Gabriele Esposito presents an overview of the military history of the
Germanic peoples of this period and describes in detail the weapons and
tactics they employed on the battlefield. He starts by showing how, from
very early on, the Germanic communities were heavily influenced by
Celtic culture. He then moves on to describe the major military events,
starting with the first major encounter between the Germanic tribes and
the Romans: the invasion by the Cimbri and Teutones. Julius Caesar's
campaigns against German groups seeking to enter Gaul are described in
detail as is the pivotal Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, which
effectively halted Roman expansion into Germany and for centuries fixed
the Rhine as the border between the Roman and Germanic civilizations.
Escalating pressure of Germanic raids and invasions was a major factor
in the collapse of the Western Roman Empire.
The author's analysis explains how Germanic warriors were able to crush
the Roman military forces on several occasions, gradually transformed
the Roman Army itself from the inside and, after the fall of the Empire,
created new Romano-Germanic Kingdoms across Europe. The evolution of
Germanic weapons, equipment and tactics is examined and brought to life
through dozens of color photos of replica equipment in use.