folowing his death and a group of successor warlords fighting for control, the Greek city states were especially vulnerable, Having kiled the king of Macedonia, the Celtic raiding force under Brennos made for Thermopylae and defeated an Athenian led force. The prosperous lands of Greece were now exposed and the Celis headed for one of its ichestsites—the sacred temple of Delphi leaded with rich dedications to the gods. In a mighty storm, with thunder and lightning crashing about them, the Celts breached the defences of Delphi and sacked its treasures. It was an insult to the {9008 that had, perhaps, been foreshadowed by the Celtic act of defiance to the living god Alexander those fity yeors beforehand, nan age that was no stranger to ruthless violence, even [contemporaries considered the war in Spain in the 2nd century BC to be particualy brutal, “This wor between the Romans and Cottberians is called the flery war.” wrote Polyblus, “for while wars in Greece or Asia are settied with’one or two pitched bates, the bottles there dragged on, only brought fo a temporary end by the darkness of night. Both sides refused fo let their courage flag or thee bodies tire.” For Republican Rome, It wos the Vietnam, a vicious guerila war creating @ spiral of atrocities that served only to entrench both sides further, causing even Roman poitcians to {question way they were there in the fist place. The Celtiberians were descendants of Celtic Invaders who had entered Spain some Centuries eater when the Celts were moving ftom thelr central European homeland westwards. They retained the Catic talent for wartare, being ferocious warriors who would never ever let a grudge rest, prefering instead to impoversh their country rather than give in to on outsider. In the Romans they met an enemy who wos just as determined to fight fo the bitter end, whatever the cost. A typical Incident in the war was petpetrated by Titus Diclus \who invited one group of Celtiberians to fight with him and thus ‘acquire the land of a neighbouring tribe. He invited the warriors to his encampment to discuss the terms of the alfance, but fist they had to leave their weapons at the entrance to the stockade, Once inside, Didius had the gates locked and sent in his own troops to massacre every man, woman and child inside. “For ths.” remarked the disgusted Roman chronicler Appian: “Didius was actually honoured with a triumph.” The Celtiberians returned the blow with atrocities of their own, causing even Scipio Afticanus, that great veteran of the wars against Carthage, to despair: “They are no better than bandits. They may be brave when devastating Neighbouring fields, burning vilages, and rusting cattle, but are worth nothing in a regular army. They fight with greater confidence in fight than in heir weapons.” Such is @ description of great guerrila fighters. After haif a cenfury of this warfare, It took Publus Comelus Scipio, grandson of Scipio Afficanus, to bring some discipline to the struggie. ‘Scipio arrived in Spain In 134 BC to find @ thoroughly ‘demoralised Roman Amy reduced fo employing astrologers for any gn of future victory. immediately, he expeled any hangers-on from the camp and sought fo bring a sense of method and purpose to his troops. Hi fist major challenge was the hilfort of Numanti. It was a massive fortification defended by ravines on two sides and wood (Plate 5) and stone stockades. Scipio set about its defeat in such a methodical and precise manner that he may well have inspired Julius Caesar who used similar means against the hillfort of Alesia o Century later. At fist, Scipio denuded the surounding area of any Useful supplies. stockpling them for his men and then burning the rest. He then proceeded fo encircle Numantia with fortifications of his own, creating a great ting of seven forts linked by palisades and ‘itches. When this ing was completed, ne then bult another one 10 defend himselt rom any relieving forces. To prevent the Numantines receiving supplies from the rivers that ran through the ravines, Scipio ‘erected towers on either side from which he hung heavy logs studded with spikes on a rope that stopped any boats passing by. Despite many assaults on the surrounding siegeworks, the Numantiens could found no way out and eventualy starvation cic its work. With characteristic Roman thoroughness, Scipio had the majority of them sold into slavery, burnt the town to the ground, and divided the land among their neighbours, thus bringing to an eng: ‘one of the most brutal of wars. The painting shows two Cettiberian wartors about to cut the head off a captured Roman soldier. The Celtiberians are armed with their characteristic falcata, great meat Cleavers that were feared ‘among the Romans. According to Livy, these cutlass blades could “cut off arms at the shoulder ond saver heads with one chop.” Archaeological remnants show Cettiberian warriors wearing Greek: style crested helmets. hore was no love lost between the Celts and the Germans. Speaking diferent languages and trom diferent racial roots, they were rivals for the lands and incomes of central and nerthemn Europe for hundreds of years. They fought each other as warriot bondi in endless feuds and they fought each other as part of large Confederations in frontier wars. They raided and lected each other dnd they sold each other into slavery. Even belore the Romans imposed a frontier between the Romanised Colts inside the Empire and the barbarian Germans Outside the Empira, here was a major cultural faut line between the: ‘wo peoples that followed roughly the flow of the Rhine and Danube rivers. The Celts in thet hilfors surrounded by farming land ond settied communities may well have even considered the less highiy developed Germans as barbarians. Certainly the wealth of Gallic France appears to have attracted the Germans across the Rhine in raids on these more prosperous lands, whereas there was no great pul for the Celts in the other direction, opart trom sending out merchants to trade in furs and amber with the northem tribes. ius Caesar made great capital out of the hatred between the Germans and the Colts during his invasion of France in the Ist century BC. Previously. the Gallic tribes had employed Germon warrior in thelr own internecine warfare, but new the Germans were exp)olting this situation and the Gauls called ypon Caesar and the Romans to protect them trom the Germans. “There was a time when the Gaus were more warlke than the Germans.” wrote Caesar, “when they actually invaded German teritory... (but) gradually accustomed to inferiorty and defeated in many battles, they (the Celts) donot even pretend to compete with the Germans in bravery." Caesar paints a picture of Gauls softened by their access to Mediterranean civilisation, whereas the Germans remained poor ‘ond hardy. hungry for miliary success. Caesar respected only the Beigae who had been hardened by decades of border fighting with the Germans in northern France and may well have hed mingled ‘German and Celtic blood. Throughout his campaigns in Gaul, Caesar frequently called upon German warrior to assist him against their traditional enemies, This was especially so at the siege of Alesia when many of his Colic ‘ouxilaries had deserted him fo throw in thet lot with Vercingetoric in { last stand against Ronan conquest. In this final contict in 62 BC, German horse wariors battled against Celts and gained tor Caesar the decisive victory that broke Celtic power in France. From then on, the Celts would be the allies of the Romans and the German (Plate 6) barbarians would be thei joint enemy until the fall of Rome Ise The painting depicts a clash between a Celt and a German ‘around 100 BC and evokes the relative difference in culture and prosperity between the two peoples. The German warrior ls bare: chested and wears animal furs with some Jewellery perhaps captured ftom his Celtic adversaries. “They spend all their lives in hunting and warlike pursuits” wrote Cassar, “and inure themselves {rom chichood to toll and hardship... The Germans are not farmers {and live principally on mik. cheese ond meat.” He goes on to {describe how they hunt giant wild bull called curochs whose homns they cut off and mount with siver as ceremonial crinking cups. This ‘wid natural style was exactly what the Romans considered barbare. In contrast, the Celtic warrior looks almost Mediterranean with his bronze bredsiplate, lion crested helmet ond coloured tunic, feveaiing the cross-cultural influences that ran back and forth between the Celts and the Greek and Roman worlds. Its no surprise that the Celts should, on the whole, fit most comfortably into the: Roman Empire and exploit it fo their own ends. The heads of victims attached to his bronze boar standara, however, provides @ reminder Of their fierce warrior tradition. The German pits hs cheaper, smaller weapons of axe, dagger. and spear agains the luxurious on sword of the Cott ritain was the final Celtic bastion to fall fo the Roman Jconquerors. Bitain now joined Northam italy, France, and Spain, all Celtic realms, within the Empire. An expeditionary campaign by Caesar was followed by a more thorough invasion by the Emperor Cloucius in 43 AD. Just as with Gaul, it was the Intemecine struggles between the Celtic tribes that proved the excuse for Roman intervention and the Romans continued to dominate Bitain partly by understanding this and incorporating friendly trloal heads as their alles. But occupation was for from an 2087 tide. It's true that many Cettic warlords welcomed the peace {and prospefty brought by the Romans, but others resented it profoundly and two revolts shook the pretensions of the Roman Qovernors. Queen Boudicca’s revolt in the south of England is the Best known of these and the most Violent, but equally threatening was that of Caratacus, In 51 AD, retreating before the Roman advance, Caratacus drew his Ine of confrontation in Wales with the support of the Silures frbe, A land of mountains and marshes, Wales i @ perfect land for guerila warfare, but Caratacus chose to centre his forces on a hilfort, a great error as the Romans had perfected their assaults on such fortresses and marched towards It unler cover of a shield wall while their engineers dug away at the earth ramparts. The hilfor collapsed and the Romans slaughtered the Celts, Caratacus just managing to escape. He fled northwards to the land of another warrior Queen called Cartimandua. Caratacus, however, had misjudged ony sense of Celtic brotherhood, for Cartimandua Immediately had the Celtic king chained and handed over to the Romans, thus securing her own rule in the north of England as a lent chieftain of the Romans, The Britons fought much os the Celts of France ald, with one major exception. They appear to have retained the use of the Cchariot long after it disappears in continental warfare. Caesar was specially Impressed by their use in battie: “The chariots of the Biitons begin the fighting by charging over the battlefield, From them they hur javelins, although the note of the wheels and chariot teams are enough to throw any enemy into panic. The charters cre very sklled, They con drive their teams down very steep slopes: without losing control. Some warriors can run along the chariot pole, stand on the yoke and then dart back into the chariot.” Roman historian Tacitus describes a battle against northem Britons in which the Britons seem to be at a disadvantage against the German auiiiaries employed by the Romans. “The fighting began with (Plate 7) exchanges of missles.” he wrote, “the Britons showing both steadiness and skil in parrying our javelins with their huge swords oF Catching them on their litle shields, while they themselves rained voleys on us.” But when the Britons clash with the German auxlares, itis a different story. “These old solaiers (the Germans) had been wel illed in swordfighting, while the enemy were awkward ot it, with their small shields and unwieldy swords, especially as the later had Ro points and were quite Unsuitable for cut and thrust at close quarters.” Beyond the Celts of northern England lived another kind of bbarborian people—the Picts. These are generally regarded as non- Celtic tibesmen, perhaps related to the original inhabitants of Britain who were themselves cisplaced by invading waves of Celts. There i lle evidence of this, however, and they may well just have been a northern confederation of Celtic fbesmen otherwise known as the CColedonii From the evidence of other countries invaded by superior Cultures i s more than likely that the conquering Celts anninicted il the indigenous peoples, hunting thern down as Westerners did in Notth America or Australia, The Picls' Latin name was inspired by the practice of covering their bodies in tattoos and they do appear to have devised a form of warfare different fo that south of Hadrian's Wall. In this, long spects were used In @ form of phalanx Incorporating other warriors armed with swords and shields. The use of long spears or pikes is distinct to this part of Britain and appeas later in Scottish warfare In the Middle Ages where a pike formation Is known as the schiltron, AMlamanni break into a Roman fort, German border, 3rd century he Sid century was a testing time for the Roman Empire. The German tribes to the north of the Rhine and Danube were no longer the impoverished raiders of the Ist century, content with ‘occasional forays into the prosperous south, mere pinpricks against the might of Roman civilisation. Through closer association with the Cells and Romans of the great border towns, these Germans had ‘grown in sophistication and realised thelr potential for more Significant gains. Many of the brightest and most dynamic of these German Wwariors served with the Roman ctmy. some even rising within its ranks to enjoy the luxury of the Roman elite. When they returned to their homelands, they brought with them new ambitions and this realsed self in the form of new alignments among the German peoples, The older, smaller tribes known by Caesar and Tacitus disintegrated and were replaced by large confederations headed by warlords selected not for thelr status within an individual tide, but for thelr abilty to lead a major army into bate, In central Europe, the most Important of these new confederations was the ‘Alammani—o Germanic name meaning “all people”, The fist serious incursion of the Alamanni occured in 213 AD. The Roman Emperor Caracalla was compelled to face them north of the tiver Main and defeated them, but this only temporarily held them back. Twenty years later, Alamanni warriors made @ surprise attack on the easter Raetion wall along the Danube trontier. They nniniated the Roman fort at present-day Pfunz. Archaeological evidence reinforces the suddenness of the attack. The chared skeletons of Roman guards have been found together in the {quordroom with untouched shields nearby and scattered coins. Emperor Severus Alexander was forced back trom campaigning in Persia fo deal with these Invaders, but such was the intigue among his own officers, that he was compelled to bribe the Getmans with {gold rather than fighting them. This duplicity resulted in rioting and Both the Emperor and his mother were kiled, victims, some might say, of pressure brought to bear by the Alamani. The use of gold by the Romans to buy off the attacks of orbarians became favourite defence which was raised 10 pinnacle of strategy by the Byzantines who funded most of eastern Europe and its tribes with money raised from its wealthy trade routes running through Constantinople, Such a strategy, however. indicates that ths was the time of the Late Roman Empite when iis armed forces were no longer superior to the barbarians tt encountered and that politics mattered as much as military might. It was also a sign of (Plate 8) tittoc nit the Romans tvoughout fe 250; hoy fnaly bra through he forte To fad Gear info nother ich The EMeeral ton Geltonus Rocked them down necr Mon and defeated Ihe but they had aleady achieved something that only the Cel Funded of yecs betes had feted, ny to Reman By. Ni Cae Inne of Cau, upore oy ined wih the ork a Ghack on he woulty prownce, Brey tne, the Rome mano {open the Abamarre baciseeitentores tet hotiar ocak tal tne now tecty wos cles ot texge Gerrnan forces Sous wre Soronious Geoten aia heron Epre ancl have on Bogiving to tun i favour ot he nothern porocrore The painting depicts a scene in the 230s AD with Alamangl aro lacing supise citock on Romon fort cong he Dor fonfen Horch. gue have Seen Wlsnoed cnc! the Gemma won csp sy reget forme ck Tey woe peril Sfoines cxocicted wan oetar Gormcn wotion, tus ond Snel feice fk he Sato MORE be foe cena wotier reece 4 chek ples, mcd ec gqusnd cedar ceniecicop mao ol fectsnaped sogmons of Yon 6 a sive of hemor hagorow i ‘Semon warics of elas Reman pete Ori patie ove ball sro chine fan Moher Garena oberg {Slo neah cletton cbout 900 A). Te Seansgeheta femahe popular among German warriors for hundreds of years and wag Sxbpted by te Romans themselves Al ites wales ca cal cooks ucts Comante pace of eaement—ire ancl Wins cud ave bode is woe heQuont aod ora towne ail Siongade Joven ancapeon. \wecinest ond one that he Aaron ste happy oer roe new realsm gripped the administrators of the Ronan Empire by {he late 4th century AD, Confederations of German barbarian {bes were crucial players in the increasingly complicated bolancing act of maintaining imperial rule. Employed directly os ‘austiories into the Roman army, barbarian wartiors had been relatively easy to control, but as the power of barbarian warlords increased in the previous century, these independent groups ‘demanded more control over their own affais. A New deal had to be struck In return for maintaining security against other raiding barbarians and suppressing iniemal revolts by peasants, Roman landowners granted portions of their land to barbarian groups to treat as thet own. This in tum estoblshed @ new reali among barbarian warlords who up to this stage had treated Roman terttory merely as something to loot and devastate. Now, barbarians were ‘encouraged fo look upon the land as their own and to join Ino partnership with Roman landowners in maintaining its secutty. A futher incentive to act responsibly was the fact that this land was Gronted tax tree, but interestingly, barbarian warlords could see the: Value of maintaining @ habit of tax collection and instructed their soldiers that any further pieces of land bought on the open market would not include this exemption. After al. a barbarian warlord could eain more money from efficient tax collection than pilaging {and that included taxing his own warriors! In this manner, several major barbarian confederations “invaded” the Roman Empire. In realty, the majority were invited ‘and were quick fo obtain legal entitlement to their land. As a result, bbarbatian tribes could be assured of staying on thelr land for Centuries. In Roman France, the Franks moved info the northem tsstates, the Alans into the centre, the Burgundians established. themselves in the south east, while the Visigoths later joined them. ater thelr adventures in italy fo settie In south-western France ond: Spain. The land settied by the Burgundians, centred on the Rhone: valley and around Dijon, became known as Burgundy in the Middle ‘Ages and remains today as the name of this region in France, giving some idea of the thoroughness with which the original Burgunai ibe. established themselves on this terttory, ile is known about the Burgundians as no great saga of thelr ety history has survived, unlike that of the Goths or the Franks, But that they were trusty supporters of the Roman Empire and their place within its indicated by the fate of the only recorded early (Plate 9) Surgundian warlord. Guntarus ond his wartors fought alongside Astius, the greatest of fate Roman cornmanders In hs Compeigny ‘against the riding Huns and was kiled af one such batio 486 AD The painting shows « worband of Burgundians leaving thal mountainous homeland in cental Europe to jon inthe boroaron Settlement of Gouin the late ain cenfury. The hexagonal shel Datray @ Celt influence, which 's not suring consoring that proximity 10 Celle culture. and they may well have been @ Confederation of mixed Celtic and Germanic blood. The leading warrior also xt he impact of the Roman Empire, caming both & Roman-style helmet and a Roman dagger, perhaps coptured I Border skirmishes with Roman solders. At he waist hangs 9 long. stoight double-edged on sword or sata. fs narow omamented Cros guard tecalk warier Colic swords, but Is choractorsic of many such swords uncovered in 4th century burs. Before thee Settlement on Reman land, the Burgundions would have hod lea Gece fo body amour and led mainly on thor shields, but os they ew on Roman weath in the eaty Sth century, many of her woul have joned the loncng ware here by weotng ther sca oF mal shits The cragon standard hed By the second worrr fo typed of this period, being based on the winatock principal wih wn passing through the cragon’s mouth ond inating the body, Such standards were as popular among the Romans as among thé barbarians and may utmataly have originates for the Sarason toes of the Eason steppes. - Y ap = Tire Finis ere tne descenciants of those German tribes who had ombushed and massacred the Roman army of Valens in the dark forests west of the Rhine in 9 AD. Three centuries later they had grown even stronger and not lost any of their mostery of the land they inhabited. In a Roman counter-aid against the Franks in the 4th century, the historian Sulpicius Alexander tels how the Franks pretended fo be scared ond retreated further into the German forest. The Romans bunt their vilage and then pursued the Franks info a kling ground devised by the barbarians. “By about midday, the Romans had lost themselves in a maze of pathways.” records Sulpicius Alexonder. “They fan up against an ‘endless barticade solidly constructed trom huge tree-trunks and. then they tied to break out over the marshy fields which bordered the forest, Here and there barbarian troops showed themselves, stoning on trees or climbing above the barricades as if on ramparts. They kept shooting artows as i from catapults, and these they smeared with poisons distiled from plants, so that wounds \which did Ittle more than graze the skin and touched no vital organ ‘were followed by death against which there was no protection.” Panicking and recoling from one trap to another, the Romans stumbled out on to boggy open land where the Franks ran them ‘down, specring the soldiers caught in the mud. Some Romans rushed back in to the forest for cover, but were hunted down and the entire expedition was wiped out. On operations such as this the Franks bull thei flerce reputation and itis Ittle wonder that by the fend of the 4tn century, the Romans had decided to incorporate: them on their side of the Rhine as a defence against other barbarian ‘toes behind them. Frankish warfare remained of a primitive style, best suited to {ores's, even ater their settiement within the Roman Empire. “They have hardly any horsemen,” wrote Agathias in the 6th century. “They bear swords and shields, but never use the sling or bow. Thetr missles are axes and barbed javelins (angones). These last are not very long and can be used elther to throw or fo stab. The iron of the head runs so for down the shatt that very litle of the wood remains Unprotected. In battle they hurl these javelins. and i they stke an lenemy, the barbs are so firmly fixed in this body that he cannot craw the weapon out, I it stkes a shield it Is impossible for him to get rid Of It by cutting off the head for the iron runs too far down the shat. {At this moment the Frank rushes in, places his foot on the butt as i tras on the ground, and puling the shield down, cleaves his unpfotected foe through the head, or pierces his breast with a (Plate 10) second spear.” This use of the angon seems inspired by the Roman plum. Agathias’ assertion thot the Franks never use bows ¢ Contracicted by the passage quoted previously, although the fact that the Franks may have been prejudiced against the bow & vetified by Gregory of Tours in his 6th century History of the Frank, who describes a particularly loathsome warrior as being armed wi @ bow, thus establishing the preference of the later Westem medieval knight for fighting with sword and lance rather than tke otlental horse-archers, The painting shows two Frankish warriors coming across Roman soldier who has died trom exposure. The nearest warrior {armed with the characteristic franciska axe while his companion: ccatties the cngon javelin with is long iron neck and barbed head, The emblematic Importance of the axe in Frankish lore is perhaps best Indicated by a story in which the early Fronk King Clovis ‘addresses a gathering of his wattiors after @ successful raid into the heart of Roman France, He declores that all the booty fs to be divided equally, except for a sacred ewer, which he wishes to return to @ bishop. One of his wariors resents this, however, and raises hi franciska, slicing the vessel in halt. Clovis hid his tury and delivered the broken rec fo the bishop, but he later gathered all his warriog together fo inspect thelr weaponry. Coming fo the warrior who had {denied him the sacted ewer, Clovis took away his sword, axe, ond Javelin, throwing them to the ground, saying they were in @ poot ‘condition for fighting. The wartior bent down fo retrieve his weapors, Dut as he did $0. Clovis drew his own axe and spit the man’s skul iq ‘wo, just as the warrior had done fo the one object he wanted, Goths and Sarmatian, eastern Europe, 4th century AD Tite gastos north of he slack Sea and running into eastern Europe as for as present-day Hungary have been a road way fot many of the Asian hordes that have terrorised Europe. from the Scythians to the Mongols. Its hete too that several cultures have mingled ond influenced each other. From the south came the ‘Greeks and Byzantines, bringing their own rade ond settled ways of life, From the noxth, from the lands surrounding the Battic Sea, down the Great Russian rivers, have come numerous ways of German ‘tibesmen. In the early centuries of the Christian era, these German seitiors and raiders were known as Goths (they would later be called Vikings or Rus) and were divided into two main confederations called Ostrogoths (“eastem Goths") and Visigoths Cwestein Goths"). By the time the Goths artived in the Crimea and surrounding ‘recs the righty culture of the Scythians appears to have been in decline and that of the Satmations was dominant. Possibly an ltanian-speaking people based in the northein Caucasus, the Sarmations maintained the steppe culture of previous Eurasian bborbarians and this included a warfare bated around the horse, But unike the Scythians who were mainly ightly clad horse-archers, the Sormations appear fo have given greater emphasis to the role of ‘armoured horsemen armed with long lances, a syle of fighting more ‘kin to the Persions fo the south of them, Archaeological and iterary evidence suggests hase warriors were Clad in scale armour with ron helmets of as Pausanis puis it “anyone who has not seen a dragon 's best advised to compare the appearance of a warrior clad in such armour to a green fir cone”. The green perhaps referring to the fainishing of bronze scales by exposure to ait. That the Saimatian style of warfare influenced the Romans is without doubt and certainly the Goths. ving nearest to them. must have been equally inspired and copied many of thelr rats. But the Goths managed also to maintain their own Germanic forms of warfare alongside them, thus creating a highly dynamic Combination of foot and mounted warriors in one army. In later years, the Sarmatians appear to have been succeeded by the Alans, who dominated a similar part of the Black Sea region before Joining the Goths in their migrations westwards. Even more than the Goths, the Alans combined both Sarmation and German styles of wartare into one. It was the appearance of the Huns in the 4th century AD, Turkic confederation trom central Asia near the Caspian Sea that ‘brought the old Black Sea balance of power to an end, forcing both (Plate 11) the Goths and ther Sarmatian/Alan neighbours to move westwards, bringing them into colision with the easter Roman Empire. At fst they come as refugees, bringing all their familes and animals with them and the Romans were compelled to allow them to set up thet ‘camps on teritory around the Danube frontier, but soon the Gothic ‘warbonds tuned to raiding ond looting the prosperous settlements ff the Roman Boskans In 378 AD, the Emperor Volens decided to bring an end to thé situation and marched towards the main Gothic encampment near ‘Adrlanople. Up until to this point, the Emperor had been) ‘commanding a successful quertiia campaign against the ravaging) Gothic bands, but against hi best advice he wanted fo finish it once ‘and for ail Hs legionaries surrounded the wagon laager protecting: the Gothic camp. It was @ hot day and the Romans added to the discomfort of the Goths by lighting fires on the plain around the: ‘camp. inside the wagon laager, the Goths had fo play for time and: proposed peace. AS the Romans grew weary. a cloud of dust ‘appeared behind them. joined by the thud of horses’ hooves. A force of Goth horse- warriors had retumed from thele raiding and now: ploughed into the unsuspecting Romans. Panic and chaos did the rest. Tightly packed between the Goth cavalry and the Goths, who now emerged from their wagons, the Roman army broke and in the pursuit almost two thirds of them were sioughtered, among them the Emperor Valens himself. It was a significant defeat for the forces of the Empire and heralded a new period of instability in which barbarian tribes rode throughout the eastem Empire. The painting shows a meeting between a Sarmatian ond two: Goths in the forest of eastern Europe. They treat each other suspiciously. For much of their time on the steppe, they would have been enemies, raiding each others tenitary, but now. in the wake of the Hun invasion of their land, they ate now all refugees. Some Sarmatians would have fought alongside the Goths, but othes might well have joined with the Hun horde. The Goths wear typical Germanic clothing, while the Sarmatian wears scale armour and iron helmet with cloak based on the marble stele found ot the mouth of the tiver Don on the coast of the Sea of Azov in southern: Russi hy it that the Huns have endured as the most ferocious of ail the barbarian tribes that rode through Roman frontiers? Other tribes were nototious for barbaric practices, such as the Alani, stripping the skin off their enemies to use as saddle cloths. and others were certainly more successful—the Huns never secured a kingdom for themselves in the remains of the Empire, although the land of Hungary does sll bear their name. Part of the reason lies in the use made of thelr name over the cenfutles and most recently, in the ‘early part of the 20th century, when Kaiser Wiliam Il, executor of the Fist World War, Gave it an extra spin. In the summer of 1900, the Kaiser saw off an expeditionary force to China to quell the Boxer Tebelion. In a speech to his soldiers he prociaimed: “Just as the Huns Under thelr King, Attia, a thousand years ago made for themselves. {name which men sil respect, so should you give the name of German such reason to be remembered in China for a thousand years that no Chinaman shall dare to look a German in the face.” On this occasion, the Germans falled, but under Hier they would achieve the reputation for barbarity the Kalter so eagerly fecommended. As a direct result of this speech, however, Germans in the Fist World Wor were nicknamed “Huns” by their Bitsh adversaries, The other feason for the notoriety of the Huns i, of course, Attila, their most fomous leader. He has been portrayed as a demonic figure over the centuries. Our most reliable descriptions of him come from Priscus, a Roman ambassador who traveled to Attla’s comp ‘and gives us an eyewitness account of what he saw. Immediately, we are aware that this is no tinpot leader trying to impress with his ‘own greedy acquired power and riches, but a man aware only of his authority and position within the tive. Priscus describes the warlord at a feast held in honour of the Romans: “While sumptuous food hod been prepared and was served on sliver alshes for the cither barbarians and for us, for Attia there was nothing but meat on awooden plate. He showed himself restrained in all other ways too, for gold and siver goblets were offered to the men at the feast, but his Cup was of wood. His dress was plain, caring for nothing but fo be Clean, no sword at his side, neither were the clasps on his barbarian boots oF the bridle of his horse ike those of other Scythians adorned with gold or precious gems." While the others laughed at entertainers, Attila was unmoved, smiing only when his young son ‘approached him. It ls easy to see why a man such as this should ‘command such reverence among his men. Attia became king of the Huns by murdering his brother, Bled, (Plate 12) In 445 AD. He wos probably of Turkic origin, although there are eastern German sounding names recorded in his family and certainly by this time, the Huns were a confederation of tribes that included both Turkic and Gothic warriors. Attila now continues to be 1a hugely popular name in eastern Europe where he & regarded more as G hero than a villain, For almost @ decade, Attia and nis Huns made their name and theit wealth by plundering the eastern Roman Empire, frequently being bought off by enormous bribes by the Byzantine government. In 450 AD, he decided to try his hick ‘against the wastern Roman Empire. but this was where he came unstuck. He even hoped to marty the ster of the western Roman Emperor and thus legally inherit half of the Roman dominion, but nether the Romans nor the Visigoths who already dominated much of the waste Empire would be so easly shifted, In 451 AD at the so-called battle of Chalons, Attia was soundly stopped by a combined Roman and battsatian force, This deflected him fom the rich lands of Gaul and he sought instead some recompense in northern Italy, but he foiled to reach Rome and had to withdraw because of threats to his eastem reams. Shortly afterwards, he died famously from a nose-bieed caused by Celebrating the addition of a new wife to his harem, although ths runs contrary to the sober character depicted by Priscus. Maybe rivals emboldened by his failures in westem Europe poloned him Instead. Intemecine strife followed his death and the Huns never ‘again regained the power and reputation they had under Attic. although they continued as a military force. frequently being hired by their Roman foes. The painting shows Attia receiving a tribute trom a Chinese envoy in the form of treasure and women. it may be that the envoy represents the interests of Chinese merchants wanting protected access to the luctative central Asian fade route over which Attia may have had some influence. although his ambitions were mainly ‘westwards into Europe. he battle of Chalons was one of the great combats of the Barbarian era. Just as the battle of Adtianople marked the ‘entrance of the barbarians into the Roman Empire as an emp\e- shaking force inthe late 4th century, so. clmost eighty years later. the battle of Chalons symbolised the high-water mark of the easter steppe-warios, After 451 AD, the Turlic Hibes of Attia never stood a ‘chance of dominating what remained of the westem Roman Empite, this would be divided between the victors of that day—the Germanic tribes ond thelr late Roman alles. Indeed, the alliance between Roman and German on that day goes some way 10 ‘explain the transition ftom Roman Empire to Germanic Kingdom. Both factions saw the need to preserve the prosperity of Westem European culture against the looting ond ravaging of steppe raiders The bottle of Chaions itself. « misnomer. A hundred years ago, ‘Thomas Hodgkin devoted many words fo proving that among the ‘ancient sources it seems likely that the battle was actually fought near Troyes in northemn France. Atta, warlord of the Huns, had ‘broken his usual pattern of raizing the eastern Roman Empire to test the will of the west and crossed the Rhine leading a considerable army of Turkic and Germanic warts, in his way stood those Germanic tribes who had aleady fought their way into Gaul Principally the Vksigoths led by Theoderic, and Aetius, a halt barbarian, hat-Roman warlord who represented the concerns of late Roman landowners. For his role in this battle, Aetius has been Caled the last of the Romans, but it was his time spent as an official hostage among the Huns’ that equipped him best for this Cconffontation. AS a man in his 20s, he found the Ife of the Huns ‘exhilarating, becoming a “superb horseman, a fine shot with an arow and tieless with the lance," according to the chronicler Renatus Frigeridus, “He scomed danger and was able fo endure hunger. thist and loss of sleep." This hardness made him a favourtte ‘among his soldiers. At Chalons, however, he was in his 60s and ‘experience would have fo be his guide. In ths, he was matched by the Visigotnic king Theoderic, « senior Chieftain among his warriors who had used his sills of negotiation and politics as much as warfare to secure tight control over vast estates in Gaul it was Alia who was the new kid on the block, determined to bul on his successful raids in the east to secure his own estates in the prosperous west. Gaul, however, would prove fo be @ harder nut to crack. Jordanes, a Romanised Goth, is our major source for this encounter and ne describes it in titanic terms, Attila seems, 28 (Plate 13) surprisingly. to have been influenced by the bad omens read in sheep intestines by his shamen to delay the fight unt the aftemoon, The battlefield centred on a slope with both sides riding to gain the ‘advantage of the height. The Roman-German army consisted of Theoderic and his Visigoths on the right flank, Aetius and his Romans (on the left, and Sangiban and his Alans in the centre, being the least ‘dependable of the allied forces. The line of the Huns was drawn Up with Attia in the centre surrounded by his most loyal troops with his Germanic allies on the flanks, including the Ostrogoths ond Gepidae. It was a battle fought mainly by horsemen, wielding either lances oF swords if they were Germanic, or bows and spears it they ‘were Roman or Huns, Aetius and his ales claimed the height of the. fidge fist and the Huns retreated in confusion, Like a Caesar, Attila was forced to ride cmong his men and rally them with a speech. “Let the wounded exact in vengeance the death of his £08," he bellowed. “Let those without wounds revel in the slaughter of the enemy! No spear shall harm those who are destined to Ive. And those who are sure to die, fate overtakes ‘anyway in peace!” Of course, these are the words of the chronicler, but no doubt bosed on the fact that Attia's presence proved Cctucial in holding his troops on the battetield, Both Theoderic and ‘Aetius chose also to be af the heart of the battle and it wos at this moment that the Visigothic king fell trom his horse, not forse again, His wartlors were distraught, but rather than being broken, they used their anger to give them the extra strength needed to force the Huns bback on to their camp. Many of Attia’s alles fled, but the Hun king ‘would not leave his loot and as darkness fell he turned his camp into A for. The Visigoths swore to annihilate the Huns ond Attila began to bum many of his wagons in preparation for the final assault, but Aetius managed to persuade the Germans to let the Hun go. A, ‘wounded lion is always more dangerous and the Visigoths were, themselves without c leader and as such vulnerable, so Attila wos allowed to retreat, but never again would he threaten tne west Tine onda achieved perhaps the greatest barbarian migration of them all. From their homeland in easter Europe. they trekked through France and Spain, fighting all the way against Romans and ‘barbarian competitors. to end up in North Attica where they carved ‘out a substantial kingdom that lasted a century before Belasarius, the great Byzantine commander, finaly defeated them. In the ‘meantime, they sacked the city of Rome In 455 AD and acquired o reputation for destruction which endures today. Procoplus, the (greats! chronicler of the Vandals, describes them as Germanic In origin. “The greatest names of this alliance of nations." he wrote, “are Goth and Vandal and Visigoth and Gepid. They all have fair skins and yellow hair re tall of stature and handsome to look upon. They all possess the same laws, the same faith of Arian Christianity ‘and the same Gothic language. To me they appear all to have formed part of one nation in ancient times and afterwards to have been distinguished fron each other by the names of their leaders.” What on earth the dark skinned natives of North Attica made of these blond, giont warriors when they rode ashore from their boats is ‘anybody's ques. Gaiseric was the greatest of the Vandal leaders. Like Attila, he possessed a reputation a8 @ serious rulet. "He was a man of deep thought and few words." wrote Jordanes, “holding luxury in disdain, furious in his anger, greedy for gain, shrewd In winning over the barbarians and sklled in sowing the seeds of discord among his enemies.” Despite being a bastard son of the king of the Vandals, his reputation enabled him to push aside the legitimate heir and he became king sometime before 429 AD. Having been denied land in France and finding Ite respite in Spain from the Romans and their \Vsigoth alles. Gaiseric saw on opportunity for settied land in the Roman provinces of North Attica. A riding accident had left him lame but he stil commanded the respect of his people and he suggested they use their control of ports in southern Spain fo launch {an Invasion of Attica. The Alani, a tibe of Turkic wartioss from the Black Sea, who had ridden with them throughout their earlier quests, Joined them in this adventure. They were also Joined no doubt by Moorish and Spanish sailors and adventurers who ako saw great ‘opportunities and perhaps provided the maritime expertise needed for this expedition Fortunately for Galsatic, the defence of Roman North Attice was in the hands of Boniface, a once effective warlord who was plagued by his own inner doubts about whether he should give up his bloody career and become a monk. shaken by the appearance 30 (Plate 14) ‘of two Roman armies sent to replace him, It oppears Boniface may ‘even have invited the Vandals across the sec to help him maintain his postion. Whatever the truth, there was poitical weakness in North ‘Affica which Goisetic decisively exploited, landing with perhaps as many as 80,000 wantors. Almost immediately, a religious civil war [began in which the Arion Vandals vanquished the native Catholics ‘ond laid waste their churches, thus forever ensuring their nome became a byword for wanton destruction. Boniface was defeated ‘ond Gaiseric recognised as the lawful ruler of North Attica, This recognition by Rome did not stop the vandass from exploiting their ‘ownership of key Affican ports to now eslabish a reputation as formidable pirates. raiding fleets and ports throughout the: Mediterranean. The most celebrated prate raid was on Rome. For two weeks, Gaiseric resided in the palace of the Emperor, making the Imperial famity his psoners and all the riches of Rome his own, The Roman government was in no state to oppose him, but rather than procioim himself Emperor, Galseric merely salled back 10 Carthage, his reputation and coffers enormously enhanced, The entire original Vandal ana Alani that accompanied Gatieric to Attica were now rich beyond thelr wildest dreams. Sidonius claims this kaury effected Gatseric: “Thanks to untold gold. he no longer knows aught of steel. A drunkard's heaviness atficts him, polid flabbiness possesses him, and his stomach, loaded with continual gluttony cannot rid itseif of the sour wind.” This is more wishful thinking ‘among the Romans and Gaiseric’s vigorous leadership continued for decades, but the compostion of his army was transformed. AS the original barbarians retired to their estates, the majority of the Vandal army was composed of North Attican Moorish tribesmen They tode camels and incorporated their animals in spear BPhalonkes, which sometimes disturbed horses sent agains! them. The wartiors depicted in the pointing, however, are fiom the earlier Petiod of conquest, showing both a Germanic Vandal in mall shit ‘and a Turkic Alan in easter influenced lamella armour he Saxons were the last great Germanic confederation to grab @ piece of the Roman Empire. Rather than marching southwards from thelr homelands in the Netherlands and Denmark, they sailed across the English Channel to raid and then settle in Roman Britain, Recruited as auxiiaries in the Roman British army, they were used fo life within Britain and when the last official Roman governors withdrew from the Island at the beginning of the Sih ‘century, their presence increased until they considered i theirrecim, A ist hey took control of the lands that stil bear thelr names today, such as Essex and Sussex in south-east England, but then they moved. westwards and clashed with the Romano-Celtic warlords of southem and western England. The most famous of these clashes ‘wos with the Romano-Betish warlord now known as Arthur, who later became the central figure of a celebrated cycle of medieval tales featuring Camelot and knights such as Lancelot. The original Arthur, however, wore not shining armour, but quas-Roman armour, ‘perhaps featuring a mail shit or shit of iron scales. The real Camelot may well have been the Roman fortress of Casieon in south Wales, whose arena may have been the inspiration behind the celebrated Knights of the Round Table. A string of battles between Arthur and the Saxons is recorded by Nennius who has the war culminating at the battle of Badon Hil NNennius describes the hot water that bubbled up at the natural springs of Bacon and this seems to suggest a location at the Roman settiement of Bath with is natural hot water bathing complex. The Cchroniclets agree that It took place over three days and thus may have involved a siege of the Roman town. The end was precipitated ‘by a great cavatry charge by Arthur who swept the Saxons off the field and kept them out of the West Country for several decades, ‘The weight of history. however. was with the Saxons and by the 8th century, they dominated most of England, forcing the Celts to the ‘outlying lands that stil emain today largely Cettic in character. ‘The painting shows three richly clad Saxon warriors, elther warlords themselves 0: senior warrior: closely attached fo their ‘commanders, They wear the very pinnacle of Bish Dark Ages arms ‘and armour, based on the famous find at Sutton Hoo in which the grave of a warlord was discovered beneath a mound lying in the emains of a Saxon shio—this is a classic Viking; style burial in which a lord is oid to rest in the vehicle of his conquests and indeed reflects many close parallels between the miliary culture of the Saxons and the Vikings who followed them, The most glorious aspect of this find Is the helmet (worn by the central figure in the painting) which Is of (Plate 15) the crested Ridge-type. closely related to late Roman military helmets, consisting of an iron bow fied to a metal crest with cheek ‘and neck guards hung from the crest. The ion surface is covered with thin copper alloy piates stamped with intricate motifs. The distinctive eye guards are cast from bronze and terminate in stylised boar heads. The face guard is constructed of iron with nose, mouth, ‘and moustache features applied to It. The figure on the left wears & helmet based on one recently discovered at Coppergato in York ‘Also of the Ridge-type construction, it features iron nasal and cheek ‘guards. Mall was frequently added to such helmets to form a Reckquard oF. asin the figure on the right, to create o vail protecting the foce. The weapon characteristic of the Saxons and from which they may have derived their name, was the seax. A long sngle-edged knife, almost a short sword, it was intended as @ battle weapon, pethaps used by men carrying spears who needed It for close ‘combat, Saxon swords are splendid implements. The sword found at Sutton Hoo has a pattem-welded blade. This was a process evolved ‘when good quality steel was in short supply, smiths making blades ‘out of a combination of light case-hardened iron and darier softer lron. The alterating layers of metal were sandwiched together, twisted and welded into one piece. Cutting edges of steel wore separately welded onto this core. Half the fotal weight was then removed through grinding and the cutting edge fied. Finally, the blades were treated with an acid, anything form urine to sour beer, ‘and the wavy pattem on the blade resulting ftom the sandwich of itferent irons was highlighted with etching ond polishing. Thess patterns were much admired and gave rise to nicknames for swords such as “Fishback’ or “Dragonsword' In the power vacuum left by the death of Attila and the warfare [between his successois, rode a new confederation of steppe wartiors—the Avars. Uke the Huns, they were of Turkic origin, and included many of the descendants of the warioss that rode with Alto, Indeed, so closely were they associated with the Huns that ths 's the name by which they were called by many westem Eurepean chroniclers. From the 6th century onwards they raided and lundered the eastern Roman Empire and, unlike Atfla’s horde, did not become too ambitious so as to wreck their achievements dominating central Europe for cimost three centuries, only running out of steam when they clashed with the resurgent power of the Franks under Charlemagne, The war against Charlemagne was a bitter wor one lasting some eight years, the Frankish chronicler Einhara describing it as an ‘absolute victory for the Fronks: “Just how many battles were fought {and how much blood was shed is shown by the fact that Pannenia (the name of the old Roman province where they lived) is now completely uninhabited and that the site of the Khan's palace is now so deserted that no evidence remains that anyone ever ved there, All the Avar nobility died in ths war, al their glory departed, All their weatth and the'r treasures assembled over so many years were dispersed.” The completeness of this victory Is certainly over ‘emphasised to suit the taste of the Carolingian court, but the defeat Lndoubtedty left room for other later tribes fo prosper, such as the Mogyars. But at the height of their power, the Avars were almost unassailable, diverting much of the wealth of Byzantium into thelr ‘own coffers through elther ransom or raiding, They subdued the Siavs that followed the Germanic tribes Info the Balkans and central Europe, treating them as c lower caste, seeping with thei women, ‘expecting tribute fom their men, using them as footsoldlers to fight In the ftontines of ther armies fo blunt enemy opposition. Eventually. the Slavs tose in rebellion and threw off thelr domination by the Avars The Avars fought much as the Huns fought. employing horse- ‘archers fo harass and exhaust their enemies and then closing with more heavily armed and armoured horsemen. In his manual of military tactics and organisation, the Byzantine Emperor Maurice

    You might also like