§4. Britain at the End of the bc Era.

By the end of the BC era there were attempts at unification. At the time of the Romans’ first expedition (the middle of the 1^st c. BC) Camulodunum is believed to have been the capital of a powerful chief, Cassivelaun.

With the beginning of our era the power of tribal chiefs in the land of the Britons began to unite great areas. Thus, from 5 AD to 40 AD the Belgic tribal chief Cunobelin united the Celtic tribes of southern Britain under his rule and called himself, after the Roman fashion, “Rex Britonum”, that is “King of the Britons”. This title was impressed on the coins that he struck in his capital, Camulodunum. It was this chief who invited Roman traders and craftsmen to come and settle in Britain. The Romans started infiltrating into the country as immigrants and traders bringing in eastern luxuries and taking out corn, metals and slaves.

§5. Julius Caesar’s Expedition.

In his Gallic Wars, Julius Caesar invaded Britain twice, in 55 and 54 BC. The first invasion, made late in summer, was either intended as a full invasion (in which case it was unsuccessful - it gained a beachhead on the coast of Kent but achieved little else) or a reconnaissance-in-force expedition. The second was more successful, setting up a friendly king, Mandubracius, and forcing the submission of his rival, Cassivellaunus, although no territory was conquered and held for Rome, but was restored to the allied Trinovantes, along with promised tribute of other tribes in what is now eastern England.

Many historians attribute the interest that the Romans took in the British Isles to purely strategic reasons. The thing is, that Gaul (now France) inhabited by the Celts, was conquered but remained restless under the Roman domination while Britain was often regarded as a sort of Celtic resistance centre.

Other reasons could also be found, however. During the rule of Belgic chiefs technical progress and agricultural advancement elevated Britain to the position of a major corn-producing country.

The Roman Empire wanted food badly. These and may be some other reasons were at the bottom of Caesar’s expedition in 55 BC when a 10-thousand-strong Roman army was repulsed by the Celts with the help of the Channel storms.

A year later the expedition was repeated with an increased army of 25 thousand, and Camulodunum was taken possession of. However, it led to practically nothing more serious than Caesar’s departure with Celtic hostages and a promise of ransom which he doesn’t seem to have ever returned to claim. The Britons were led by Cassivellaunus, King of the mighty Catuvellauni tribe which was based north of the Thames. The British ambushed a Roman force, but the next day Caesar inflicted a heavy defeat on the enemy. The tribes south of the Thames made peace, as did some in East Anglia, but Cassivellaunus defied Caesar. As Caesar marched north across the Thames, Cassivellaunus used his mobile chariots to ambush Roman patrols and harry the camps at night.

By the late summer, the Roman armies had marched deep into Catuvellauni territory and captured several towns. But Cassivellaunus had kept his army intact and was far from defeated. At about this time Caesar heard rumours that several tribes in Gaul were preparing to revolt. He decided to make peace. He asked Cassivellaunus for hostages and a cash tribute and for the promise that he would not attack the tribes which had surrendered to Rome. Eager to be rid of Caesar, Cassivellaunus agreed.

As autumn closed in Caesar embarked his troops on his ships and sailed for Gaul. He later went on to fight a series of bitter civil wars against other Roman generals and become dictator of Rome. But he was never free to return to Britain, where the Catuvellauni soon became the richest and most powerful tribe of all [18].

As well as noting elements of British warfare (particularly the use of chariots) which were exotic and unfamiliar to his Roman audience, Caesar also aimed to impress them by making further geographical, meteorological and ethnographic investigations of Britain. He probably gained these by enquiry and hearsay rather than direct experience, as he did not penetrate that far into the interior, and most historians would be wary of applying them beyond the tribes with whom he came into direct contact.