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Alright, let us talk a bit about the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest (9 CE) and its reemergence into pop culture as of late. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/oldest-roman-body-armour-discovered-in-germany-p6lsv5jq6?fbclid=IwAR02dCYP5JM1evo9GUjO26-HRBOxokxACpswIiTyGN1xSRWph2iZi2b-9sY First, it is very exciting that the oldest & most complete Roman body armor (lorica segmentata) was recently found at Kalkriese!
As I wrote about back in 2016 with @adrianmurdoch, coins found in the area already almost certainly identified the locale as the site of the battle. https://www.forbes.com/sites/drsarahbond/2016/07/01/give-me-back-my-legions-discovery-of-gold-coins-confirm-battle-of-teutoburg-forest-site/#6d068a733a95
And of course, we just found out this week that @netflix is launching a new series in October based on the battle. https://www.netflix.com/title/81024039
But let us not forget the later use of the Arminius as Germanic hero narrative and the Battle as a point of German nationalism after the publication of Tacitus' Annals in 1515. Martin Luther renamed Arminius as Hermann and he later became an icon of German racial supremacy.
The Medieval Siegfried, slayer of dragons, was often tied to Arminius. The nationalistic love of the myth grew in popularity particularly with the publication of Die Hermannsschlacht in 1808 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Die_Hermannsschlacht_(Kleist)
Hitler was obsessed with Arminius (see pic below) and Job Mestrom's work: https://theses.ubn.ru.nl/bitstream/handle/123456789/3980/Mestrom%2C_J.J.J._1.pdf?sequence=1 But Arminius (Hermann) has also become a rallying point for white nationalism in the United States today.
I guess what I am saying is that in the midst of all this reemerging love for the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest and the defeat of Varus & his Roman legions, do not lose sight of its potential to again become a rallying point for white nationalists once again. It is a fine line.
