DOCSLIB.ORG

The Pre-Conquest Roman Penetration of South-Eastern Britain

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Pre-Conquest Roman Penetration of South-Eastern Britain THE PRE-CONQUEST ROMAN PENETRATION OF SOUTH-EASTERN BRITAIN by Roderick J. 0. Millar B.Sc.(Eng), The University of London 1950 Banff School of Advanced Management, 1966 B.A., The University of British Columbia, 1987 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES Interdisciplinary Studies (Anthropology/Classical Studies) We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA April 24 1991 (c). Roderick J. 0. Millar, 1991 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. (Signature) R.3.0. Millar Department of Graduate Studies The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada Date May 1 1991 DE-6 (2/88) ii AESIEACI This thesis is concerned with an examination of the interaction between a state level society, that of Rome in the period of the Late Republic and Early Empire, and a neighbouring group of chiefdoms, those in the south-eastern part of Britain. In this period the social, economic and political systems in southern Britain appear to have gone through processes of major stress and change. The study tests the general hypothesis that in the period between the expeditions of Caesar in 55 and 54 BC and the final Claudian conquest in AD 43, the south-east of Britain went through an evolution from a number of small independent chiefdoms competing with each, other to a proto-state. This evolution was triggered and accelerated by the interaction with Rome. To test this hypothesis the published archaeological reports on the excavations in three areas of south-eastern Britain were analyzed. The areas around St. Albans, Braughing and Skeleton Green, and Colchester were used. The analysis compares a number of specific types of artifacts, certain features, and burials from all three areas. The general weight of the evidence, despite some minor inconsistencies, shows that in the approximately ninety years between 55 BC and AD 43 power shifted from several centres: the St. Albans area, Braughing, Welwyn and Hertford to one centre at Colchester. Under the dominance of Colchester, St. Albans and probably other formerly independent chiefdoms, became iii satellite centres to Colchester. This shift in the power centre was accompanied by a marked increase in social stratification, demonstrated in the elite burials, the increasing range of elite goods, and larger and more complex features. iv ABSTRACT ii List of Tables vi List of Figures vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS viii Chapter I. INTRODUCTION 1 Chapter II. THE BACKGROUND 6 Chapter III. A REVIEW OF THE THEORETICAL CONCEPTS 14 1. The Historical Background in Southern Britain. 2. Alternative Theoretical Concepts. Chapter IV. THE SITUATION IN SOUTH-EASTERN BRITAIN FROM THE EARLY FIRST CENTURY BC TO AD 43...23 Chapter V. RESEARCH QUESTIONS, HYPOTHESES AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS: A MODEL 28 1. General Research Questions. 2. General Hypothesis for this Thesis. 3. Specific Hypotheses to Test the Validity of the General Hypothesis. 4. Implications of the Specific Hypotheses. 5. Specific Archaeological Research Questions. 6. A Theoretical Basis for the Model. 7. The Model. 8. Specific Implications from the Model. Chapter VI. THE SOURCES OF THE DATA . 52 1. The Literary Sources. 2. The Archaeological Record. 3. Archaeological Source Material (Monographs, Articles and Publications). Chapter VII. THE ANALYSIS OF THE DATA 57 1. Problems with the Data. 2. Selection of the Data. 3. Analysis and comparison of the Tabulated Data. 4. The Literary Sources. 5. Statistical Analyses. Chapter VIII. ANALYSIS OF THE POTTERY 67 V Chapter IX. ANALYSIS OF THE AMPHORAE. 84 Chapter X. ANALYSIS OF THE COINS 89 Chapter XI. ANALYSIS OF THE BROOCHES 99 Chapter XII. ANALYSIS OF THE BURIALS 102 Chapter XIII. ANALYSIS OF THE FEATURES AND BUILDINGS 114 Chapter XIV. THE LITERARY AND NUMISMATIC EVIDENCE 124 Chapter XV. THE TRADING PATTERNS 128 Chapter XVI STATISTICAL ANALYSIS 132 Chapter XVII. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS 137 Chapter XVIII AN EVALUATION AND PROPOSALS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH 151 Glossary 1. List of Site Names and Areas 156 Glossary 2. Names of British Tribes and Rulers 157 Glossary 3. Technical Terms Used in this Thesis 158 Bibliography, and References Cited 160 Appendix A. References to Britain in Classical Literature 183 Appendix B. Burial Sites 185 vi LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Imported Pottery, Arretine 72 Table 2. Imported Pottery, South Gaulish 72 Table 3. Imported Pottery, Gallo-Belgic 73 Table 3a. Summary, Imported Pottery, Gallo-Belgic...73 Table 4. Native Pottery 77 Table 4a. Summary, Native Pottery 78 Table 4b. Summary, Gallo-Belgic and Native Pottery Types for the Key Sites 79 Table 4c. Gallo-Belgic and Native Types in % for the Key Sites 79 Table 5. Amphorae 85 Table 5a. Summary, Amphorae 86 Table 5b. Origin, Contents and Dates of Amphorae.... 87 Table 5c. Chart of Amphorae Dates 87 Table 6. Coins 90 Table 6a. Summary Table of Coins 90 Table 7. Brooches 99 Table 8. Rich Burials 109 Table 9. Grave Goods from Intermediate and Plain Burials 110 Table 9a. Intermediate and Plain Burials. Presence or Absence of Grave Goods Ill Table 10. Statistical Tabulations 135 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. South-Eastern Britain, Showing the Principal Sites 187 Figure 2. Tribes of Southern Britain 188 Figure 3. The Colchester Area 189 Figure 4. The Braughing Area 190 Figure 5. The St. Albans Area 191 Figure 6. Burial Sites in the St. Albans, Welwyn, Wheathampstead, Hertford and Braughing Areas 192 Figure 7. Relative Chronology of the Sites 193 Figure 8a. Cluster Diagram, 17 Variables. Wheathampstead, Prae Wood, Skeleton Green, Camulodunum 194 Figure 8b. Cluster Diagram, 17 Variables. Prae Wood, Skeleton Green, Camulodunum..195 Figure 8c. Cluster Diagram, 15 Variables. Prae Wood, Skeleton Green, Camulodunum..196 viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS On the theoretical aspects my heartfelt thanks go to Professor Michael Blake for his unfailing patience and help in assisting me to clarify my thoughts on the theoretical parts of the thesis. In developing a clear presentation of the theoretical alternatives both Dr. Blake and Dr. Richard Pearson made invaluable criticisms and suggestions. Dr. Blake also acted as my advisor for the first three years of my M.A. programme. Dr. Pearson gave me many valuable hints on possible cross-cultural comparisons and similarities. Professor E. Hector Williams served on my committee throughout, and took over as advisor for the last year, while Dr. Blake was absent on sabbatical leave. Dr. Williams, as well as giving me a very solid background on the Graeco-Roman world, also provided me with four long seasons of excavation at his site at Mytilene. This practical field experience, while the data was not directly applicable to my thesis, greatly helped in my analysis of other excavators' reports. Professor Anthony Barrett, the external examiner, provided a most helpful critique on the nomenclature that I used for the British tribal groups in south-eastern Britain. Professor R.G. Matson, who chaired the committee at my oral defence of the thesis, made a number of helpful suggestions on the presentation and layout of the material in the tables and statistical work. 1 I.INTRODUCTION This thesis explores the interaction between a state level society, that of Rome in the period of the Late Republic and Early Empire, and a neighbouring group of chiefdoms, those in the south-eastern part of Britain. At the same time the thesis is concerned with the interaction among this group of chiefdoms, in contact with, and affected by, the Roman presence in Gaul. The time period examined is from about 120 BC to AD 43, the year of the Claudian invasion and conquest of the southern part of the island. A particularly detailed study has been made of the almost ninety years from the first invasions and withdrawals made by Julius Caesar in each of the years 55-54 BC to the final conquest in AD 43. The interaction and relationship involved trade, politics and diplomacy, dynastic struggles in Britain, warfare, and finally in AD 43 the conquest of the southern and eastern parts of the country. During this period the British political and socio• economic systems were going through processes of major stress and change1. In Britain this culminated in the 1 The name Catuvellaunl for the dominant tribe in eastern and southern Britain is widely used in published works. There is, however, very little evidence for its use at the time of the Roman conquest. Caesar and Tacitus do not mention the name. Dio uses the name for the tribe in the area (LX 20,2), and Ptolemy mentions Salinae a polls of the Catuvellaunl (II 3, 21), but locates it near the Wash, outside the area normally assigned to the Catuvellaunl. Two inscriptions from Hadrian's Wall mention clvitate Catuwellaunorum and natione Catvallauna respectively. In this thesis Catuvellauni is used, as in other published 2 establishment of the hegemony of the Catuvellaunian kingdom over much of southern and eastern Britain. The specific object of the paper is an examination of the social, political and economic changes in south-eastern Britain, from the late second century B.C. to the conquest by Rome in A.D. 43, and an investigation of the forces and stresses, internal and external, that caused the changes. Both the historical and archaeological records suggest major upheavals and restructuring in the political organization of south-eastern Britain at this time.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • When Kings Become Philosophers: the Late Republican Origins of Cicero’S Political Philosophy
    When Kings Become Philosophers: The Late Republican Origins of Cicero’s Political Philosophy By Gregory Douglas Smay A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Ancient History and Mediterranean Archaeology in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Erich S. Gruen, Chair Professor Carlos F. Noreña Professor Anthony A. Long Summer 2016 © Copyright by Gregory Douglas Smay 2016 All Rights Reserved Abstract When Kings Become Philosophers: The Late Republican Origins of Cicero’s Political Philosophy by Gregory Douglas Smay Doctor of Philosophy in Ancient History and Mediterranean Archaeology University of California, Berkeley Professor Erich S. Gruen, Chair This dissertation argues that Cicero’s de Republica is both a reflection of, and a commentary on, the era in which it was written to a degree not previously recognized in Ciceronian scholarship. Contra readings which treat the work primarily as a theoretical tract in the tradition of late Hellenistic philosophy, this study situates the work within its historical context in Late Republican Rome, and in particular within the personal experience of its author during this tumultuous period. This approach yields new insights into both the meaning and significance of the work and the outlook of the individual who is our single most important witness to the history of the last decades of the Roman Republic. Specifically, the dissertation argues that Cicero provides clues preserved in the extant portions of the de Republica, overlooked by modern students in the past bur clearly recognizable to readers in his own day, indicating that it was meant to be read as a work with important contemporary political resonances.
    [Show full text]
  • Judges in the Classroom the Republic of Rome V. Marcus Brutus
    Judges In The Classroom The Republic of Rome v. Marcus Brutus Mock Trial Source: Written by Margaret Fisher. Staff at the Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) edited the lesson. For more information, contact AOC Court Services, 1206 Quince Street SE, PO Box 41170, Olympia, WA 98504-1170. For an electronic copy of this lesson, or to view other lesson plans, visit Educational Resources on the Washington Courts Web site at: www.courts.wa.gov/education/. Objectives: 1. Students will conduct a mock trial, follow the sequence of steps in a trial, and employ good techniques for each role. 2. Students will make complex, prepared oral presentations as attorneys and witnesses. 3. Students will demonstrate skills in listening, rapid critical analysis, and extemporaneous speech. 4. Students will gain an understanding of the rules of evidence and procedure. 5. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the law applicable to the case. Grade Level: Grades 6-8 Time: One class period (approximately 50 minutes) Materials: Mock trial packet for the judge (mock trial agenda, stipulated facts, sworn statements, and evidentiary information as included in this lesson). The teacher will prepare all other materials for students ahead of the trial date. Note: This lesson assumes the class completed a multi-disciplinary unit on mock trial preparation. They studied legal concepts and procedures, analyzed the trial process, reviewed historical issues, and prepared for this specific case. Now, the parties are ready to proceed to trial, with you as the judge. Judges in the Classroom Brutus Mock Trial Mock Trial Agenda Procedures: 1. Begin the class by introducing yourself and setting the students at ease.
    [Show full text]
  • The Late Republic in 5 Timelines (Teacher Guide and Notes)
    1 180 BC: lex Villia Annalis – a law regulating the minimum ages at which a individual could how political office at each stage of the cursus honorum (career path). This was a step to regularising a political career and enforcing limits. 146 BC: The fall of Carthage in North Africa and Corinth in Greece effectively brought an end to Rome’s large overseas campaigns for control of the Mediterranean. This is the point that the historian Sallust sees as the beginning of the decline of the Republic, as Rome had no rivals to compete with and so turn inwards, corrupted by greed. 139 BC: lex Gabinia tabelleria– the first of several laws introduced by tribunes to ensure secret ballots for for voting within the assembliess (this one applied to elections of magistrates). 133 BC – the tribunate of Tiberius Gracchus, who along with his younger brother, is seen as either a social reformer or a demagogue. He introduced an agrarian land that aimed to distribute Roman public land to the poorer elements within Roman society (although this act quite likely increased tensions between the Italian allies and Rome, because it was land on which the Italians lived that was be redistributed). He was killed in 132 BC by a band of senators led by the pontifex maximus (chief priest), because they saw have as a political threat, who was allegedly aiming at kingship. 2 123-121 BC – the younger brother of Tiberius Gracchus, Gaius Gracchus was tribune in 123 and 122 BC, passing a number of laws, which apparent to have aimed to address a number of socio-economic issues and inequalities.
    [Show full text]
  • When Kings Become Philosophers: the Late Republican Origins of Cicero’S Political Philosophy
    When Kings Become Philosophers: The Late Republican Origins of Cicero’s Political Philosophy By Gregory Douglas Smay A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Ancient History and Mediterranean Archaeology in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Erich S. Gruen, Chair Professor Carlos F. Noreña Professor Anthony A. Long Summer 2016 © Copyright by Gregory Douglas Smay 2016 All Rights Reserved Abstract When Kings Become Philosophers: The Late Republican Origins of Cicero’s Political Philosophy by Gregory Douglas Smay Doctor of Philosophy in Ancient History and Mediterranean Archaeology University of California, Berkeley Professor Erich S. Gruen, Chair This dissertation argues that Cicero’s de Republica is both a reflection of, and a commentary on, the era in which it was written to a degree not previously recognized in Ciceronian scholarship. Contra readings which treat the work primarily as a theoretical tract in the tradition of late Hellenistic philosophy, this study situates the work within its historical context in Late Republican Rome, and in particular within the personal experience of its author during this tumultuous period. This approach yields new insights into both the meaning and significance of the work and the outlook of the individual who is our single most important witness to the history of the last decades of the Roman Republic. Specifically, the dissertation argues that Cicero provides clues preserved in the extant portions of the de Republica, overlooked by modern students in the past bur clearly recognizable to readers in his own day, indicating that it was meant to be read as a work with important contemporary political resonances.
    [Show full text]
  • Boudicca - Verlauf Und Hintergrund Einer Rebellion Gegen Die Römische Herrschaft Und Ihre Darstellung in Den Quellen
    DIPLOMARBEIT Titel der Diplomarbeit Boudicca - Verlauf und Hintergrund einer Rebellion gegen die römische Herrschaft und ihre Darstellung in den Quellen. Verfasserin Katharina Uebel angestrebter akademischer Grad Magistra der Philosophie (Mag. phil.) Wien, 2012 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt: A 310 Studienrichtung lt. Studienblatt: Alte Geschichte und Altertumskunde Betreuer: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Fritz Mitthof II III Mein besonderer Dank gilt der Universität Wien und insbesondere dem Institut für Alte Geschichte und Altertumskunde und ihren Mitarbeitern, die mich gefördert und unterstützt haben. Ich wurde in die Welt der griechisch-römischen Antike und der Geschichtswissenschaft eingeführt und für die Wissenschaft begeistert. Mein Dank gilt meinem Betreuer Univ.-Prof. Dr. Fritz Mitthof. Von Herzen dank ich meinen Lektoren Dr. Andrea Potz und Dr. Peter Schober für emotionale und fachliche Beratung und Beistand. IV V Inhaltsverzeichnis 1. Einführung und Charakterisierung der Quellen zu Britannien und dem Boudicca Aufstand 4 1.1. Die britannischen Kelten in der römischen Geschichtsschreibung ............................................. 4 1.2. Werke und Leben des Tacitus und ein kurzer Überblick seiner Meinung zum Boudicca- Aufstand ................................................................................................................................................... 8 1.3. Leben und Werk des Cassius Dio und sein Blick auf den Boudicca-Aufstand ......................... 11 1.4. Die Quellen von Tacitus und Cassius Dio und deren Einfluss
    [Show full text]
  • Celtic Britain
    1 arfg Fitam ©0 © © © © ©©© © © © © © © 00 « G XT © 8 i imiL ii II I IWtv,-.,, iM » © © © © © ©H HWIW© llk< © © J.Rhjsffi..H. © I EARLY BRITAIN, CELTIC BRITAIN. BY J. RHYS, M.A., D.Litt. (Oxon/). Honorary LL.D. (Edin.). Honorary D.Litt. (Wales). FROFESSOR OF CELTIC IN THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD J PRINCIPAL OF JESUS COLLEGE, AND LATE FELLOW OF MERTON COLLEGE FELLOW OF THE BRITISH ACADEMY. WITH TWO MAPS, AND WOODCUTS OF COIliS, FOURTH EDITION. FUBLISHED UNDER THE D.RECTION OF THE GENERAL LITERATURE COMMITTEE. LONDON: SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE, NORTHUMBERLAND AVENUE, W.C. ; 43, queen victoria street, e.c. \ Brighton: 129, north street. New York : EDWIN S. GORHAM. iqoP, HA 1^0 I "l C>9 |X)VE AND MALCOMSON, LIMITED, PRINTERS, 4 AND 5, DEAN STREET, HIGH HOLBORN, LONDON, W.C. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. These are the days of little books, and when the author was asked to add one to their number, he accepted the invitation with the jaunty simplicity of an inexperienced hand, thinking that it could not give him much trouble to expand or otherwise modify the account given of early Britain in larger works ; but closer acquaintance with them soon convinced him of the folly of such a plan— he had to study the subject for himself or leave it alone. In trying to do the former he probably read enough to have enabled him to write a larger work than this ; but he would be ashamed to confess how long it has occupied him. As a student of language, he is well aware that no severer judgment could be passed on his essay in writing history than that it should be found to be as bad as the etymologies made by historians are wont to be ; but so essential is the study of Celtic names to the elucidation of the early history of Britain that the risk is thought worth incurring.
    [Show full text]
  • Coins and Power in Late Iron Age Britain
    JOHN CREIGHTON Coins and Power in Late Iron Age Britain published by the press syndicate of the university of cambridge The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, United Kingdom cambridge university press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge cb2 2ru, UK www.cup.cam.ac.uk 40 West 20th Street, New York ny 10011–4211, USA www.cup.org 10 Stamford Road, Oakleigh, Melbourne 3166, Australia Ruiz de Alarco´n 13, 28014 Madrid, Spain © John Creighton 2000 This book is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press First published 2000 Printed in the United Kingdom at the University Press, Cambridge Typeset in Plantin 10/12pt [vn] A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library isbn 0 521 77207 9 hardback CONTENTS List of Wgures page viii List of tables x Preface xi Acknowledgements xii List of abbreviations xiii Note on translations used xiv Introduction 1 1 The Middle to Late Iron Age transition 4 2 Coin and the representation of individual authority 22 3 The Southern and Eastern kingdoms 55 4 Classical imagery and ideology in Britain 80 5 The location of Britain in the Roman world 126 6 Legends and language 146 7 Dynasties and identities 174 8 Conclusion and epilogue: from Britain to Britannia 216 Appendix: A brief introduction to Iron Age coinage in Britain 222 References 228 Index of coin types 238 General index 241 vii FIGURES Fig. 2.1 The development of coinage in northern Europe from the Phillipus to its regional successors page 27 Fig.
    [Show full text]
  • Download PDF Datastream
    A Dividing Sea The Adriatic World from the Fourth to the First Centuries BC By Keith Robert Fairbank, Jr. B.A. Brigham Young University, 2010 M.A. Brigham Young University, 2012 Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Program in Ancient History at Brown University PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND MAY 2018 © Copyright 2018 by Keith R. Fairbank, Jr. This dissertation by Keith R. Fairbank, Jr. is accepted in its present form by the Program in Ancient History as satisfying the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Date _______________ ____________________________________ Graham Oliver, Advisor Recommended to the Graduate Council Date _______________ ____________________________________ Peter van Dommelen, Reader Date _______________ ____________________________________ Lisa Mignone, Reader Approved by the Graduate Council Date _______________ ____________________________________ Andrew G. Campbell, Dean of the Graduate School iii CURRICULUM VITAE Keith Robert Fairbank, Jr. hails from the great states of New York and Montana. He grew up feeding cattle under the Big Sky, serving as senior class president and continuing on to Brigham Young University in Utah for his BA in Humanities and Classics (2010). Keith worked as a volunteer missionary for two years in Brazil, where he learned Portuguese (2004–2006). Keith furthered his education at Brigham Young University, earning an MA in Classics (2012). While there he developed a curriculum for accelerated first year Latin focused on competency- based learning. He matriculated at Brown University in fall 2012 in the Program in Ancient History. While at Brown, Keith published an appendix in The Landmark Caesar. He also co- directed a Mellon Graduate Student Workshop on colonial entanglements.
    [Show full text]
  • A Printable PDF Copy of the 4-Page CENTURIES
    A Timeline of Major Dates in Western Cultural History – to 1900 500s BC Rise of Greek philosophy in Ionia + Southern Italy / Jewish culture in the East Secularist-Materialists : Thales (early 500s), Anaximander (early 500s), Anaximines (mid 500s) Transcendentalist-Mystics : Pythagoras (mid-late 500s), Solon reforms Athens' constitution along democratic lines (early 500s) Cleisthenes reforms Athens along more fully democratic lines (late 500s) Jewish prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah and their disciples refine monotheistic Judaism 400s BC Golden Age of Greece + Hellenic culture / the “Age of Pericles” in Athens Athenians under Themistocles and Miltiades defeat Darius at Marathon (490) Persians more decisively defeated at Salamis (480 BC) and Platea (479 BC) Mystics : Heraclitus (early 400s), Parmenides (early 400s) Materialists : Anaxagoras (mid 400s), Democritus (late 400s - early 300s) Sophists : Protagoras (mid 400s) Socrates (late 400s) Pericles turns the Delan League into an Athenian empire (ca. 460-430 BC) Athens and its allies fight Sparta and its allies in the Peloponnesian Wars (431-404 BC) destroying Athens, devastating the rest of Greece and ending the Golden Age of Greece 300s BC Decline of Classic Hellenic-Greek culture / Rise of Alexander and Hellenistic culture Plato (early 300s) and Aristotle (mid 300s) Cynics/Skeptics : Diogenes (early 300s), Pyrrho of Ellis (late 300s), Macedonian/Greek Alexander the Great conquers from the Nile to the Indus (334-323 BC) Hellenistic (mixture of Greek + Eastern) culture is thus born At his
    [Show full text]
  • Patterns of Continuity in Geto-Dacian Foreign Policy
    69 HIRUNDO 2008 Pattern of Continuity in Geto-Dacian Foreign Policy Under Burebista Paul Vădan Following the death of Alexander the Great, the ancient world was affected by prolonged po - litical turmoil as many states emerging after 323 BC, both within and without Alexander’s former Em - pire, sought to impose their regional hegemony at each other’s expense in an attempt to restore stability. In the context of such discourse in power politics, the Geto-Dacian state emerged and sought to assert itself in the Carpathian-Danubian-Pontic region under the rule of Burebista in the 1 st century BC. De - spite modern claims that Burebista’s achievements were without precedent in the history of Geto-Dacia, 1 this paper will attempt to place the rule of Burebista in the context of a long tradition of Geto-Dacian foreign policy of assertion and interaction with the Hellenistic οιкоυµένη (oikoumene the perceived Greek world as opposed to barbarian lands). In order to do this, we will need to analyze Burebista’s political and economic goals in order to determine whether his rule conformed to an established pattern. Unfortunately, such a project is ir - reparably flawed because no Geto-Dacian written accounts (if there were any) have survived; all that has been passed on to us in terms of literary “evidence” are approximately four hundred Geto-Dacian words that are still in use in the Romanian language. As a result, scholars are forced to appeal exclu - sively (and with caution) to Greek and Roman written sources if they are to construct a generally co - herent history of the Geto-Dacians.
    [Show full text]
  • Iron Age Hillforts Survey (Northamptonshire): Second Stage Investigations: Iss
    Iron Age Hillforts Survey (Northamptonshire): Second Stage Investigations: Iss. 2, Mar-2016 Iron Age Hillforts Survey (Northamptonshire): Analysis of the Individual Hillfort Reports Synopsis: In the autumn of 2013, CLASP undertook to assist national teams working to compile an “Atlas of British Iron Age Hillforts” (jointly led by focus groups of senior archaeologists at the universities of Oxford and Edinburgh), by carrying out surveys of all known prehistoric hillforts in Northamptonshire. The results of these Northamptonshire surveys naturally feed forward into the national hillforts survey – but in addition, the CLASP team has recognised that the results for Northamptonshire are themselves capable of interpretation and analysis on a local basis. Resulting from this detailed research on each of the individual sites, it gradually became clear that it would be instructive to carry out further analytical investigations. This paper therefore aims to explore, analyse and summarise such of these investigations as could be carried out by desktop analysis and study of the individual survey reports. Five ‘metrics’ are first identified, by which the hillforts can be assessed; and case-study analysis is then applied to selected groups of the hilforts, incorporating a great deal of further data drawn from the wider landscape area around the hillforts, in order to study the ways in which the five metrics apply to each of the selected groups of forts. As a result, it has been possible to form certain conclusions, and to advance some theories about the site groupings and their functions and possible interactions. The CLASP team involved in this study is as follows: G.W.
    [Show full text]
  • A History of England Under the Anglo-Saxon Kings
    HISTORY OF ENGLAND UXDER THE ANGLO-SAXON KINGS o ^t CransIatcK from tfjc ©crman^trf. J. M. LAPPEXBERG,* F.S.A., FORMERLY KEEPER OP THE ARCHIVES OF THE CITY OF HAMBURG BY THE LATE BENJAMIN THORPE^ F.S. A., EDITOR OF THE ' ANGLO-SAXON CHRONICLE,' 'ANCIENT LAWS AND INSTITUTES OF ENGLAND,' ETC. NEW EDITION REVISED BY E. C. OTTE O IN TWO VOLUMES. Vol. I. \T LONDON': GEORGE BELL AND SONS, YORK STREET, COY EXT GARDEN. 1881. LONDON : PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWE8 AND SONS, LIMITED, BIAVFOKD STRKET AND CHABQI NOTE Mr. Thorpe's Translation of Dr. Lappenberg's History of the Anglo-Saxons having been for some years out of print, it has been thought expedient to republish it in the cheaper and more convenient form of the Standard Library. A thorough revision of the Trans- lation has been made for the present edition, while a few of the passages, originally omitted with the full concurrence of the Author, have been restored. These and" other alterations, including the division of the matter into chapters, together with the addition of an Index, and occasional notes, giving the more recent dates of the publication of works referred to in the text, will, it is hoped, be found to have increased the value of Mr. Thorpe's Translation. E. C. 0. 1 London, 1880. — CONTENTS OF VOL. I. Author's Preface ...... Page xi Translator's Preface xvii Literary Introduction xxi PAET I. BRITAIN UNDER THE ROMANS, B.C. 54. CHAPTER I. Earliest Knowledge of Britain—Descent and Tradilions Language — Religion — Government — Customs— Tribes First Appearance of Romans—Julius Caesar ; his Account of Britain—Departure of Roman Legions .
    [Show full text]