Roman conquest of Britain
The Roman conquest of Britain was a gradual process, beginning in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, whose general Aulus Plautius served as first governor of Roman Britain. The Romans forced their way inland through several battles against Celtic tribes, including the Battle of the Medway, the Battle of the Thames, the Battle of Caer Caradoc and the Battle of Mona. Following a general uprising in which the Celts sacked Camulodunum and Londinium, the Romans suppressed the rebellion in the Battle of Watling Street and went on to push as far north as Caledonia in the Battle of Mons Graupius. Tribes in modern-day Scotland and northern England rebelled against Roman rule and two military bases were established in Britain to protect against rebellion and incursions from the north, from which Roman troops built and manned Hadrian's Wall. Great Britain had frequently been the target of invasions and actual, by forces of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire. In common with other regions on the edge of the empire, Britain had enjoyed diplomatic and trading links with the Romans in the century since Julius Caesar's expeditions in 55 and 54 BC, Roman economic and cultural influence was a significant part of the British late pre-Roman Iron Age in the south.
Between 55 BC and the 40s AD, the status quo of tribute and client states without direct military occupation, begun by Caesar's invasions of Britain remained intact. Augustus prepared invasions in 34 BC, 27 BC and 25 BC; the first and third were called off due to revolts elsewhere in the empire, the second because the Britons seemed ready to come to terms. According to Augustus's Res Gestae, two British kings and Tincomarus, fled to Rome as supplicants during his reign, Strabo's Geography, written during this period, says Britain paid more in customs and duties than could be raised by taxation if the island were conquered. By the 40s AD, the political situation within Britain was in ferment; the Catuvellauni had displaced the Trinovantes as the most powerful kingdom in south-eastern Britain, taking over the former Trinovantian capital of Camulodunum, were pressing their neighbours the Atrebates, ruled by the descendants of Julius Caesar's former ally Commius. Caligula may have planned a campaign against the Britons in 40, but its execution was unclear: according to Suetonius' The Twelve Caesars, he drew up his troops in battle formation facing the English Channel and, once his forces had become quite confused, ordered them to gather seashells, referring to them as "plunder from the ocean due to the Capitol and the Palace".
Alternatively, he may have told them to gather "huts", since the word musculi was soldier's slang for engineer's huts and Caligula himself was familiar with the Empire's soldiers. In any case this readied the troops and facilities that would make Claudius' invasion possible three years later. For example, Caligula built a lighthouse at Bononia, the Tour D'Ordre, that provided a model for the one built soon after at Dubris. In 43 by re-collecting Caligula's troops from 40, Claudius mounted an invasion force to re-instate Verica, an exiled king of the Atrebates. Aulus Plautius, a distinguished senator, was given overall charge of four legions, totalling about 20,000 men, plus about the same number of auxiliaries; the legions were: Legio II Augusta – The Second Augustan Legion Legio IX Hispana – The Ninth Spanish Legion Legio XIV Gemina – The Fourteenth Twin Legion Legio XX Valeria Victrix – The Twentieth Legion Valiant and VictoriousThe II Augusta is known to have been commanded by the future emperor Vespasian.
Three other men of appropriate rank to command legions are known from the sources to have been involved in the invasion. Cassius Dio mentions Gnaeus Hosidius Geta, who led the IX Hispana, Vespasian's brother Titus Flavius Sabinus the Younger, he wrote that Sabinus was Vespasian's lieutenant, but as Sabinus was the older brother and preceded Vespasian into public life, he could hardly have been a military tribune. Eutropius mentions Gnaeus Sentius Saturninus, although as a former consul he may have been too senior, accompanied Claudius later; the main invasion force under Aulus Plautius crossed in three divisions. The port of departure is taken to have been Boulogne, the main landing at Rutupiae. Neither of these locations is certain. Dio does not mention the port of departure, although Suetonius says that the secondary force under Claudius sailed from Boulogne, it does not follow that the entire invasion force did. Richborough has a large natural harbour which would have been suitable, archaeology shows Roman military occupation at about the right time.
However, Dio says the Romans sailed east to west, a journey from Boulogne to Richborough is south to north. Some historians suggest a sailing from Boulogne to the Solent, landing in the vicinity of Noviomagus or Southampton, in territory ruled by Verica. An alternative explanation might be a sailing from the mouth of the Rhine to Richborough, which would be east to west. 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. Gnaeus Hosidius Geta was captured, but recovered and turned the battle so decisively that he was awarded the "Roman triumph"; the British were pushed back to the Thames. They were pursued by the Romans across the river causing some Roman losses in the marshes of Essex. Whether the Romans made use of an e
Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. In this region it served as the primary written language, though local languages were written to varying degrees. Latin functioned as the main medium of scholarly exchange, as the liturgical language of the Church, as the working language of science, literature and administration. Medieval Latin represented, in essence, a continuation of Classical Latin and Late Latin, with enhancements for new concepts as well as for the increasing integration of Christianity. Despite some meaningful differences from Classical Latin, Medieval writers did not regard it as a fundamentally different language. There is no real consensus on the exact boundary where Late Latin Medieval Latin begins; some scholarly surveys begin with the rise of early Ecclesiastical Latin in the middle of the 4th century, others around 500, still others with the replacement of written Late Latin by written Romance languages starting around the year 900.
The terms Medieval Latin and Ecclesiastical Latin are used synonymously, though some scholars draw distinctions. Ecclesiastical Latin refers to the form, used by the Roman Catholic Church, whereas Medieval Latin refers more broadly to all of the forms of Latin used in the Middle Ages; the Romance languages spoken in the Middle Ages were referred to as Latin, since the Romance languages were all descended from Classical, or Roman, Latin itself. Medieval Latin had an enlarged vocabulary, which borrowed from other sources, it was influenced by the language of the Vulgate, which contained many peculiarities alien to Classical Latin that resulted from a more or less direct translation from Greek and Hebrew. Greek provided much of the technical vocabulary of Christianity; the various Germanic languages spoken by the Germanic tribes, who invaded southern Europe, were major sources of new words. Germanic leaders became the rulers of parts of the Roman Empire that they conquered, words from their languages were imported into the vocabulary of law.
Other more ordinary words were replaced by coinages from Vulgar Latin or Germanic sources because the classical words had fallen into disuse. Latin was spread to areas such as Ireland and Germany, where Romance languages were not spoken, which had never known Roman rule. Works written in those lands where Latin was a learned language, having no relation to the local vernacular influenced the vocabulary and syntax of medieval Latin. Since subjects like science and philosophy, including Argumentation theory and Ethics, were communicated in Latin, the Latin vocabulary that developed for them became the source of a great many technical words in modern languages. English words like abstract, communicate, matter and their cognates in other European languages have the meanings given to them in medieval Latin; the influence of Vulgar Latin was apparent in the syntax of some medieval Latin writers, although Classical Latin continued to be held in high esteem and studied as models for literary compositions.
The high point of the development of medieval Latin as a literary language came with the Carolingian renaissance, a rebirth of learning kindled under the patronage of Charlemagne, king of the Franks. Alcuin was an important writer in his own right. Although it was developing into the Romance languages, Latin itself remained conservative, as it was no longer a native language and there were many ancient and medieval grammar books to give one standard form. On the other hand speaking there was no single form of "medieval Latin"; every Latin author in the medieval period spoke Latin as a second language, with varying degrees of fluency and syntax. Grammar and vocabulary, were influenced by an author's native language; this was true beginning around the 12th century, after which the language became adulterated: late medieval Latin documents written by French speakers tend to show similarities to medieval French grammar and vocabulary. For instance, rather than following the classical Latin practice of placing the verb at the end, medieval writers would follow the conventions of their own native language instead.
Whereas Latin had no definite or indefinite articles, medieval writers sometimes used forms of unus as an indefinite article, forms of ille as a definite article or quidam as something like an article. Unlike classical Latin, where esse was the only auxiliary verb, medieval Latin writers might use habere as an auxiliary, similar to constructions in Germanic and Romance languages; the accusative and infinitive construction in classical Latin was replaced by a subordinate clause introduced by quod or quia. This is identical, for example, to the use of que in similar constructions in French. In every age from the late 8th century onwards, there were learned writers who were familiar enough with classical syntax to be aware that these forms and usages were "wrong" and resisted their use, thus the Latin of a theologian like St Thomas Aquinas or of an erudite clerical historian such as William of Tyre tends to avoid most of the characteristics described above, showing its p
The Twelve Caesars
De vita Caesarum known as The Twelve Caesars, is a set of twelve biographies of Julius Caesar and the first 11 emperors of the Roman Empire written by Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus. The work, written in AD 121 during the reign of the emperor Hadrian, was the most popular work of Suetonius, at that time Hadrian's personal secretary, is the largest among his surviving writings, it was dedicated to the Praetorian prefect Gaius Septicius Clarus. The Twelve Caesars was considered significant in antiquity and remains a primary source on Roman history; the book discusses the significant and critical period of the Principate from the end of the Republic to the reign of Domitian. The book can be described as racy, packed with gossip and sometimes amusing. At times the author subjectively expresses his knowledge. Although he was never a senator himself, Suetonius took the side of the Senate in most conflicts with the princeps, as well as the senators' views of the emperor; that resulted in biases, both unconscious.
Suetonius lost access to the official archives shortly after beginning his work. He was forced to rely on secondhand accounts when it came to Claudius and does not quote the emperor; the book still provides valuable information on the heritage, personal habits, physical appearance and political careers of the first Roman emperors. It mentions details. For example, Suetonius is the main source on the lives of Caligula, his uncle Claudius, the heritage of Vespasian. Suetonius made a reference in this work to "Chrestus". During the book on Nero, Suetonius does mention Christians; as with many of his contemporaries, Suetonius took omens and includes reports of omens portending imperial births and deaths. The first few chapters of this section are missing. Suetonius begins this section by describing Caesar's conquests in Gaul, his Civil War against Pompey the Great. Several times Suetonius quotes Caesar. Suetonius includes Caesar's famous decree, "Veni, vici". In discussing Caesar's war against Pompey the Great, Suetonius quotes Caesar during a battle that Caesar nearly lost, "That man does not know how to win a war."
Suetonius describes an incident. Caesar was captured by pirates in the Mediterranean Sea. Caesar engaged in philosophical discussion with the pirates while in captivity, he promised that one day he would find them and crucify them. When told by the pirates that he would be held for a ransom of 20 talents of gold, Caesar laughed, said that he must be worth at least 50 talents. Just as he had promised, after being released, Caesar crucified them, it is from Suetonius. While serving as quaestor in Hispania, Caesar once visited a statue of Alexander the Great. Upon viewing this statue, Suetonius reports; when asked what was wrong, Caesar sighed, said that by the time Alexander was his age, Alexander had conquered the whole world. Suetonius describes Caesar's gift at winning the admiration of his soldiers. Suetonius mentions that Caesar referred to them as "comrades" instead of "soldiers." When one of Caesar's legions took heavy losses in a battle, Caesar vowed not to trim his beard or hair until he had avenged the deaths of his soldiers.
Suetonius describes an incident during a naval battle. One of Caesar's soldiers had his hand cut off. Despite the injury, this soldier still managed to subdue its crew. Suetonius mentions Caesar's famous crossing of the Rubicon, on his way to Rome to start a Civil War against Pompey and seize power. Suetonius describes Caesar's major reforms upon defeating Pompey and seizing power. One such reform was the modification of the Roman calendar; the calendar at the time had used the same system of solar years and lunar months that our current calendar uses. Caesar updated the calendar so as to minimize the number of lost days due to the prior calendar’s imprecision regarding the exact amount of time in a solar year. Caesar renamed the fifth month in the Roman calendar July, in his honor. Suetonius says that Caesar had planned on conquering the Parthian Empire; these plans were not carried out due to Caesar's assassination. Suetonius includes a description of Caesar's appearance and personality. Suetonius says.
Due to embarrassment regarding his premature baldness, Caesar combed his hair over and forward so as to hide this baldness. Caesar wore a senator's tunic with an orange belt. Caesar is described as wearing loose clothes. Suetonius quotes the Roman dictator Lucius Cornelius Sulla as saying, "Beware the boy with the loose clothes, for one day he will mean the ruin of the Republic." This quote referred to Caesar, as Caesar had been a young man during Sulla's Social War and subsequent dictatorship. Suetonius describes Caesar as taking steps. Political enemies at the time had claimed that C
Verulamium
Verulamium was a town in Roman Britain. It was sited in the southwest of the modern city of St Albans in Great Britain. A large portion of the Roman city remains unexcavated, being now park and agricultural land, though much has been built upon; the ancient Watling Street passed through the city. Much of the site and its environs is now classed as a scheduled ancient monument. Before the Romans established their settlement, there was a tribal centre in the area which belonged to the Catuvellauni; this settlement is called Verlamion. The etymology is uncertain but the name has been reconstructed as *Uerulāmion, which would have a meaning like " of the broad hand" in Brittonic. In this pre-Roman form, it was among the first places in Britain recorded by name; the settlement was established by Tasciovanus. The Roman settlement was granted the rank of municipium around AD 50, meaning its citizens had what were known as "Latin Rights", a lesser citizenship status than a colonia possessed, it grew to a significant town, as such received the attentions of Boudica of the Iceni in 61, when Verulamium was sacked and burnt on her orders: a black ash layer has been recorded by archaeologists, thus confirming the Roman written record.
It grew steadily. It is the location of the martyrdom of the first British martyr saint, Saint Alban, a Roman patrician converted by the priest Amphibalus. Verulamium contained a forum, basilica and a theatre, much of which were damaged during two fires, one in 155 and the other in around 250. One of the few extant Roman inscriptions in Britain is found on the remnants of the forum; the town was rebuilt in stone rather than timber at least twice over the next 150 years. Occupation by the Romans ended between 400 and 450. There are a few remains of the Roman city visible, such as parts of the city walls, a hypocaust still in situ under a mosaic floor, the theatre, as well as items in the Museum. More remains under the nearby agricultural land which have never been excavated were for a while threatened by deep ploughing. Verulamium is mentioned in a Latin inscription on a Wax tablet, dated to AD 62, discovered in London during the Bloomberg excavations, 2010-14: P Mario Ce<lso=XIII> L Afinio Gallo cos XII Kal Nove//mbr M Renns Venusrus me conduxisse a C Valerio Proculo ut intra Idus Novembres perferret a Verulamio penoris onera viginti in singula | quadrans vecturae ea condicione ut per me mora | I Londinium quod si ulnam ome Although there are other Roman theatres in Britain, the one at Verulamium has been claimed to be the only example of its kind, being a theatre with a stage rather than an amphitheatre.
St Albans Abbey and the associated Anglo-Saxon settlement were founded on a hill outside the Roman city. The site of the abbey may have been a location where there was reason to believe that St Alban was executed or buried. More the abbey is near the site of a Roman cemetery, which, as was normal in Roman times, was outside the city walls, it is unknown. An archaeological excavation in 1978, directed by Martin Biddle, failed to find Roman remains on the site of the medieval chapter house. David Nash Ford identifies the community as the Cair Mincip listed by Nennius among the 28 cities of Britain in his History of the Britains; as late as the eighth century the Saxon inhabitants of St Albans nearby were aware of their ancient neighbour, which they knew alternatively as Verulamacæstir or, under what H. R. Loyn terms "their own hybrid", Vaeclingscæstir, "the fortress of the followers of Wæcla" a pocket of British-speakers remaining separate in an Saxonised area; the city was quarried for building material for the construction of medieval St Albans.
The modern city takes its name from Alban, either a citizen of Verulamium or a Roman soldier, condemned to death in the 3rd century for sheltering Amphibalus, a Christian. Alban was converted by him to Christianity, by virtue of his death, Alban became the first British Christian martyr. Since much of the modern city and its environs is built over Roman remains, it is still common to unearth Roman artefacts several miles away. A complete tile kiln was found in Park Street some six miles from Verulamium in the 1970s, there is a Roman mausoleum near Rothamsted Park five miles away. Within the walls of ancient Verulamium, the Elizabethan philosopher and statesman Sir Francis Bacon built a "refined small house", described by the 17th century diarist John Aubrey. No trace of it is left, but Aubrey noted, "At Verulam is to be seen, in some few places, some remains of the wall of this Citie". Moreover, when Bacon was ennobled in 1618, he took the title Baron Verulam after Verulamium; the barony became extinct after he died without heirs in 1626.
This title was revived in 1790 for a Hertfordshire politician. He was made Earl of Verulam, a title still held by his descendants; the Verulamium Museum is in Verulamium Park. It contains much information about the town, both as a Roman and Iron Age settlement, plus Roman history in general; the museum was established following the excavations carried out by Mortimer Wheeler and his wife, Tessa Wheeler, during the 1930s. It is run by the district council, it is noted for the lar
Cymbeline
Cymbeline known as Cymbeline, King of Britain, is a play by William Shakespeare set in Ancient Britain and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concerning the early Celtic British King Cunobeline. Although listed as a tragedy in the First Folio, modern critics classify Cymbeline as a romance or a comedy. Like Othello and The Winter's Tale, it deals with the themes of jealousy. While the precise date of composition remains unknown, the play was produced as early as 1611. Cymbeline, the Roman Empire's vassal king of Britain, once had two sons and Arvirargus, but they were stolen twenty years earlier as infants by an exiled traitor named Belarius. Cymbeline now discovers that his only child left, his daughter Imogen, has secretly married her lover Posthumus Leonatus, an otherwise honourable man of Cymbeline's court; the lovers have exchanged jewellery as tokens: Imogen with a bracelet, Posthumus with a ring. Cymbeline dismisses the marriage and banishes Posthumus since Imogen -- as Cymbeline's only child -- must produce a royal-blooded heir to succeed to the British throne.
In the meantime, Cymbeline's Queen is conspiring to have Cloten married to Imogen to secure her bloodline. The Queen is plotting to murder both Imogen and Cymbeline, procuring what she believes to be deadly poison from the court doctor; the doctor, switches the poison with a harmless sleeping potion. The Queen passes the "poison" along to Pisanio and Imogen's loving servant -- the latter is led to believe it is a medicinal drug. No longer able to be with her banished Posthumus, Imogen secludes herself in her chambers, away from Cloten's aggressive advances. Posthumus must now live in Italy, where he meets Iachimo, who challenges the prideful Posthumus to a bet that he, can seduce Imogen, who Posthumus has praised for her chastity, bring Posthumus proof of Imogen's adultery. If Iachimo wins, he will get Posthumus's token ring. If Posthumus wins, not only must Iachimo pay him but fight Posthumus in a duel with swords. Iachimo heads to Britain where he aggressively attempts to seduce the faithful Imogen, who sends him packing.
Iachimo hides in a chest in Imogen's bedchamber and, when the princess falls asleep, emerges to steal from her Posthumus's bracelet. He takes note of the room and Imogen's naked body to be able to present false evidence to Posthumus that he has seduced his bride. Returning to Italy, Iachimo convinces Posthumus that he has seduced Imogen. In his wrath, Posthumus sends two letters to Britain: one to Imogen, telling her to meet him at Milford Haven, on the Welsh coast. However, Pisanio reveals to her Posthumus's plot, he has Imogen continue to Milford Haven to seek employment. He gives her the Queen's "poison," believing it will alleviate her psychological distress. In the guise of a boy, Imogen adopts the name "Fidele," meaning "faithful." Back at Cymbeline's court, Cymbeline refuses to pay his British tribute to the Roman ambassador Caius Lucius, Lucius warns Cymbeline of the Roman Emperor's forthcoming wrath, which will amount to an invasion of Britain by Roman troops. Meanwhile, Cloten learns of the "meeting" between Posthumus at Milford Haven.
Dressing himself enviously in Posthumus's clothes, he decides to go to Wales to kill Posthumus, rape and marry Imogen. Imogen has now been travelling as "Fidele" through the Welsh mountains, her health in decline as she comes to a cave: the home of Belarius, along with his "sons" Polydore and Cadwal, whom he raised into great hunters; these two young men are in fact the British princes Guiderius and Arviragus, who themselves do not realise their own origin. The men discover "Fidele," and captivated by a strange affinity for "him", become fast friends. Outside the cave, Guiderius is met by Cloten, who throws insults, leading to a sword fight during which Guiderius beheads Cloten. Meanwhile, Imogen's fragile state worsens and she takes the "poison" as a hopeful medicine, they mourn and, after placing Cloten's body beside hers depart to prepare for the double burial. Imogen awakes to find the headless body, believes it to be Posthumus due to the fact the body is wearing Posthumus' clothes. Lucius' Roman soldiers have just arrived in Britain and, as the army moves through Wales, Lucius discovers the devastated "Fidele", who pretends to be a loyal servant grieving for his killed master.
The treacherous Queen is now wasting away due to the disappearance of her son Cloten. Meanwhile, despairing of his life, a guilt-ridden Posthumus enlists in the Roman forces as they begin their invasion of Britain. Belarius, Guiderius and Posthumus all help rescue Cymbeline from the Roman onslaught. Posthumus, allowing himself to be captured, as well as "Fidele", are imprisoned alongside the true Romans, all of whom await execution. In jail, Posthumus sleeps, while the ghosts of his dead family appear to complain to Jupiter of his grim fate. Jupiter himself appears in thunder and glory to assure the others that destiny will grant happiness to Posthumus and Britain. Cornelius arrives in the court to announce that the Queen has died and that on her deathbed she unrepentantly confessed to villainous sche
Colchester
Colchester is a historic market town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in the county of Essex. Colchester was the first Roman-founded city in Britain, Colchester lays claim to be regarded as Britain's oldest recorded town, it was for a time the capital of Roman Britain, is a member of the Most Ancient European Towns Network. Situated on the River Colne, Colchester is 50 miles northeast of London and is connected to the capital by the A12 road and its railway station, on the Great Eastern Main Line, it is seen as a popular town for commuters, is less than 30 miles from London Stansted Airport and 20 miles from the passenger ferry port of Harwich. Colchester is home to Colchester United Football Club; the demonym is Colcestrian. There are several theories about the origin of the name Colchester; some contend, derived from the Latin words Colonia and Castra, meaning fortifications. The earliest forms of the name Colchester are Colenceaster and Colneceastre from the 10th century, with the modern spelling of Colchester being found in the 15th century.
In this way of interpreting the name, the River Colne which runs through the town takes its name from Colonia as well. Cologne gained its name from a similar etymology. Other etymologists are confident that the Colne's name is of Celtic origin, sharing its origin with several other rivers Colne or Clun around Britain, that Colchester is derived from Colne and Castra. Ekwall went as far as to say "it has been held that Colchester contains as first element colonia... this derivation is ruled out of court by the fact that Colne is the name of several old villages situated a good many miles from Colchester and on the Colne. The identification of Colonia with Colchester is doubtful."The popular association of the name with King Coel has no academic merit. The gravel hill upon which Colchester is built was formed in the Middle Pleistocene period, was shaped into a terrace between the Anglian glaciation and the Ipswichian glaciation by an ancient precursor to the River Colne. From these deposits beneath the town have been found Palaeolithic flint tools, including at least six Acheulian handaxes.
Further flint tools made by hunter gatherers living in the Colne Valley during the Mesolithic have been discovered, including a tranchet axe from Middlewick. In the 1980s an archaeological inventory showed that over 800 shards of pottery from the Neolithic, Bronze Age and early Iron Age have been found within Colchester, along with many examples of worked flint; this included a pit found at Culver Street containing a ritually placed Neolithic grooved ware pot, as well as find spots containing Deverel-Rimbury bucket urns. Colchester is surrounded by Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments that pre-date the town, including a Neolithic henge at Tendring, large Bronze Age barrow cemeteries at Dedham and Langham, a larger example at Brightlingsea consisting of a cluster of 22 barrows. Colchester is said to be the oldest recorded town in Britain on the grounds that it was mentioned by Pliny the Elder, who died in AD 79, although the Celtic name of the town, Camulodunon appears on coins minted by tribal chieftain Tasciovanus in the period 20–10 BC.
Before the Roman conquest of Britain it was a centre of power for Cunobelin – known to Shakespeare as Cymbeline – king of the Catuvellauni, who minted coins there. Its Celtic name, variously represented as CA, CAM, CAMV, CAMVL and CAMVLODVNO on the coins of Cunobelinus, means'the fortress of Camulos'. During the 30s AD Camulodunon controlled a large swathe of Southern and Eastern Britain, with Cunobelin called "King of the Britons" by Roman writers. Camulodunon is sometimes popularly considered one of many possible sites around Britain for the legendary Camelot of King Arthur, though the name Camelot is most a corruption of Camlann, a now unknown location first mentioned in the 10th century Welsh annalistic text Annales Cambriae, identified as the place where Arthur was slain in battle. Soon after the Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43, a Roman legionary fortress was established, the first in Britain; when the Roman frontier moved outwards and the twentieth legion had moved to the west, Camulodunum became a colonia named in a second-century inscription as Colonia Victricensis.
This contained a large and elaborate Temple to the Divine Claudius, the largest classical-style temple in Britain, as well as at least seven other Romano-British temples. Colchester is home to two of the five Roman theatres found in Britain, the one at Gosbecks being the largest in Britain, able to seat 5,000. Camulodunum served as a provincial Roman capital of Britain, but was attacked and destroyed during Boudica's rebellion in AD 61. Sometime after the destruction, London became the capital of the province of Britannia. Colchester's town walls c. 3,000 yd. long were built c.65–80 A. D. when the Roman town was rebuilt after the Boudicca rebellion. In 2004, Colchester Archaeological Trust discovered the remains of a Roman Circus underneath the Garrison in Colchester, a unique find in Britain; the Roman town of Camulodunum known as Colonia Victricensis, reached its peak in the Second and Third centuries AD. A hoard of jewellery, known as The Fenwick Hoard, has b
Trinovantes
The Trinovantes or Trinobantes were one of the Celtic tribes of pre-Roman Britain. Their territory was on the north side of the Thames estuary in current Essex and Suffolk, included lands now located in Greater London, they were bordered to the north by the Iceni, to the west by the Catuvellauni. Their name derives from the Celtic intensive prefix "tri-" and a second element, either "novio" - new, so meaning "very new" in the sense of "newcomers", but with an applied sense of vigorous or lively meaning "the vigorous people." Their capital was one proposed site of the legendary Camelot. Shortly before Julius Caesar's invasion of Britain in 55 and 54 BC, the Trinovantes were considered the most powerful tribe in Britain. At this time their capital was at Braughing. In some manuscripts of Caesar's Gallic War their king is referred to as Imanuentius, although in other manuscripts no name is given; some time before Caesar's second expedition this king was overthrown by Cassivellaunus, assumed to have belonged to the Catuvellauni.
His son, fled to the protection of Caesar in Gaul. During his second expedition Caesar defeated Cassivellaunus and restored Mandubracius to the kingship, Cassivellaunus undertook not to molest him again. Tribute was agreed; the next identifiable king of the Trinovantes, known from numismatic evidence, was Addedomarus, who took power c. 20-15 BC, moved the tribe's capital to Camulodunum. For a brief period c. 10 BC Tasciovanus of the Catuvellauni issued coins from Camulodunum, suggesting that he conquered the Trinovantes, but he was soon forced to withdraw as a result of pressure from the Romans, as his coins no longer bear the mark "Rex", Addedomarus was restored. Addedomarus was succeeded by his son Dubnovellaunus c. 10–5 BC, but a few years the tribe was conquered by either Tasciovanus or his son Cunobelinus. Addedomarus and Mandubracius all appear in post-Roman and medieval British Celtic genealogies and legends as Aedd Mawr Dyfnwal Moelmut and Manawydan; the Welsh Triads recall Aedd Mawr as one of the founders of Britain.
The Trinovantes reappeared in history when they participated in Boudica's revolt against the Roman Empire in 60 AD. Their name was given to one of the civitates of Roman Britain; the style of their rich burials is of continental origin and evidence of their affiliation to the Belgic people. Their name was re-used as Trinovantum, the supposed original name of London, by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his Historia Regum Britanniae, in which he claimed the name derived from Troi-novantum or "New Troy", connecting this with the legend that Britain was founded by Brutus and other refugees from the Trojan War. In Chelmsford 123, a British television situation comedy produced for Channel 4 by Hat Trick Productions, the main character of Badvoc was the leader of The Trinovantes. Julius Caesar, De Bello Gallico Caesar Augustus, Res Gestae Divi Augusti Tacitus, Annals Geoffrey of Monmouth, Historia Regum Britanniae Trinovantes at Roman-Britain.org Trinovantes at Romans in Britain
