Interesting reference in "Guns of August."
I was reading Barbara Tuchmann's beautiful and moving book "The Guns of August" when I came across this phrase at the beginning of Chapter 13, "Sambre et Meuse":
Immediately I whipped out out my three volumes of Ammianus but could find no reference to a major action in the West in 362. Perhaps there was at least a commander named Jovian? And indeed there was! From the introduction of XXVII., 2, 1 of Ammianus (The Loeb edition translated by John C. Rolfe):The French right wing, opening the offensive into German-occupied Lorraine, took an old embattled path like so many in France and Belgium where, century after century, whatever the power that makes men fight brought legions tramping down the same roads, leveling the same villages. On the road east from Nancy the French passed a stone marker inscribed, "Here in the year 362 Jovinus defeated the Teutonic Hordes."
"Jovinus, commander of the cavalry in Gaul, unexpectedly attacks two companies of the Alamanni and cuts them to pieces. He vanquishes a third part of the savages in a battle at Châlons-sur-Marne, where 6000 of the enemy were killed and 4000 wounded."
The only problem is that this took part in 366, not 362. But at least the marker stone is referring to something major that actually happened. I think Rolfe has actually made an error with the location. Châlons-sur-Marne is someways northwest of Nancy but Ammianus simply says the battle took place at "Catalaunos." He does say the Romans assembled at a place called Scarponna, which Rolfe says is Charpeigne on the Moselle, which is very close to Nancy but some ways southeast of Châlons-sur-Marne.
Anyways, just thought it was interesting how the shadow of history falls on modern times (if WWI can even be considered as such, given that it was almost a century ago!)
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