Legio XVII: Battle of the Danube by Thomas A. Timmes

Author:Thomas A. Timmes [Timmes, Thomas A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: History, Ancient Civilizations, Rome
ISBN: 2940045859264
Amazon: B00QOEUHSQ
Barnesnoble: B00QOEUHSQ
Publisher: Thomas A. Timmes
Published: 2014-12-06T05:00:00+00:00

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In April, the second group of 1,000 newly trained Legionaries arrived at Trento with Tribune Andreas. He put an immediate stop to the tall stories about climbing the mountain told by the drivers, but even he was almost taken in.

Andreas knew he could not let the men sit idly warming themselves in the huts. They were kept busy with the standard chores of looking after their mules, chopping firewood, and feeding themselves, but they had to be kept active to maintain their physical conditioning and soldierly skills. He now had under his Command at the encampment 2,000 new Legionaries and a 100-man Maniple from Legio XVII that remained at the fort to provide security.

The roughly 1,000 wagon drivers who had driven the wagons from Rome to Trento and stayed to build the fort were mostly hired laborers and slaves. Initially, they were needed to care for the animals and perform many of the routine jobs of living in an isolated fort. All but about 400 of these men returned to Rome when the 600 wagons were driven over the Brenner and Reschen Passes in November.

Shortly after his arrival at the encampment, Andreas’ curiosity about the pathway compelled him to see it for himself. He was the kind of man who believed in facing his fears. He hated sitting around dreading some future event. He gathered his Raeti counterpart, the few Centurions at the fort, some of the more promising recruits and set out to walk the 46 miles (74km) to the base of the hill. He planned for this trip like he would any expedition. The cold was his major concern, but with the mules carrying the tents and enough food, fuel and fodder, he did not anticipate any problems.

After five days of walking, he and the others stood at the base of the mountain. The slight dusting of snow did not cover the trail and the poles clearly marked the path. The next day, Andreas took the group and their mules about a mile up the hill to better gauge its steepness and difficulty.

Around the fire that night, the consensus was that the hill was an ass-kicker, but could be climbed. The stories told by the wagon drivers were a bunch of nonsense designed to scare the new recruits.

When Andreas and his small party returned to the fort at Trento, they were swarmed by the Legionaries anxious to hear about the mountain. Andreas anticipated this reaction and had rehearsed the men who climbed the hill with him on specific items to mention and how to say it. He did not dictate what they would say, but provided guidance on topics to cover.

Within minutes of Andreas’s arrival at the fort, he called for a meeting, without the lying drivers. The men were formed into a horseshoe formation with Andreas and his fellow climbers in the open end. He told the Legionaries to sit down. Andreas then said a few words and allowed each of the 10 men to share their experience.

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