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107-564: Tacitus calls the legion "Galbiana", to distinguish it from the senior Legio VII Claudia , but this appellation is not found on any inscriptions. It appears to have received the appellation of "Gemina" on account of its amalgamation by Vespasian with one of the German legions, not improbably the Legio I Germanica . Between 86 and 89 the Legion was commanded by the future emperor and native of

214-568: A Caledonian army, led by Calgacus , at the Battle of Mons Graupius . However, the Romans soon withdrew from northern Britain. After Hadrian's Wall was established as the northern border, tribes in the region repeatedly rebelled against Roman rule and forts continued to be maintained across northern Britain to protect against these attacks. In common with other regions on the edge of the empire, Britain had enjoyed diplomatic and trading links with

321-651: A decisive battle ; he fled to the Roman client tribe of the Brigantes who occupied the Pennines . Their queen Cartimandua was unable or unwilling to protect him however, given her own accommodation with the Romans, and handed him over to the invaders. Ostorius died and was replaced by Aulus Didius Gallus who brought what are now the Welsh borders under control but did not move further north or west, probably because Claudius

428-473: A classical ethnographic tradition which includes authors such as Herodotus and Julius Caesar . The book begins (chapters 1–27) with a description of the lands, laws, and customs of the various tribes. Later chapters focus on descriptions of particular tribes, beginning with those who lived closest to the Roman empire, and ending with a description of those who lived on the shores of the Baltic Sea , such as

535-589: A combination of force and diplomacy quieted discontent among the Britons who had been conquered previously, Agricola built forts in their territories in 79. In 80, he marched to the Firth of Tay (some historians hold that he stopped along the Firth of Forth in that year), not returning south until 81, at which time he consolidated his gains in the new lands that he had conquered, and in the rebellious lands that he had re-conquered. In 82, he sailed to either Kintyre or

642-513: A few days later that Tacitus had spoken "with all the majesty which characterizes his usual style of oratory". A lengthy absence from politics and law followed while he wrote the Histories and the Annals . In 112 to 113, he held the highest civilian governorship, that of the Roman province of Asia in western Anatolia , recorded in the inscription found at Mylasa mentioned above. A passage in

749-431: A former consul he may have been too senior, and perhaps accompanied Claudius later. The main invasion force under Aulus Plautius crossed in three divisions. The port of departure is usually taken to have been Bononia ( Boulogne ), and the main landing at Rutupiae ( Richborough , on the east coast of Kent ). Neither of these locations is certain. Dio does not mention the port of departure, and although Suetonius says that

856-413: A lawyer and as an orator ; his skill in public speaking ironically counterpoints his cognomen , Tacitus ("silent"). He served in the provinces from c.  89 to c.  93 , either in command of a legion or in a civilian post. He and his property survived Domitian 's reign of terror (81–96), but the experience left him jaded and perhaps ashamed at his own complicity, instilling in him

963-584: A military enclosure of south-central Scotland (most of the Southern Uplands , Teviotdale , and western Tweeddale ). In contrast to Roman actions against the Selgovae, the territories of the Novantae , Damnonii , and Votadini were not planted with forts, and there is nothing to indicate that the Romans were at war with them. Agricola was recalled to Rome in 84. In 2019 a marching camp dating to

1070-429: A new ruler for their region, Cogidubnus , soon appeared as his heir and as king of a number of territories following the first stage of the conquest as a reward as a Roman ally. Vespasian took a force westwards, subduing tribes and capturing oppida settlements as he went. The force proceeded at least as far as Exeter , which became a base for the Roman legion, Legio II Augusta, from 55 until 75. Legio IX Hispana

1177-553: A result of battles with various tribes. Modifications to the Stanegate line, with the reduction in the size of the forts and the addition of fortlets and watchtowers between them, seem to have taken place from the mid-90s onwards. Apart from the Stanegate line, other forts existed along the Solway Coast at Beckfoot, Maryport , Burrow Walls (near the present town of Workington) and Moresby (near Whitehaven). Other forts in

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1284-542: A road was constructed during the Trajanic period to Hardknott Roman Fort . A road between Ambleside to Old Penrith and/or Brougham, going over High Street , may also date from this period. Under Hadrian ( r.   117–138), Roman occupation was withdrawn to a defendable frontier in the River Tyne - Solway Firth frontier area by the construction of Hadrian's Wall from around 122. When Antoninus Pius rose to

1391-576: A sailing from Boulogne to the Solent , landing in the vicinity of Noviomagus ( Chichester ) or Southampton , in territory formerly ruled by Verica. 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 of

1498-633: A scrupulous historian who paid careful attention to his sources. Roman conquest of Britain The Roman conquest of Britain was the Roman Empire 's conquest of most of the island of Britain , which was inhabited by the Celtic Britons . It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius , and was largely completed in the southern half of Britain (most of England and Wales ) by AD 87, when

1605-410: A strong detachment of it was stationed at Tarraco (modern Tarragona ), the chief city of the province. The following are a selection, in order of time: The legion had units stationed at their extended fortified camps: Also under the legion were five auxiliary units, a cavalry wing, two cohorts of equitatae and two of peditatae: During the majority of its existence, the number of effectives under

1712-429: A stronghold of the druids , was attacked in AD 60 . This was interrupted by an uprising led by Boudica , in which the Britons destroyed Camulodunum , Verulamium and Londinium . The Romans put down the rebellion. The conquest of Wales lasted until c.  AD 77 . Roman general Gnaeus Julius Agricola conquered much of northern Britain during the following seven years. In AD 84, Agricola defeated

1819-425: A successful campaign across North Wales, famously killing many druids when he invaded the island of Anglesey in 60. Final occupation of Wales was postponed however when the rebellion of Boudica forced the Romans to return to the south east in 60 or 61. Following the successful suppression of Boudica 's uprising in 60 or 61, a number of new Roman governors continued the conquest by edging north. The leader of

1926-441: Is dedicated to Fabius Iustus, a consul in 102 AD. Tacitus's writings are known for their dense prose that seldom glosses the facts, in contrast to the style of some of his contemporaries, such as Plutarch . When he writes about a near defeat of the Roman army in Annals I,63, he does so with brevity of description rather than embellishment. In most of his writings, he keeps to a chronological narrative order, only seldom outlining

2033-589: Is evidence of a Cerialian foundation, and followed the line of the Lune and Eden river valleys through Low Borrow Bridge and Brougham ( Brocavum ). On the Cumbrian coast, Ravenglass and Blennerhasset were probably involved from evidence of one of the earliest Roman occupations in Cumbria. Beckfoot and Maryport may also have featured early on. At some point between 72 and 73, part of Cerialis's force moved across

2140-548: Is possible that this refers to a brother—if Cornelius was indeed his father. The friendship between the younger Pliny and Tacitus leads some scholars to conclude that they were both the offspring of wealthy provincial families. The province of his birth remains unknown, though various conjectures suggest Gallia Belgica , Gallia Narbonensis , or Northern Italy . His marriage to the daughter of Narbonensian senator Gnaeus Julius Agricola implies that he came from Gallia Narbonensis. Tacitus's dedication to Lucius Fabius Justus in

2247-418: Is the first recorded utterance confidently attributable to a native of the area now known as Scotland. The emperor Septimius Severus died at York while planning to renew hostilities, and these plans were abandoned by his son Caracalla . Emperor Constantius came to Britain in 306, despite his poor health, with an army aiming to invade northern Britain, after the provincial defences had been rebuilt following

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2354-587: Is the later historian whose work most closely approaches him in style. Tacitus makes use of the official sources of the Roman state: the Acta Senatus (the minutes of the sessions of the Senate) and the Acta Diurna (a collection of the acts of the government and news of the court and capital). He also read collections of emperors' speeches, such as those of Tiberius and Claudius. He is generally seen as

2461-450: Is uncertainty about when Tacitus wrote Dialogus de oratoribus . Many characteristics set it apart from the other works of Tacitus, so that its authenticity has at various times been questioned. It is likely to be early work, indebted to the author's rhetorical training, since its style imitates that of the foremost Roman orator Cicero . It lacks (for example) the incongruities that are typical of his mature historical works. The Dialogus

2568-467: Is well known: inde consilium mihi ... tradere ... sine ira et studio, quorum causas procul habeo. my purpose is ... to relate ... without either anger or zeal, motives from which I am far removed. There has been much scholarly discussion about Tacitus's "neutrality". Throughout his writing, he is preoccupied with the balance of power between the Senate and the emperors , and the increasing corruption of

2675-452: The Dialogus may indicate a connection with Spain, and his friendship with Pliny suggests origins in northern Italy. No evidence exists, however, that Pliny's friends from northern Italy knew Tacitus, nor do Pliny's letters hint that the two men had a common background. Pliny Book 9, Letter 23, reports that when asked whether he was Italian or provincial, he gave an unclear answer and so

2782-636: The Agricola , Tacitus asserts that he wishes to speak about the years of Domitian, Nerva and Trajan. In the Histories the scope has changed; Tacitus says that he will deal with the age of Nerva and Trajan at a later time. Instead, he will cover the period from the civil wars of the Year of the Four Emperors and end with the despotism of the Flavians . Only the first four books and twenty-six chapters of

2889-464: The Annals fixes 116 as the terminus post quem of his death, which may have been as late as 125 or even 130. It seems that he survived both Pliny (died c.  113 ) and Trajan (died 117). It remains unknown whether Tacitus had any children. The Augustan History reports that Emperor Marcus Claudius Tacitus (r. 275–276) claimed him for an ancestor and provided for the preservation of his works, but this story may be fraudulent, like much of

2996-540: The Augustan History . Five works ascribed to Tacitus have survived (albeit with gaps), the most substantial of which are the Annals and the Histories . This canon (with approximate dates) consists of: The Annals and the Histories , published separately, were meant to form a single edition of thirty books. Although Tacitus wrote the Histories before the Annals , the events in the Annals precede

3103-569: The Carausian Revolt . Little is known of his campaigns with scant archaeological evidence, but fragmentary historical sources suggest he reached the far north of Britain and won a major battle in early summer before returning south. His son Constantine (later Constantine the Great ) spent a year in northern Britain at his father's side, campaigning against the Picts beyond Hadrian's Wall in

3210-465: The Ciceronian period , where sentences were usually the length of a paragraph and artfully constructed with nested pairs of carefully matched sonorous phrases, this is short and to the point. But it is also very individual. Note the three different ways of saying and in the first line ( -que , et , ac ), and especially the matched second and third lines. They are parallel in sense but not in sound;

3317-520: The Fenni . Tacitus had written a similar, albeit shorter, piece in his Agricola (chapters 10–13). The Agricola (written c.  98 ) recounts the life of Gnaeus Julius Agricola, an eminent Roman general and Tacitus's father-in-law; it also covers, briefly, the geography and ethnography of ancient Britain . As in the Germania , Tacitus favorably contrasts the liberty of the native Britons with

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3424-509: The Histories . The second half of book 16 is missing, ending with the events of 66. It is not known whether Tacitus completed the work; he died before he could complete his planned histories of Nerva and Trajan, and no record survives of the work on Augustus and the beginnings of the Roman Empire , with which he had planned to finish his work. The Annals is one of the earliest secular historical records to mention Jesus of Nazareth , which Tacitus does in connection with Nero's persecution of

3531-546: The Histories ; together they form a continuous narrative from the death of Augustus (14) to the death of Domitian (96). Though most has been lost, what remains is an invaluable record of the era. The first half of the Annals survived in a single manuscript from Corvey Abbey in Germany, and the second half in a single manuscript from Monte Cassino in Italy; it is remarkable that they survived at all. In an early chapter of

3638-598: The Roman conquest of Britain ), mainly focusing on his campaign in Britannia ( De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae ). Tacitus's Histories offers insights into Roman attitudes towards Jews , descriptions of Jewish customs, and context for the First Jewish–Roman War . His Annals are of interest for providing an early account of the persecution of Christians and one of the earliest extra-Biblical references to

3745-579: The Scottish Highlands . The line of military communication and supply along southeastern Scotland and northeastern England (i.e., Dere Street ) was well-fortified. In southernmost Caledonia, the lands of the Selgovae (approximating to modern Dumfriesshire and the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright ) were heavily planted with forts, not only establishing effective control there, but also completing

3852-470: The Stanegate was established. The conquered territory became the Roman province of Britannia . Attempts to conquer northern Britain ( Caledonia ) in the following centuries were not successful. Following Julius Caesar's invasions of Britain in 54 BC, some southern British chiefdoms had become allies of the Romans . The exile of their ally Verica gave the Romans a pretext for invasion. The Roman army

3959-637: The Tour d'Ordre , that provided a model for the one built soon after at Dubris (Dover). In 43, possibly by reassembling Caligula's troops from 40, Claudius mounted an invasion force under overall charge of Aulus Plautius , a distinguished senator. A pretext of the invasion was to reinstate Verica , the exiled king of the Atrebates . It is unclear how many legions were sent: only the Legio II Augusta , commanded by future emperor Vespasian ,

4066-832: The Visigoths until 586, when it was taken by Leovigild . It was one of the few cities which the Visigoths allowed to retain their fortifications. The Roman bridge over the Tâmega River in Chaves , Portugal , then Aquae Flaviae , was built by the stationed legionaries of the Legio VII Gemina at the time of Trajan . Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus , known simply as Tacitus ( / ˈ t æ s ɪ t ə s / TAS -it-əs , Latin: [ˈtakɪtʊs] ; c.  AD 56 – c.  120 ),

4173-518: The crucifixion of Jesus . Details about the personal life of Tacitus are scarce. What little is known comes from scattered hints throughout his work, the letters of his friend and admirer Pliny the Younger , and an inscription found at Mylasa in Caria . Tacitus was born in 56 or 57 to an equestrian family. The place and date of his birth, as well as his praenomen (first name) are not known. In

4280-475: The 1st century AD, used by Roman legions during the invasion of Agricola. Clay-domed ovens and 26 fire pits dated to AD 77–90 were found loaded with burn and charcoal contents. The fire pits were 30 m apart in two parallel lines. Archaeologists suggested that this site had been chosen as a strategic location for the Roman conquest of Ayrshire . Agricola's successors are not named in any surviving source, but it seems they were unable or unwilling to further subdue

4387-596: The Brigantes was queen Cartimandua . Her husband was Venutius ; one speculation is that he might have been a Carvetian and may therefore have been responsible for the incorporation of Cumbria into a Brigantian federation whose territory straddled Britain along the Solway - Tyne line. Cartimandua may have ruled the Brigantian peoples east of the Pennines (possibly with a centre at Stanwick , Yorkshire), while Venutius

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4494-521: The Caledonians alone and only under de jure submission. With the decline of imperial ambitions in Scotland (and Ireland) by AD 87 (the withdrawal of the 20th legion), consolidation based on the line of the Stanegate road (between Carlisle and Corbridge) was settled upon. Carlisle was the seat of a centurio regionarius (or district commissioner). When the Stanegate became the new frontier it

4601-537: The Caledonians with hill forts . One such was Burnswark Hill which was strategically located commanding the western route north further into Caledonia and where significant evidence of the battle has been found. By 142 the Romans had pacified the entire area and had successfully moved the frontier north to the River Clyde - River Forth area when the Antonine Wall was constructed. After two decades this

4708-617: The Christians . Tacitus wrote three works with a more limited scope: Agricola , a biography of his father-in-law, Gnaeus Julius Agricola; the Germania , a monograph on the lands and tribes of barbarian Germania; and the Dialogus , a dialogue on the art of rhetoric. The Germania ( Latin title: De Origine et situ Germanorum ) is an ethnographic work on the Germanic tribes outside the Roman Empire. The Germania fits within

4815-527: The Medway raged for two days. Gnaeus Hosidius Geta was almost captured, but recovered and turned the battle so decisively that he was awarded the Roman triumph . At least one division of auxiliary Batavian troops swam across the river as a separate force. 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

4922-666: The Ordovices who had destroyed a cavalry ala of Roman auxiliaries stationed in their territory. Knowing the terrain from his prior military service in Britain, he was able to move quickly to subdue them. He then invaded Anglesey , forcing the inhabitants to sue for peace. The following year he moved against the Brigantes of northern England and the Selgovae along the southern coast of Scotland, using overwhelming military power to establish Roman control. Tacitus says that after

5029-561: The Roman fortress at Chester , indicate that construction there was probably under way by AD 74. Nevertheless, Gnaeus Julius Agricola played his part in the west as commander of the legion XX Valeria Victrix (71–73), while Cerialis led the IX Hispania in the east. In addition, the Legio II Adiutrix sailed from Chester up river estuaries to surprise the enemy. The western thrust was started from Lancaster , where there

5136-502: The Roman invasion were famous for their skill in oratory and had been subjugated by Rome. As a young man, Tacitus studied rhetoric in Rome to prepare for a career in law and politics; like Pliny, he may have studied under Quintilian ( c.  35 AD – c.  100 ). In 77 or 78, he married Julia Agricola, daughter of the famous general Agricola . Little is known of their domestic life, save that Tacitus loved hunting and

5243-612: The Romans in the century since Julius Caesar 's expeditions in 55 and 54 BC , and Roman economic and cultural influence was a significant part of the British late pre-Roman Iron Age , especially in the south. Between 55 BC and the 40s AD, the status quo of tribute, hostages, and client states without direct military occupation, begun by Caesar's invasions of Britain , largely 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

5350-591: The Romans made use of an existing bridge for this purpose or built a temporary one is uncertain. Togodumnus died shortly after the battle on the Thames. Plautius halted and sent word for Claudius to join him for the final push. Cassius Dio presents this as Plautius needing the emperor's assistance to defeat the resurgent British, who were determined to avenge Togodumnus. However, Claudius was no military man. The Praetorian cohorts accompanied Emperor Claudius to Britain in AD 43. The Arch of Claudius in Rome says he received

5457-465: 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. Caratacus escaped with his family, retainers, and treasure, to continue his resistance further west. After the invasion, Verica may have been restored as king of the Atrebates although by this time he would have been very elderly. In any case

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5564-600: The Stainmore Pass from Corbridge westwards to join Agricola, as evidenced by campaign camps (which may have been previously set up by Bolanus) at Rey Cross , Crackenthorpe, Kirkby Thore and Plumpton Head. Signal- or watch-towers are also in evidence across the Stainmore area: Maiden Castle, Bowes Moor and Roper Castle, for example. The two forces then moved up from the vicinity of Penrith to Carlisle, establishing

5671-598: The area. The most notable later expedition was in 209 when the emperor Septimius Severus , claiming to be provoked by the belligerence of the Maeatae tribe, campaigned against the Caledonian Confederacy , a coalition of Brittonic Pictish tribes of the north of Britain. He used the three legions of the British garrison (augmented by the recently formed 2nd Parthica legion), 9000 imperial guards with cavalry support, and numerous auxiliaries supplied from

5778-508: The atrocities which he ordered; with Domitian it was the chief part of our miseries to see and to be seen, to know that our sighs were being recorded... From his seat in the Senate , he became suffect consul in 97 during the reign of Nerva , being the first of his family to do so. During his tenure, he reached the height of his fame as an orator when he delivered the funeral oration for the famous veteran soldier Lucius Verginius Rufus . In

5885-604: The bigger picture, leaving the readers to construct that picture for themselves. Nonetheless, where he does use broad strokes, for example, in the opening paragraphs of the Annals , he uses a few condensed phrases which take the reader to the heart of the story. Tacitus's historical style owes some debt to Sallust . His historiography offers penetrating—often pessimistic—insights into the psychology of power politics, blending straightforward descriptions of events, moral lessons, and tightly focused dramatic accounts. Tacitus's own declaration regarding his approach to history ( Annals I,1)

5992-453: The conquest of the north may have been achieved under the governorships of Vettius Bolanus (governor AD 69–71), and of Cerialis. From other sources, it seems that Bolanus had possibly dealt with Venutius and penetrated into Scotland, and evidence from the carbon-dating of the gateway timbers of the Roman fort at Carlisle ( Luguvalium ) suggest that they were felled in AD 72, during the governorship of Cerialis. Lead ingots from Deva Victrix ,

6099-459: The construction of the wall to him. During the negotiations to purchase the truce necessary to secure the Roman retreat to the wall, Septimius Severus's wife, Julia Domna , criticised the sexual morals of the Caledonian women; the wife of Argentocoxos , a Caledonian chief, replied: "We consort openly with the best of men while you allow yourselves to be debauched in private by the worst". This

6206-406: The empire, the second because the Britons seemed ready to come to terms. According to Augustus's Res Gestae , two British kings, Dubnovellaunus and Tincomarus , fled to Rome as supplicants during his reign, and Strabo 's Geographica , 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,

6313-399: The empire. Nonetheless, the image he builds of Tiberius throughout the first six books of the Annals is neither exclusively bleak nor approving: most scholars view the image of Tiberius as predominantly positive in the first books, and predominantly negative after the intrigues of Sejanus . The entrance of Tiberius in the first chapters of the first book is dominated by the hypocrisy of

6420-486: The entire kingdom some time after AD 40 and Verica was expelled from Britain. Caligula may have planned a campaign against the Britons in AD 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

6527-537: The far north. The fortress at Inchtuthil was dismantled before its completion and the other fortifications of the Gask Ridge in Perthshire , erected to consolidate the Roman presence in Scotland in the aftermath of Mons Graupius , were abandoned within the space of a few years. It is equally likely that the costs of a drawn-out war outweighed any economic or political benefit and it was more profitable to leave

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6634-427: The fifth book survive, covering the year 69 and the first part of 70. The work is believed to have continued up to the death of Domitian on September 18, 96. The fifth book contains—as a prelude to the account of Titus's suppression of the First Jewish–Roman War —a short ethnographic survey of the ancient Jews , and it is an invaluable record of Roman attitudes towards them. The Annals , Tacitus's final work, covers

6741-440: The following year, he wrote and published the Agricola and Germania , foreshadowing the literary endeavors that would occupy him until his death. Afterward, he absented himself from public life, but returned during Trajan 's reign (98–117). In 100, he and his friend Pliny the Younger prosecuted Marius Priscus  [ la ] ( proconsul of Africa) for corruption. Priscus was found guilty and sent into exile; Pliny wrote

6848-406: The fort at Pumsaint in west Wales , largely to exploit the gold deposits at Dolaucothi . He left the post in 78, and was later appointed water commissioner in Rome. The new governor was Agricola, returning to Britain, and made famous through the highly laudatory biography of him written by his son-in-law, Tacitus. Arriving in mid-summer of 78, Agricola completed the conquest of Wales in defeating

6955-547: The fort there in AD 72–73. Frontinus was sent into Roman Britain in 74 to succeed Cerialis as governor . He returned to the conquest of Wales interrupted years before and with steady and successful progress finally subdued the Silures (around 76) and other hostile tribes, establishing a new base at Caerleon for Legio II Augusta ( Isca Augusta ) in 75 and a network of smaller forts 15–20 kilometres apart for his auxiliary units. During his tenure, he probably established

7062-432: The frivolous prosecutions which resulted ( Annals , 1.72). Elsewhere ( Annals 4.64–66) he compares Tiberius's public distribution of fire relief to his failure to stop the perversions and abuses of justice which he had begun. Although this kind of insight has earned him praise, he has also been criticized for ignoring the larger context. Tacitus owes most, both in language and in method, to Sallust, and Ammianus Marcellinus

7169-681: The frontier further north. Lollius Urbicus moved three legions into position initially establishing his supply routes from Coria and Bremenium and moved three legions, the Legio II Augusta from Caerleon , the Legio VI Victrix from Eboracum , and the Legio XX Valeria Victrix from Deva Victrix into the theatre between 139 and 140 AD, and thereafter moved his army, a force of at least 16,500 men, north of Hadrian's Wall. The Selgovae , having settled in

7276-399: The glens that provided access to and from the Scottish Highlands , and also throughout the Scottish Lowlands in northeastern Scotland. Agricola built a network of military roads and forts to secure the Roman occupation. Existing forts were strengthened and new ones planted in northeastern Scotland along the Highland Line , consolidating control of the glens that provided access to and from

7383-480: The governing classes of Rome as they adjusted to the ever-growing wealth and power of the empire. In Tacitus's view, senators squandered their cultural inheritance—that of free speech —to placate their (rarely benign) emperor. Tacitus noted the increasing dependence of the emperor on the goodwill of his armies. The Julio-Claudians eventually gave way to generals, who followed Julius Caesar (and Sulla and Pompey ) in recognizing that military might could secure them

7490-538: The hatred of tyranny evident in his works. The Agricola , chs. 44 – 45 , is illustrative: Agricola was spared those later years during which Domitian, leaving now no interval or breathing space of time, but, as it were, with one continuous blow, drained the life-blood of the Commonwealth... It was not long before our hands dragged Helvidius to prison, before we gazed on the dying looks of Mauricus and Rusticus , before we were steeped in Senecio 's innocent blood. Even Nero turned his eyes away, and did not gaze upon

7597-415: The historian's mother was a daughter of Aulus Caecina Paetus , suffect consul of 37, and sister of Arria, wife of Thrasea. His father may have been the Cornelius Tacitus who served as procurator of Belgica and Germania ; Pliny the Elder mentions that Cornelius had a son who aged rapidly ( NH 7.76 ), which implies an early death. There is no mention of Tacitus's suffering such a condition, but it

7704-465: The history of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus (14 AD) to the death of Domitian (96 AD), although there are substantial lacunae in the surviving texts. Tacitus's other writings discuss oratory (in dialogue format, see Dialogus de oratoribus ), Germania (in De origine et situ Germanorum ), and the life of his father-in-law, Agricola (the general responsible for much of

7811-506: The imperial system (see Tacitean studies , Black vs. Red Tacitists). His Latin style is highly praised. His style, although it has a grandeur and eloquence (thanks to Tacitus's education in rhetoric), is extremely concise, even epigrammatic —the sentences are rarely flowing or beautiful, but their point is always clear. The style has been both derided as "harsh, unpleasant, and thorny" and praised as "grave, concise, and pithily eloquent". A passage of Annals 1.1 , where Tacitus laments

7918-563: The letters of Sidonius Apollinaris his name is Gaius , but in the major surviving manuscript of his work his name is given as Publius . One scholar's suggestion of the name Sextus has been largely rejected. Most of the older aristocratic families failed to survive the proscriptions which took place at the end of the Republic , and Tacitus makes it clear that he owed his rank to the Flavian emperors ( Hist. 1.1 ). The claim that he

8025-628: The military commander of the VII were usually around the 7,712 between auxiliaries and regulars, not counting local levies and other reinforcements sent from Rome for temporary services. The station of this legion in the Gallaecia Roman province grew into an important city, León , that after the invasions of 409 AD in Iberia became part of the Suevic Kingdom , which resisted the attacks of

8132-434: The motives of the characters, often with penetrating insight—though it is questionable how much of his insight is correct, and how much is convincing only because of his rhetorical skill. He is at his best when exposing hypocrisy and dissimulation; for example, he follows a narrative recounting Tiberius's refusal of the title pater patriae by recalling the institution of a law forbidding any "treasonous" speech or writings—and

8239-493: The new emperor and his courtiers. In the later books, some respect is evident for the cleverness of the old emperor in securing his position. In general, Tacitus does not fear to praise and to criticize the same person, often noting what he takes to be their more admirable and less admirable properties. One of Tacitus's hallmarks is refraining from conclusively taking sides for or against persons he describes, which has led some to interpret his works as both supporting and rejecting

8346-608: The ocean due to the Capitol and the Palace ". Alternatively, he may have actually told them to gather "huts", since the word musculi was also soldier's slang for engineers' huts and Caligula himself was very 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 (modern Boulogne-sur-Mer ),

8453-536: The outdoors. He started his career (probably the latus clavus , mark of the senator) under Vespasian (r. 69–79), but entered political life as a quaestor in 81 or 82 under Titus . He advanced steadily through the cursus honorum , becoming praetor in 88 and a quindecimvir , a member of the priestly college in charge of the Sibylline Books and the Secular Games . He gained acclaim as

8560-517: The pairs of words ending " -entibus … -is " are crossed over in a way that deliberately breaks the Ciceronian conventions—which one would, however, need to be acquainted with to see the novelty of Tacitus's style. Some readers, then and now, find this teasing of their expectations merely irritating. Others find the deliberate discord, playing against the evident parallelism of the two lines, stimulating and intriguing. His historical works focus on

8667-515: The period from the death of Augustus in AD ;14. He wrote at least sixteen books, but books 7–10 and parts of books 5, 6, 11, and 16 are missing. Book 6 ends with the death of Tiberius , and books 7–12 presumably covered the reigns of Caligula and Claudius . The remaining books cover the reign of Nero, perhaps until his death in June 68 or until the end of that year to connect with

8774-473: The political power in Rome. ( Hist. 1.4 ) Welcome as the death of Nero had been in the first burst of joy, yet it had not only roused various emotions in Rome, among the Senators, the people, or the soldiery of the capital, it had also excited all the legions and their generals; for now had been divulged that secret of the empire, that emperors could be made elsewhere than at Rome. Tacitus's political career

8881-515: 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 ( Colchester ). The Atrebates tribe whose capital was at Calleva Atrebatum ( Silchester ) had friendly trade and diplomatic links with Rome and Verica was recognised by Rome as their king, but Caratacus ' Catuvellauni conquered

8988-788: The region Trajan . After serving in Pannonia and in the civil wars, it was settled by Vespasian in Hispania Tarraconensis, to supply the place of the Legio VI Victrix and Legio X Gemina , two of the three legions ordinarily stationed in the province, but which had been withdrawn to Germania . The Antonine Itinerary , Ptolemy , the Notitia Imperii , as well as a few inscriptions all state that its regular winter quarters, under later emperors, were at Leon, but there are numerous inscriptions to prove that

9095-478: The region were built to consolidate Roman presence (Beckfoot for example may date from the late 1st century). A fort at Troutbeck may have been established from the period of Emperor Trajan ( r.   98–117) onwards. Other forts that may have been established during this period include Ambleside ( Galava ), positioned to take advantage of ship-borne supply to the forts of the Lake District . From here,

9202-458: The regions of present-day Kirkcudbrightshire and Dumfriesshire immediately northwest of Hadrian's Wall, were amongst the first of the Caledonian tribes to face Lollius Urbicus's legions together with the Otadini . The Romans, who were well versed in warfare on hilly terrain since their founding, moved quickly to occupy strategic points and high ground, some of which had already been fortified by

9309-539: The sea by the British fleet, the Rhine fleet and two fleets transferred from the Danube for the purpose. According to Dio Cassius , he inflicted genocidal depredations on the natives and incurred the loss of 50,000 of his own men to the attrition of guerrilla tactics before having to withdraw to Hadrian's Wall. He repaired and reinforced the wall with a degree of thoroughness that led most subsequent Roman authors to attribute

9416-405: The secondary force under Claudius sailed from Boulogne it does not necessarily follow that the entire invasion force did. Richborough had a large natural harbour, which would have been suitable, and archaeology shows Roman military occupation at about the right time. However Dio says the Romans sailed east to west, and a journey from Boulogne to Richborough is south to north. Some historians suggest

9523-411: The shores of Argyll , or to both. In 83 and 84, he moved north along Scotland's eastern and northern coasts using both land and naval forces, campaigning successfully against the inhabitants and winning a significant victory over the northern British peoples led by Calgacus at the Battle of Mons Graupius . Archaeology has shown the Romans built military camps in the north along Gask Ridge , controlling

9630-489: The sources to have been involved in the invasion. Cassius Dio mentions Gnaeus Hosidius Geta , who probably led the IX Hispana , and 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

9737-747: The state of the historiography regarding the last four emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty , illustrates his style: "The histories of Tiberius, Gaius, Claudius and Nero, while they were in power, were falsified through terror and after their death were written under the irritation of a recent hatred", or in a word-for-word translation: Tiberiī Gāīque et Claudiī ac Nerōnis rēs flōrentibus ipsīs—ob metum—falsae, postquam occiderant—recentibus ōdiīs—compositae sunt. Tiberius's, Gaius's and Claudius's as well as Nero's acts while flourishing themselves—out of fear—counterfeited, after they came to fall—resulting from new-found hate—related are. Compared to

9844-464: The summer and autumn. Later excursions into Scotland by the Romans were generally limited to the scouting expeditions of exploratores 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 Goidelic -speaking island of Hibernia (modern Ireland )

9951-518: The surrender of eleven British kings with no losses, 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

10058-541: The throne, he moved quickly to reverse the empire limit system put in place by his predecessor. Following his defeat of the Brigantes in 139 AD, Quintus Lollius Urbicus , the Roman Governor of Britannia , was ordered by Antoninus Pius to march north of Hadrian's Wall to conquer the Caledonian Lowlands which were settled by the Otadini , Selgovae , Damnonii and the Novantae , and to push

10165-458: The tyranny and corruption of the Empire; the book also contains eloquent polemics against the greed of Rome, one of which, that Tacitus claims is from a speech by Calgacus , ends by asserting, Auferre trucidare rapere falsis nominibus imperium, atque ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant. ("To ravage, to slaughter, to usurp under false titles, they call empire; and where they make a desert, they call it peace."—Oxford Revised Translation). There

10272-472: Was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals (Latin: Annales ) and the Histories (Latin: Historiae )—examine the reigns of the emperors Tiberius , Claudius , Nero , and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors (69 AD). These two works span

10379-455: Was abandoned in 162 and only subsequently re-occupied on an occasional basis. Meanwhile, the Romans retreated to the earlier and stronger Hadrian's Wall. 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

10486-452: Was asked whether he was Tacitus or Pliny. Since Pliny was from Italy, some infer that Tacitus was from the provinces, probably Gallia Narbonensis. His ancestry, his skill in oratory, and his sympathetic depiction of barbarians who resisted Roman rule (e.g., Ann. 2.9 ) have led some to suggest that he was a Celt . This belief stems from the fact that the Celts who had occupied Gaul prior to

10593-473: Was augmented by large forts as at Vindolanda and additional forts at half-day marching intervals were built at Newbrough , Magnis (Carvoran) and Brampton Old Church . The years 87–117 were of consolidation and only a few sites north of the Stanegate line were maintained, while the signs are that an orderly withdrawal to the Solway-Tyne line was made. There does not seem to have been any rout caused as

10700-589: Was descended from a freedman is derived from a speech in his writings which asserts that many senators and knights were descended from freedmen ( Ann. 13.27 ), but this is generally disputed. In his article on Tacitus in Pauly-Wissowa , I. Borzsak had conjectured that the historian was related to Thrasea Paetus and Etruscan family of Caecinii , about whom he spoke very highly. Furthermore, some later Caecinii bore cognomen Tacitus, which also could indicate some sort of relationship. It had been suggested that

10807-637: Was directly attested to have taken part. The IX Hispana , the XIV Gemina (later styled Martia Victrix ) and the XX (later styled Valeria Victrix ) are known to have served during the Boudican revolt of 60–61, and were probably there since the initial invasion, but the Roman army was flexible, with cohorts and auxiliary units being moved around whenever necessary. Three other men of appropriate rank to command legions are known from

10914-475: Was fixed with modern precision during this period. Late in 47 the new governor of Britain, Publius Ostorius Scapula , began a campaign against the tribes of modern-day Wales , and the Cheshire Gap . The Silures of southeast Wales caused considerable problems to Ostorius and fiercely defended their border country. Caratacus himself led this guerilla campaign but was defeated when he finally chose to offer

11021-406: Was keen to avoid what he considered a difficult and drawn-out war for little material gain in the mountainous terrain of upland Britain. When Nero became emperor in 54, he seems to have decided to continue the invasion and appointed Quintus Veranius as governor, a man experienced in dealing with the troublesome hill tribes of Anatolia . Veranius and his successor Gaius Suetonius Paulinus mounted

11128-412: Was largely lived out under the emperor Domitian. His experience of the tyranny, corruption, and decadence of that era (81–96) may explain the bitterness and irony of his political analysis. He draws our attention to the dangers of power without accountability, love of power untempered by principle, and the apathy and corruption engendered by the concentration of wealth generated through trade and conquest by

11235-576: Was recruited in Italia , Hispania , and Gaul and used the newly-formed fleet Classis Britannica . Under their general Aulus Plautius , the Romans pushed inland from the southeast, defeating the Britons in the Battle of the Medway . By AD 47, the Romans held the lands southeast of the Fosse Way . British resistance was led by the chieftain Caratacus until his defeat in AD 50. The isle of Mona ,

11342-531: Was sent north towards Lincoln ( Latin : Lindum Colonia ) and by 47 it is likely that an area south of a line from the Humber to the Severn Estuary was under Roman control. That this line is followed by the Roman road of the Fosse Way has led many historians to debate the route's role as a convenient frontier during the early occupation. It is unlikely that the border between Roman and Iron Age Britain

11449-494: Was the chief of the Brigantes (or Carvetii) west of the Pennines in Cumbria (with a possible centre based at Clifton Dykes .) Cartimandua was forced to ask for Roman aid following a rebellion by Venutius in 69. The Romans evacuated Cartimandua leaving Venutius in power. Tacitus says that in 71 Quintus Petillius Cerialis (governor AD 71–74) waged a successful war against the Brigantes . Tacitus praises both Cerialis and his successor, Julius Frontinus (governor 75–78). Much of

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