Hunting the Eagles

The battle of the Teutoburg Forest in September AD 9 saw three Roman legions annihilated by German tribes in a masterful ambush. While the defeat was a considerable setback for Rome, such humiliations were never taken lying down. By the time five years had passed, an experienced general – Germanicus – and a massive army were in place on the frontier, ready to cross the Rhine in search of revenge. Recovery of the three lost eagle standards was paramount. So too was tracking down and killing Arminius, the chieftain who had masterminded the Teutoburg massacre.

Before the campaign could get underway, events took an unexpected direction with the emperor Augustus’ sudden death in autumn AD 14. An air of unease settled over the entire empire, and simmering grievances held by the soldiers of the Rhine garrisons flared into open mutiny. Restoring law and order would test Germanicus’ skills to the limit, and make his task in the wilds of Germania that much harder.

Although Hunting the Eagles is a work of fiction, it is peopled by historical characters and is based on real events in north-western Germany during the years AD 14 and 15. I hope, like me, you too will want to lose yourself in this remarkable story, and to march step by muddy step with the Roman legionaries as they fight for their lives against Arminius and his bloodthirsty horde.