#LONDINIUM90AD: MICHAEL VLAHOS. FRIENDS OF HISTORY DEBATING SOCIETY. @MICHALIS_VLAHOS HEADLINE: From Dalmatia to Poland: Frontier Tensions, Roman Legacy, and the Danger of Miscalculation The discussion opens with Gaius (John Batchelor) in Londinium speaki
The John Batchelor Show
John Batchelor
4.5 • 2.8K Ratings
🗓️ 22 September 2025
⏱️ 18 minutes
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Summary
HEADLINE: From Dalmatia to Poland: Frontier Tensions, Roman Legacy, and the Danger of Miscalculation
The discussion opens with Gaius (John Batchelor) in Londinium speaking to Germanicus (Michael Vlahos), who is in Dalmatia (the Dalmatian coast, modern Croatia), a frontier area of the former Roman Empire. Germanicus observes that this region, Ragusa, maintained its Roman continuity through the Middle Ages and was critical as it connected Italy and the Western Empire to Greece and the Eastern Empire. They reflect on Roman figures such as Augustus and Drusus(Nero Claudius Drusus Germanicus), who fought in Germania. Drusus's son, Claudius, became a highly effective emperor who brought the empire to its maximal state, establishing Londinium. The conversation shifts to modern frontier tensions: the Russian probing of the Polish border using drones and warplanes, leading to NATO intervention and British assistance. Drawing on films like The Bedford Incident, they worry about accidental catastrophe due to miscalculation. Germanicus warns that tiny NATO states like the Baltics, driven by paranoia and insecurity, are acting "spasmodically and irresponsibly" and that the United Kingdom is acting like a "rogue state" aggressively pushing for conflict, creating a dangerous situation that could plunge Russia and the West into general war.
41 AD. CLAUDIUS BEGS
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| 0:27.2 | This is the Friends History Debating Society. I'm Gaius in Londinium. |
| 0:33.8 | In my wine bar favorite spot, the centurions have gathered. They want to know where Germanicus is. |
| 0:40.4 | Well, he's at the edge of the empire. Very edge of the empire, enjoying himself in a city that has a tribute or a country, Croatia, and has tribute to Nero-Clorius Drusus Germanicus. |
| 0:49.7 | Born 38 BC, died 9B.C.E. This is a man who could have been |
| 0:55.6 | the heir to Augustus, however, |
| 0:59.2 | an early death at 29. |
| 1:02.6 | Germanicus sent me a photograph |
| 1:04.3 | in these last days of a tribute to Drusus |
| 1:07.5 | and more than a tribute, |
| 1:09.7 | an acknowledgement of the power of Rome 21 centuries later. |
| 1:15.6 | Germanic, it's a very good day to you. |
| 1:17.4 | It's wonderful to speak. |
| 1:18.9 | You were at the edge and you promised me you'd be very careful because you're coming up |
| 1:23.6 | against the highwaymen that prey upon the edges of the empire. |
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