16 AD · Weser River Plains, Germania Theater
16 AD
Germanicus forced Arminius into an open battle on the plains beside the Weser — terrain that for once favored Roman formation fighting. Arminius had positioned his warriors in the forest margins, intending to draw the Romans into tree cover, but Germanicus sent Germanic auxiliary cavalry to provoke a premature advance. Arminius, personally present and fighting, was wounded and nearly captured; he escaped by smearing blood across his face to avoid recognition. His uncle Inguiomerus led an impetuous charge against the Roman rear that was repulsed with catastrophic Germanic losses. An inscription carved on a riverside altar afterward read: 'The legions of Tiberius Caesar, having defeated the nations between the Rhine and the Elbe, dedicated this monument to Mars, Jupiter, and Augustus.'
Commanders