- Vangiones
The Vangiones appear first in history as an ancient Germanic tribe of unknown provenience. They threw in their lot with
Ariovistus in his bid of58 BC to invadeGaul through theDoubs river valley and lost toJulius Caesar in a battle probably nearBelfort . After some Celts evacuated the region in fear of theSuebi the Vangiones, who had made a Roman peace, were allowed to settle among theMediomatrici in northernAlsace . (Metz however is now in Lorraine). They gradually assumed control of the Celtic city of Burbetomagus, later Worms.The emperor,
Augustus , cultivated them as allies, intending to invade Germany through the region between the Rhine and the Danube. He hadDrusus place two forts among the Vangiones, "castrum Moguntiacum" (13 BCE, laterMainz ) and one of unknown name (14 BCE) at Worms. [The city under the Romans was named Vangiones (see under Ammianus Marcellinus in this article), which follows one Roman convention of naming a city after the tribe residing there. Graesse refers to "Augusta Vangionum" as an alternative name of the city, which would be short for colonia Augusta Vangionum. Graesse was reporting on the Latin names of cities in early printed books. The name is not anciently attested, or whether Worms too was a military colony. Dozens of colonies are attested, however, so it is possible that the name is genuinely ancient but was not mentioned by surviving ancient literature.] From there troops of the Vangiones were inducted into the Roman army. When he changed his mind after theBattle of Teutoburg Forest , the Vangiones were used for garrison duty on the far-flung Scottish frontier atHadrian's Wall at the north of the province ofBritania . [C.Michael Hogan]The Vangiones of
Germania Superior held their position as a bulwark of civilized might as long as Germania Superior existed. Under the Roman Republic they were not among theBelgae , an alliance of Celticised Germanic tribes in northeastern France. In the early empire this name was extended by the Romans to all the Celticised Germans in northern France (the forerunners of theFranks ), among whom were now the Vangiones.In the late empire what was left of Germania Superior was divided into "First Germany" and "Second Germany", the first comprising the Vangiones, Worms and Mainz. The identity disappeared nearly altogether when the region was overrun by the
Alemanni and became Alisatia [The meaning of "the other bank" has of course changed over the centuries. Originally the Alamanni placed settlers in the entire north/south stretch of the left bank. Today the southern portion has been broken out as Lorraine (a Frankish development) and Mainz is considered part of the Rhineland and not Alsace.] . The Vangiones then merged into the Alemanni. Only names local to Worms remembered the presence of the Vangiones, such as the Bishop of the Vangiones. The fate of Vangionic troops of in Britain is uncertain. Some may have remained as a Scottish tribe (see underMoguns ), but that hypothesis is more speculative than not.Etymology
Three iron lanceheads from bogs at Illerup and
Vimose ,Denmark , are inscribed with the name of the manufacturer in runes: Wagnijo, who is believed to have resided in theMainz region. In the year 50 CE,Vannius , king of theSuebi , was dethroned in favor of his nephews, Vangio and Sido. Making the identification between the names Vangio (pronounced Wangio) and Wagnijo permits reconstruction of the original of Vangiones as *Wagniones.One root that seems to fit is *wegh-, "to move, carry, drive". However, quite a number of meanings are attached to the root, allowing quite a few possibilities.
British inscriptions concerning troops of the Vangiones inform us that they contributed half of their enlistment in the Roman army as cavalry. One meaning allowed by [http://www.bartleby.com/61/roots/IE554.html *wegh-] is drivers of horses, or cavalry men. [
Julius Pokorny ] Other possibilities are wagoneers (but there is no special mention of wagons in the sources) and leaders (but the whole tribe were not any special form of leader, although one man might be). Horse-driver or horse-tamer is a fairly common naming theme in earlyIndo-European languages and might have attached itself to people who raised horses for use and trade.Some hypothesize that *Wagnijo, the Suebian chief, supports the idea that the Vangiones were Suebi. The hypothesis, however, is not logically sound, as it implies that male names were specific to tribes (which they were usually not).
The historical trail
Julius Caesar
The Vangiones are mentioned in Caesar's "De Bello Gallico" as a unit among the "copiae" ("forces") of
Ariovistus [1.51] . According to Caesar's Celtic informants, Ariovistus had appeared as a leader of "Germani" who had settled in the land of theAedui (upperLoire ) following the assistance of a vanguard of 15,000 at the Battle of Admagetobriga in 61 BCE. The Germans had been initially invited by the Celts to participate in the resolution of their issues. They continued to cross the Rhine until in 58 BCE 120,000 of them (Caesar's numbers) were in Gaul.Caesar does not say that the Vangiones were among the 120,000, but the text does imply it. He also does not state that they specifically were Germanic, but the 120,000 are stated to be so, and Caesar consistently refers to the "copiae" of Ariovistus as "Germani". Caesar gives no indication of the homeland of any of the Germani other than the other side of the Rhine. Moreover, he omits mention of what happened to the Vangiones and other tribes that had crossed the Rhine (if they did) after the defeat of Ariovistus.
Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder 's "Naturalis Historia " includes a geography that relies onVarro , a citizen of the late Republic and contemporary of Caesar, andAgrippa , who lived in the next generation after Caesar. Through him they give us considerable information on Gaul and the Germanic tribes living in it.Caesar describes pre-Roman Gaul and some of the modifications he made to it. The
Belgae (from whichBelgium ) of his time lived on the left bank of the lower Rhine and were consideredCelts of Germanic origin. In Pliny [4.7] Roman Belgae extends along theRhine from theScheldt to the upperSeine ; that is, upstream toSwitzerland , and includes many more tribes than are listed in Caesar, some of them still Germanic. For the region of Alsace he gives a double list, one Celtic and one Germanic.Two known end points are the
Treveri who we know lived in the vicinity ofTrier (which was named after them) and theHelvetii who we know lived in Switzerland. The Celtic list between those points isLingones ,Remi , Mediomatrici,Sequani andRaurici . The Germanic list, whom Pliny describes as :"accolentes Germaniae gentium in eadem provincia":"colonists from the peoples of Germany in the same province"isNemetes ,Triboci and Vangiones.As the Remi were more to the west, near the
Ardennes , and the Lingones also to the west, nearLangres (named after them), the Vangiones are believed to have been in the country of the Mediomatrici, but how did they arrive there? The three tribes were among the forces ofAriovistus . Apparently, Caesar did not destroy all the Germanic warriors who failed to escape across the Rhine. He probably only pursued the remnants of theSuebi . He does state that some tribes curried favor by attacking the Suebi on their own initiative. Very likely, they received favor and were allowed to remain on the left bank of the Rhine among the Mediomatrici. They were still identifiably Germanic.trabo
The "Geography" of
Strabo , dated to the early empire, mentions the defeat of Varus at theBattle of Teutoburg Forest but makes no mention of the Vangiones. Of the two sections that cover the Alsace region, the one on Germany makes no mention of any Germanic tribes there except theSuebi . Alsace-Lorraine is covered mainly in the section onGaul [4.3.4] and describes the region as it must have been beforeAriovistus led his expedition across the Rhine.Between the
Helvetii and theTreveri aroundTrier , Strabo lists theSequani ,Mediomatrici (aroundMetz ), theLeuci and theLingones . In the country of the Mediomatrici are theTribocchi , who are Germans and had crossed the Rhine from their homeland. Why the Vangiones and Nemetes are not present remains unknown. Perhaps Strabo was relying on an earlier account, which depicts Alsace before Ariovistus, and yet he knew of the defeat of Varus. The Vangiones are not in Germany either.Lucan
Marcus Annaeus Lucanus was a poet of the early empire who chose to immortalize the civil wars in verse, beginning "Pharsalia " with a famous first line calling them the "uncivil wars" ("bella ... plus quam civilia", "wars beyond civil"). In Book I he enumerates poetically all the barbarians who will no longer be troubled by Roman troops because they have been recalled to fight the uncivil wars, among whom are those:"qui te laxis imitantur, Sarmata, bracis" (430):"Vangiones":"who imitate you, Sarmatian, with loose britches, the Vangiones"Lucan did not regard the Vangiones as "nostri", "one of us". He saw a Sarmatian resemblance in the loose trousers, but whether those were the same as the Gallic "bracae" is hard to say. In general pants originated to protect horsemen (or women). The connection is tantalizing because the *wagniones have a name similar to an earlier Sarmatian tribe, the "wagon-dwellers" known toHerodotus . Whether there was one must wait for evidence.Tacitus
The Vangiones appear solidly in the works of
Tacitus , a writer of the 1st century CE of some authenticity and credibility, having been a Roman of fairly high office himself. In "Germania" [Chapter 28] he states that the Gauls were once more powerful than the Germans. At that time theHelvetii were on the right bank of the Rhine south of theMain , with theBoii further down the Danube.On the left bank of Tacitus' time, the
Treviri (Trier ) andNervii claimed Germanic descent, theUbii (Cologne ) were proud of it, and the Vangiones,Triboci andNemetes were of undoubted Germanic origin. Tacitus does not say that any of them were currently Germanic or spoke Germanic, only that they were careful to distinguish themselves from the cowardly Gauls. Apparently the Celtic tribes were no longer in the Agri Decumates (right bank of Rhine) because Tacitus characterizes its population as rabble and penniless adventurers.His "Annales" contains brief mention of the Vangiones in connection with capturing bands of plunderers from the
Chatti across the Rhine to the north (Hesse) in 50 CE. [Book 12.27] The Chatti must have been overconfident to send such small numbers intoAlsace , which was tenanted by both Celtic and Germanic tribes loyal to Rome and was protected by bases at Mainz and Worms. The Roman commander,Lucius Pomponius (Secundus) used cavalry from the Vangiones and theNemetes as well as regular Roman cavalry to attack the sleeping Chatti in their open camps by night. They are said to have set free some of Varus's men who had been slaves for 40 years.His "Histories" describes a year of crisis for the young empire in 69, [Book 4. See under the
Year of the Four Emperors .] when for the first time the system established by theJulio-Claudian dynasty as a solution to civil war was severely tested by the question of succession.Nero was assassinated to rid Rome of his bad management. The Romans could not agree on a successor, inadvertently involving the provinces in their internal politics, with a nearly ruinous result.After the death of
Vitellius despair prevailed along thelimes regarding the continued ability of the empire to rule and enforce peace. The lag in communication allowed the peoples along the Rhine to believe that the empire had in fact disintegrated. A revolt gradually spread along the Rhine, intitated by theBatavi and other tribes of theBelgae among the Germans, and theTreviri andLingones among the Celts (see underBatavian rebellion ). They convinced the Roman legions at Moguntiacum and other bases to defect to an ad hoc Gallic government put up atTrier . The last to defect were the Vangiones, theCaeracates and theTriboci .Meanwhile government at Rome stabilized under
Vespasian , who sent some 8 legions from various parts of the empire underQuintus Petillius Cerialis , a fortunate choice, to deal with the confusion on the Rhine frontier. On the approach of Cerealis the legions who had defected now deserted the government at Trier and sought refuge among theMediomatrici , who, we learn, were still in place and had remained loyal to Rome. The three Belgic tribes among them, including the Vangiones, followed their tradition and changed loyalty back to the Romans.Cerealis poured oil on troubled waters. He forgave the tribes involved, of either nationality. Moguntiacum was reoccupied and restored. The legions who had defected hid in their tents and could not look their loyal comrades in the face. Cerealis instructed the others not to be scornful. Meanwhile Gaul had repudiated Trier as a government. Cerealis offered it terms, which eventually it was forced to take, as were the Batavi. The frontier was restored, with the exception that now the Batavi had to accept a garrison of Roman troops. Cerealis rose to high rank, as he justly deserved to do, serving as a counterbalance to the headstrong
Domitian , who had replaced Vespasian.Ptolemy
Ptolemy , writing in the 2nd century CE, gives only brief mention of the Vangiones in his lists of towns and peoples. [The "Germania Superior" and "Germania Inferior" regions are to be found in Chapter 8, under "Belgica Gallia".] Lower Germany comprises from theBatavi at the mouth of the Rhine to "Mocontiacum", or Mainz. Just after it is the "Obruncus" or "Obrincus" river, which is unknown, except that it ought to be theMain , and then the towns of Upper Germany. For the Vangiones "Borbetomagus" (Worms) and "Argentoratum" (Strassbourg ) are mentioned. The "Mediomatrices" are not in either Germania but are listed to the south ofTrier . Their town is "Dividurum" (Metz ).Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus , 4th century soldier and historian ("Res Gestae"), after pointing out that the Rhine had previously been governed by two "iurisdictiones" [Book 15.11.6] , describes the provincial division of his times. However, the regional names “upper” and “lower Germany” are still in general use. In the jurisdiction of "Prima Germania" (“First or Upper Germany”) are Mogontiacus (Mayence ), Vangiones (Worms), Nemetae (Spires), Argentoratus (Strasbourg ) and "alia municipia." [15.11.8. The identification is long-standing and was worked out by the scholarship of various editors of the Loeb edition, such as T. E. Page,W. H. D. Rouse and some other notables.]Metz andTrier however are in "Prima Belgica".For the year 356 Ammianus records the problems of the emperor
Julian with Germanic tribes on the Rhine frontier. [Book 16.2-4.] In 355 theFranks had destroyedCologne (Agrippina), making it a desert of ruins, and theAlamanni had occupied the countryside ofAlsace , isolating but not occupying the cities there. A list is given (in theaccusative case ), presumably including the "alia municipia" of "Prima Germania": Argentoratum (Strasbourg ), Brotomagum (Brumath ), Tabernas (Saverne ), Salisonem (Selz ), Nemetas (Speyer ), Vangionas (Worms) and Mogontiacum (Mainz ). [16.2.12.] In 356 Julian moved to the relief of the cities, driving out theAlamanni , and reoccupiedCologne , forcing the Franks to the peace table. He went into winter quarters atSens and was besieged there by theAlamanni but they became discouraged and departed before the campaign season began.Notitia Dignitatum
The 5th century CE
Notitia Dignitatum records eleven prefectures [The capitals of the prefectures are called out in the locative case in the illumination portrayed in the article as: Saletione, Tabernis, Vico Iulio, Nemetis, Alta Ripa, Vangionis, Moguntiaco, Bingio, Bodobrica, Confluentibus, Antonaco, all of which are transparently cities, some of which exist today. The entries, however, are obscure, such as the entry for the Vangiones: "Praefectus militum secundae Flaviae, Vangiones." The second Flavian is probably not one of the two legions of that name, as they were stationed elsewhere. It could have been a cohors, an ala, or simply a district, the name of the prefecture. Praefectus militum, "military prefect" could have been an army officer or a governor, or both. The debate continues.] in the domain ("sub dispositione...") of the "Duke of Mainz" ("Dux Mogontiacensis"). Ruling over one of them from the "castellum Vangionis" (locative case of either Vangionis or Vangio) is the "Praefectus militum Secundae Flaviae, Vangiones"; that is, the prefect of a district called Secunda Flavia among the Vangiones. This domain includes 11 prefectures in the Rhineland and northern Alsace.Notes
References
;Ancient sources
*Ammianus Marcellinus ,Loeb Classical Library cite wikisource|Commentaries on the Civil War|Julius Caesar (print: "Penguin Books , 1976, (tr. Jane Mitchell), ISBN 0-140-44187-5")
*cite gutenberg|Marcus Annaeus Lucanus|Pharsalia; Dramatic Episodes of the Civil Wars|602
* [http://www.fh-augsburg.de/~harsch/Chronologia/Lspost05/Notitia/not_doc3.html Notitia Dignitatum, Section XLI] , Bibliotheca Augustana;Modern sources
*Graesse, Theodore, [http://www.columbia.edu/acis/ets/Graesse/contents.html Orbis Latinus] (1909)
* [http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=18177 Hogan, C.Michael Hogan (2007) "Hadrian's Wall", ed. A. Burnham, The Megalithic Portal]
*cite paper
author =Looijenga, Jantina Helena
title =Runes Around The North Sea and on the Continent AD 150-700: Texts & Contexts
version =First Limited Edition
publisher =Tineke Looijenga
date =1997
url =http://dissertations.ub.rug.nl/FILES/faculties/arts/1997/j.h.looijenga/thesis.pdf
format =PDF
accessdate =External links
* [http://www.roman-britain.org/military/coh1van.htm Roman Britain: First Cohort of Vangiones]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.