Barbarian Figures 100BC to 400AD (1 Viewer)

[katana]

Given the current popularity of Roman figures, Barbarian figures are important in battle scenes and dioramas. The Romans beat the Carthaginians, Etruscans, Macedonians, Selucids, Ptolomys, Celts ( Celt-Iberians, Gauls, Britons, Dacians) etc. The Germans were never beaten as a people; they sacked Rome and ultimately defeated and occupied the Western Roman Empire. The Germans were the ultimate Roman adversary. The Teutoberg battle and the loss of three legions was the start of the ultimate Roman defeat by the Germans over a period of over 400 years and many interesting battles. Domitian fought the Dacians and lost two Legions. Marcus Aurelius fought the Marcomanni for 15 years and the many battles ended in a draw. The Emperor Deceius was the first Roman Emperor to die in battle. He and his Legions were destroyed by the Goths in 250 AD. The Eastern Roman Emperor Valens and 8 of 10 Legions were destroyed by the Visigoths in 378 AD.

A lot of great potential dioramas if sufficient barbarian figures are available.

Conte, King and Country, Thomas Gunn and First Legion have all done excellent Barbarian figures;
of both Germans and Celts. The question is; who has made the best Barbarian figures to date?

I personally like the Conte figures: Behold the Power of Rome SPQR 015. The scene is dramatic and very well done IMO. The King and Country Barbarians are excellent figures. The Celtic Chieftain was exceptional IMO. W. Britains Saxon figures are a reasonable representation of a 3rd or 4th Century Goth or Visigoth.

 

[Mirof]

The sack of Rome by C Sanderson ( for Monarch ), depicting the "barbarians" Wisigoths of Alaric defeating Rome 410 Before C

Or Andrea Carthaginian Elephant other " barbarians"

 

[Currahee Chris]

The Germans were the ultimate Roman adversary.

Rome's greatest adversary was Rome herself. Anyone who doesn't see that has missed the point. Both Julius Caesar and Germanicus campaigned into Germany at will. Several German tribes were friends of Rome. Arminius pulled off the greatest campaign of deceit the world has ever seen and it worked miraculously. But in the end, his own people gave him up, which imo-tribal infighting- would have been the fate of Germany had Augustus allowed further incursion. Still, I don't believe the Germans were anywhere near the level of competition the Parthians were.

Who makes the best "Barbarians"? Tricky to say really. While I do like all of the manufacturer's you mentioned, I do believe they have all failed to some degree to capture what true Barbarians would have looked like- en masse. Many of the barbarians are running around with armor, helmets, even captured Roman standards. I envision more of what you see in the opening scene of Gladiator- grubby, worn out warriors. While I know the barbarian tribes had a certain degree of sophistication and varying degrees of equipment, I don't believe it was as widespread or concentrated as the current manufacturers represent. I think the barbarian tribes, if portrayed a little closer to the historical record, would not be very appealing from a marketing standpoint which is why you get a lot of "geared up" figures with bright colors. I think it is a case of artistic license and business common sense edging out true historical accuracy.

 

[theBaron]

...The Germans were never beaten as a people; they sacked Rome and ultimately defeated and occupied the Western Roman Empire. The Germans were the ultimate Roman adversary. The Teutoberg battle and the loss of three legions was the start of the ultimate Roman defeat by the Germans over a period of over 400 years and many interesting battles...

I have to challenge your statement, because it's a little unhistoric to talk about "the Germans" in this time period. There were no Germans, there were Germanic tribes; there's a big difference. Today's Germans are descended from some of them, but also with a good mix of Celts and Slavs, too, much as the Nazis tried to ignore that fact. Also, it's not quite correct to say that the Romans never defeated them. The Romans certainly defeated individual tribes, incorporating some into the Empire as provincials, especially in the lands west of the Rhein, and behind the Limes in what is now southern Germany and much of what today is Austria. The origins of many of the great cities of the German-speaking areas are found in Roman colonial locations. Cologne, Munich, and Vienna come to mind, as do smaller cities but sites no less important, as Trier, Mainz, or Augsburg. The tribes that helped bring about the fall of the Empire arose later, in the east, and wandered into Central Europe and the Mediterranean area in the fifth century AD. They were new arrivals, who displaced many of the inhabitant tribes or absorbed them, much as those tribes had displaced or absorbed Celtic tribes who had lived there.

But you are correct about how interesting the history is, and what a great source it is for future releases. I agree completely.

Prost!
Brad

 

[katana]

Interesting comments; however your timeline is a off by about 150 years. The Goths killed the Emperor Decius in 250 AD on the middle Danube frontier; quite a bit before the 5th century. Rather than German I should have used Norse as most Germanic tribes migrated from Sweden and Denmark. The Cimbre and Tutones destroyed several Legions about 100 BC and had migrated from southern Denmark. The Alemanni and Marcomanni were German tribal confederations that overran the Rhine and Danube frontiers in the late 2nd and mid 3rd centuries AD. The Marcomanni probably killed more Romans than the 3rd century civil wars; where Legion fought Legion.

 

[theBaron]

Interesting comments; however your timeline is a off by about 150 years. The Goths killed the Emperor Decius in 250 AD on the middle Danube frontier; quite a bit before the 5th century. Rather than German I should have used Norse as most Germanic tribes migrated from Sweden and Denmark. The Cimbre and Tutones destroyed several Legions about 100 BC and had migrated from southern Denmark. The Alemanni and Marcomanni were German tribal confederations that overran the Rhine and Danube frontiers in the late 2nd and mid 3rd centuries AD. The Marcomanni probably killed more Romans than the 3rd century civil wars; where Legion fought Legion.

"Norse" is an anachronism, too. There were no "Norse" as we would recognize them. And the Alemanni and Marcomanni were not German. "German" and "Germanic" are not the same thing.

 

[Mirof]

As Caesar wrote in De Bello Gallico

"Horum omnium fortissimi sunt Belgae" :salute::

 

[katana]

I highly recommend the book: The Early Germans by Malcolm Todd, Professor of Archaeology at the University of Exeter UK. Professor Todd uses the terms German and Germanic interchangeably.
German and Norse or Scandinavian are understood by most people as common usage in my experience. The Vandals and Goths originated in Sweden. The Cimbri, Teutons and Saxons originated in Denmark i.e. Scandinavian or Norse countries. A more broad designation would be Indo-European peoples speaking a German dialect. The Alliamanni and Marcomanni are German tribal confederations, as are the Goths.

"Norse" is an anachronism, too. There were no "Norse" as we would recognize them. And the Alemanni and Marcomanni were not German. "German" and "Germanic" are not the same thing.

 

[Currahee Chris]

The Germans were the ultimate Roman adversary. The Teutoberg battle and the loss of three legions was the start of the ultimate Roman defeat by the Germans over a period of over 400 years and many interesting battles.

I came across this quote from Tacitus while reading today during my lunch break. It is on Arminius:

Arminius....began to aim at kingship, and found himself in conflict with the independent termper of his countrymen. He was attacked by arms, and, while defending himself with mixed results, fell by the treachery of his relatives. Undoubtedly the liberator of Germany, a man who, not in his infancy as captains and kings before him, but in the high noon of its sovereignty, threw down the challenge to the Roman nation, in battle with ambiguous results, in a war without defeat...he...receives less than his due from us of Rome.

Im taking my family to Kalkriese this year. I will walk those grounds.

 

[katana]

Chris visit the Saalburg Fortress near Weisbaden if you can. The museum has Roman arms, armor and working reproductions of Ballista and Onagers.

 

[Currahee Chris]

Chris visit the Saalburg Fortress near Weisbaden if you can. The museum has Roman arms, armor and working reproductions of Ballista and Onagers.

Thanks for that- I am looking into as many sites as I can get- or more importantly how many my family will tolerate with me!

Hard to believe when I lived in Germany Kalkriese had not been definitively pinned down as the site of Teutoberg.

 

[katana]

Chris; Mainz was the main Imperial Roman city on the Rhine. The Romanish-Germanish Museum in Mainz is well worth a visit. I went to the museum in 2001 to see the wonderful full size mural of Roman Legionaries by Peter Connally. A seperate part of the museum has reconstructed Roman Warships used on the Rhine on display. The Saalburg Fortress is a short train or bus ride from Mainz.

 

[Andanna]

Thanks for that- I am looking into as many sites as I can get- or more importantly how many my family will tolerate with me!

Hard to believe when I lived in Germany Kalkriese had not been definitively pinned down as the site of Teutoberg.

Arguably, it still has not. There are still a lot of doubts whether Karriere is really the location of the battle.

 

[katana]

The latest Archaeological finds at Kalkriese consist of the burial pits for the remains of the destroyed legions. Germanicus found the site of the battle about 14 AD and ordered that burial pits be dug and the remains be interred. The remains in the pits found had been exposed for several years before burial; thus confirming that the north side of the Kalkriese hill was the probable battle site. The battle site is 18 miles long and 1 mile wide. The battle went on for 3 days and the remains were widely scattered. The Romans were attacked while in column of march from two sides and were unable to deploy effectively. Tacitus wrote about the battle at some length.

Other sites have been proposed but none have shown the Archaeological evidence that Kalkriese has to my knowledge. The battlefield had been looted of all valuables including arms and armor; but the remains of scutums have been found stripped of their metal boss.