From: j m <jkmake@...>
Subject: Re: [newulmad9] Re: Progress?
To: newulmad9@yahoogroups.com
Date: Tuesday, September 1, 2009, 7:23 AM

 

Hi Terry

Almost every idea you have for the battle can be worked in and will add to the battle scene nicely!  I especially like the idea of the troops needing  to march around the obstacles/branches/ tree trunks to slow the advance and cause disarray.  The battling  ending as you describe fits our vision at this point very well. 

We have talked about the battle ending nearly exactly as you envision.  Alexander and I are still working up the script. We can post the draft/developing   script in a few days I should think.

We start on the battle soundtrack/ supporting music today in earnest.    We have some help/equipment of the local New Ulm Cable Channel (New Ulm Community Access TV).

If we are able to borrow the weapons you describe, we can of course assign people to watch our gear as well as keep accurate track of all loaner equipment.

Your experience with theater and the aid of the weapons described will greatly enhance the battle scent and clearly add realism.  When we drilled in small groups this weekend it was somewhat dramatic the sounds that could be generated by banging wooden and steel weapons on the shields (and when the troops rammed shields and fought.   The felt weapons would not be as noisy but we can enhance with the sound track and effects as needed (or some could use steel-those with experience/ previous training).  After this weekend with Kevin and Rich drilling and training on the combat piece, I came to realize how risky it is with overly enthusiastic participants and sharp weapons. 

I appreciate the ideas ands support of all those involved.  We had an effective training weekend with the advance party here a couple days ago. We generated more interest.  We got coverage in the Sunday paper front page story here in New Ulm (nujournal.com     August 30th)  Our group this weekend met up with lots of local people and created a positive impression.  Rich, Kevin and Tony were on the job and at their best! 

John

Gaius Julius Magnus

New Ulm

On Mon, Aug 31, 2009 at 9:28 AM, <niximperial@ aol.com> wrote:

 

Hello Doug and John

This email is being sent to the newulmas9 chat room as well as legion ten fretensis chatroom http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/LegionTen/ as well as other participants.  I would ask that individual groups and legions who participating do the same.

 

I spoke to Mark Saddler at Lafe about borrowing his felt weapons for the just the fighting scenes.  He said he really did not have that many with only six spears and six swords.  I have another old friend named Rusty Meyers who has a substantially larger amount of felt weapons.  I just sent him off an email asking if we could borrow his felt weapons for the battle scene.  We will need to be responsible for each weapon however.  They should be issued out to particular people some time before the battle and returned right after the battle and finale gathering around Hermanns statue as some will be with re-enactors still and some will still be laying around on the ground.  We would then mark off their names as returned.  I am not sure how large the public gathering will be but I think that during the battle, we need to appoint two people for specific jobs.  One will be to watch the Roman camp as most of our real weapons and spears (pilum) will stay behind in the camp along with lots of other items that will need to be watched over.  There will most likely be thousands of dollars worth of equipment being unguarded during this time, so we need a civilian or maybe even an Ulm policeman to stay in the camp as we are to all leave after the battle and head towards the statue of Herman.  The other individual I mentioned should gather up the felt spears and swords left on the after the battle field when we all leave the battle field for the statue and this individual take them back to the camp.  Although living here in Texas, I was not able to attend the planning meeting in Ulm,  although the basic schedule of events has already been drawn up by John Makepeace and sent out.  On my emails to both Mark Saddler and Rusty Meyers, I spoke of the need to have felt weapons for the battle part of the event.  Mark was real concerned about their security.  I mentioned to them how this would add a great deal of realism for the public.  My back ground in theatre as well as reenactment for three and a half decades as well as my artistic skills in several mediums all combine to give a vivid imagination.  As far as the actual battle sequence goes, here are my thought's and ideas concerning this part of the event.  Remember, this is the drama part of me coming out and every thing would have to be approved by John Makespeace before it is written in stone.  So here is the setting, natural props and sequence of events I have come up with.

 

#1:  The Romans are marching across a part of the forest which has squeezed them into marching in ranks of only two abreast.  Although this should be in reality in the wooded areas, the ability to give as much of the public a good view and to see as much of the action as possible makes more since that we should be marching just outside of the forest.  Now we know from history that the Germans had cut down trees and arranged obstacles in order to direct and control the movement of the legions.  If we could get a fifty yard long area where we could stack limbs a foot of two high and at least a foot wide to simulate this last area of containment, we (Romans) could approach it initially rows of four and then slow we have to slow down and get into rows of two when we start making into this area.  Having a small tree across our path at the beginning of this area could also act as the starting point of this last phase that we would all have to take our time getting over it and may need to help each other over it.  Even having two or three more small cut down trees along the path would simulate the difficulty of the terrain.  There should also however be a large tree at the end of the fifty yards to simulate the blocked end of the trail Varus and his men came upon.

 

#2:  It is at this moment when the Roman column have stopped and are looking at this obstacle to figure out their next move that from out of the forest Arminius (Hermann) Lets out a loud war cry.  Right after his load cry, the entire German force lets out the same load cry.  The second after this cry has finished, a hail of German spears (felt blades) come flying out of the forest.  As soon as this hail of spears in thrown, a second load cry from the Germans comes from the forest as the Germans pour out with swords (felt swords) drawn 

with Arminius leading and charge the Roman spread out flank.  The Romans are trapped initially between the fifty yard long narrowed edge. 

 

#3:  Depending on how long we need to stretch out the battle, the Germans (Arminius) will shout out a another command which will be the Germans signal to brake off the attach and go back into the woods and regroup.  Wounded or dead Germans will be helped off the battle field by their comrades but will be reborn for the second or possibly even the third attach.  This is also how the battle actually went.  Dead Romans should remain dead. 

 

#4:  This is very important.  The Roman general Varus and the two standard bearers are not to be killed in these initial assaults.  The standard bearers will stay with Varus at all times.  Although all three can fight and engage with the Germans,  no spears should be thrown at them and any fighting that occurs between any of these three and the Germans can not be death blows.  It would be a good idea and historically accurate if there were at least a couple of Roman soldiers guarding Governor Varus and the standard bearers as well.  What ever we decide will be the final attack on the Romans will be the one with the two standard bears being killed and there standards taken by the Germans.   Varus will then take his own life after the standards are taken.  Again he can have a couple of Romans guarding him as he takes his own life but if they are killed, the German forces should either fight other Romans or gather around and cheer at capturing the Roman standards.  Varus at this point should be pretty much by himself to one far side.  When Varus has killed himself, he will fall away from the crowed or fall with his head or body behind part of the fifty yard long barricade.  After this, Herman (Arminius) will walk over to the body of Varus by himself and remove Varus helmet.  Then with a powerful blow using both hands on his sword handle and bringing the back over his own head, then comes down towards Varus neck.  The ground area of this not be seen.  A head should be in position near by or maybe even under a fake rock or behind a small clump of limbs next to where Varus took his life.  Arminius will then reach down an d grab the fake head of Varus by the hair and hold it up high to which all the other Germans will give out a great shout and raise up their spears and swords up and down continuously and follow Arminius who is still holding this head of Varus still high in the air.  Arminius will then walk towards the statue of Hermann cutting through the crowd of spectators.  When the Germans have left the field of battle,  the Roman will resurrect themselves from the dead and follow the Germans to the statue.  When the Romans draw near to the Germans, Herman and Varus will shack hands as a sigh of peace and all the Germans and Roman will follow suit by doing the same. 

 

#5:  After the friendship greetings are finished, the re-enactors will continue with the written schedule of events.

 

SALVE, Terry Nix

Publius Quinctilius Varus

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