Germania Triumphant

Could Germania have unified into a civilization capable of going toe to toe with Rome? And if that's too ASB how soon could the Germanic tribes invade Rome?
 
Could Germania have unified into a civilization capable of going toe to toe with Rome? And if that's too ASB how soon could the Germanic tribes invade Rome?

I think there is a TL based on this idea in this forum. However, in my opinion, the short answer is no, not with a PO allowing for a Rome like we know it, and for the second answer, the would likely be no Germanic "tribe" in this scenario by that point anyway.
 
Could Germania have unified into a civilization capable of going toe to toe with Rome? And if that's too ASB how soon could the Germanic tribes invade Rome?
Not much earlier than they did for reasons of technological and economic development. The only reason the Huns united most of the area was because its societies had developed to a point where they could be united. Even after 400, had Rome not had Sassanid Persia to worry about, the outcome might have been very different.
 
I think there is a TL based on this idea in this forum. However, in my opinion, the short answer is no, not with a PO allowing for a Rome like we know it, and for the second answer, the would likely be no Germanic "tribe" in this scenario by that point anyway.

Mine may be the one you're referring to. At least, I know of no other TL with this POD.

I had Arminius unite them by force and made the process of solidifying them into an actual country take a long time, but I honestly think it came out a little bit ASB all the same. I have to admit, a unified Germania in antiquity is quite unlikely. A more successful Arminius was the only remotely realistic POD I could think of that might result in the tribes banding together for a long period of time, and that's still a stretch.
 
I think I have heard that Arminius wanted to unite the tribes, he was killed for that, so if you need a POD you could let him unite them. That would be around 15 A.D
 
I had Arminius unite them by force and made the process of solidifying them into an actual country take a long time, but I honestly think it came out a little bit ASB all the same. I have to admit, a unified Germania in antiquity is quite unlikely. A more successful Arminius was the only remotely realistic POD I could think of that might result in the tribes banding together for a long period of time, and that's still a stretch.

In my opinion, the question is that by Arminius time, Germania was not developed enough to sustain a stable unified polity for a long time. More advanced places such as Gallia and Dacia did not, and they had a larger and more sedentary population in comparison, more natural resources etc... Of course, you can always assume an unplausible, but still possile, amount of luck.
A more developed Germany IS possible, but it would more sedentary as well. There would need to be cities, not tribes. So no point in invading and settling Roman territory (not more than OTL at least).
I'd go as far as claiming that the "backward" political structure of the Germanics way a key factor in their favor when they defeated the Romans in the fifth century.
 
The timeline Suebi Superpower deals with this. However, the POD is early enough that the rise of Rome is forestalled.
 
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