Germanic Sources
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Tacitus (Publius Cornelius)- c. 98 CE: available online and in print. Main works:
Germania; The Annals of Imperial Rome; The Histories; Agricola; See Files
Born ca. C.E. 56 and died ca. 120, he was a Roman orator and public official and was probably the greatest historian and one of the greatest prose stylists who wrote in the Latin language. His main works are:
"De vita Julii Agricolae" (the "Agricola") - written in C.E. 98 and is a biographical account of his father-in-law's career.
"De origine et situ Germanorum" (the "Germania") - a description of the Roman frontier on the Rhine, also written in 98.
"Historiae" (Histories) and "Annals" totaling 30 books which traced the political history of Rome in the second half of the 1st Century.
Tacitus was born in northern Italy or southern Gaul, grew up in comfortable circumstances and enjoyed a good education which included a study of rhetoric, literature and prose composition. After studying to be an advocate at law, he began his career with an appointment to a military tribunate. in 77 Tacitus married the daughter of Gnaeus Julius Agricola, who was later to become the governor of Britain, and was the subject of the work mentioned above. Aided by Agricola's political connections he gradually earned public distinction both in the legal-administrative field and as an orator, becoming a member of the priestly college that kept the Sibylline Books of prophecy and supervised foreign-cult practice.
It is not known whether Tacitus ever visited the territory of the Germanic tribes he describes; several scholars have suggested that he may have commanded one of the Rhine legions after his first years in senatorial positions in Rome. He maintained his political career into his late fifties, by which time he was devoting much of his energy to history.
--from Encyclopedia Britannica and
"Germania", translated with commentary by J.B. Rives, Clarendon Press, 1999.
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Theodosian Code XVI.i.2: Banning of Other Religions
Although toleration was give to Christianity in 311CE by Constantine I, Christianity did not become the legal religion of the Roman Empire until the reign of Theodosius I (379-395). At that point not only was Christianity made the official religion of the Empire, but other religions were declared illegal.
It is our desire that all the various nation which are subject to our clemency and moderation, should continue to the profession of that religion which was delivered to the Romans by the divine Apostle Peter, as it has been preserved by faithful tradition and which is now professed by the Pontiff Damasus and by Peter, Bishop of Alexandria, a man of apostolic holiness. According to the apostolic teaching and the doctrine of the Gospel, let us believe in the one diety of the father, Son and Holy Spirit, in equal majesty and in a holy Trinity. We authorize the followers of this law to assume the title Catholic Christians; but as for the others, since in out judgment they are foolish madmen, we decree that the shall be branded with the ignominious name of heretics, and shall not presume to give their conventicles the name of churches. They will suffer in the first place the chastisement of divine condemnation an the second the punishment of out authority, in accordance with the will of heaven shall decide to inflict.
from Henry Bettenson, ed., Documents of the Christian Church, (London: Oxford University Press, 1943), p. 31 [Short extract used under fair-use provsions]
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Thietmar: also spelled Dietmar, or Dithmar bishop of Merseburg and chronicler whose history of the three Ottos and Henry II, Saxon kings of Germany and Holy Roman emperors, is an important medieval Saxon document.
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Timaios, (third century
BCE): reported that the 'Celts' (i.e. Germanic tribes) on the North Sea coast
were particularly devoted to the dioscuri.
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