Early History

The history of the German people can be traced to the time of the Roman Empire, when northern and western Europe was occupied by various Germanic tribes. Julius Caesar in his Gallic (French) campaigns (58-51 B.C.) pushed the boundaries of the Roman Empire east to the Rhine River. A number of cities such as Cologne, Mainz, Strasbourg, Regensburg, and Vienna grew up as Roman communities. The Romans, however, never subdued the region east of the Rhine and north of the Danube—the heart of what is now Germany.