Up to and during the
RomanThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
occupation of
BritainRoman Britain was those parts of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between AD 43 and about 410. The Romans referred to their province as Britannia...
, the native inhabitants of
Iron Age BritainThe British Iron Age is a conventional name in the archaeology of Great Britain referring to the prehistoric and proto-historic phases of the Iron-Age culture of the main island and the smaller islands, typically excluding Ireland...
spoke
BrythonicThe Brythonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael...
languages (a sub-family of the
Celtic languagesThe Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic", a branch of the greater Indo-European language family. The term "Celtic" was used to describe this language group by Edward Lhuyd in 1707, having much earlier been used by Greek and Roman writers to describe tribes in...
) and were regarded as Britons (or Brythons). The area of modern
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union...
was divided among a number of tribes, of which the
SiluresThe Silures were a powerful and warlike tribe of ancient Britain, occupying approximately the counties of Monmouthshire, Breconshire and Glamorganshire in south Wales.- Origins :...
in modern south-east Wales and the
OrdovicesThe Ordovices were one of the Celtic tribes living in Great Britain, before the Roman invasion of Britain. Its tribal lands were located in Wales between the Silures to the south and the Deceangli to the north-east...
in central and northwest Wales were the largest and most powerful. These two tribes were the ones who put up the strongest and sustained resistance to the Roman invasion.
The first attack on the Celtic tribes of what is now Wales was made under the
legateLegate may refer to:*Legatus, a general officer of the ancient Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class*Papal legate, a messenger from the Holy See*Legate, a rank in the Cardassian military in the fictional Star Trek universe...
Publius Ostorius ScapulaPublius Ostorius Scapula was a Roman statesman and general who governed Britain from 47 until his death, and was responsible for the defeat and capture of Caratacus.-Career:...
about 48 AD.
Pre Roman Wales
Up to and during the
RomanThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
occupation of
BritainRoman Britain was those parts of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between AD 43 and about 410. The Romans referred to their province as Britannia...
, the native inhabitants of
Iron Age BritainThe British Iron Age is a conventional name in the archaeology of Great Britain referring to the prehistoric and proto-historic phases of the Iron-Age culture of the main island and the smaller islands, typically excluding Ireland...
spoke
BrythonicThe Brythonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael...
languages (a sub-family of the
Celtic languagesThe Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic", a branch of the greater Indo-European language family. The term "Celtic" was used to describe this language group by Edward Lhuyd in 1707, having much earlier been used by Greek and Roman writers to describe tribes in...
) and were regarded as Britons (or Brythons). The area of modern
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union...
was divided among a number of tribes, of which the
SiluresThe Silures were a powerful and warlike tribe of ancient Britain, occupying approximately the counties of Monmouthshire, Breconshire and Glamorganshire in south Wales.- Origins :...
in modern south-east Wales and the
OrdovicesThe Ordovices were one of the Celtic tribes living in Great Britain, before the Roman invasion of Britain. Its tribal lands were located in Wales between the Silures to the south and the Deceangli to the north-east...
in central and northwest Wales were the largest and most powerful. These two tribes were the ones who put up the strongest and sustained resistance to the Roman invasion.
Roman Invasion of Wales
The first attack on the Celtic tribes of what is now Wales was made under the
legateLegate may refer to:*Legatus, a general officer of the ancient Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class*Papal legate, a messenger from the Holy See*Legate, a rank in the Cardassian military in the fictional Star Trek universe...
Publius Ostorius ScapulaPublius Ostorius Scapula was a Roman statesman and general who governed Britain from 47 until his death, and was responsible for the defeat and capture of Caratacus.-Career:...
about 48 AD. Ostorius first attacked the
DeceangliThe Deceangli or Deceangi were one of the Celtic tribes living in the British Isles, prior to the Roman invasion of Britain. The tribe lived in north Wales, though it is uncertain whether their territory covered only the modern counties of Flintshire and Denbighshire in the north-east of Wales or...
in the north-east, who appear to have surrendered with little resistance. He then spent several years campaigning against the
SiluresThe Silures were a powerful and warlike tribe of ancient Britain, occupying approximately the counties of Monmouthshire, Breconshire and Glamorganshire in south Wales.- Origins :...
and the Ordovices. Their resistance was led by
CaratacusCaratacus was a historical British chieftain of the Catuvellauni tribe, who led the British resistance to the Roman conquest...
, who had fled what is now southeast
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
when it was conquered by the Romans. He first led the Silures, then moved to the territory of the Ordovices, where he was defeated by Ostorius in 51 AD. Caratacus fled to the
BrigantesThe Brigantes were a Celtic tribe who in pre-Roman times controlled the largest section of Northern England and a significant part of the Midlands. Their kingdom was known as Brigantia, and it was centred in what was later known as Yorkshire...
, whose queen handed him over to the Romans.
Resistance
The Silures were not subdued, however, and waged effective guerrilla warfare against the Roman forces. Ostorius died with this tribe still unconquered; after his death they won a victory over the Roman Second Augusta Legion,
Legio II AugustaLegio secunda Augusta , was a Roman legion, levied by Gaius Vibius Pansa Caetronianus in 43 BC, and still operative in Britannia in 4th century...
. There were no further attempts to extend Roman control in Wales until the governorship of Caius Suetonius Paulinus, who attacked further north and captured the island of
AngleseyThe Isle of Anglesey , is an island and county off the northwest coast of Wales, with a predominantly Welsh-speaking population. It is connected to the mainland by two bridges spanning the Menai Strait: the original Menai Suspension Bridge , designed by Thomas Telford in 1826; and the newer...
in
60Year 60 was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.-Roman Empire:* Romans build the first London Bridge.* Boudica sacks London ....
or 61 AD. However he was forced to abandon the offensive to meet the threat from the rebellion of Boadicea. The Silures were eventually subdued by
Sextus Julius FrontinusSextus Julius Frontinus was one of the most distinguished Roman aristocrats of the late first century AD, but is best known to the post-Classical world as an author of technical treatises, especially one dealing with the aqueducts of Rome....
in a series of campaigns ending about 78 AD. His successor
Gnaeus Julius AgricolaGnaeus Julius Agricola was a Roman general responsible for much of the Roman conquest of Britain. His biography, the De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae, was the first published work of his son-in-law, the historian Tacitus, and is the source for most of what is known about him.- Early life...
subdued the Ordovices and recaptured Anglesey by the beginning of 79 AD.
Occupation
The Romans occupied the whole of the area now known as Wales, where they built
Roman roadThe Roman roads were essential for the growth of the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate news. The Roman road system spanned more than 250,000 miles of roads, including more than 50,000 miles of paved roads...
s and Roman forts, mined gold at
LuentinumLuentinum was a fort and mining settlement in the Roman province of Britannia. It was associated with the Dolaucothi Gold Mines and its remains lie beneath the adjoining village of Pumsaint in the Welsh county of Carmarthenshire.-The Fort:...
and conducted commerce, but their interest in the area was limited because of the difficult geography and shortage of flat agricultural land. Most of the Roman remains in Wales are military in nature. The area was controlled by
Roman legionThe Roman legion is a term that can apply both as a translation of legio to the entire Roman army and also, more narrowly , to the heavy infantry that was the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the...
ary bases at
Deva VictrixDeva Victrix, or simply Deva, was a legionary fortress and town in the Roman province of Britannia. The settlement evolved into Chester, the county town of Cheshire, England...
(modern
ChesterChester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
) and
Isca AugustaIsca Augusta was a Roman legionary fortress and settlement, the remains of which lie beneath parts of the present-day village of Caerleon on the northern outskirts of the city of Newport in South Wales.-Name:...
(
CaerleonCaerleon is a suburban village and community, situated on the River Usk in the northern outskirts of the city of Newport, South Wales.It is a site of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman legionary fortress and an Iron Age hill fort...
), two of the three such bases in Roman Britain, with roads linking these bases to Roman auxiliary forts such as
SegontiumSegontium is a Roman fort for a Roman auxiliary force, located on the outskirts of Caernarfon in Gwynedd, north Wales.It probably takes its name from the nearby River Seiont, and may be related to the Segontiaci, a British tribe mentioned by Julius Caesar. The fort was founded by Agricola in 77 or...
(
CaernarfonCaernarfon is a royal town in Gwynedd, northwest Wales....
) and Moridunum (
CarmarthenCarmarthen is a community and the county town of Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is sited on the River Towy and lays claim to being the oldest town in Wales. In 2001, the combined population of the town's three wards was 13,760....
). Romans are only known to have founded one town in Wales,
Venta SilurumVenta Silurum was a town in the Roman province of Britannia . Today it consists of remains in the village of Caerwent in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. Much of it has been archaeologically excavated and is on display to the public....
(
CaerwentCaerwent is a village and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, located about 5 miles west of Chepstow and 11 miles east of Newport. It is famous for its Roman remains....
) in (
MonmouthshireMonmouthshire is a county in south east Wales. The name derives from the historic county of Monmouthshire which covered a larger area.-Historic county:...
), although the fort at Moridunum (
CarmarthenCarmarthen is a community and the county town of Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is sited on the River Towy and lays claim to being the oldest town in Wales. In 2001, the combined population of the town's three wards was 13,760....
) was later superseded by a civilian settlement. The modern-day Wales is thought to have been part of the Roman province of
Britannia SuperiorBritannia Superior was one of the provinces of Roman Britain created around 197 AD by the Roman Emperor Septimus Severus immediately after winning a civil war against Clodius Albinus. They fought the war to determine who was the next emperor of Rome. Albinus was the governor of Britannia during...
and later of the province of
Britannia PrimaBritannia Prima was one of the provinces of Roman Britain in existence by c. 312 AD. It was probably created as part of the administrative reforms of the Roman Emperor Diocletian after the defeat of the usurper Allectus by Constantius Chlorus in 296 AD. In the 3rd century, the Romans created...
, which also included what is now the West Country of England.
Withdrawal
Wales was occupied by the Romans from the first century AD to the Roman withdrawal from Britain three centuries later, leaving their province to develop into
Sub-Roman BritainSub-Roman Britain is a term derived from archaeologists' label for the material culture of Britain in Late Antiquity. "Sub-Roman" was invented to describe the potsherds in sites of the 5th century and the 6th century, initially with an implication of decay of locally-made wares from a higher...
and the emergence of
Wales in the Early Middle AgesThe history of Wales in the early Middle Ages is sketchy, as there is very little written history from the period. Nonetheless, some information may be gleaned from archaeological evidence and what documentary history does exist.- Dark Age Britain :...
.
See also
- British military history
The Military history of Britain may refer to the military history of the United Kingdom or the military history of the island of Great Britain see:...
- History of the United Kingdom
The history of the United Kingdom as a unified sovereign state began with the political union of the kingdoms of England, which included Wales, and Scotland on 1 May 1707 in accordance with the Treaty of Union, signed on 22 July 1706, and ratified by both the Parliaments of England and Scotland...
- History of Wales
The history of Wales begins with the arrival of human beings to the region thousands of years ago. Neanderthals lived in what is now Wales, or Cymru in Welsh, at least 230,000 years ago, while Homo sapiens arrived by about 29,000 years ago...
- Welsh People
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
External links