Veleda: The Seeress Whose Word Steered War and Peace

Veleda was a seeress of the Germanic tribe of the Bructeri who lived in the 1st century AD on the Lower Rhine or the Lippe. She became famous during the Batavian revolt (69/70): Tacitus reports that her word carried far and wide and that she even mediated between the rebels and Rome.

The power of the seeress

According to Tacitus, Veleda lived secluded in a tower; no one was allowed to speak to her directly. Requests and answers ran through a relative who served as an intermediary – which raised her prestige still further. She foretold victory to the rebels and was venerated "as if a deity". Her counsel decided over war and peace.

"… she was regarded by many as divine."after Tacitus, Histories IV (public domain, own translation)

Seeresses in Germanic belief

Veleda was no isolated case. Tacitus writes that the Germanic peoples credited some women with the gift of prophecy and greatly esteemed their counsel; he also names a seeress called Albruna. This appreciation of female wisdom runs through Germanic-Norse belief – down to the völva, the seeress of the Viking Age. Women could hold religious authority denied to most men.

Veleda shows that in Germanic belief women could attain the highest spiritual authority – her word weighed more than that of the war leaders. More on prophecy in the article on Seiðr and the Norns.

Read more with us

Germanic Religion · The Matronae · The Batavi · The Cherusci & Arminius · Seiðr – the magic.

Sources & literature

Tacitus, Histories (IV–V) & Germania (8); Statius; Rudolf Simek; quote public domain or own translation.

Visit the Shop More posts