COLEGIUL NATIONALGHEORGHE MUNTEANU MURGOCI

BRAILA

ATESTAT DE COMPETENTA LINGVISTICA LA LIMBA ENGLEZA

CANDIDAT

PROFESOR COORDONATOR

SANDU GABRIEL CRISTIAN

MOCANU ROMEO CEZAR

2014

Roman influence
in the British Isles

Contents:

1.Introduction
2.Roman Empire-Rise and Fall of a Titan
3..The Britons-First contact with the Romans
4..Boudicas revolt
5. The Caledonian campaign
6. Romanization of the Celtic cults
6.1 Roman and Celtic dieties
7.Last century of Roman rule
8.Bibliography

1.Introduction

They came,they saw,they conquered.The Romans have built a lasting legacy which can be
observed even now,being able to resist the tumultuous fate of other civilizations caught in the
history maelstrom.
The innovations strech from technology,town planning,architecture,language,we can also talk
about planting the seed for a future national identity,thus the Roman Empire was able to
enroot itself in the culture of both West and East European nations,nonetheless,their influence
in the British Isles has no doubt changed the course of its rhytm of development as a
nation,creating favourable conditions for the birth of the Medieval state England,defining
itself after the Saxon element has come into play.
This subject has attracted the attention of many history enthusiasts,and I would not stop
there,knowing as humans what our ancestors did will do nothing but enrich our understanding
of the way people perceived matters such as war,ethics,politics,religion and society. Learning
from their mistakes,even if we are in the 21st century,or better yet realising where they went
wrong can make a change for the best in nowadays life.

Yet,to what extent did the Romans influence the British? In regards of the language usage,
for hundreds of years after the fall of the Roman Empire, Latin and Greek were used
throughout Europe as the languages of education and knowledge. European scholars wrote
their works in them and educated men corresponded mostly in Latin, with some Greek, with
other educated men of their own or different nationalities.
We must remember that the Romans were in Britain for nearly 400 years and left a strong
influence on the local speech, so that the Anglo-Saxons, when they arrived, also picked up
and incorporated a great many Latin words into their own language. An everyday AngloSaxon-sounding word; such as, plum comes from the Anglo-Saxon pluma; butpluma is
merely an Anglo-Saxon mispronunciation of the Latin pruna (plum) from Greek, prounon, a
later form of proumnon; which, by the way, comes to us also, through the French, in the
form prune. Again, take the familiar word bishop which is derived from the AngloSaxon biscop; but biscop in its turn is only an amputated form of the
Latin episcopus (overseer, superintendent.
Thus,the Romans were able to stand the test of time ,from a specific point of view,not by
having rewarding military campaigns,but by leaving their technological,civilisational mark on
the nations theyd encountered.

2.Roman Empire-Rise and Fall of a Titan

Whenever we would think about the Ancient Era,wed find only one element that stands
out when it comes to Ancient European times :the Roman Empire.This beacon of civilization
in a sea of savagery has made a name for itself in the pages of history through its ability to
maintain a strict but untimately rigid control over its provinces.
The Roman Empire follows the Roman Republic,extending through 16 centuries.Starting
from 27 BC ,Octavian ,or how he is better known in history Augustus,convinced the Senate
to appoint him as Roman emperor.From that day until his last,romans would be blessed by his
rule,entering the so-called Pax Augusta.Arts were flourishing,riots were scarce and even so if
they occured they were dealt with swiftly and promptly,assuring security and integrity
throught the provinces,Augustus can be safely called one of the finest leader ever to exist.
Why is Augustus so praised ?
.Well, this is entirely due to the fact that he was one way or another a tyrant,yet his
benevolence as a statesman ensured him being emperor of Rome until 11 AD.Even if these
ideas are opposing each other,we cannot neglect that Augustus was after all a cold and
calculated, he knew exactly how to play the civil war weay senate and people of Rome.His
biggest problem was Romes love for tradition and he overcame this problem masterfully
through what we would call politcal spin.He had his artists and poets soften the blow by
playing up the traditions while he bent the rules and shifted the goal posts to suit his needs.
Augustus was granted the authority of atribune (tribunicia potestas), though not the title,
which allowed him to call together the Senate and people at will and lay business before it,
veto the actions of either the Assembly or the Senate, preside over elections, and gave him the
right to speak first at any meeting. Also included in Augustus's tribunician authority were
powers usually reserved for theRoman censor; these included the right to supervise public
morals and scrutinise laws to ensure they were in the public interest, as well as the ability to
hold a census and determine the membership of the Senate. No tribune of Rome ever had
these powers, and there was no precedent within the Roman system for consolidating the
powers of the tribune and the censor into a single position, nor was Augustus ever elected to
the office of Censor. Whether censorial powers were granted to Augustus as part of his
tribunician authority, or he simply assumed these responsibilities, is a matter of debate.This
way of thinking this issue is modern,if we were to address this to the ancient times,Augustus
could have been seen as a Frankling Delano-Roosevelt.
Starting from this way of imagining ones right to rule,the situation for the Roman Empire
in a matter of two-three hundred years began to degrade.Reaching its peak in regards to
teritorial expansion during Trajan rule(98-117) encompassing an area of 5 million square
kilometres,iresponsible management of resources,lack of millitary forces to efficiently defend
its provinces,the Roman Empire started to crumble under the barbaric threat.The question that
remains floating around is did the Roman Empire really constitute a civilizational factor in the
development of those provinces ? Yes,of course it did ,building cities,aqueducts,bridges,roads
ensured the infrastrucal and economical growth of that specific area ,but by undermining
those so-considered savages they would only spell their own destruction.Let us not forget,the
Roman Empire was mainly built by the efforts of slaves,and those slaves were from all
corners of the empire,from the British Isles to the North,Northern Africa to the South,Iberian
Peninsula to the West and the Asia Minor Peninsula to the East.In this case,by over
solicitating those that were of Germanic origins,led to public unrest that needed only a spark
to assure the downfall of this once mighty imperial structure,the Barbarian Invasion.

In 275 AD the first division of the Roman Empire took place,the Tetrachy,splitting into 4
bits:the District of Constantinus as Caesar,District of Maximian as Augustus,District of
Galerius as Caesar and District of Diocletian as Augustus. This system effectively divided the
Empire into four major regions and created separate capitals besides Rome as a way to avoid
the civil unrest that had marked the 3rd century. This followed with the second
Tetrachy,culminating with the final division in 364 in the Western and Eastern Roman
Empires.

The Western part was the first

to fall due to migratorial waves that
swept through Europe.This led to a
serios of movements in various
provinces,among those were the
Britain,in 407 emperor Constantine
retreated to Gaul ,leaving the
population subject to invasions,
first by the Picts and then by the
Saxons, Angli, and the Jutes who
began to settle permanently from
about 440 onwards.Also,another
factor that lead to the destruction of
the Western Roman Empire was the
mercenaries of Germanic origins.
Needed to defend the lines against an
increasing number of threats,the
roman army proved incapable of
dealing with such a large demand of
armed forces,therefore acquiring
these mercenaries proved to be a
solution for a short period of time,
as their loyalty remained with their
bretheren. In 476, Orestes refused to
grant Odoacer and the Heruli
federated status, prompting an
invasion. Orestes was killed and
Odoacer deposed Romulus Augustus,
installed himself as ruler over Italy
and sent the Imperial insignia to
Constantinople. Although isolated
pockets of Roman rule continued even after 476, the city of Rome itself was under the rule of
the barbarians, and the control of Rome over the West had effectively ended.
As for the Eastern Roman Empire,also known as the Byzantine Empire maintaned a
foothold until the 15th century. Throughout Late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages, it laid
claims on areas of the West which had been occupied by several tribes. In the 6th century, the
Eastern Roman Empire managed to reconquer large areas of the former Western Roman
Empire. The most successful were the campaigns of the generals Belisarius and Narses on

behalf of the Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I from 533 to 554. The Vandal-occupied
former Roman territory in North Africa was regained, particularly the territory centered
around the city of Carthage. Less than a year later, Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica, Dalmatia, and
the Balearic Islands were easily captured by the invading Roman legions. The campaign
eventually moved into Italy and the Byzantines reconquered it completely.In 1453 this
remnant of the once Roman Empire was destroyed by another force that would continue to
terrorize the whole european scene,the Ottoman Empire,the capital city of Constantinople
being forced to surrender after three days of siege.

3.The Britons-First contact with the Romans

Throughout their existence, the territory inhabited by the Britons was composed of
numerous ever-changing areas controlled by tribes. The extent of their territory before and
during the Roman period is unclear.The origins of the Britons go back beyond the Roman
conquest as aspects of society were found by Romans from the beggining of the Neolithic and
Early Bronze Ages.In regard to their culture,the Britons were at a fifteen hundred to two
thousand years of development behind.
How did these people look like ? Were they tall,small,muscular ? According to
archaelogists,during the Neolithic period we can distinguish the first signs of the appearance
of the Briton pedigree,so to speak.Considering that most of western Europe was inhabited by
a race of long-headed men,varying somewhat in appearance,and especially in colouring,since
they were probably always fairer in the north and darker in the south,but in most respects
substantially alike.
The British Isles can easily be divided into two parts:the Southern side with its fertile
lands and the Nothern one with its barren lands.Due to this discrepancy we can safely say that
the South was the better subject when it came to development due to the highly fertile plots of
land that could be used for either crops or either plain grass-land.Indeed,the Northern part is
not completely devoid of any agricultural potential but as the landscape is dominated by
mountaineous regions,the rich growth is improbable.Also,the climate differs in this region,the
highland zone having rainfall everywhere above the average( 40 inches in a year) as for the
Southern part only its western side the rate of rainfall being 30 inches.These differences
between climate,soil,relief between the highland and lowland sides have affected the way the
inhabitants of these respective areas would lead their day to day lives.In the lowlands as it has
been presented earlier it is said that communications,whether by land-routes or by boat along
the slow-flowing rivers,have always been easy;agriculture and stock-farming,ever since man

first introduced them;and neither heat nor cold,neither drought nor excessive rainfall,has ever
been an obstacle to human prosperity. As for the higland zone,everything is lived under the
sign of precariousness,communication,agriculture,stock-farming are a challenge to this
regions people,not
to mention
water-transport,except
by sea being an
impossiblity.Therefore,due to this constrast there has been a major difference between the
richer,more prosperous and more confortable life in the lowland and the harder,poorer and
riskier life in the highland.
From this idea,inhabitans of the lowlands developed a different lifestyle as opposed to
their northern relatives .Starting from the same genealogic tree,the tribes of the British Isles
began to differentiate their way of living,the South being more predisposed to trade and
commerce and the North beggining to rely on their ability as warriors to survive.We can
distinguish two major areas where we can observe the particularities of their
inhabitatins:Ireland and Britain.
In early Irish literature a tradition is preserved as to the divion of Ireland into five
provinces
or
kingdoms,four
of
which
are
familiar
from
historic
times:Laighin,Mhumhain,Connachta and Ulaidh.Boundaries between these kingdoms were
always unstable,as conflict between them would frequently occur,therefore there was a
constant change,politically speaking,in Ireland as dynasties rose and fell.
Scotland and Wales did not exist as separate countries in pre-Roman times,but to simplify
thing we shall reffer to this part as Britain.The climatic downturn at the Bronze to Iron Age
transition naturally hit Britain as well as Ireland,but did less damage to the agricultural
domain in Britain.Due to this turn of events,some upland in Wales was abandoned,along with
some lowland prone to waterlogging.The clearest cases for migration can be made for two
tribes of the north:the Votadini and Parisii.The chariot burials of the Arras Culture in East
Yorkshire in 200 BC have been linked to the Parisii.
By the time the inhabitans of the British Isles were starting to place the thoughts on
paper,we can observe the existence of five languages spoken with the
islands:Latin,English,British,Irish and Pictish.Latin had arrived in Britain through the
Romans,being mostly popular in the Southern part where the Romans estabilished their centre
of operations,building different establisments to ease the passage of troops from the mainland
to the British Isles.We can talk about a different perspective of nowadays English if the
Angles and Saxons had not claimed this land as their own.Even so,the number of Latin
speakers after the Barbarian Invasion has met a sudden collapse as they have either perished
by Saxon swords or they have accepted the local tongue.I would incline to the latter as
surviving Celtic people developed a Latin accent.

As the Romans rose to power,Britain

has seen itself as a point of interest for the
legions as it presented a large deposit of tin,as it
is considered that the term Britainderives
from the Phoenician wordBaratanac which
means Land of Tin.In 55 and 54 BC Caesar
has led thetwo invasions of Britain,both
unsuccesful,even if we would regard these acts
as mere reconnaisance missions in order to
deter the Briton forces from aiding the Gauls,
against which Caesar fought the main battles,
these attestations are the first recorded contact
between the Britons and the Romans.In his
De bello galico,Caesar presented his campaign
of conquering and Gaul and also the different
people he had contact withduring this military
activity :
The most civilized of all these nations are they who inhabit Kent, which is entirely a
maritime district, nor do they differ much from the Gallic customs. Most of the inland
inhabitants do not sow corn, but live on milk and flesh, and are clad with skins. All the
Britons, indeed, dye themselves with woad, which occasions a bluish color, and thereby have
a more terrible appearance in fight. They wear their hair long, and have every part of their
body shaved except their head and upper lip.Caesars supposed campaign of Britain was
deemed as a failure, if it had been intended as a full-scale campaign, invasion or occupation.
His pretext for the invasion was that "in almost all the wars with the Gauls succors had been
furnished to our enemy from that country". This is plausible, although it may also have been a
cover for investigating Britain's mineral resources and economic potential:
afterwards, Cicero refers to the disappointing discovery that there was no gold or silver in the
island and Suetonius reports that Caesar was said to have gone to Britain in search of pearls

Briton coinage from this period shows a complicated pattern of intrusion. The earliest
Gallo-Belgic coins that have been found in Britain date to before 100 BC, perhaps as early as

150 BC, were struck in Gaul,and have been found mainly in Kent. Later coins of a similar
type were struck in Britain
and are found all along
the south coast as far west
as Dorset. It appears that
Belgic power was
concentrated on the
southeastern coast,
although their influence
spread further west and
inland, perhaps through
chieftains establishing
political control over the
native population.As it is
known,Roman coinage
played a peculiarly
important role in politics
and economics of the
Roman world as it now
only manipulated by the
government as money
but also represented a
manner of placing certain
inscriptions and images
upon these coins that were
without doubt a powerful
medium for mass
propaganda.
The process of Roman
conquest of Britain was a
gradual process,this being
only a premeditary stage as
emperor Claudius in 43AD
began his attacks against
theBritons.Until then the
Isleswere relatively safe
from Roman harm as their
diplomats have secured
beneficial conditions
between them and the
Romans,also trading and
commerce underwent
between the two but
because of the empires
speculation of the
political issue in Britain
as the Catuvellauni had displaced the Trinovantes as the most powerful kingdom in southeastern Britain, taking over the former Trinovantian capital of Camulodunum (Colchester).A
very interesting mention in history is Caligulas attempt to plunder these lands.In 40 AD he

had ordered his men facing the English Channel to attack the water and then gather
seashells.This act cannot be clearly considered as either a humiliation for his soldiers mutiny
or the mental derangements of the Roman emperor.
The invasion was lead by Claudius general Aulus Plautius,being in charge of three
divions British resistance was led by Togodumnus and Caratacus, sons of the late king of the
Catuvellauni, Cunobeline. A substantial British force met the Romans at a river crossing
thought to be near Rochester on the River Medway. The battle raged for two days.The British
were pushed back to the Thames. The Romans pursued them across the river causing them to
lose men in the marshes of Essex. Whether the Romans made use of an existing bridge for
this purpose or built a temporary one is uncertain. However, Claudius was no military
man. Claudius's arch says he received the surrender of eleven kings without any loss, and
Suetonius' The Twelve Caesars says that Claudius received the surrender of the Britons
without battle or bloodshed. It is likely that the Catuvellauni were already as good as beaten,
allowing the emperor to appear as conqueror on the final march on Camulodunum. Cassius
Dio relates that he brought war elephants and heavy armaments which would have overawed
any remaining native resistance. Eleven tribes of South East Britain surrendered to Claudius
and the Romans prepared to move further west and north. The Romans established their new
capital at Camulodunum and Claudius returned to Rome to celebrate his victory.

4.Boudiccas revolt
One of the greatest historical figures in British
history,Boudicca was queen of the Iceni people
of Eastern England and led a major uprising
against occupying Roman forces. Dio says that she
was "possessed of greater intelligence than often
belongs to women", that she was tall and had
hair described as red, reddish-brown, or tawny
hanging below her waist. Dio also says she had
a harsh voice and piercing glare, and habitually
wore a large golden necklace ,a many-coloured
tunic, and a thick cloak fastened by a brooch.
Boudicca was married to Prasutagus, ruler of the
Iceni people of East Anglia.
When the Romans conquered southern England
in AD 43, they allowed Prasutagus to continue to
rule. However, when Prasutagus died ,the Romans
decided to rule the Iceni directly and confiscated
the property of the leading tribesmen. According to
Tacitus, they drew inspiration from the example of
Arminius, the prince of the Cherusci who had driven the Romans out of Germany in AD 9,
and their own ancestors who had driven Julius Caesar from Britain. When news of the
rebellion reached him, Suetonius hurried along Watling Street through hostile territory to
Londinium. Londinium was a relatively new settlement, founded after the conquest of AD 43,
but it had grown to be a thriving commercial centre with a population of travellers, traders,

and, probably, Roman officials. Suetonius considered giving battle there, but considering his
lack of numbers and chastened by Petillius's defeat, decided to sacrifice the city to save the
province.This event is being presented by Tacitus in his workAnnals : Alarmed by this disaster
and by the fury of the province which he had goaded into war by his rapacity, the procurator
Catus crossed over into Gaul. Suetonius, however, with wonderful resolution, marched amidst
a hostile population to Londinium, which, though undistinguished by the name of a colony,
was much frequented by a number of merchants and trading vessels. Uncertain whether he
should choose it as a seat of war, as he looked round on his scanty force of soldiers, and
remembered with what a serious warning the rashness of Petilius had been punished, he
resolved to save the province at the cost of a single town. Nor did the tears and weeping of the
people, as they implored his aid, deter him from giving the signal of departure and receiving
into his army all who would go with him. Those who were chained to the spot by the
weakness of their sex, or the infirmity of age, or the attractions of the place, were cut off by
the enemy
Boudicca's warriors successfully defeated the Roman Ninth Legion and destroyed the
capital of Roman Britain, then at Colchester. They went on to destroy London and
Verulamium (St Albans). Thousands were killed. Finally, Boudicca was defeated by a Roman
army led by Paulinus. Many Britons were killed and Boudicca is thought to have poisoned
herself to avoid capture. The site of the battle, and of Boudicca's death, are unknown.

5 The Caledonian campaign

Before we can talk about the actual Caledonian campaign,a mention to the strategic
defensive structure the Romans built in order to secure the Southern part of the British Isles
from attacks of the wildlings. Hadrian's Wall was likely planned before Roman
Emperor Hadrian's visit to Britain in 122. According to restored sandstone fragments found
in Jarrow that date from 118 or 119, it was Hadrian's wish to keep "intact the empire The
fragments then announce the building of the wall. It is entirely possible that, on his arrival in
Britain in 122, one of the stops on his itinerary was the northern frontier and an inspection of
the progress of the wall as it was being built.But can we truly talk about a real threat coming
from those living beyond the wall ? A hypothesis to his plan of constructing this wall was
based on his wish on clearly showing the boundries of his empire,as he had met resistance not
only in the British Isles,but also in Egypt,Palestine or Mauretania.Also, Scholars disagree
over how much of a threat the inhabitants of northern Britain actually presented, and whether
there was any more economic advantage in defending and garrisoning a fixed line of defences
like the Wall over simply conquering and annexing what has become the Scottish Lowlands
and manning the territory with a loose arrangement of forts.

Caledonia is the territory

located in the Northern

part of the British Isles,in
other words nowadays
Scotland.Due to the first
military succeses in the
Britain,the Romans
procedeed and saught to
bring the lands to the North
under their rule.Earlier
attempts to invade Caledonia
included the most
successful of which was in
the summer of AD 78
Gnaeus Julius Agricola
arrived in Britain to take up
his appointment as the new governor. Two years later his legions constructed a
substantial fort at Trimontium near Melrose. Excavations in the 20th century produced
significant finds including the foundations of several successive structures, Roman
coins and pottery. Remains from the Roman army were also found, including a collection of
Roman armour (with ornate cavalry parade helmets), and horse fittings (with bronze
saddleplates and studded leatherchamfrons). Agricola is said to have pushed his armies to the
estuary of the "River Taus" (usually assumed to be the River Tay) and established forts there,
including a legionary fortress at Inchtuthil. But this was not a long-lasting campaign as it
ended after the Romans withdrew - a large part of the army was transferred to the Danube to
fight the Dacian Wars. Another possible explanation for the erection of the great wall is the
degree of control it would have provided over immigration, smuggling, and customs.The
limites did not strictly mark the boundaries of Rome, with Roman power and influence often
extending beyond its walls. People inside and beyond the limes travelled through it each day
when conducting business, and organised check-points like those offered by Hadrian's Wall
provided good opportunities for taxation. With watch towers only a short distance from
gateways in thelimes, patrolling legionaries would have been able to keep track of entering
and exiting natives and Roman citizens alike, charging customs dues, and checking for
smuggling activity.Or,as another theory states,which is rather more simplistic,this edifice was
risen from the ground up in order to demonstrate the power of Rome,of its engineering
prowess and its ability to fend off anyone daring to harm its people. The Romans retreated to
the earlier and stronger Hadrian's Wall in the River Tyne-Solway Firth frontier area, this
having been constructed around 122. Roman troops, however, penetrated far into the north of
modern Scotland several more times. Indeed, there is a greater density of Roman marching
camps in Scotland than anywhere else in Europe as a result of at least four major attempts to
subdue the area.

A new stage in this part of Britain starts as unrest starts to surmount,as a massive increase
in raids and attacks on Roman Britain are registered,Severus being forced to react to these
aggresive actions. This was possible because in 195 Clodius Albinus, the Roman Governor of
Britain, had led most of the British legions into Gaul during his revolt against Severus.
Severus had sent them back to their posts after defeating Albinus, but they had suffered large
casualties at the Battle of Lugdunum. This left Hadrian's Wall undermanned and made it easy
for the Caledonians to raid into Roman Britain. The Caledonians were also able to gather
more men for these raids than before as there is evidence of increased cooperation among the
different northern tribes.
Among Caledonians which represent a branch of the Britons,Dio the Maeatae: There are
two principal races of the Britons, the Caledonians and the Maeatae, and the names of the
others have been merged in these two. The Maeatae live next to the cross-wall which cuts the
island in half, and the Caledonians are beyond them. A period of peace was obtained after
Severus has intervened into this territory but peace did not last for long. the Maeatae rebelled
in 210, and Severus ordered their extermination:When the inhabitants of the island [the
Maeatae, it turns out] again revolted, he summoned the soldiers and ordered them to invade
the rebels' country, killing everybody they met; and he quoted these words [from Homer]:
Let no one escape sheer destruction,no one our hands, not even the babe in the womb of the
mother,if it be male; let it nevertheless not escape sheer destruction.

Later excursions into Scotland by the Romans were generally limited to the scouting
expeditions of explorers in the buffer zone that developed between the walls, trading contacts,
bribes to purchase truces from the natives, and eventually the spread of Christianity. The
degree to which the Romans interacted with the island of Hibernia is still unresolved amongst
archaeologists in Ireland. The successes and failures of the Romans in subduing the peoples of
Britain are still represented in the political geography of the British Isles today.The
archaeological legacy of Rome in Scotland is of interest, but sparse, especially in the north.
Almost all the sites are essentially military in nature and include about 650 km (400 mi) of
roads. Overall, it is hard to detect any direct connections between native architecture and
settlement patterns and Roman influence. Elsewhere in Europe, new kingdoms and languages
emerged from the remnants of the once-mighty Roman world. In Scotland, the Celtic Iron
Age way of life, often troubled, but never extinguished by Rome, simply re-asserted itself. In
the north the Picts continued to be the main power prior to the arrival and subsequent
domination of the Scots of Dalriada.

Therefore,until the Romans were forced to leave the British Isles,Caledonia was seen as a
wild land,unable to be tamed or brought to any sense of civilization due to its aggresive
response whenever Roman expeditions were sent outwards Hadrians wall.Yet,can we still
blame this kind of reaction,as this civilizational element was brought by force,tempted by the
richness of their lands,Roman tongue,religion and ways of organizing its society were forced
upon them.Because of this,the division between the Northern and Southern part of the British
Isles were accumulating. Two distinct tribal groups living beyond Hadrian's wall at that time.
A Brythonic people called the Mannau Gododdin who controlled central Scotland and beyond
the River Forth the Picts. Archaeological evidence shows that far from being primitive both
these groups were trading with peoples as far away as the Mediterranean and at some sites
such as Traprain law in east Lothian there have been large finds of Roman coins and artefacts
showing that the Britons of southern Scotland were either being bribed or were plundering
from the Romans. The scale of the finds in southern Scotland shows that the social elite
amongst the Britons were living a very affluent lifestyle and weren't living in poverty.

6.1.Romanization of Celtic cults.

Religion in the Ancient Era can be represented by one word:paganism.In every single
civilization,not only from Europe,religion was based on a politheist belief.The variety of gods
was enourmous,they were seen as godly representations of a certain act,such as Mars,a
Roman god that was worshiped because it was thought that through him victory was more
favourable,and so on and so forth,people would bring offerings to different shrines in order to
appease that certain diety for it was believed that if one god felt disrespected he would punish
those who had wronged him,this being the explanation for phenomenons such as
famine,floods or plagues.
Religion in Roman Britain reffers to the blending of the Celtic gods with those of the
Romans.Because a considerable part of early Britain was forested, murky groves were resorts
of divine power.Alongside veneration of natural features,men would have been impressed by
the animals and birds which inhabited the countryside.Their qualities such as the swiftness of
the dear,the strenght of the boar,the ferocity of the wolf,the majesty in the high-soaring flight
of the eagle suggested divine strenght.The migration of birds,also was seen as being part of a
godly realm.Therefore,animals were endowered with divine powers and appear in the postRoman literature as beings of considerable understaing.From here,fantastic stories would be
sprung that constitute the basis of the British,Irish,Scotish folklore.Such examples would be a
fight between two supernatural bulls or the rivalry among two divine boars.In this case,even
tribes would try at encompass godly powers by worshiping these animals and naming
themselves after them.Tribes would be named after them,like the Epidii or the horse people,
the Lugi,the raven people or the Orci,the boar-people.We can assume for certainty that the
religion of the Celtic world was a natural one,as they would resort to toteism to ilustrate
through wooden figures the image of their worshiped animal.This behaviour of veneration
towards the natural side of existence was observed by Caesar as the Britons have a deep
respect for the goose,cock and hare ,implying their strong bond with these natural
symbols,leading to another aspect of the Celtic cult:animism.
The conception that wearing the horns of a bull will grant you his strenght started to
extrapolate,in Celtic art is it frequently seen that masks of men and animals appear such as
horses and boards.There ornaments can be seen as a way of asserting your dominance
towards your foe,Britons would were these masks in order to show that they possess a certain
status in their society,the thought that one is being blessed by the fallen spirit of a bull for
example is nothing but intimidating.It is startling to discover that human heads are treated no
differently from the heads of animals,as the great art historian,Paul Jacobsthal wrote: The
Celts created Man in the image of Beast . We can clearly state that the head is seen as a totem
of power,it could be severed from the enemy during combat and yet it is believed that it
retained the vital energy that allowed the body to flow with energy,considering that through
the slaying of more and more foes your power would grow each time a decapitation would
occur.Therefore,druidic groups would form that had only one purpose : to reach an ultimate
level of existence by spiritually filling their bodies and they would do this by the method
explained previously,going half-naked into the battlefield,wearing the heads of their slain
enemies as talismans around their waist,just to show their lack of fear regarding death and if
they should meet their demise,they will become one with the nature,ever-growing and everliving through the gust of the wind,the flowing of the water and the growth of the trees.
One noteworthy mention would be the Welsh hero Bran that actually asked his followers to
decapitate him and his head became a talisman capable of foretelling the future.
A question that needs to be asked in this case is who were the Druids ?.They appear in
many sources as teacher and judges rather than priests,even if sometimes they are presented as

taking part in sacrificial rituals.Based on this fact,Nora Chadwick states:the Druids were
philosophers rather than priests . When Caesar says that the Druidic doctrine is believed to
have been found existing in Britatin and thence imported into Gaul he could have mistaken
as Plinys writing suggest that after Gaul had been subdued and while Britain itself was being
conquered sees it as having been taken there from Gaul.Even so,we have to accept the idea
that the roots of Druidism cannot be fully pin-pointed as even when Caesar lived this practice
was seen as an old one.Even if Druids were not strictly speaking a priestly csate,it is doubtful
whether the exact separation between a druid or a priest would have been obvious for an
outsider,a civilized man,such as a Roman.As we will find out about Roman sacrifices,the
officiant and the man who struck the killing blow on the animal had different attributes.As for
the Druids,they may not have slaughtered animals or people on their own but Romans could
have considered them as being responsible for human sacrifices such as
drowning,hanging,stabbing and burning were seen as way of losing hold of your body and
letting your soul free.Yet,druids have confirmed that human lives were considered as being
neccesary for their gods,such as Esus,Taranis,Teutes and others ,this also being one motive of
the Roman opposition.
Once the Romans estabilished a foothold in Britannia,Celtic temples that were build from
timber were replaced by the stone build Roman strucutres.At Gallows Hill,Thetford,a group
of five huts has been exacavated within a series of rectangular ditches,this has been
interpreted as :Boudicas Palace.Large huts known as bruidne belonging to the gods of the
Other World are mentioned in Irish sources.A supernatural house with a cauldron of ale and
foods such as pork and beef is mentioned in the Voyage of Mael Duin.On the walls,silver and
golden brooches were hung.
Celtic holy places did not necessarily require a building.The area around the Roman temple of
Uley was sacred in the Iron Age,but it is thought that there was no pre-Roman buulding there
there.Perhaps there was a sacred tree or well in this kind of scanarios.Wheither a deity had a
home in a human sense might have been caused by a variety of cult factors.We can consider
that gods had homes under the stars or the rain-clouds but what is some of them required
something more private ?
In this case we would talk about the sacred enclosure at Hayling Island.The excavators have
noted that most of the findings came from temenos rather than the cella,therefore showing that
the cleared space of the enclosure was essential for the practice of a cult.As for the actual
building,as other feature such as a tree or a pit,it was solely focusing on the ritual,therefore
regarded as private for the gods.

There is not a clear and specific way regarding the way these rituals would take place,even if
Celtic deities had their names recorded on Roman inscriptions ,originating back in the Iron
Age,it does not give and clear indication to anyone who would reconstruct anything of the
pre-Roman ritual.Another way of representing ones wish of worshiping a diety was through
weapons,I would talk about the case of Uley,where the Roman dedication is known to have
been to Mercury,the model spears arguing that the pre-Roman diety was indeed a
warrior.They could have as well called him Mars but it was not the case here as it believed
that this temple was in the territory of the souther Atrebates,and clearly an importante
sanctuary site,the cult was in some veneration of Neptune and Minerva in Chichester.
At the same location,we can observe the Celtic response to deities starting from the coins
found there.Excavators had at first thought that many of them were made of gold,but after a
closer examination it has been revealed that the majority were on a basic level composed of
metal,thinly plated with gold.The first instinct of an archaeologist from the twentieth-century
is to take into consideration forgery or cheating the gods,but it has been proved that it isnt
so.In the spirit world,token-coins and other subjects become.The substitution of symbolic for
real offerings in religious and funerary ritual has a long history,down through the Middle Ages
and even until the present day.While some votaries may have always thought in terms of
saving precious metal,the motive of others will have always been to let their relatively slight
resources make a splendid show because it was believed that the gods demanded
attentation,veneration and obedience from their worshippers,needing much more than a
simple gift.
Other offerings towards the gods were animals,cereals,fruits,or alcoholic beverages such as
ale or wine.The principle of life was vital here-you were to give something hoping that your
gift will not only appease him but make him show a little gratitude by making your wish come
true,yet if your offering was not considered as to a level of inadequacy of satisfying your
god,you had to expect of negative energies coming in your direction,therefore it was vital that
your gift to be of a significant value to the Celtic society.Therefore,on temple sites bones of
pigs would be found,as well as sheep,goats,cattle,oxen or white horses.
Another type of sacrifice was the human one,as human bones were soon to sprung from the
Iron age as pieces of human skull,limbs or torso were discovered at places such as Hayling or
Danebury.These remains are considered to be the bodies of slain enemies,but it is macabre as
cannibalism may have occured.The Romans had no doubt that the Druids were involved in
this matter.
As surprising at it may sound,Romans would find from time to time the importance of the
lives of barbarians.From all over the corners of the empire these so-called savages would fall
into slavery and those that were fit for combat would be thrown into the Colliseum,forced to
fight each other to the death,or against different animals,such as a species of lion from
Northern Africa that went extinct due to its usage in gladiatorial fights.Even so,as much as
Romans would enjoy such a show,they objection towards human sacrifice was obvious,as
Druids began to be persecuted from their political role.Their position towards this matter was
also based on the fact that individuals would suddenly dissapear and be found days later as
being the subject of these sacrifial rituals.Because of its prestige,it could not afford to be seen
as having a weak will,therefore the Roman state could not condone these deaths at the hands
of judges operating under non-Roman custom.Besides this,the sadist of the amphitheatre was

only one side of the Roman character.Another whicl lived uneasily with it was an instict for
tolerance,justice and compassion.
But gods demanded blood and such sacrifice continued,even if Roman officials were against
these rituals,even so scarce evidence regarding this matter was found showing whether human
sacrifice may have continued as an illegal violation from Roman practice.Another fact that
was seen with a grim eye was the infant exposure in most societies as infants were without
rights when newly-born,and parents who could not afford to rear them could give them to
other or even expose them.This is the saddening case of the infants buried in the courtyard of
the Hambledon villa.Should this appear as being in contradiction to any moral law,suspecting
ritual infanticide is not out of the question.Another explanation would be that the babies could
have died naturally and have been presented to Mother Earth by being buried in a shrine
that was associated with a healing goddess such as the Roman diety Juno Lucina.
Nationalism and human sacrufuce apart,native religion was well adapted to be merged with
the Roman rites and to be interpreted in accord with Roman beliefs.Celtic religion was not
abolished,but nor did it stay the same.Romanisation was pursued with energy and
determination by the ruling power.It had profound effect on how men envisaged the gods and
the shape of a new,so much expanded from that of a local community.Before we can
understand what happened to the native religion Britain,a critical eye needs to look at Roman
beliefs.

6.2Roman and Celtic dieties

The three major state gods of Rome were Juno,Jupiter and Minerva.Jupiter was essentialy a
sky divinity,but he possessed the additional role of being both the head of the Roman
pantheon and,as Jupiter Best and Greatest,representative of the spirit of Rome itself.Juno as
his consort shared his dominance over other deities and was,in addition,the main goddes of
women and feminity.As for Minerva,she was considered the main goddes of women and
feminity also of war,wisdom and crafts.The cult of the Spirit of Rome and the Emperor
naturally had no pre-Roman precedent.The most imporant evidence for the Imperial cult in
Britain is the temple of Claudius at Colchester.This temple may not have been completed until
the early part of Vespasians reign and was probably not dedicated until Claudius death.Other
British material indicates the presence of the cult of the Emperor.Large bronze images of
Claudius,perhaps from Colchester but found in the river Alde,and of Hadrian in Londinium
are recorded.Priests of the cult are attested at Lincoln and York.A number of altars both from
the Northern and Southern parts of Britain were dedicated to the Numen or also known as the
Spirit of the Emperor,sometimes linked with divinities.At Colchester the Imperial cult was
linked with the obscure Celtic cult of Mercury Andescocioucus.
Both Mars and Mercury were particularly popular in both Britain and Gaul.Like Jupiter and
Minerva,each underwent substantial Celtic influences.Mars,as a classical god of war,in the
area of Britain which had a permanent military presence,namely the North and West.Many
dedications on stone survive from northern forts,as at Benwell and Housesteads,but few small
bronzes are recorded from the frontier areas.It is still curious that Southern Brittania,where
military occupation was relative brief and transitory,had produced a great deal of evidence for
the cult of Mars.
While there was apparently no Celtic pantheon,a rage of typically Celtic figures is
attested.They often occur as couples or trinites,another indication of their archaism.Many
Celtic sculptures which ave three faces may correspond to an Indo-European three-faced deity
or trinity of deities.The mother goddesses are known at Matronae,whose cult as mothers is
linked to that of a divine son,Maponos.They were also seen as goddesses of fertility and
helpers in need.One cult name of the mother goddess sems to have Rigani,the queen.The
name of a goddess could also corespond to a tribal name,as for istance,Brigantia to the
Brigantes.Epona,the horse goddess,most often depicted on a back of a horse,has features in
common with the mother goddess. Sequana,goddess of the source of the river Seine,
from Northern England.

The father of the tribe and god of the dead

was the father god, Teutates.Ognios was a god of
the dead,leading the souls to the Otherworld.Celtic
visions of this realm reffer to it as a land of eternal
spring,of plenty,of beautiful women and of music.
Taranis or Taranus was the god of thunder,hes
depicted as a male celestial god,his iconography being
linked with the bull and the wheel.Gods of craft,as
mythical smiths,cobblers,builders or doctors are of
special importance.The most imporant male deity in
this group is probably Lugus and the equivalent to the
Romans Minerva,Brigit,indicating the close
relationship between gods ,craft and healing.A deity
connectedwith the processing of ore,and therefore
close to the god of wealth is the Gallic mallet-wielding
god Sucellus,often shown in the company of the goddess Nantosuelta.

7. Last century of Roman rule

In Britain,there were profound changes,no less than in the rest of the empire,during 100 years
which elapsed between the accesions of the Constantines,Constantine the Great and
Constantine III.Because Christiany became the religion of Rome was undoubtedly the most
striking single consequence that flowed from the reign of Constantine the Great.
The end of Roman rule in Britain is the period during which the Roman Empire ended its
relationship with Roman Britain, thus marking the transition from Roman Britain to postRoman Britain. No single date is correct without qualification, as Roman rule ended for
different parts of Britain at different times, and under different circumstances.The year 410 is
the preference of most historians. In that year, the Roman Emperor Honorius replied to a
request for assistance with the Rescript of Honorius. This told the Romano-Britons to see to
their own defence although some historians believed that this was actually sent to Bruttium in
southern Italy. Some historians prefer 409 instead, the year when the Romano-Britons
expelled Roman magistrates from their cities.The year 383 marks the end of Roman rule in
northern and western Britain. In that year, Roman troops were withdrawn from those regions
of Britain for the last time. The Empire's historical relationship with Germanic tribes was
sometimes hostile, at other times cooperative, but ultimately fatal, as it was unable to prevent
those tribes from assuming a dominant role in the relationship. By the late 4th century,
the Western Roman Empire's military forces were dominated by Germanic troops, and
Romanised Germans played a significant role in internal Roman politics. The Germanic tribes
to the east of the Empire were able to take advantage of the Empire's weakened state, both to
expand into Roman territory and, in some cases, to move their entire populations into lands
once considered exclusively Roman.

Shadowy or mythical are these first Christians associated with Britain,but it is legitimate to
postulate that the first British martyrs are merely the tip of the iceberg.Some Christians in
Britain at this period were certainly wealthy,as shown by the treasure found at
Durobrivae.Three of the pieces supply us with names,two women to be specific:Innocentia
and Viventia.Christianity had made further progress into the British Isles belief but not
without controversy.The vigorous Bishop of Rouen,Victricius thought by some to have been
of British origin,came to the island towards the end of the fourth century at the request of the
Britons themselves.The question at issue seems to have been the impact of St Martins
reforms.

His vigorous campaign to stamp out paganism and introduce monasticism had aroused
oppositio in Gaul.Victricius,a fervent disciple,is likely to have fostered these aims on his visit
to Britain.In a letter to Ambrose and other he explained that he had taken to Brain the precepts
of the martyrs.He sums up his mission with a trenchant statement: I filled the sensible with
love of peace,taught those who chould be taught,subdued the ignorant,and attacked the
oppositoin.The other great Christian teacher produced by Roman Britain was a person of a
very different stamp from Pelagius,and the nature of the sources is completely different.His
date of birth,and the chronoly of his mission to Ireland still remain uncertain and
disputed.Patrick,as he is known,made his rule of faith conservative and completely
orthodox,betraying no awareness of doctrinal controversies.His own religious experience was
intense and may fairly be called mystical.Unlike the rhetorically trained Latin Fathers of the
Churc,from Tertullian to Augustus,he expresses his meaning directly with no sign of artifice.

Londinium ,which in the third century had boasted a walled area of 330 acres, had decayed
by 430. It fell into ruin, and would not prosper again until the middle of the seventh century.

The end of empire effectively meant the end of civilization in Britain. Towns rapidly decayed,
coins ceased to circulate, villas were abandoned, and the population increasingly took refuge
in the old hill forts.
Four centuries of occupation left their mark on the British landscape.The network of road
running arrow-straight through the British countryside marked routes that survive to this
day.Although Roman cities were decayed,many expanded again later,and some such as
Canterbury and Dorchester may have been continuously occupied,though not as real urban
centres.As the Anglo-Saxon population was pagan,the British Christians who fled to Wales
and Ireland retained their belief.
he British did try to "defend themselves" - or at least to hire one set of barbarians to fight
others. Bede's history - written long after the events - stated thatVortigern, a Romano-British
chieftain, hired the Jutish leaders Hengist and Horsa to help repel the Scots and Picts. These
mercenaries then turned on their employers in about 446 and seized South East England for
themselves.
Power had probably become the preserve of local chiefs,who may have been warlords,bishops
or a combination of both.This is compatible with the idea that people with ecclesiastical
authority wielded some sort of secular executive power.The positions Patricks father held
also illustrate the problems of archaelogocial and historical evidence.Caesars invasions have
no manifestation in the archaeological record and were not even recorded or alluded to on
coinage issued in his name.Patricks world of deacons and decurions may have been vivid to
him,bit it is invisible in the surviving physical record.We might speculate about chieftainbishops and deacons at Wroxeter but that will probably remain just a speculation.
In pockets Romano-British society continued,albeit in an archaeologically less visible
form.The fifth-centru reoccupation of hillforts like Cadbury or the coast stronghold of
Tintagel,was undertaken by people who had the inclination to use,and the means to
import,goods from the continent or even further.Tintagel has structural remains associated
with glass fom Spain and ceramis from the Northern part of Africa and the Near East,dating
from the middle of the sixth century.These show that whoever controlled Tintaged not only
had the trading and possibly diplomatic contact but also the aspirations and taste to sustain a
cosmopolitan Romanized existence.The recovery of tin ingots off the Devon coast near
Plymouth,and the discovery of nearby coastal settlements with fifth and sixth century
imported pottery suggests what the tin trade helped sustain commercial links with
Britain.Another possibility is that the Eastern Roman Empire was deliberately fostering
contacts with what remained of Roman culture in Britain as part of its programme of
patronage and influence.In this respect,Britain had reverted to some extent to the relationship
it had had with the Mediterranean world before the Roman conquest.

These instances also emphasise our dependence on the visibility in the archaeological
record.The physical manifestations of long-distance contact might be minimal in the fifth and
sixth centuries but the psychological,social and religious connections might have been very
much greater than we can now mesure.
This does not mean the experience was entirely a negative one. To some extent the change
was as much about an alteration in behaviour, rather than an explicit sequence of
deterioration. We tend to see it as a decline, or as the end of Roman Britain rather than
the beginning of something new. Nevertheless, the phenomenon that was Roman culture in
Britain was devastated by the withdrawal of Roman administration and a fundamental change
in the economy. It took generations for Roman culture to dwindle away entirely, but much less
time for the effects on material culture to bite. It is always worth remembering that the most
conspicuous traces of Romanization in Britain to this day are associated with the military a
force that can never have amounted to much more than 40,000 men at its climax, perhaps 1
per cent of the population. Even with their dependants this was still a small proportion of the
whole. In the fourth century if we allocate forty people to every known villa, regardless of
size, we are still referring only to a villa population of around 40,000-50,000. Changes in the
administration and the economy would have had dramatic effects on these key parts of
Romano-British society, and the end of the system that supported their way of life would have
equally dramatic effects on the archaeology and the visible Roman record.Roman Britain was
a phenomenon driven by a system and when that system fell apart many of the visible signs of
what we know as Roman Britain went with it. In the beginning some of Britains tribal leaders
saw Rome as a means to enhancing their own power and prestige. In the end some of Britains
leaders continued to see Rome as the source of prestige and authority by which they sought to
control their communities. But when Rome ceased either to be able to fulfil those expectations
or to show any interest in doing so then the nature of power in Britain changed forever. Those
who continued to maintain a semblance of Romanized existence found that apart from the
church, Rome had ceased to be a source of support or patronage. Without these society in
Britain fragmented, creating the building blocks for a different way of life based on regional
kingdoms, and where patronage and power derived their strength from other sources or
concepts.

8. Bibliography :
Roman Britain and English Settlements-Robin George Collingwood
History of the World-J.M. Roberts
Celtic culture,a historical encyclopedia Vol.1,Vol 2-John T. Koch
People of Roman Britain-Anthony Richard Birkley
Roman Britain:a very short introduction-Peter Salway
Religion in Roman Britain-Dr Martin Henig
The Romanization of Britain:An Essay in Archaeological Interpretation-Martin Millet
Roman civil and military architecture in the province of Britain:aspects of patronage,influence
and craft organization T.F.C Blagg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Republic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Roman_Empire
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Roman_Empire
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boudica
http://www.romanbritain.freeserve.co.uk/endromanbritain.htm
http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/jcsr/dbg6.htm