The
Marsi (German: Marser) were a small Germanic tribe settled between the
RhineThe Rhine is one of the longest and most important rivers in Europe, at , with an average discharge of more than ....
,
RurThe Rur -German, in Dutch and French: Roer, — not to be confused with the Ruhr — is a river in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. It is a right tributary to the river Meuse...
and
LippeThe Lippe is a river in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Rhine and 255 km in length.The source is located at the edge of the Teutoburg Forest in Bad Lippspringe close to the city of Paderborn...
rivers in northwest Germany.
TacitusPublius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
mentions them repeatedly, in particular in the context of the wars of
GermanicusGermanicus Julius Caesar was a member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty of the early Roman Empire. He was born in Lugdunum, Gaul . At birth he was named either Nero Claudius Drusus after his father or Tiberius Claudius Nero after his uncle...
. They had been part of the tribal coalition of the Cheruscian war leader
ArminiusGaius Julius Arminius, also known as Arminius, Armin or Hermann was a chieftain of the Cherusci who defeated a Roman army in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest...
that in 9 AD annihilated three Roman
legionThe Roman legion is a term that can apply both as a translation of legio to the entire Roman army and also, more narrowly , to the heavy infantry that was the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the...
s under
VarusPublius Quinctilius Varus was a Roman politician and general under emperor Augustus, mainly remembered for having lost three Roman legions and his own life when attacked by Germanic leader Arminius in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest.-Life:His paternal grandfather was senator Sextus Quinctilius...
in the
BattleThe Battle of the Teutoburg Forest took place in A.D. 9 when an alliance of Germanic tribes led by Arminius , the son of Segimer of the Cherusci, ambushed and destroyed three Roman legions led by Publius Quinctilius Varus.The...
of
Teutoburg ForestThe Teutoburg Forest is a range of low, forested mountains in the German states of Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia which was believed to be the scene of a decisive battle in AD 9...
. Germanicus, seeking revenge for this defeat, invaded the lands of the Marsi in 14 AD with 12,000 legionnaires, 26 cohorts of auxiliaries and eight cavalry squadrons.
The
Marsi (German: Marser) were a small Germanic tribe settled between the
RhineThe Rhine is one of the longest and most important rivers in Europe, at , with an average discharge of more than ....
,
RurThe Rur -German, in Dutch and French: Roer, — not to be confused with the Ruhr — is a river in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. It is a right tributary to the river Meuse...
and
LippeThe Lippe is a river in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Rhine and 255 km in length.The source is located at the edge of the Teutoburg Forest in Bad Lippspringe close to the city of Paderborn...
rivers in northwest Germany.
TacitusPublius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
mentions them repeatedly, in particular in the context of the wars of
GermanicusGermanicus Julius Caesar was a member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty of the early Roman Empire. He was born in Lugdunum, Gaul . At birth he was named either Nero Claudius Drusus after his father or Tiberius Claudius Nero after his uncle...
. They had been part of the tribal coalition of the Cheruscian war leader
ArminiusGaius Julius Arminius, also known as Arminius, Armin or Hermann was a chieftain of the Cherusci who defeated a Roman army in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest...
that in 9 AD annihilated three Roman
legionThe Roman legion is a term that can apply both as a translation of legio to the entire Roman army and also, more narrowly , to the heavy infantry that was the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the...
s under
VarusPublius Quinctilius Varus was a Roman politician and general under emperor Augustus, mainly remembered for having lost three Roman legions and his own life when attacked by Germanic leader Arminius in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest.-Life:His paternal grandfather was senator Sextus Quinctilius...
in the
BattleThe Battle of the Teutoburg Forest took place in A.D. 9 when an alliance of Germanic tribes led by Arminius , the son of Segimer of the Cherusci, ambushed and destroyed three Roman legions led by Publius Quinctilius Varus.The...
of
Teutoburg ForestThe Teutoburg Forest is a range of low, forested mountains in the German states of Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia which was believed to be the scene of a decisive battle in AD 9...
. Germanicus, seeking revenge for this defeat, invaded the lands of the Marsi in 14 AD with 12,000 legionnaires, 26 cohorts of auxiliaries and eight cavalry squadrons. Celebrating the feast of their goddess
TanfanaTanfana also known as Tamfana and Tan was a goddess once known in the regions of Western Germany or the Netherlands, 1st Century AD. The name Tan is believed to be of German extraction while Tanfana and Tamfana are her Latinized names...
, the Marsi were too drunk to respond effectively to the Roman surprise attack and were massacred. According to
TacitusPublius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
(
AnnalsThe Annals is a history book by Tacitus covering the reign of the four Roman Emperors succeeding to Caesar Augustus. The parts of the work that survived from antiquity cover most of the reigns of Tiberius and Nero....
1, 51), an area of 50 Roman miles was laid to waste with fire and sword: "No sex, no age found pity."
Enraged by this and other similar bloodbaths (e.g., in the spring of 15 among the
ChattiThe Chatti were an ancient Germanic tribe whose homeland was near the upper Weser. They settled in central and northern Hesse and southern Lower Saxony, along the upper reaches of the Weser River and in the valleys and mountains of the Eder, Fulda and Weser River regions, a district approximately...
), the frequently quarrelling tribes united once again to fend back the Roman invaders. After two more years of warfare, Rome finally abandoned its efforts to push its boundaries eastward to the
WeserThe Weser is a river in north-western Germany. Formed at Hann. Münden by the of the Fulda and Werra, it flows through Lower Saxony, then reaching the historic port city of Bremen before emptying into the North Sea 50 km further north at Bremerhaven, which is also a seaport...
river and retreated permanently behind the
RhineThe Rhine is one of the longest and most important rivers in Europe, at , with an average discharge of more than ....
.
Several town names today remain as reminders of the ancient Marsi -- e.g.,
MarsbergMarsberg is a town in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-History:Although its origins are obscure, Marsberg was a prospering town by the 13th century . It was a free city until 1807, when it was incorporated into the Kingdom of Westphalia, until 1813...
and
ObermarsbergObermarsberg, previously Eresburg, is one of seventeen quarters in the municipality of Marsberg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on a hill 130m above the Diemel River, a tributary of the Weser River.-History:...
in eastern
North Rhine-WestphaliaNorth Rhine-Westphalia is the westernmost and—in terms of population and economic output—the largest Federal State of Germany. North Rhine-Westphalia has over 18 million inhabitants, contributes about 22% of Germany's gross domestic product and comprises a land area of 34,083 km²...
and
VolkmarsenVolkmarsen is a small town in Waldeck-Frankenberg district in northern Hesse, Germany.- Location :Volkmarsen lies on the northern edge of the Waldecker Tafel where it flattens out into the Diemel Valley, some 40 km northwest of Kassel and 7 km northeast of Bad Arolsen.- Neighbouring...
in northern
HesseHesse is a state of Germany with an area of and just over six million inhabitants. The state capital is Wiesbaden. Hesse's largest city is nearby Frankfurt am Main.Hesse contributes the largest share to the Rhine Main Area....
.