<![CDATA[Germany made a surprise attack on the Romans resulting in the Roman withdrawal of Rhine, for which the Romans camped on the German soil in a hope to take revenge. What makes archeology so interesting is the fact that you see the traces of what happened centuries ago right in front of you. The same is the case here with the Roman military camp discovered way inside of Germany, near a Town called Thuringia. It was a massive military camp spread over 18 hectares of land, housing an estimated 5000 Roman troops. It was always said that the Roman military camped on German soil to take revenge and punish the German tribes for invading their land, but this had always been dismissed as a rumor. With this latest discovery, however, it can be said the Romans did actually camp there with a plan in mind. A German archeologist claims that Germans have been searching for evidence in this locality for nearly 200 years now. A site was finally discovered in 2010, but whether the occupants were from Rome or not has only recently been disclosed. So far they have discovered uncovered trenches with a depth of a couple of meters and a length of 400 meters long, four nails from the bottom of the Roman boot, piece of horse tackle, part of scabbard, eight make shift bread ovens and a piece of scabbard. Archeologists are continuing with the excavations to find further evidence, such as the Roman coins which would disclose which legion had made the camp. The trenches are dug around the camp with another trench that is dug to protect the gate at the northern end of the camp. Also a trench has been dug in front of the gate with a low wall, which is 3 meters wide and 3 meters in height. The evidence found and the planning indicates it was definitely the Roman military, not Germanic. The site is still not disclosed to keep if safe from the metal detector hobbyists. The history behind this site is that the Germans invaded Gaul, Italy and Hispania and then came into conflict with the Romans, from where Rome fought and expanded to Rhine and Danube Rivers. In 9 AD Germany revolted and took the Roman army by surprise in the Battle of Teutoburg Forest, which resulted in the defeat of the Roman military and the withdrawal from the Rhine. The Germans destroyed three Roman legions as well as many more auxiliaries. It is believed that the Roman legions, auxiliary troops and squadrons of cavalry lacked combat experience compared to the Germans. On top of that, the Romans were caught by surprise with no proper formation, which resulted in scattering of the Roman military in utter confusion. Arminius, who lead the German military was also aware of the Roman tactics and used his knowledge to counter the Romans even more effectively by directing his troops. Thereafter, the Germans managed to surround the Roman military, and rained down javelins on them. It is estimated that 15000 to 20000 Romans were killed, some were ransomed and others enslaved. The Romans made many attempts after this war to conquer east of Rhine River, but they never succeeded in doing so. The camp discovered proof of the Roman military intention for revenge and recapturing what they lost.]]>
Roman Military Camp Discovered from the 2nd Century
