Legio XVII: Battle of the Danube (41 page)

Timur and his leaders sat down and looked at one another.  “We’ve got to do something, said Timur.  “If our women and children are massacred, the men will blame us and our Army will disintegrate.  Our migration will have ended in total disaster.”  He said, “I will talk to their Commander to have him stop the attack on the settlement.”

Timur walked to the gate and told the guards to open it.  He had two aides with him; all had dropped their weapons.  The men on the walls began shouting to the Suevi opposite them not to attack; Timur wants to talk to the Commander.  The gate was pulled open and Timur stepped out.

He saw the bodies of the men who died when the gates closed.  He looked at the battlefield and saw the thousands of dead Teuton warriors.  He wanted to run at the enemy and die like a warrior.  He felt outrage and anger.  He turned to his two aides and said to them, as much as to himself, “We are here to save our people; we mustn’t get distracted.  Be strong.  Stay with me.”  Timur kept walking and stretched out his arms to show he was unarmed.  When he was 50 feet (15m) away from the Suevi, he said, “I am Timur, Commander of the Teuton/Cimbri Tribes.  I want to talk to your Commander.”

Proconsul Tullus was talking to Legio XVII when he heard that three men had just walked out of the fort and wanted to talk.  He mounted his horse and rode to the Suevi by the main gate with his aides and body guards.  He stopped behind their lines and summoned Calvus, Bethica, and his eight Legates.  While he waited, he thought about what was happening.  He assumed that Timur wanted to discuss surrender terms.  When the Leaders assembled, they all dismounted and walked forward towards Timur.  When they were about 10 feet (3m) away, they stopped.

Timur watched them approach and guessed that the Commanders were in front and body guards followed.  He was soon facing about 30 men, some of whom were heavily armored, and one woman.  He recognized Bethica and the four Suevi Commander from their clothing.  Timur spoke first, “I am Timur.  I want you to call off your attack on my people by the Two Lakes.”  Manius turned to his aide and said, “Call off the attack,” then said “I am Proconsul Tullus of Rome.”  Bethica translated.  Timur smiled at her and said, “We meet again, but this time under completely different circumstances.”

Timur looked at Manius and said, “I want to verify that my people have not been harmed.  Allow me to send riders across the river to visit the settlement.  We have more to talk about, but I must return to the fort to tell my soldiers that their families are safe.  I will meet with you the day after tomorrow when I receive word back from the settlement.”

Manius responded, “My men on the other side of the river will be instructed to allow your riders safe passage. You may dispatch your riders.”

Manius continued, “We will meet at my fort when you have been assured your people are safe.  Come unarmed with your Commanders, but no more than five men.  In the meantime, we will allow you to gather your dead and dispose of them according to your rites.  We will gather our dead first and signal your men on the walls when they may begin.  We will not interfere with your men and I trust yours will not interfere with ours.”

Timur said, “Agreed,” turned around, and walked back to his fort.

The men outside the fort could hear the cheering as Timur told the soldiers that their families would not be attacked.  Shortly thereafter, the gates were opened and two riders emerged to swim the river and ride to the camp site.  They rode the 20 miles (32km) to the camp fearing the worst.  When they arrived late in the day, they saw that nothing had changed.  The people were busy with their normal activities.  On their own initiative, they assembled the Clan Leaders to tell them what had happened at the fort.  The news was overwhelming.  The Tribes had lost 65,000 young men in three weeks.

As word spread, the sounds of disbelieve and mourning filled the camp.  It was the greatest disaster to have ever befallen the Tribes.  The Clan Leaders pressed the riders for more information on the status of the fort and heard that it was completed surrounded by enemy soldiers.  The Leaders assumed the worst; the entire Army would be killed and the people left defenseless.  Mourning and uncertainty competed for attention.

The Leaders realized that they could not offer a viable defense and did nothing.  They knew the men at Two Lakes would be killed and the women taken as slaves.  The people saw one alternative: escape.  Many began to pack up their wagons and disperse into the surrounding woods.  Chaos resulted.

*******

Four hours later, the work on the ditch began.  Minimal forces stood guard on the Teuton side.  The Legions’ equipment was neatly stacked for easy access on the other side of the ditch.  The men dug all along the line and piled the spoil on their side to serve as the base for the rampart and palisades.  The ditch was eight feet (2.4m) deep and 10 feet (3m) across.  Tomaeus, the Chief Engineer, orchestrated the digging to ensure they connected properly.  The men dug in shifts all night and used torches for illumination.  By morning, the Teuton fort was surrounded by a deep, wide ditch.  After breakfast, the Legions began erecting the palisades on top of the rampart.

While the Teuton fort was being encircled, men, horses, oxen, and wagons were led to a forest to gather wood for the funeral pyre.  The Suevi and Raeti asked to burn their dead along with the Roman dead.  The pyre was built not far from the woods.  One Maniple from each of the Legions involved in the battle was sent to gather the dead.  Oxen pulled empty wagons over the ditch on temporary bridges; the dead were placed in the wagons and taken to the pyre.  The same Maniples marched alongside the wagons to the pyre as an honor guard.  The dead were placed on the pyre; words were spoken and the fires lit.

The Teuton faced a much bigger problem in burying their dead.  There were so many!  It took all 25,000 survivors to dig a series of trenches around the fort.  Timur did not want the dead stacked one upon another so the dead were placed side by side.  Swords and helmets were gathered for reuse, but there was no attempt to identify the dead men.  The families would simply be told that they died fighting in front of the fort and are buried nearby.  The trenches were dug between the fort and the encircling ditch.  It took the Teutons three days to complete the burials.

While the trenches were being dug, Timur met with his Leaders.  He said, “I think the intentions of the enemy are clear.  They do not plan to storm the fort; why should they.  Our scouts reported that wagons of grain are constantly resupplying them; they have all they can eat.  No one is pressuring them to leave.  They obviously plan to starve us into submission and force us to surrender.  Then they will kill us all or sell us and our people into slavery.  What are our choices?  We can last maybe a few weeks.”

Donar’s replacement said, “Let’s talk to them and see if they will let us return to the other side of the Danube and go our way.”  Everyone laughed, except Timur.

“As farfetched as it sounds, we have no other alternative,” he said.  “We can try to break out and all die at the ditch or stay and starve.  I’ll propose to them what you said or maybe I’ll ask them to let us stay on this side of the Danube.  We could guard the Danube as the Suevi did to prevent other Tribes from invading.  We could establish trade relations with the Suevi and show we can be good neighbors.”  Heads nodded around the room.

The following day, 5 July, the riders returned from the Teuton/Cimbri settlement and announced that the people were safe, but that the camp was in total chaos.

*******

On 6 July, Timur sent word to the Suevi Legions opposite the main gate that he wanted to talk to the Proconsul.  Shortly thereafter, Timur was told to come to the Expedition fort.  Timur and his new Leaders rode out of the fort, crossed a plank bridge over the ditch, and rode with a cavalry escort to the fort 500 yards (457m) in the distance.  His new Leaders were proven warriors, but Timur did not know them very well.  His previous Commanders were all killed in the battle.

As Timur and the others rode past the ditch, rampart, and palisades they marveled at the size and layout of the interior. It was full of perfectly aligned tents and roads; they could see hundreds of soldiers going about their tasks.   Everything was neat and organized.  They were highly impressed.

The cavalry led them to a large tent in the very center of the fort.  They dismounted, were searched, and entered the tent.  Manius, his Legates, Bethica and Calvus sat around one side of a rectangular table; behind them were Tribunes, key members of Manius’ staff, and Ansi and Atta who stood immediately behind Manius to translate.  Timur and his men sat on the other side of the table.  Manius said, “You asked to talk.  What do you want to say?”

Timur started talking about Scandinavia and the migration and was cut off in mid sentence by Manius. “We know about your migration Timur.  We even know about Gloggr and the murdered girl.  Tell us what you want.”

Timur was taken aback and his face and body language showed it.  He was surprised that the Proconsul already knew his people’s recent history and couldn’t believe that he had even heard about Gloggr.  Timur said to himself.  “This Proconsul is no fool.  Be direct with him and to the point.  Tell him what you want.”  Before he could open his mouth to speak, one of his new Leaders reached into his boot, withdrew a knife, and lunged at Manius throat.  Atta threw himself in front of Manius to block the knife and took the thrust in the left side of his neck severing his carotid artery; he sprawled on the table and died as his blood poured out.

Timur grabbed the man and stuck him hard in the face knocking him to the ground.  Roman guards drew their swords and were poised to cut his throat when Manius said, “Wait!”  Then looking intensely at Timur, Manius said, “Is this how Teutons negotiate with their conquerors?”

Timur’s face showed extreme stress.  “No.” he responded.  I sincerely apologize for this man and this incident.  If you allow him to live, I will take care of him according to Teuton custom.”

Manius said, “This meeting is over; we will meet again tomorrow.  Dismissed.”  Manius took Atta’s lifeless hand and said, “Thank you Atta, you saved my life and showed me what a true Teuton is made of.  Ansi stood weeping for his friend.  Impulsively, he reached for Manius hand and kissed it.  “Thank you,” he said.  Manius’ eyes moistened as he said to give Atta a proper Roman funeral.  He then walked out to his tent.  He was losing control of his emotions and needed privacy.  His guards followed at a distance.

*******

The day before the first aborted meeting with Timur, Manius met with Bethica and her Suevi Leaders to talk about the upcoming meeting with Timur.  The question was what to do with 25,000 Teuton warriors and 300,000 Teuton/Cimbri people.  Just to get a reaction, Manius said, “We could kill the warriors and sell the women and children as slaves.”

Bethica shook her head and said, “We could allow the men to return to their people and continue their migration.”

Manius said, “Yes, that’s an option, but consider this Bethica.  Your people were unable to prevent the Cimbri/Teutons from crossing the river because you are too far away from it and lack the necessary troops.  Your people barely populated the land and that fact practically invites migrating Tribes to invade an empty land.  What if you were to allow the Cimbri/Teuton Tribes to remain along this side of the river to guard it?  The Suevi and Teutons peoples could form an alliance to join forces to fight any would-be invaders.  You could open trade with them and improve the economies of both Tribes.  Give it some thought.”

*******

Early on the day scheduled for the second meeting with Timur, Manius assembled his Legates and Tribunes as before.  The tent had been cleaned up and was ready for the meeting with Timur.  Manius unexpectedly said to bring him the guards who searched the Teutons yesterday.

After a few minutes, six Legionaries in full battle array filed into the tent and stood at attention facing Manius.  Manius said, “Which one of you searched the man who tried to stab me?”  There was a moment of silent, then one man stepped forward and said, “It was I.”

Manius said to him, “How did you search him?”

The man replied, “I removed his headgear and looked inside; I patted down his chest and waist and ran my hands down each pant leg.  I then let him pass.”

“Did you overlook anything?” asked Manius.

“Yes sir, I failed to check his boots.  I accept full responsibility for my failure to conduct a proper search and am ready to accept my punishment.”

Manius turned to the people in the tent and said, “Do you all hear this man?  He accepts full responsibility.  If more politicians in Rome had his attitude, we would all be better off.  As I said when we started this expedition, ‘honest mistakes will be forgiven immediately.’  Legionary, you are forgiven and I commend your honesty.  Resume your post.”