16 AD battle between the Roman general Germanicus and an alliance of Germanic tribes commanded by Arminius
The final engagement of Rome's three-year Germanic campaigns, it effectively ended Roman expansion east of the Rhine until the empire's collapse.
Key Facts
- Year
- 16 AD
- Roman commander
- Germanicus
- Germanic commander
- Arminius
- Outcome
- Roman victory
- Campaign duration
- Three years of Germanic campaigns
- Strategic result
- Roman withdrawal east of the Rhine
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Battle of the Angrivarian Wall followed immediately after the Battle of Idistaviso. Germanic tribes were outraged by a trophy erected by the Romans on the Idistaviso battlefield and mobilized to confront the Roman forces again under the command of Arminius.
In 16 AD near Porta Westfalica, Roman general Germanicus led his forces against an alliance of Germanic tribes commanded by Arminius at the Angrivarian Wall. According to Tacitus, the Romans secured a victory in this engagement, which was the final major battle of Germanicus's three-year campaign in Germania.
Despite the Roman victory, Emperor Tiberius recalled Germanicus to Rome before he could renew the conquest the following spring. This recall effectively ended Roman military ambitions east of the Rhine, and Roman forces withdrew from those Germanic territories, a situation that persisted until the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Germanicus.
Side B
1 belligerent
Arminius.