the Germans at the end of the 1st century AD, he called them Germani and not Deutsch, or by whatever name they were known to themselves. 'German' means cousin in Latin. He saw the similarity between the Germans of his time and the idealized picture he had of his own ancestors. It is very probable that most of the Romans saw them in the same light as Tacitus. Of course they conquered by force of arms, but the official version and the terms of their settlement within the empire was talking about them as 'foederati' - allies, and they were settled in separate areas and keeping their organization, laws and rulers. They joined the empire as a new force to defend it against the barbarians. It is true that the Germans themselves were barbarians, but the real meaning of the word was the endless procession of eastern horse-nomads, who came out of the east , like the Huns, the Avars, the Hungarians, the Petchenegs, Kumans, Mongolians and finally the Turks, both the Seljuk and the Ottoman varieties. The empire's plan was well thought out and it succeeded. When the Huns reached Gaul in the middle of the 5th century AD, the majority of the Roman army was of German origin and they saved the day. It is true that they wanted first to save themselves, but by doing so, they saved Europe from being swamped by the East. What was started in Gaul in the 5th century continued to the end of the 17th century when the Ottoman tide was finally turned. Judging from the his...
