Which legions served under Germanicus in Germania?

[Zenobia of Palmyra]

I'm curious, which four legions served under Germanicus during his German campaigns, does anybody know???

[Nathan Ross]

Tacitus describes the army that Germanicus led into Germany as follows:

"A detachment of cavalry and ten auxiliary cohorts led the way, then came the first legion; the baggage-train was in the centre; the twenty-first legion guarded the left flank; the fifth, the right; the twentieth held the rear, and the rest of the allies followed." (Annals, I.51)

These were the four legions of lower Germany, which had recently been mutinous: I Germanica, XXI Rapax, V Alaudae and XX Valeria Victrix (possibly unnamed, or differently named, at the time, if the title was indeed won later in Britain.)

The following year Germanicus handed command of this army to Caecina, and himself led four other legions into the campaign. These are not actually numbered by Tacitus, but would have been the four legion garrison of upper Germany: the 'second, thirteenth... sixteenth (and) the fourteenth' (Annals I.37) - II Augusta, XIII and XVI Gemina and XVI Gallica.

The final battle against Arminius featured all eight of these legions:

"Our army advanced in the following order: in the van, the auxiliary Gauls and Germans with the unmounted archers behind; next, four legions, and the Caesar with two praetorian cohorts and the flower of the cavalry; then four other legions, the light-armed troops with the mounted archers and the rest of the allied cohorts." (Annals II.16)

- Nathan

[Phaichtos]

D'oh, you beat me to it! Nicely done, Nathan

[Zenobia of Palmyra]

Thank you so much!!! :mrgreen:

[Lindsay_Powell]

I agree with Nathan's assessment. I am working on a biography of Germanicus and have used the same references he quoted. It is, however, almost impossible to determine the full complement of auxiliary units and "German bands" (Tacitus, Annals, 1.56) he took with him though among the treaty allies were likely Batavi, Frisii, Chauci and Cananefates.