About the work
Arminio is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel, its libretto adapted from Antonio Salvi's 1703 text, itself based on Jean Galbert de Campistron's 1684 drama Arminius. It premiered on 12 January 1737 at the Covent Garden Theatre in London.
Plot
The captured Cheruscan prince Arminio defies his pro-Roman father-in-law Segeste and Roman rule despite the threat of execution. His wife Tusnelda and sister Ramise work to secure his release. In the end Arminio defeats the Romans, reconciles with the repentant Segeste and arranges his sister's marriage.
Cultural significance
The opera dramatises the story of the Cheruscan leader Arminius and the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in AD 9, and opened Handel's season amid fierce competition with the Opera of the Nobility. Despite praise from Handel's circle it found little public favour: after only six performances Arminio disappeared from the stage for about two centuries, resurfacing in Leipzig in 1935.