Roman Military Campaigns
In Wales and Southern England
Aulus Plautius (ad43-46)
The campaigns of this general in Britain are well documented in the ancient literary sources. The original bridgehead fortifications at Rutupiae (Richborough, Kent) are well known and enclose an area of about 140 acres (c.57 ha). A military precursor to the civitas of the Cantiaci tribe at Durovernum (Canterbury, Kent) has been postulated but the only evidence which has come to light thus far are the foundations of a number of timber buildings built in Roman military style also a re-cut V-shaped defensive ditch at another location within the bounds of the later walled town. Another fortification is suspected at Durobrivae (Rochester, Kent) at the crossing of the Medway, where the Roman invasion force met its first real opposition and a major battle was fought which lasted two days and claimed the life of the British warlord Togodumnus, the brother of Caratacus. The ditch of a large (c.75 acres, 30.5ha) Claudian camp has been confirmed at Londinium (London, Greater London) near the crossing of the Thames in Fenchurch Street, and it is thought that another camp, similar in size, was positioned further to the west near Hyde Park.
Following the advance through Cantium and the surrender of the British tribes near Caesaromagus (Chelmsford, Essex), a legionary fortress was built by the Twentieth Legion within the Oppidum of the Trinovantes tribe at Camulodunum (Colchester, Essex), which was supplied along the River Colne via a harbour on the estuary at Fingringhoe Wick. With his rear guarded, Plautius then sent his remaining three legions to the task of pacification.
- The Second Legion Augusta under the able command of the young Titus Flavius Vespasianus, who was later to become emperor, marched south-westwards through Surrey, Hampshire and Dorset, capturing the Isle of Wight and establishing vexillation fortresses at Chichester in West Sussex and Lake Farm near Corfe Mullen in Dorset. The legion was evidently supplied by the British Fleet, who established supply bases for these fortresses at Bosham Harbour in West Sussex and at Poole Harbour in Dorset.
- The Fourteenth Legion Gemina campaigned in the west, through the counties of Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and Gloucestershire, establishing a campaign/vexillation fortress at Alchester near Bicester in Oxfordshire and an auxiliary fort at Corinium (Cirencester, Gloucestershire) in the centre of the Dobunni tribal territories.
- The Ninth Legion Hispana moved northwards, campaigning in Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire and Leicestershire, through the lands of the Coritani, establishing vexillation fortresses at Longthorpe near Peterborough in Cambridgeshire and at Leicester in Leicestershire.
Many British tribes were brought under the yoke of Rome during the four years of this general's tenure in Britain. Many of the Romanised civitas centres of these tribes began life outside the defences of Roman garrison forts built by the legionary troops and occupied by the auxilia, often being sited at the centre of the tribe's territories or within oppida earthworks.
- Durovernum (Canterbury, Kent) Cantiaci
- Verulamium (Saint Albans, Hertfordshire) Catuvellauni
- Caesaromagus (Chelmsford, Essex) Trinovantes
- Corinium (Cirencester, Gloucestershire) Dobunni
- Ratae (Leicester, Leicestershire) Coritani
- Noviomagus (Chichester, West Sussex) Regnenses
A notable omission from the above list is Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester, Hampshire) the civitas of the Atrebates tribe, who apparently continued to occupy their ancient woodland capital with no trace of a nearby Roman garrison fort.
Plautius was also active in the diplomatic arena during his governorship, installing Adminius as 'client' king of the Cantiaci in Cantium/Kent and recognising Cogidubnus as 'pro-praetorian legate' with authority over the Regnenses tribe of Suffolk and West Sussex. He also brokered treaties with two other major tribes, recognising Cartimandua of the Brigantes in Northern England and Prasutagus of the Iceni in Norfolk as 'clients' of Rome.
Military Installations Attributed to Aulus Plautius
| Name | N.G.Ref. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Camulodunum (Colchester, Essex) | TL9925 | legionary fortress Legio XX Valeria. |
| Longthorpe, Cambridgeshire | TL1597 | vexillation fortress Legio IX Hispana. |
| Lake Farm, Dorset | SY9999 | fort, vexillation fortress Legio II Augusta. |
| Alchester, Bicester, Oxfordshire | SP5720 | fort, vexillation fortress Legio XIV Gemina. |
| Noviomagus Regnorum (Chichester, West Sussex) | SU8604 | vexillation fortress of Legio II Augusta, later civitas capital of the Regnenses. |
| Ratae Coritanorum (Leicester, Leicestershire) | SK5804 | probable vexillation fortress of Legio IX Hispana, later civitas capital of the Coritani. |
| Rutupiae (Richborough, Kent) | TR3260 | invasion bridgehead and naval base. |
| Fingringhoe Wick, Essex | TM0519 | naval base serving legionary fortress at Colchester. |
| Magnus Portus (Bosham Harbour, West Sussex) | SU8003 | naval base serving the early fortress at Chichester. |
| Hamworthy, Poole Harbour, Dorset | SZ0090 | naval base serving vex. fortress at Lake Farm. |
| Topsham, Devon | SX9688 | naval base |
| Caesaromagus (Chelmsford, Essex) | TL7006 | fort, later civitas capital of the Trinovantes |
| Canonium (Kelvedon, Essex) | TL8618 | fort |
| Stanway, Colchester, Essex | TL9622 | fort set in the middle of the British royal enclosure. |
| Combretovium (Baylham House, Suffolk) | TM1152 | fort |
| Ixworth, Suffolk | TL9369 | fort, possibly named Sitomagus. |
| Durobrivae (Water Newton, Cambridgeshire) | TL1296 | fort |
| Great Chesterford, Essex | TL5043 | fort |
| Verulamium (St. Albans, Hertfordshire) | TL1307 | fort, later civitas capital of the Catuvellauni |
| Shapwick, Dorset | ST9402 | fort near the Lake Farm campaign fortress. |
| Dunum (Hod Hill, Dorset) | ST8510 | fort in corner of a hillfort of the Durotriges. |
| Charterhouse on Mendip, Avon | ST5056 | fort protecting silver workings in the Mendip Hills. |
| Corinium (Cirencester, Gloucestershire) | SP0201 | fort, later civitas capital of the Dobunni. |
| Great Casterton, Leicestershire | TF0009 | fort |
| Causennae (Ancaster, Lincolnshire) | SK9843 | fort |
| Ad Pontem (East Stoke, Nottingham) | SK7550 | fort |
| Broxtowe, Nottinghamshire | SK5242 | fort |
| Marton, Lincolnshire | SK8382 | fort |
| Kirmington, Humberside | TA1011 | fort |
Publius Ostorius Scapula (ad47-52)
The first season of this governor's tenure in office was probably spent on campaign with Legio XIV Gemina who were advanced westwards along the line of Watling Street, leaving vexillation-sized camps at Mancetter in Warwickshire and Leighton near Wroxeter in Shropshire, probably also at Wall and Eaton House (Water Eaton) in Staffordshire and at Drayton Lodge in Shropshire, where there are auxiliary forts dating to this period. All of these encampments were obviously directed at the Cornovii tribe who occupied Shropshire and the Cheshire plain. Another line of forts heading westwards through Metchley in Birmingham and Greensforge in Staffordshire indicate that the Fourteenth was probably used in a 'pincer' movement with the focus on the prominent hillfort which crowned the Wrekin, as is the auxiliary fort at Wroxeter which safeguarded the strategic bridge over the Severn. The Scapulan fortress at Rhyn Park close to the Shropshire/Clwyd border and overshadowed by the Berwyn Mountains of North Wales, may be associated with the campaign against the Cornovii, but it is equally likely that this represents an attempt to contain the British warlord Caratacus.
Jay Lane Auxiliary Cavalry Fort at Leintwardine in Hereford & Worcester
VRML Model Prepared in the RBO Scriptorium
It appears likely that Scapula moved Legion II Augusta further westwards along the southern coast of England, perhaps abandoning their vexillation fortress at Chichester to auxiliary forces and moving a number of legionary cohorts into a new campaign fortress at Isca DUmnoniorum (Exeter) in East Devon. The supply port at Topsham at the mouth of the River Exe may have been in use at this time, but it is unknown whether it supplied a legionary garrison or an auxiliary fort. It is thought that the small Fort at Statio Deventiasteno - 'The Station at the Narrows of Deventia' - (Nanstallon) in Cornwall was established by Scapula in order to control the Dumnonii tribe who inhabited the south-western peninsula of England. Again, it is uncertain whether the legionaries of the Second Legion merely built this fort or actually formed the garrison.
In ad50 the British warlord Caratacus, who had fled south-east England for the relative safety of the foothills of South Wales, launched an attack on the Roman province. Operating from a base in the homelands of the Silures tribe of Glamorgan, he struck deep into Gloucestershire through the lands of the Dobunni, the tribe who had offered their surrender to Plautius almost as soon as the Roman invasion army had built their bridgehead. To counter this incursion Scapula mobilised Legio XX Valeria, converting their relatively new legionary fortress in Colchester into a colonia for retired citizen soldiers and bolstering the military presence in the old British capital by building an auxiliary fort at Stanway in the centre of the royal enclosure of the Trinovantes. The Twentieth were then installed in a new vexillation fortress at Kingsholm in Gloucester.
Click Here for the Campaign of Scapula against Caratacus
It is interesting that Verulamium, the ancient capital of the Catuvellauni tribe and the probable birthplace of Caratacus, was granted the status of a Roman Municipium in ad50, the same year that Caratacus decided to launch his offensive upon the Roman province.
During this period of consolidation in South-West England by II Augusta, the offensive against the Cornovii and into North Wales by XIV Gemina and the 'cat and mouse' campaigns of XX Valeria against Caratacus in the Welsh Marches, Legio IX Hispana appear to have been relatively inactive by comparison. It would appear that Scapula was content to leave this legion to secure the northern borders of his province while he tackled the problems in the south-west and in Wales.
The production of British lead/silver from the mines at Charterhouse-on-Mendip commenced under the jurisdiction of the Roman military during the administration of this governor, as evidenced by ingots of lead found at various sites in the Mendip Hills and date-stamped to ad49. It appears likely that the auxiliary fort overlooking these mine workings was established by the Second Legion Augusta, possibly even being garrisoned by legionary troops.
Military Installations Attributed to Ostorius Scapula
Aulus Didius Gallus (ad52-57)
| Name | N.G.Ref. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Osmanthorpe, Nottinghamshire | SK6756 | vexillation fortress Legio IX Hispana? |
| Newton-on-Trent, Lincolnshire | SK8273 | vexillation fortress Legio IX Hispana? |
| Rossington Bridge, South Yorkshire | SK6399 | vexillation fortress Legio IX Hispana? |
| Letocetum (Wall, Staffordshire) | SK0906 | vexillation fortress Legio XIV Gemina? |
| Pennocrucium (Kinvaston, Staffordshire) | SJ9010 | vexillation fortress Legio XIV Gemina? |
| Ad Pontem (East Stoke, Nottingham) | SK7550 | fort |
| Derventio (Littlechester, Derbyshire) | SK3537 | fort |
| Marton, Lincolnshire | SK8382 | fortlet |
| Broxtowe, Nottinghamshire | SK5242 | fortlet |
| Lutudarum (Pentrich, Derbyshire) | SK3852 | signal station near silver/lead mines in the lower Pennines |
Quintus Veranius (ad57/58)
| Name | N.G.Ref. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Viroconium (Wroxeter, Shropshire) | SJ5608 | legionary fortress Legio XIV Gemina |
| Glevum (Gloucester) | SO8318 | vexillation fortress Legio XX Valeria |
| Burrium (Usk, Gwent) | SO3700 | vexillation fortress Legio XX Valeria. |
| Isca Dumnoniorum (Exeter, Devon) | SX9292 | legionary fortress Legio II Augusta. |
| Salinae (Droitwich, Hereford & Worcester) | SO8963 | fort |
| Greensforge, South Staffordshire | SO8688 | fort |
| Wall Town, Shropshire | SO6978 | fort |
| Stretton Grandison, Hereford & Worcester | SO6343 | fort |
| Stretford Bridge, Craven Arms, Shropshire | SO4284 | fort |
| Llwyn-y-Brain, Powys | SO0492 | large fort |
| Brompton, Shropshire | SO2493 | fort |
| Hindwell Farm, Walton, Powys | SO2560 | fort |
| Clyro, Gwent | SO2243 | fort |
| Gobannium (Abergavenny, Gwent) | SO2914 | fort |
| Cardiff, South Glamorgan | ST1876 | fort |
| Cae Gaer, Powys | SN8281 | fortlet/signal station |
| Erglodd, Dyfed | SN6590 | fortlet/signal station |
| Penmincae, Powys | SO0053 | fortlet/signal station |
| Coed-y-Caerau, Bulmore, Gwent | ST3791 | fortlet/signal station |
Gaius Suetonius Paulinus (ad58-61)
| Name | N.G.Ref. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Viroconium (Wroxeter, Shropshire) | SJ5608 | legionary fortress Legio XIV Gemina. |
| Longthorpe, Cambridgeshire | TL1597 | vexillation fortress Legio IX Hispana. |
| Glevum (Gloucester) | SO8318 | vexillation fortress Legio XX Valeria. |
| Burrium (Usk, Gwent) | SO3700 | vexillation fortress Legio XX Valeria. |
| Isca Dumnoniorum (Exeter, Devon) | SX9292 | legionary fortress Legio II Augusta. |
| Aquae Sulis (Bath, Avon) | ST7564 | probable fort, occupied by cohorts of Legio XX Valeria perhaps also Ala I Thracum |
| Corinium (Cirencester, Gloucesterhire) | SP0201 | fort, guarding the civitas of the Dobunni perhaps garrisoned by Ala Gallorum Indiana |
| Camulodunum (Colchester, Essex) | TL9925 | Colonia, pre-Roman capital of the Trinovantes. |
| Londinium (London) | TQ3281 | Claudian administrative centre |
| Verulamium (St. Albans, Hertfordshire) | TL1307 | municipium and civitas capital of the Catuvellauni. |
| Pennocrucium (Water Eaton, Staffordshire) | SJ9010 | earlier fort, contemporary marching camps? later fort? |
| Letocetum (Wall, Staffordshire) | SK0906 | earlier fort, contemporary marching camp? possibly of Paulinus expeditionary force returning from North Wales. |
| Greensforge, South Staffordshire | SO8688 | earlier fort, contemporary marching camps? later fort? |
| Caesaromagus (Chelmsford, Essex) | TL7006 | fort, later civitas of the Trinovantes. |
| Combretovium (Baylham House, Suffolk) | TM1152 | fort, on the border between the Iceni and the Trinovantes. |
| Sitomagus (Ixworth, Suffolk) | TL9369 | fort, on the border between the Iceni and the Catuvellauni. |
| Great Casterton, Leicestershire | TF0009 | fort, on the border between the Iceni and the Coritani. |
| The Lunt, Baginton, Coventry, Warwickshire | SP3475 | fort and horse-training gyrus |
Publius Petronius Turpilianus (ad61/2-63)
"Petronius neither challenged the enemy nor was himself molested ..."
(Cornelius Tacitus Annals XIV.xxxix)
(Cornelius Tacitus Annals XIV.xxxix)
Marcus Trebellius Maximus (ad63-69)
"Trebellius was less energetic, had no military experience, and kept the province in hand by a mild-mannered administration."
(Cornelius Tacitus Agricola XVI.iv)
(Cornelius Tacitus Agricola XVI.iv)
| Name | N.G.Ref. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Glevum (Gloucester) | SO8318 | legionary fortress Legio II Augusta. |
| Viroconium (Wroxeter, Shropshire) | SJ5608 | legionary fortress Legio XX Valeria. |
The most notable episode in this governor's administration was the withdrawal of the Fourteenth Legion from Wroxeter by the emperor Nero for use in Germany in ad67. This required a re-shuffling of the British legionary forces; the Twentieth were moved from Usk to replace the Fourteenth at Wroxeter, the Second were moved up from Exeter to Gloucester, and the Ninth were later reunited in a new legionary fortress at Lincoln.
Marcus Vettius Bolanus (ad69-71)
"Nor did Vettius Bolanus ... distress Britain with discipline ..."
(Cornelius Tacitus Agricola XVI.v
(Cornelius Tacitus Agricola XVI.v
| Name | N.G.Ref. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Lindum (Lincoln) | SK9771 | legionary fortress Legio IX Hispana. |
Quintus Petilius Cerialis (ad71-73/4)
| Name | N.G.Ref. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Eburacum (York) | SE6052 | legionary fortress Legio IX Hispana. |
| Lindum (Lincoln) | SK9771 | legionary fortress Legio II Adiutrix. |
| Rey Cross, Durham | NY9012 | camp between Brough and Bowes |
| Crackenthorpe, Cumbria | NY6523 | camp SE of Kirkby Thore |
| Plumpton Head, Cumbria | NY5035 | camp between Old Penrith & Braugham |
| Luguvalium (Carlisle, Cumbria) | NY3956 | probable camp |
Sextus Julius Frontinus (ad73/4-77/8)
| Name | N.G.Ref. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Isca Silurum (Caerleon, Gwent) | ST3390 | legionary fortress Legio II Augusta. |
| Deva (Chester) | SJ4066 | fort |
| Levobrinta (Forden Gaer, Powys) | SO2098 | fort |
| Mediomanum (Caersws, Powys) | SO0292 | fort |
| Cicucium (Brecon Gaer, Y-Gaer, Powys) | SO0029 | fort |
| Coelbren, West Glamorgan | SN8510 | fort |
| Castell Collen, Powys | SO0562 | fort |
| Blaen-cwm-Bach, West Glamorgan | SS7997 | large camp 3 miles E of Neath |
| Twyn-y-Briddallt, Mid Glamorgan | ST0098 | large camp 9½ miles W of Gelli-gaer |
| Pen-y-Coedcae, Mid Glamorgan | ST0687 | large camp 6½ miles W of Caerphilly |