The boudiccan rebellion

    Introduction. If the Romans were to take the British Isles with the least possible conflict, they had to win the support of the upper classes. This was vital to the 

Boudicca (also known as Boadicea or Boadaceia)

structure of this Roman province, since they were the ones who wielded the most influence in the country. They did this by promising the leaders of the tribes prosperity and personal wealth with a greater standard of living. The Roman army was small in comparison to the number of warriors in all the tribes, so it was most important the Romans persuaded as many of the tribes as possible to side with them. If all the British people had resisted the invasion, it would have been a mountainous task for the Romans to take Britain. Successive governors failed to win over enough tribes to ensure a totally peaceful occupation, and so this led to the biggest uprising of all - the Boudiccan Rebellion.   The Iceni tribe starts the rebellion. The British were initially divided amongst themselves and this was a great advantage for the Romans. This was gradually changing and the Romans committed the worse crime of any war. They did not keep a close watch on the developments in the British tribes and so had underestimated their enemy. They had absolutely no idea what was happening. Suetonius Paullinus was so heavily involved in the campaign in Wales and Angelsey, he failed to maintain a close watch on the rest of the country. Claudius was an astute and intuitive man. Now that he was gone, there was no one in Rome that could see from the reports that did arrive what was happening. The reports were so full of the glorious victories in Wales, that no one asked the vital question - "What about the rest of the country?" It was the gullibility and short sightedness of all those involved that was their own downfall.

    By 60 AD many tribes had now been recognised as civitates peregrinae. Non-citizen, but governing themselves to a certain degree. The official site of the Roman capital was Colchester, but it may have moved when London was founded in 50 AD. This was a logical place, as it was at the centre of the province and had extensive road and sea access. The unrest that led to the Boudicca rebellion began with the Iceni. Their king, Prasutages, had died. Tacitus wrote the late king had left the Emperor co-heir with his two daughters. By doing this he planned to keep safe his kingdom and family. British Kings learned to appease their masters. In doing so, part of the Iceni territory would have passed to the Roman administration and the Emperor would receive a part of the royal wealth. The local officers of the governor and the provincial procurator, Decianus Catus interpreted this in a different manner. They took the view that the whole Iceni territory now belonged to the Romans. The Iceni upper classes were evicted from their homes. Members of the Royal House were treated as slaves. The Romans took over the Iceni, raping the late King's daughters, taking great delight in publicly flogging his widow, Boudicca. This was to be too much for the Iceni. The result was the worst rebellion the Romans had ever encountered. Boudicca was not the sort of queen to take this lightly. The Romans had made a bad enemy of her and the Iceni.     The tribes advance south. It is not recorded which tribes joined with the Iceni, but it is known that the Triovantes were involved. The Triovantes had a special reason to join in the rebellion. When Colchester was built for the Roman veterans, this was deep inside Triovantes territory. They had driven tribe people from their homes and turned them into slaves. Colchester was advertised as a home for retired soldiers where they could do whatever they liked with the natives. Take them as slaves. Take the women for their own satisfaction. There was no limit to the Roman beliefs. Claudius had given grants or loans to the tribes’ nobles so that they could bring their properties up to the standard required by Roman law for them to hold municipal council, or even be eligible for senatorial consideration. The money that Claudius had given out was now being demanded back.

The exact date the rebellion started is debatable. Most historians believe it was either 60 or 61 AD. Colchester had many fine buildings. Council chambers, theatre, and a temple of the Imperial Cult. This temple became a particular target for the Britons as it represented everything that they hated about the Romans. The Imperial Cult was set up for the purpose of encouraging influential tribe leaders to show loyalty to the Emperor and in return being allowed to enter the Roman governing class. In fact the exact opposite seems to have happened, with many members of the cult being involved in the rebellion. There were only a handful of regular troops in the area and they soon fell to the onslaught. Those that survived took refuge in the temple, where they held out for two days. After this, the British moved south to London.   The rebels take Londinium. The first obstacle they encountered was the Ninth Legion under Perillius Cerialis. He was not a great commander, just a very lucky one, having built up a reputation for managing to just avoid disaster in his battles. He had no hesitation in confronting the advancing Britons head on, even though he did not have a full legion at his disposal. Having won all their previous battles, the Romans must have thought this was just another victory waiting to happen. They met with a determined force led by an even more determined Boudicca. The Roman infantry were mercilessly destroyed and only Cerialis  and his cavalry managed to escape to the defences of his base.    The Romans had never encountered such hatred and ferocity in the Britons before. The governor and procurator were totally horrified at the intense nature of the Britons

Iceni silver coin from hoard, AD 61

to the extent that the procurator fled at full speed back to Gaul. Paullinus in turn made for London, it seems, with a depleted unit of troops. He most likely expected at least a legion to be in London already, and to defend the town. Then news reached him of the total annihilation of Cerialis' army. He thought again and decided that it was not such a good idea to meet this British advance with his current troop strength. So he retired and tried to regroup outside London.     The final battle of Boudicca. Boudicca's force assembled in a rather loose formation, behind them, their women and children further back in wagons. The Britons were still using chariots, which was in conflict with the Roman policy of disarming the natives of any country they conquered. It could be that they were supplied from tribes not yet under Roman control. The Romans unleashed their javelins down the slope onto the Britons, followed by the charge of the infantry, all moving as one unit. All this was standard battle tactics for the Romans. This broke up the British force and forced them back to the wagons. Trapped here the battle turned into a massacre. Anyone British, man, woman or child was cut down and killed by the Roman legion. Tacitus wrote that 80,000 British were killed as opposed to 400 Romans. This was a victory for the Romans that matched others before. Boudicca managed to flee from the battle. Differing accounts of her death a few days later are recorded. Dio wrote that she died from a sickness, but Tacitus says she was poisoned. Poenius Postumus committed suicide when news of the Roman victory reached him. The 2nd and 9th Legions joined Paullinus in the field. The 14th Legion was awarded “Martia Victrix” along with a reputation for pride and invincibility. The 20th Legion up till now did not have a name attached to them, but were subsequently to win the right to be called 'Valeria Victrix'.     Paullinus then showed the Romans at their worst. After being held for so long by, what they considered inferior forces, under his orders, his army set about a period of mass destruction. Any tribes that had sided with Boudicca, or had not backed either side by remaining neutral were wiped out. Their people were killed, their homes burned. The Romans gave no mercy. At South Cadbury in Somerset, bodies, weapons and evidence of destruction by fire may have been the victims of Paullinus' revenge. Other sites around the country also have evidence of similar happenings. The historian Suetonius records that many statues, busts and writings were erected in Britain in honour of Titus, Vespasian's eldest son. He may have been instrumental in the destruction of Boudicca and served as a legionary tribune at the time of the rebellion. He was very young at this time, probably about 22 years of age, and it is unusual for one so young to make such an impression. History records that he was made a commander of his father's Praetorian Guard and afterwards gained a reputation for showing no quarter to dissidents. Titus went on to become an Emperor in 79 AD.