Ancient Germanic Peoples: Customs, Warfare, and Society
Ancient Germanic Civilization
Land and People
Germany is separated from Gaul and Pannonia by the Rhine and Danube rivers. Mountains and mutual fear separate it from the Sarmatians and Dacians. The ocean surrounds the rest, encompassing vast gulfs and islands, home to recently discovered peoples.
All Germanic peoples share similar traits: fierce blue eyes, reddish-blond hair, large bodies built for combat. They tolerate thirst and heat poorly, accustomed to cold and hunger due to the climate and soil.
The land, though varying somewhat in appearance, is generally covered in dense forests or treacherous swamps.
Resources and Rulers
Whether the gods have granted or withheld gold and silver remains uncertain.
Kings are chosen from the nobility, leaders for their valor. Royal power is not absolute, and leaders guide by example rather than by decree.
The Germanic peoples believe the gods are too great to be confined by walls or depicted in human form.
Justice and Warfare
Punishments fit the crimes: traitors and deserters are hanged from trees; cowards and the physically unfit are drowned in bogs.
Tribal gatherings occur on fixed days, coinciding with the new or full moon, considered auspicious times for important matters.
In battle, it is shameful for a leader to be surpassed in courage, and equally shameful for warriors not to match their leader’s bravery. A surviving warrior who abandons his leader faces lifelong disgrace. Their most sacred oath is to fight for their leader, who in turn fights for victory.
They find it easier to summon enemies and earn wounds than to till the land and wait for harvest. Acquiring through sweat what can be won with blood is seen as lazy.
Family and Marriage
Marriages are strict, with most men content with one wife, except for a few who seek multiple wives for status, not pleasure.
The groom provides a dowry to the bride, not the other way around. Family and relatives witness and approve the gifts, which consist of practical items like a saddled horse, oxen, a shield, spear, and sword, not luxuries for the bride’s adornment.
Adultery is rare, and punishment is swift and severe. The husband expels his adulterous wife from their home after cutting her hair and publicly flogging her. She finds no forgiveness and no new husband, regardless of her beauty, age, or wealth. Corrupting and being corrupted are not tolerated.
Limiting the number of children or killing infants is considered a crime. Good morals are valued more than good laws.
Food and Drink
Their drink is a fermented beverage made from barley or wheat, resembling wine. Their food is simple: wild fruits, fresh game, and curdled milk, consumed without elaborate preparation. They lack temperance regarding drink, however, and if allowed to indulge, they are as easily conquered by vice as by arms.
Reflections on the Germanic Tribes
May their hatred for each other, if not their love for us, endure, especially when the empire’s fate hangs in the balance, for nothing benefits us more than their internal conflicts.
Exploration and Myth
The fame of Hercules’s travels, whether real or legend, extends even to these distant lands. Drusus Germanicus’s ambition to explore beyond the known world was thwarted not by lack of courage but by the vast ocean. It is considered more sacred to believe in the gods’ deeds than to seek concrete proof.
The Harii Tribe
The Harii, surpassing the other tribes in ferocity, enhance their innate savagery with cunning and timing. They carry black shields and paint their bodies, choosing the darkest nights for battle. The terrifying sight of this ghostly army, unseen before, strikes fear into their enemies, for their eyes are the first to be vanquished in every battle.
Beyond the Suiones
Beyond the Suiones lies another sea, almost still and motionless, believed to encircle the earth. The last rays of the setting sun linger so brightly in the east that they outshine the stars. Some claim to hear the rising sun’s sound and see the forms of its horses and the rays of its head.