12-06-2018, 12:00 AM
John,
Your version of events seems to be based on the assumption, expressed earlier in this thread, that part of the Iceni army returned to their homeland with their booty from Colchester. Presumably, they then gathered the wives and proceeded along the Nene valley to rendezvous with the remainder of the army travelling up Watling Street at the point where the two routes meet and where they had somehow divined the final battle was to take place. Suetonius, in the meantime, despite having no doubt been informed by his scouts that two enemy forces were converging upon him from different directions, had obligingly established himself at the very same spot and did not respond to the threat by extricating himself from the trap, as he easily could have done, by marching further up Watliing Street to bring himself even nearer to his reinforcements coming down from North Wales. I'm sorry; I just don't buy it.
On the basis of Nathan's recent account of how he saw the rebels proceeding, you have pronounced him no longer to be a paradista. Nathan can speak for himself but, for my part, I see nothing in what he said that in any way corresponds with your scenario. My view remains that, in order to accomplish the stated objective of the rebellion and to maintain the coalition of the various tribes involved, Boudica had to be seen at all times to be taking the conflict to the Romans and that this required the successive elimination of the centres of Roman influence, Colchester, London and the newly constituted municipium of Verulamium. To do this, she had to keep her army together. I do not at all rule out the likelihood of collateral raiding away from the main body but essentially this was one army (which, incidentally, was probably nothing like as great as Dio's 230,000 men), proceeding in one direction and with one objective, the driving of the Romans out of Britain. If that makes me a paradista, I will happily and proudly accept the appellation.
Your version of events seems to be based on the assumption, expressed earlier in this thread, that part of the Iceni army returned to their homeland with their booty from Colchester. Presumably, they then gathered the wives and proceeded along the Nene valley to rendezvous with the remainder of the army travelling up Watling Street at the point where the two routes meet and where they had somehow divined the final battle was to take place. Suetonius, in the meantime, despite having no doubt been informed by his scouts that two enemy forces were converging upon him from different directions, had obligingly established himself at the very same spot and did not respond to the threat by extricating himself from the trap, as he easily could have done, by marching further up Watliing Street to bring himself even nearer to his reinforcements coming down from North Wales. I'm sorry; I just don't buy it.
On the basis of Nathan's recent account of how he saw the rebels proceeding, you have pronounced him no longer to be a paradista. Nathan can speak for himself but, for my part, I see nothing in what he said that in any way corresponds with your scenario. My view remains that, in order to accomplish the stated objective of the rebellion and to maintain the coalition of the various tribes involved, Boudica had to be seen at all times to be taking the conflict to the Romans and that this required the successive elimination of the centres of Roman influence, Colchester, London and the newly constituted municipium of Verulamium. To do this, she had to keep her army together. I do not at all rule out the likelihood of collateral raiding away from the main body but essentially this was one army (which, incidentally, was probably nothing like as great as Dio's 230,000 men), proceeding in one direction and with one objective, the driving of the Romans out of Britain. If that makes me a paradista, I will happily and proudly accept the appellation.
Michael King Macdona
And do as adversaries do in law, -
Strive mightily, but eat and drink as friends.
(The Taming of the Shrew: Act 1, Scene 2)
And do as adversaries do in law, -
Strive mightily, but eat and drink as friends.
(The Taming of the Shrew: Act 1, Scene 2)