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Brennus (or Brennos) is the name of two Gaulish
Gauls

The Gauls were a Continental Celtic Celts people of Classical Antiquity, the inhabitants of Gaul , and speakers of the Gaulish language.Archaeologically, they were the bearers of the La T?ne culture ....
 chieftain
Tribal chief

A traditional tribal chief is the leadership of a tribe, or the head of a tribal form of self-government.The notion of a "tribal chief" is rather vague and arbitrary; neither chief nor tribe is clearly defined, so in many cases other designations are used for the same institution, such as petty ruler or even headman ....
s famous in ancient history:. The Brennus of the fourth century BC was a chieftain of the Senones
Senones

The Senones were a Gaul people of Gaul, who in the time of Julius Caesar inhabited the district which now includes the departments of Seine-et-Marne, Loiret and Yonne....
, a Gallic tribe originating from the modern areas of France known as Seine-et-Marne
Seine-et-Marne

Seine-et-Marne is a France departments of France, named after the Seine River and Marne River rivers, and located in the ?le-de-France regions of France....
, Loiret
Loiret

Loiret is a departments of France in north-central France named after the Loiret River....
, and Yonne
Yonne

Yonne is a France departments of France named after the Yonne River. It is one of the four constituent departments of Bourgogne in eastern France and its Prefectures in France is Auxerre....
; in 387 BC, in the Battle of the Allia
Battle of the Allia

The Battle of the Allia was a battle of the first Gallic invasion of Italy. The battle was fought near the Allia river: the defeat of the Roman army opened the route for the Gauls to sack Rome....
, he led an army of Cisalpine Gaul
Cisalpine Gaul

Cisalpine Gaul was the Roman name for a geographical area , in the territory of modern-day northern Italy , inhabited by the Celts. Sometimes referred to as Gallia Citerior , Provincia Ariminum, or Gallia Togata ....
s in their attack on Rome. The Brennus of the third century BC was one of the leaders of the army of Gauls who invaded Macedon
Macedon

Macedon or Macedonia was the name of a monarchy centred in the northernmost part of ancient Greece. The homeland of the ancient Macedonians, it was bordered by the kingdom of Epirus to the west and the region of Thrace to the east....
 and northern Greece and defeated the assembled Greeks at Thermopylae.

recurrence of the name Brennus make it likely that it was a title rather than a proper name.






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Quotations


Vae Victis!

Latin: Woe to the Defeated (See Livy v. 33-49; Plutarch, Camillus, 17, 22, 28; Polybius i. 6, ii. 18; Dion. Halic. xiii. 7) Brennus





Encyclopedia


Brennus (or Brennos) is the name of two Gaulish
Gauls

The Gauls were a Continental Celtic Celts people of Classical Antiquity, the inhabitants of Gaul , and speakers of the Gaulish language.Archaeologically, they were the bearers of the La T?ne culture ....
 chieftain
Tribal chief

A traditional tribal chief is the leadership of a tribe, or the head of a tribal form of self-government.The notion of a "tribal chief" is rather vague and arbitrary; neither chief nor tribe is clearly defined, so in many cases other designations are used for the same institution, such as petty ruler or even headman ....
s famous in ancient history:. The Brennus of the fourth century BC was a chieftain of the Senones
Senones

The Senones were a Gaul people of Gaul, who in the time of Julius Caesar inhabited the district which now includes the departments of Seine-et-Marne, Loiret and Yonne....
, a Gallic tribe originating from the modern areas of France known as Seine-et-Marne
Seine-et-Marne

Seine-et-Marne is a France departments of France, named after the Seine River and Marne River rivers, and located in the ?le-de-France regions of France....
, Loiret
Loiret

Loiret is a departments of France in north-central France named after the Loiret River....
, and Yonne
Yonne

Yonne is a France departments of France named after the Yonne River. It is one of the four constituent departments of Bourgogne in eastern France and its Prefectures in France is Auxerre....
; in 387 BC, in the Battle of the Allia
Battle of the Allia

The Battle of the Allia was a battle of the first Gallic invasion of Italy. The battle was fought near the Allia river: the defeat of the Roman army opened the route for the Gauls to sack Rome....
, he led an army of Cisalpine Gaul
Cisalpine Gaul

Cisalpine Gaul was the Roman name for a geographical area , in the territory of modern-day northern Italy , inhabited by the Celts. Sometimes referred to as Gallia Citerior , Provincia Ariminum, or Gallia Togata ....
s in their attack on Rome. The Brennus of the third century BC was one of the leaders of the army of Gauls who invaded Macedon
Macedon

Macedon or Macedonia was the name of a monarchy centred in the northernmost part of ancient Greece. The homeland of the ancient Macedonians, it was bordered by the kingdom of Epirus to the west and the region of Thrace to the east....
 and northern Greece and defeated the assembled Greeks at Thermopylae.

Etymology

The recurrence of the name Brennus make it likely that it was a title rather than a proper name. Indeed, the suffix -us means that it is almost certainly Romanised. The Celtic suffix was -os. Probably meaning "courageous, zealous, intense", it could be etymoloigcally related to the Gaelic name Brian. Examples in different forms are:
  • Brinno
    Brinno

    Brinno was leader of the Canninefates when they joined in the Batavian rebellion at the mouth of the Rhine in AD69. According to Tacitus he was:...
    , whose name was said by Tacitus to be that of "a family of rebels".
  • Bran the Blessed
    Bran the Blessed

    Bran the Blessed is a giant and king of Great Britain in Welsh mythology. He appears in several of the Welsh Triads, but his most significant role is in the Four Branches of the Mabinogi of the Mabinogion, Branwen, daughter of Llyr....
    , King of Britain in the Mabinogion
    Mabinogion

    The Mabinogion is a collection of eleven prose stories from medieval Welsh manuscripts. They draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and on early medieval historical traditions....
  • The personage named "Brennius
    Brennius

    Brennius was a legendary king of Northumberland and Allobroges, as recounted by Geoffrey of Monmouth. He was the son of Dunvallo Molmutius and brother of Belinus, probably based upon one or both of the historical Brennus....
    " in Geoffrey of Monmouth
    Geoffrey of Monmouth

    Geoffrey of Monmouth was a clergyman and one of the major figures in the English historians in the Middle Ages and the popularity of tales of King Arthur....
    's Historia Regum Britanniae
    Historia Regum Britanniae

    The Historia Regum Britanniae is a pseudohistory account of Great Britain history, written c.1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the List of legendary kings of Britain in a chronological narrative spanning a time of two thousand years, beginning with the Troy of Homer's Iliad founding the Brython nation and conti...
     who conquers Rome, probably created by that author from the two Brenni of history.
    • A possible recollection of Geoffrey's "Brennius" is the "Englishman" called Brennus whom the Duke of Norfolk
      Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk

      Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk was a prominent Tudor dynasty politician. He was uncle to two of the wives of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, as well as the king's mistress Mary Boleyn, and played a major role in the machinations behind these relationships....
       told the Imperial ambassador Eustace Chapuys
      Eustace Chapuys

      Eustace Chapuys served as the Imperial ambassadors to England from 1529 until 1545 and is best known for his extensive and detailed correspondence....
       about in 1530. In arguing Tudor claims to imperial status, the Duke stated that this man had founded Bristol
      Bristol

      Bristol is a City status in the United Kingdom, unitary authority area and Ceremonial counties of England in South West England, west of London, and east of Cardiff....
       and conquered Rome.