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World at War

Roman–Germanic Wars

113 BC – 476 AD Europe Status: ended Casualties: Millions over 5 centuries

Centuries of conflict along the Rhine and Danube frontiers. The Battle of Teutoburg Forest (9 AD) halted Roman expansion; the Migrations of Peoples in the 4th–5th centuries ultimately brought down the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD.

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Belligerents

  • Roman Empire
  • Germanic tribes (Vandals, Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Huns)

Casualties

Millions over 5 centuries

Key events

  • AD 378 — Adrianople (Valens killed)
  • 410 — Sack of Rome (Alaric)
  • 451 — Châlons (Attila checked)
  • 476 — Odoacer deposes Romulus Augustulus

Aftermath

End of antiquity in the West. Latin literacy collapsed; population fell ~30–50% in former provinces; long-distance trade evaporated. Eastern Empire (Byzantium) survived another thousand years. Germanic successor kingdoms (Franks, Visigoths, Lombards) became the building blocks of medieval Europe.

Weapons & matériel

  • Spatha (long sword)
  • Plumbata darts
  • Cavalry lance
  • Spangenhelm helmets
  • Composite bow (Hunnic)

Economy

Western Empire's tax base collapsed; gold solidus flow into Germanic kingdoms; Eastern Empire paid 6,000 lb gold/year tribute to Attila

Sources

  • Ammianus Marcellinus
  • Procopius
  • Jordanes, Getica
From World at War, an interactive atlas by Jairus Pereira. Figures are approximate, drawn from Wikipedia, UCDP, ACLED and academic sources — a design artefact, not an authoritative register. Contact.