Boudicca - Queen of The Iceni Documentary

[Music] it's 60 ad the combined forces of the tribes of Britain under Boudicca queen of the I see me are finally meeting their Roman oppressors led by the Governor of Britain Suetonius Paulinus the Roman legions are vastly outnumbered by as many as 20 to 1 by the seething mass of Celts that have the gods and justice on their side the following battle will change the course of history as either the island of Britain will be freed from the invaders or the Roman Empire will Rule Britannia for centuries to come [Music] the woman known to history as Boudicca celtic warrior queen of the Iceni tribe was born in the modern-day county of Norfolk in the Southeast of England sometime between 25 to 30 ad although information about boudicca's lineage is scant and the identity of her parents is widely debated many historians agree the Boudicca was of royal descent and had two daughters who were princesses of the I scene II whose names are unknown their father being Buddha cos husband Prasutagus who she married in around 49 AD ruling as a nominally independent ally of Rome Prasutagus unlike some Celtic kings had managed to retain his throne after the invasion of Britain ordered by the emperor claudius in 43 ad attaining Roman citizenship and even governorship of the icy knee region largely by paying tribute to Rome and maintaining good relations with them kasia's do a Roman statesman and historian and his writings called a Roman history describes Boudicca as tall with tawny red hair hanging down to below her waist a harsh voice and a piercing glare whilst it he said she also wore a large build and talked necklace around her neck as well as earrings and bracelets a colorful tunic and a thick cloak fastened by a brooch but despite her status she would also reportedly take off a jewelry on occasion and work the fields with the common people as well as this deal went on to say that Boudicca was a pagan druid priestess who used methods of ancient Celtic divination as she was sent to have on one occasion released a hair from the folds of her dress and was able to predict in which direction it would run whilst it is also said of her that she invoked Andraste the British goddess of victory during her campaign against Rome whilst some have ultimately questioned the very existence of Boudicca the resurrection of her fame in Britain is in part down to Queen Victoria who celebrated the warrior queens defense of Britain during the 19th century and even supported the construction with a famous statue of Boudicca and her daughter's that now stands in London near the houses of parliament whilst perhaps coincidentally the name Boudicca is thought to be derived from budagher meaning she who brings victory and has even thought to be the origin of the name Victoria boudicca's tribe the I scene II themselves were an Iron Age people centered in the English region of East Anglia their capital being venta I see no room near modern-day cased as st. Edmund's just south of Norwich however their territory stretched throughout the county of Norfolk and into parts of the county of Suffolk and it is also said by some the Boudicca had a palace in the vicinity of the town of Bedford the people of the icy knee like many Celts at the time wore animal skins for clothing and carried Spears short swords and daggers during battle and it is thought that the name IC knee itself was first used by Roman historians although it is also suggested than the writings of Julius Caesar that sin among me was the original name ascribed to the Iceni tribe which means great I see me although some academics have suggested that the semi Magni were a distinct or separate tribe altogether he's thought that within the Celtic tribes both men and women were farmers of crops and cattle whilst archaeological evidence shows that Iron Age Celtic tribes also worked with tin iron and timber and lived in large homes known as round houses made of clay and straw with a central chimney opening at the apex of the roof and a door that always faced towards the Rising Sun the ice Seanie territory itself was bordered to the south by the tren of antes who occupied south suffolk as well as the majority of modern-day Essex whilst of the west where the territories of the Catalani tribe whose territory consisted of much of central eastern England the icy knee were traditionally thought to have spoken a Britannic or P Celtic language related to that of Celtic Welsh which was the main language spoken in pre-roman times of British history and records from this period also suggests that there was a high degree of trading and communication taking place between prison and the continent the Celtic tribes being influenced by French Gallic migration as documented by Roman analysts Tacitus it is also known that the icy knee were adept at metalwork possibly trading Celtic style techniques with the peoples of Gaul and Phoenicia with such tribes as the vanity which is evident in the discovery of icy knee relics and treasure troves for example archaeological finds such as the impressive Sam Tony and SNAT ischium treasure hoards found in West Norfolk and Northwest Suffolk which included fines from mainland Europe these discoveries also reveal the true extent of the craftsmanship of the I see me as well as their technological skills and it is thought that the reason for these large hoards of treasure being deposited in the first place was that the may have buried their jewellery another valuables for safety possibly for future purchases or bribes which were then forgotten about lost when their owners died unexpectedly evidence for this Celtic excellence in metalworking is also demonstrated by the fact that the icy knee were minting coins as early as the turn of the first century from gold and other precious metals often depicting animals such as dogs or wolves of the bird resting on the back of the animal and as well as this are the coins such as silver currency displayed human faces in the Roman style while the reverse side was stamped with horses with smaller currency coins containing balls to the front and horses on the back furthermore the icy knee were adept at hand-to-hand warfare as they painted their bodies in blue woad a dye derived from a yellow flower that was common in East Anglia at the time and many Celts typically chose to fight naked rather than wear armor as clothing an armor would restrict movement during thanks to face combat but although this approach was thought by the I see me to demonstrate great college and was indeed intimidating their valour would ultimately meet its match with the arrival of Tiberius Claudius Caesars Roman legions protected as they were by advanced segmented armor in helmets Rome's initial conquest of Britain had first begun in the year 55 BC under Gaius Julius Caesar which although largely unsuccessful marked the start of diplomatic ties between the various Celtic tribes inhabiting southern Britain and Rome itself nonetheless and he plans to secure Britain entirely will halts it after Caesars murder in the Roman Senate in 44 BC which culminated in civil war that was eventually won by Caesars nephew Octavian who made himself Rome's first emperor Augustus in 27 BC the context of Julius Caesar's planned invasion is not only one of militaristic expansion an exploitation of economic potential or was also used to secure his political position as Rome's greatest general and statesman who was willing and able to wipe out any threat to Rome's expansionist plans meaning that essentially defeating the Celtic tribes of Europe was as much about personal political manoeuvring as it was territory or riches in order to facilitate or rather manipulate favorable public opinion within Rome Caesar used propaganda tactics to paint the Britons as a race of primitive barbarians who were a threat to Roman civilization and following Caesars conquering of much of Gaul in modern-day France he sent Scout ships across the English Channel in 55 BC to gather intelligence on the best methods of attack whilst the pleas for peace from the tribes of Britain were ignored this culminated in Caesars famous attempted invasions of Britain first in 55 BC with two legions or ten thousand men and again in 54 BC with a five Legion 27,000 man force and during his time in Britain as part of his Gallic Wars Caesars exploits brought him into conflict with Cassy of aloneness who is thought to have been the leader of a cat Avalon II who had overthrown the king of the Trinidad Tezz and sent his son mandiboy anxious into exile despite this infighting in the face of the Roman invasion the Celtic tribes appointed Cassio vilanis as leader of their combined forces and he led a combined army of Britons using guerrilla tactics of local knowledge to slow the advance of Rome's legions by preventing the Romans foraging for food after this the two forces met at the only affordable crossing point of the Thames and the Romans managed to cross despite the shop and snake defenses that the cat of a Lonnie had employed it was then that the Canterville Aune resorted back to their guerrilla tactics using local knowledge and the speed of their chariots to deter the Romans after this all the tribes named by Caesar is thus an emag knee the ankle lights the seg on tiaki the bib rocky and the Kelsey suit for peace and revealed the location of Cassie of aloneness is positioned to Caesar which resulted in a siege of his stronghold Casa Vallauris then managed to get a message to four of the Kings of Kent who sent reinforcements to take the Roman positions on the coast but they were unsuccessful in doing so and once he found out that one of the Chieftains Licata Rex had been captured and his forces routed cacif aloneness surrendered but was allowed to keep his throne if he paid homage to Caesar and pledged to remain at peace the Trin of antis whose deposed King man de Brosius was restored by Caesar Caesars exploits also saw him engage in numerous conflicts with other tribes during this time and he was victorious in many battles subduing a number of the Celtic leaders whilst forging relationships with tribes such as the Trinity on ttis which is an example of the divide and rule strategy that would be deployed by the Romans in Britain during their numerous invasions it was at this point however that Caesar left Britain before the onset of winter of 54 BC because of a massive insurrection in Gaul due to failed harvests meaning that Rome's plans for subjugating Britannia ultimately unsuccessful and had to be shelved for another 97 years the imperial subjugation of Britain wasn't a priority for Rome at this time was economically the revenue they could raise from customs duties of goods would be more valuable to them than maintaining an army on the island to rule over the disparate tribes but despite this with the onset of the Julian Claudian dynasty several missions to Britain were attempted once more but aborted due to other priorities taking precedence within the Roman Empire as well as terms being agreed with the Britons prior to the missions taking place examples of the aborted campaigns include those led by both Augustus in 34 27 and 25 BC and much later by Caligula in 40 ad who was responding to reports that Rome's allies the Turin avant Eze had been subjugated by the Canterville oniy who had captured their territory include they're capital of camelid unum modern-day con Chester in Essex however the infamous Emperor did not actually engage with the tribes instead opting to send a scouting mission bringing Bank conch I or sink shells leading the Emperor to claim on his return that he had subdued Neptune himself it wasn't until the reign of emperor Tiberius Claudius that the Celts of southern Britain would finally be subdued almost a century after Caesars attempts when in the year 43 ad a full-scale invasion led by Aulus Plautius conquered and integrated the Celtic tribes around southern England before the Roman Empire began to expand further into the Welsh territories and to the north of the island the Emperor Claudius was initially thought of as a weak and feeble character in Roman who could be easily manipulated which is why he inherited the Roman Emperor ship following the assassination of his nephew Caligula in 41 ad by the Emperor's Elite Praetorian Guard as he was a tyrannical and paranoid leader that misused his power and was likely deluded whilst Claudius although sane was not thought of as a natural leader or as being fit for public duty by other Roman aristocrats nevertheless Claudius was selected by the Praetorian Guard who intended to install the puppet emperor after slaying his nephew Caligula and according to Roman historian Suetonius despite Claudius being uncharismatic and suffering from physical issues his disadvantages did not deter him from legitimizing his position by emulating Caesars attempt to invade Britain that would ultimately result in Rome holding sway over the island for the next 400 years Claudius is expansion into southern Britain was complete by 47 ad and had incorporated the region now known as southern England into the Roman Empire with the first time nonetheless Britain was not thought of as important from a militaristic perspective but instead the invasion was largely about politics in Rome itself as a conquering of Britain and both the Praetorian Guard and the Emperor himself were viewed favorably on invading Britain in 43 ad Claudius appointed Aulus Plautius to lead Rome's alongside future emperor vespasian who commanded the second Legion Augusta who were backed up by the Ninth Legion hispana the 14th Legion Jimena and the 20th Legion valaria Victrix along with thousands of auxiliary troops totaling around 40,000 men then set sail from modern-day valign in Gaul in 43 ad cross the channel and headed for Richboro in Kent before entering into further battles the Roman legions waited with Aulus Plautius for the Emperor Claudius to arrive who joined his forces for the offensive on the major Celtic stronghold of camelot unum which had previously been held by the trin of anta's but was now controlled by the cutter Villani under their king could abba linus father of both the deceased tog indominus and the exiled carracticus it he said that Claudius arrived at camelid unum with a number of war elephants that would have surely been a spectacle to behold and it wasn't long before the city fell without further resistance and surrendered to Rome the physical presence of Claudius acting to legitimize his position as Roman Emperor and as the conqueror of Britannia although he only stayed on the island for 16 days before leaving for the continent once more but nonetheless he would later accept the title Britannicus bestowed on him by the grateful summit in recognition of his conquest however Claudius insisted that he would only accept the title if it were borne by his son instead of himself the Canterville or knees defeat was a major success for Roman because they as the strongest of the southern tribes had been instrumental in protecting the Celtic way of life in Britain for nearly a century against their Imperial aggressors and it was during this time that many Celtic leaders switched allegiance to Rome including cocky dogmas it was established by Claudius as king when leggett of the Roman Empire in Britain ruling from novi omegas regi Norum which is modern-day Chichester in West Sussex an inevitable consequence of the Romans invading Britain was that legions would be required to garrison the island meaning that camelid unum or Colchester was made the temporary garrison headquarters for the 20th Legion valaria Victrix but after the legions marched westward in 49 ad that fences were dismantled and camelid unum was renamed Colonia victory census the provincial capital of Britannia in which its native citizens had equal rights to the citizens of Rome after this Colonia victory census became a town for military veterans with the barracks being converted into housing at a temple being built in around 50 ad there was dedicated to Claudius on his death four years later the foundations of which can still be seen to this day as much of the temple was later incorporated into coal Chester's Norman castle which was largely constructed from recycled Roman building materials the Roman foundations of Colchester Castle are said to be the earliest substantial Roman stone structure visible in Britain today and it is an ever-present reminder of the Romans influence and later after boudicca's revolt and sacking of camelid unum substantial outer walls were constructed to defend it along with a monumental arch located at the western gate of the town made of tufa a variety of limestone and Purbeck marble indeed camelid unum which was first mentioned on Celtic coinage between 20 to 10 BC is thought by many to be Britain's oldest recorded town therefore it is of no surprise that the Romans chose the settlement to be one of their main military bases as the significance of repurposing Celtic fortifications as Roman outposts cannot have been lost on the local tribes whilst this as well as the recently established merchant and commercial town of Londinium modern-day London on the northern bank of the River Thames acted as the two main centres of Roman power as well as commerce in southern Britannia following the taking of camelid unum the Roman legions spread out across Britain on a number of incursions including the capture of the Isle of Wight led by Vespasian and the second Legion Augusta whereas the Roman historian Suetonius states that Lindon present-day Lincoln was sacked by the lines Legion hispana whilst the 14th Legion Jimena descended on the Midlands eventually defeating the fugitive Curran takus in Wales in 50 or 51 AD securing Roman dominion over southern Britain after which Curran Turkish sought shelter with the Brigantes in 47 ad the commander of the invasion of Britain Aulus Plautius returned to Rome and received the highest award given by Roman senators that being an ovation whilst in Britain he was replaced by Publius or storia scapula who carried out an invasion in Wales against the order VG's and continued to subdue the already oppressed tribes in England by disarming them causing already rising tensions to escalate further as Celtic traditions and ways of life were oppressed scapulae then put down uprisings by both the brigand tez and the icy knee in 47 AD after which he banned weaponry from the British tribes altogether and returned to his objective in Wales where he fought against the solares but he died soon afterwards in 52 AD and was replaced by Didius calles who would reign as governor of Britain for another five years according to some sources during this time carracticus had taken refuge amongst the salaries but soon afterwards the fugitive warlord was captured in Brigante in 51 AD after seeking refuge with Queen Kaahumanu a leader of the Brigantes who no doubt seeking Rome's favored handed him over to the invaders and was subsequently rewarded with great wealth carracticus was then taken to Rome as a prisoner after eight years of unsuccessful conflict with the legions however Claudius would ultimately be merciful to his former enemy and allow him to end his days in Rome when upon being sentenced to death the former warlord gave an eloquent and courageous speech stating that does it really follow that everyone should accept your slavery if I were now being handed over as one who had surrendered immediately neither my fortune nor your glory would have achieved brilliance the subjugation of Wales then continued under governor of Britain Gaius Suetonius Paulinus who in 6261 ad embarked on his now infamous invasion of the sacred Isle of Anglesey which was the spiritual center of the pagan druids who in many ways with the collective religious leaders of the Celtic peoples practiced in law medicine politics as well as religion but despite their importance their class although literate were forbidden to tank records therefore little evidence exists concerning them but it is certain that the Romans saw these mythical people as a major threat to stranglehold over Britain Anglesey well the Isle of Mona's it was known at the time was a refuge not only for druids but also for displaced tribes people who wanted to avoid the ravages of the Roman invasion but once the legions reached Mona the Romans and the pas Linus killed the Druids on mass and destroyed their ancient sacred woodland groves in what is now known as the Menai massacre the doubtless was meant to crush the will of the Celtic people but in reality caused outrage and hatred amongst the islands tribes who are now few Jerome's harsh rule on the brink of a full-scale revolt although the Romans brought their own customs and way of life such as the rule of law courts roads trade and better sanitation other introductions such as heavy taxation and the treatment of the oppressed Celts were not welcomed by many but although Roman influence was embraced by some it ultimately resulted in rebellion one of which was devastating and this time it was led by the icy knee during this period relations between the Romans in the icy knee had remained cordial on the whole but tense as the tribe lived in relative peace with no Garrison's within the confines of their territory so long as they surrendered their arms but regardless the icy knee people were still seen by the Romans as second-class citizens who were often exploited pillaged raped and even murdered which only fueled the flames of resentment and hatred to add to these insults the icy knee had to pay for their freedom with coinage and satisfy of the demands such as the provision of agricultural goods essentially paying for their uneasy independence from the invader and although the I see me had fiercely resisted Rome's expansion into their territory initially in 43 ad the emperor claudius reached an agreement with boudicca's husband the I scene II king Prasutagus Muhammad to be paid to Rome which he agreed to in a desperate attempt to preserve his own culture and position this agreement made both Prasutagus and pudica extremely wealthy but the Romans naivety or disregard of the I see me way of life and Celtic culture in general perhaps inevitably caused animosity and it is unclear from Tacitus is writing where the boudicca's husband Prosser Tagus surrendered to a Roman advance all whether he was placed in a leadership role following the icy knee rebellion of 47 ad against the Roman governor scapula's darling the weaponry but it is clear that an agreement was reached in which the icy knee people could live in relative peace if Prasad Angus on his death gave up half of his lungs to roam whilst the other half was to be retained by his two daughters with Boudicca this tenuous relationship was placed under severe strain by the Emperor Nero who had a very different outlook on Britannia to his predecessor Claudius as he wanted to increase Roman influence on the island to ultimately collect more wealth by a taxation I was then that catice desi arnaz a Roman procurator or lor official under Paulinus made the decision to plunder the icy knees lands in order to recoup payments for the massive loans which Roman officials such as Seneca the younger and poor Linus had given the icy me in the preceding years subsequently upon the death of boudicca's husband Prasutagus in 59 or 60 ad Roman troops laid siege to the settlements of the acini tribe and confiscated their lands and property altogether despite the negotiations undertaken by Claudius and Prasutagus concerning the icy knee inheritance plan the Romans now chose to ignore the agreement which stated that his daughters should inherit his land and titles of the invaders would not accept that a woman could inherit or indeed rule and furthermore Boudicca also felt that she had been sidelined by Prasutagus and his plan for the icy knee succession which combined with the Roman annexation of the I scene elands no doubt tipped her over the proverbial edge it is unclear as to whether Boudicca was made leader of the I see me immediately after husband's death or instead in the aftermath of the Roman attacks as it may have been the case that her being proclaimed the queen of the icy knee made her the target of the Roman army as after the death of press at EGIS in 60 ad she was according to Tacitus stripped and flogged publicly possibly with a cat-o'-nine-tails tearing the skin from her back while she was then forced to watch as her two daughters aged 10 and 12 will repeatedly raped in front of her which was an act that was supposed to break the spirit of the icy knee and their queen however seeing her suffering boudicca's people tended to her wounds as well as her daughter's after the Romans had left following this devastating attack all I see me property was confiscated by the Romans and the kingdom was annexed into the Empire whilst in addition Seneca Unga continued to demand repayment of the large sums of money he had loaned to the icy knee and used severe means to make sure the debts were repaid meaning that much of the Iceni aristocracy were sent into servitude in Italy that prompted the remaining Celtic leaders in East of England to band together and begin planning a full-scale insurrection against their Roman overlords to rally support Boadicea is said to have traveled through neighboring territories in her war chariot reportedly invoking the divine power of the druids to inspire the uprising against the hated Romans by calling upon the Celtic goddess of victory andraste to rally the population as after all she was reportedly a druid priestess herself meaning that before long tens of thousands of Celts were flocking to her banner including the remnants of the Trin of anta's and the quatre Villani tribes who cast aside their differences to join the I scene II rebellion and they all fought in the name of Celtic Liberty with Boudicca to rid Britain of the Romans once and for all according to Tacitus Boudicca a master following of up to 70,000 people while Casias do states her horde was a staggering 120 thousand strong however modern historians think that the true number may be lower for what he certain is at a sizeable proportion of the Celtic population of southeast England if not a majority rogues up against their Roman oppressors as many of them had been preparing and waiting for many years to reclaim their homes and possessions or merely take revenge Tacitus records that after rallying the scattered tribes Boadicea addressed her armies with these words it is not as a woman descended from noble ancestry but as one of the people that I'm avenging lost freedom my scourge body the outraged chastity of my daughters this is a woman's resolve as for men they may live and be slaves it was then with this multi seething host of irate Celts at her back that Boudicca turned her attention to the focal point of Roman power in southeast England the provincial capital of camelid unum which now lay undefended and ripe for the picking whilst camelid unum had previously been the capital for the trend of antes for a time as well as the cat of a Lonnie it had been taken over by the Romans and used as a retirement community but discharged older Roman soldiers which caused further local resentment as did Rome statue of victory which honored their conquering of the region at the time of the icy knee revolt Suetonius Paulinus was still campaigning in Wales with two legions having concluded his annihilation of the Druids on anglesey whilst another legion had been stationed in modern-day Exeter to the southwest and another the closest the ninth hispana was stationed in Lindon modern-day lincoln meaning that the entire southeast of the province of Britannia now lay undefended after approaching camelid unum from the Northwest boudicca's army swept down through modern-day Norfolk and Suffolk eventually linking up with her Trent Avante allies and approaching Camelot unum from the northwest entering the city through the modern-day bulk and gate possibly with the aid of spies within the city after which the Celts embarked on an orgy of violence and destruction burning the entire city to the ground and massacring the Roman population as well as toppling Rome's statue of victory that had been predicted by the tribal soothsayers on boudicca's charge camelid unum was laid waste with up to 50,000 Warriors attacking in one sweeping assault followed by a siege and the subsequent storming of the temple of Claudius where many of the town's inhabitants and sought refuge the Tacitus later described as a citadel of eternal slavery from a Celtic perspective who after surrounding the temple after several days burned it to the ground and despite the veteran Roman soldiers donning their armor once again to protect camelid unum after two days the town fell with the civilians inside the great temple being burned alive and to this day a thick layer of ash she's often found across Colchester whenever archaeological excavations are permitted during the sacking of camelid unum the Celts were also able to thwart Roman efforts to reinforce the beleaguered town as the Ninth Legion hispana under pettalia scary Alice was ambushed on route from Linden with Celtic charioteers and foot soldiers attacking the Romans from both sides and unable to see off the Celts hispana lost all of their infantry in the ensuing rout whilst back in Camelot unum boudicca's army decapitated the bronze statue of Nero that had been erected outside the temple of Claudius and kept his head as a souvenir of their victory despite their evident effectiveness at guerilla warfare and lightning raids boudicca's warriors unlike the Romans were less well equipped for open battle but the Celts use of their maneuverable war chariots along with their knowledge of the land and forests granted them victory and as Boudicca had destroyed a Roman legion as well as the provincial capital in a matter of days both she and her army no doubt bolstered with a newly found sense of confidence naturally turned her eye to the commercial center of Roman Britain Londinium having now received word of the sacking of camelid unum and the decimation of the ninth hispana poor linus left his legions in wales and sped down the main road between the Roman city of Chester and London Watling Street to assess the readiness of the city's defenses but after arriving and realizing he did not have enough men to contain the Celts he decided to sacrifice the town for the sake of the province by returning northward and rallying the remaining legions in the hope of bringing about a decisive future battle with Boudicca Tacitus reports that the Britons upon arriving in Londinium were vicious in victory as they took no prisoners instead preferring to slaughter and burn all they encountered indeed théo states that the noblest women were impaled on spikes and had their breasts cut off and sewn to their mouths to the accompaniment of sacrifices banquets and wanton behavior in sacred places indeed recent archaeological excavations reveal a thick red layer of burnt debris including coins and pottery dating before ad 60 within the Roman built walls of Rome and London whilst Roman era skulls found in walbrook in 2013 are thought to have been victims of the rebels after sacking London Boudicca and her army turned to the north in the hope of finding and defeating the remaining legions a DePaul - and after leaving Londinium also sacked the town of Beryl a meum present a st. albans where the celts massacred the people and burned the buildings without mercy before continuing onwards to the Northwest along Watling Street whilst the Celts were ransacking very lame iam politeness was planning to confront Boudicca on his own terms and according to Tacitus amassed a force of some 10,000 men from his own legion the 14th jimena along with the 20th valaria Victrix and some auxiliaries however the second legion augusta of po nes posthumous remained in exeter and so it failed to link up with Paulinus and so he would now after the loss of the ninth hispana after take on a force of perhaps 200,000 celts with only 10,000 men and so Boudicca marched north to confront Paulinus who now joined by his two legions chose a defensive position along watling street and waited at the exact location at which the two armies met in 60 ad is still argued over my current day academics but accounts suggest the most likely battle sites along watling street include mandu HCM biker and a man chatter close to a Thurston lamorak sure or lack to Durham modern day toaster whilst other suggested sites include a high cross at the junction of wanting Street with the phosphate the rampart in missing near Colchester in n6 as well as Amesbury banks in Epping Forest another possible site at the cuttle mill area of Paulus burry in Northamptonshire not only matches the topographical description of the site given by Tacitus but was also the site of an excavation which uncovered large quantities of human remains including bones from both sexes including children as well as fragments of Roman pottery from the 1st century nonetheless it is likely the exact site of the battle will never be known although most historians agree the battle took place somewhere along Watling Street between st. Albans and the junction with vas-y having rallied his troops Paulinus took a stand at a position of his choosing for the wood to his rare although Castillo states that his numbers lined up one man deep would not have stretched the full length of boudicca's front line so instead qualen is's legionaries formed a marching wedge formation men deep with cavalry placed on the flanks whilst each range of soldiers in the formation took turns in fighting for swapping with fresh legionaries stabbing with their hispana salt swords also known as a Gladius through the gaps of a shield formation into the exposed flesh of their adversary's according to kasia's do having sighted the Romans Boadicea on a wall chariot followed by cavalry and supported by infantry formed up opposite the Romans after which she addressed her troops from her chariot accompanied by her daughter's depicting herself not as a wealthy queen fighting to regain her lost riches but as a woman and mother avenging the abuse of her daughter's chastity and her own lost freedom and humiliation at the hands of the Roman invaders stating you can follow me or submit to the Roman yoke let us therefore go against them trusting boldly to good fortune let us show them that they are hares and foxes trying to rule over dogs and wolves we shall fight and be victorious or die trying it could be argued that although the Roman legionaries were the best troops on earth at this time poor linus and his men were the underdogs in the upcoming battle as if he had failed both he and his men would be massacred in turn meaning that Rome's stranglehold over Britain would have been greatly weakened but although his army was heavily outnumbered poor linus had chosen his position carefully as he placed his legions at the top of a gentle slope with his flanks covered both by his cavalry and the surrounding forest meaning that the celts if they wanted battle had to approach his men head on an armor which was exactly what he wanted as his legions were expert in defending a position against a larger undisciplined barbarian force such as boudicca's it was then that the Celts charged the Romans babs as many as 200,000 of them running towards the legions screaming as they went but when the Celts approached the Romans thousands of them were felled in seconds by to javelin volleys whilst those behind them after running over the bodies of their brethren crashed headlong into the Roman shield wall they were greeted by the tips of their enemy swords nonetheless as the fighting raged on it soon dawned on the Celts their huge advantage in numbers was now a handicap as their warriors in the front line were being pushed forward by the mass of people behind them making it difficult for them to use their long swords so that when the Romans in turn began to advance in their wedge formation the Celts were moaned down like grass and trampled underfoot until before long Bruticus army routed from the field were trapped by their own baggage train from which their families were watching the battle and so tens of thousands of counts including women and children were slaughtered by the Roman cavalry which charged in from the flanks and delivered the coup de Gras according to Tacitus only 800 Romans were killed or injured during the Battle of Watling Street during which he claimed some 80,000 Britons were killed however Boudicca is said to have fled the field during the route but her ultimate fate is uncertain as Tacitus States in his annals but in 60 or 61 AD Boadicea committed suicide by drinking poison whereas Agricola writing 20 years before the annals mentions nothing about this and puts the end of this period of revolt down to laziness or disinterest whilst Castillo says that Boudicca ille following the quashed revolt died and was given a lavish burial during her revolt Boadicea ultimately failed to field an army capable of winning a pitched battle against the Roman legions which was the key to her downfall as despite being greatly outnumbered the Romans were well armored more disciplined and better drilled than the Celts which combined with their brutally effective battle tactics such as the wedge formation enabled them on numerous occasions during Rome's many military campaigns to defeat larger disorganized barbarian armies in hindsight it could be said that if Boudicca had maintained her hit-and-run guerrilla tactics she may have prevailed and in time may have forced the Romans to retreat to the continent but instead the highly organised Roman military once again proved itself to be perhaps the most effective killing machine of the ancient world Mensch after all is one of the main reasons the Roman Empire came to exist and dominate modern-day Europe and beyond in the years that followed the Romans continued their fight against the Celtic tribes of southern England and were ultimately successful in quelling the Britons and in the immediate aftermath any land and property owned by the I scene II was either seized were destroyed although further conflicts between the Celtic tribes themselves still continued when Paulinus was recalled to Rome several years later the majority of modern-day England and Wales was fully under Roman control and this position would continue for another 350 years in which they either - celtic populations were assimilated into the Roman Way of life the evidence for which both physical and cultural can still be seen across Britain and indeed mainland Europe despite failing to defeat the Romans Boadicea has achieved near legendary status in Britain today as her fight for freedom self preservation self-governance and an independent Celtic identity resonated with her people at the time and still does today as many see her as the very epitome of a freedom fighter whereas others regard her as one of history's first female role models who dare to challenge the most powerful empire in the world and almost one indeed the drama and significance of boudicca's life was perhaps best put to paper but the 18th century English poet William Cowper when the British warrior queen bleeding from the Roman Rods sought with an indignant mean Council of her country's gods sage beneath the spreading oak sat the druid chief every burning word he spoke full of rage and full of grief Rome for Empire far renowned tramples on a thousand states soon her pride shall kiss the ground as the calls her utter gates what do you think of Boudicca queen of the icy knee while she a murderous barbaric and vengeful mystic with little knowledge of battle tactics or strategy war was she one of history's greatest female leaders who bravely led her people against the most powerful empire in the world and in doing so proved that even the might of Rome could be challenged by a brave and fearless woman let us know what you think in the comment section and in the mean time thank you very much for watching you

Channel: The People Profiles

Views: 442,588

Keywords: Biography, History, Historical, Educational, The People Profiles, Biography channel, the biography channel

Id: yHBTck4kp2s

Length: 42min 0sec (2520 seconds)

Published: Fri Feb 21 2020