Magna Germania - The forgotten province
Starting with Drusus’ Germania campaigns in 12 BC the Roman Empire tried to gain control in the general area east of the Rhine and north of the Danube, which the Romans called Magna Germania. The Romans wanted to make new borders along the rivers Elbe in the east and Vltava in the south-east. (Wikipedia: Magna Germania).
Magna Germania – Alexander G. Findlay, Ancient Germania – New York, Harper and Brothers 1849
Otherwise we have little other information about the province except that Germania Magna was in the process of formation and that the province was abandoned following the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD.
The most important place in the emerging province was Aliso. The legionary fortress Aliso, also known as the Roman camp Aliso, was an important Roman military camp in nowadays Germany. It was located near the Lippe River. Aliso was built around the year 11 BC and served as an important base for Roman troops in the region. The exact size and structure of the legionary fortress Aliso are not fully known, but it is believed that it housed a significant garrison and may also have served as a supply point for Roman troops operating along the Lippe and in the Westphalian Lowland. The Roman camp Aliso also played an important role during the Roman-Germanic War. It was probably destroyed by Germanic warriors in the year 9 AD after the Battle of the Teutoburg Forst, but in the year 16 during the Germanicus campaigns it served as a base for the Romans again.
Since also women and children lived in the fortress Aliso, Aliso also had a civil significance and can be described as the main town of the young province Magna Germania. In a similar way the provinces Tarraconensis (main town Tarraco) and Narbonensis (main town Narbo) were named, this province was possibly named Alisonensis from its main town Aliso.
The Romans had over 20 years from the beginning of provincialism in 12 BC until the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest. Thus there must already have been a certain amount of infrastructure (roads, villages), because this was also important for the economic development of the province. The Romans must have made long-term plans, otherwise the Empire wouldn’t have lasted for over 1000 years, however the Roman empire was like a business and provinces had to pull their weight and so they couldn’t drain money for 20 years or more.
Based on the assumption that THE event of the 1st millennium in east of the Rhine Germania/Germany, the Roman occupation, has left cultural, infrastructural and archaeological traces, the aim of ALISONENSIS is to rediscover the whole infrastructure of the province Germania Magna. However, due to financial and time constraints, for the time being the author must focus on the area between the Paderborn Plateau and the Arnsberg Forest and the adjacent Hellweg Boerde.
The gain of knowledge of Roman roads, military bases and settlements also makes it possible to start to draw conclusions about the locations of the battles of the Roman-Germanic war, e. g. the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest. The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, also known as Varus Battle, took place in 9 AD and was a pivotal moment in the history of Central Europe. Germanic tribes led by Arminius defeated three Roman legions led by Publius Quinctilius Varus. The Battle of the Teuturg Forest marked the end of Roman expansion in nowadays Germany, and thus the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest also had long-term effects on the political and cultural development of Europe.