Bat'avi

Bat'avi, an old Teutonic people who inhabited a part of the present Holland, particularly the island named from them Insula Batavorum (modern Betuwe), which is formed by the branch of the Rhine that falls into the sea near Leyden, by the Waal, and the Meuse. Their country extended southward across the Waal. Under Augustus they became allies of the Romans, and earned for their fidelity the honourable title of friends and brothers of the Roman people, and were permitted to choose their commanders from amongst themselves. Their cavalry were famous, and were often employed by the Romans.