The historians' history of the world in twenty-five volumes, volume 06

by Unknown

Their weapons formed the principal adornment of the men and were therefore worn at all assemblies. Young men were not allowed to wear them until the national assembly had declared them fit to do so. A shield and a spear were the principal weapons for fighting at close quarters as well as at a distance; on the other hand a coat of mail and a helmet were only very seldom assumed by the Germans. For a man to leave his shield behind him in battle, was with them, as with the Spartans, a terrible disgrace, and resulted in the warrior to whom this had happened being excluded from the national assembly and public sacrifices; many avoided this indignity by committing suicide. In war some of the Germans were mounted, although their chief strength lay in their infantry.

The Romans praise the ancient Germans for all those moral qualities which are characteristic of every brave nation in a half-civilised condition, such as bravery and hospitality. The Germans seem to have early distinguished themselves from other nations by three merits: polygamy was never one of their customs; they set a high value on the virtue of chastity; they distinguished themselves by their fidelity and devotion towards those whom they had chosen as leaders.

The high position which women occupied amongst them as compared with other barbarians was also characteristic. The wife was not treated as a slave; and amongst all German nations, maidens were considered better hostages for a treaty than men, as in the former case they considered themselves more bound to keep their word. The female sex was very highly honoured; many women—as, for example, the Veleda living in Vespasian’s time—played the part of alrunas, that is to say omniscients or prophetesses, an important rôle, and these prophetesses exercised a great influence over the counsels and decisions of their people.

The administration was not exactly democratic, except among the Frisians; even in the times when the people and every individual still took part in the government, we often find traces of the later free monarchy. The Germans had elected leaders in war and a chief appointed for life, who in peace had to manage their affairs with limited authority. All the freemen constituted the national assembly, which deliberated on and decided all general questions, determined on the life or death of a criminal, and selected the presidents for the tribunals of the individual cantons.

The national assemblies were held on certain days either at the new or the full moon; with the Frank nation generally only once a year and that in March and, later on, in May. There were certain nobles who, as a rule, though not always, were chosen in preference to others, and who deliberated on and decided the less important affairs among themselves; whether they obtained this position on account of their birth or their personal distinction must remain undecided.

The king was chosen from among them and was not the lord, as is usual with the leaders of warlike semi-barbarous races, but the representative of his tribe, and was therefore not only chosen for his bravery but for his distinction. The army consisted of all the freemen. Besides this so-called heerbann (militia), at times when no war was being carried on by the whole tribe, individual bodies of troops were formed, who attached themselves to a brave leader for some special undertakings. They constituted his following, and fought under his leadership for fame and booty. The greater the following of a noble, the greater the influence which he held in the national assembly.

Justice was carried out by a chosen judge who was called “graf” (count), from the word grau—grey, i.e., the eldest, and who had a number of householders as assistants. Punishments were considered as compensations, and decided according to that principle; even murder was atoned for by the judge deciding the damages to be paid to the relations of the person slain.

The Romans only give us very superficial information concerning the religion of the ancient Germans. That they acknowledged many gods is about all we can determine with certainty. If, as is generally done, the legends of the ancient Scandinavians written in the Middle Ages are added to the Roman reports, two detailed accounts are obtained concerning the gods and myths of the Germans; but it is very doubtful if the older inhabitants of Germany proper, who alone are spoken of in the Roman histories, had one and the same faith and worship as the Scandinavians.

According to the usual theory, the principal god of the Germans was Woden or Odin; as the god ruling over all, the “All-father”; and as the founder of the German race he was called Tuisko. Next to him came his elder sons, the god of thunder, Thonar or Thor, whose memory is still preserved in the word Thursday, and the god of war, Tyr or Tir from whose name the word Tuesday is derived. Woden’s wife and the goddess of marriage was Freia, to whom Friday was dedicated. Another wife of Woden was Hertha, or the goddess of the earth. Besides these the Scandinavians honoured the god of poetry, Bragi; Balder, the hero of the gods distinguished for his beauty; the goddess of youth, Iduna; the Norns or goddesses of fate and other divinities.

The Scandinavians had just as many poetical myths concerning the life and fate of the gods as the ancient Greeks. Besides the gods, they believed in two unseen worlds of giants and dwarfs. They also believed in immortality, and depicted the life after death in their own fashion. For example, they thought that those who fell in battle lived in the palace of Valhalla with Woden, and spent their time fighting, hunting, and drinking, and at their banquets were attended by the Valkyries, or goddesses of battle, who spun the web of the battle with terrible songs.