Thread Rating:
  • 4 Vote(s) - 5 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica's Last Stand.
Quote:I can accept this but the corollary is that this does not sound like the action of a slow moving horde but a well organised force that knows that an army is coming to attack them whilst they are themselves on the march . . . The problem is that there has to be consistency – either there is a slow moving horde or a swift moving army or an acknowledged mixture of both.
There is no problem with this. A likely scenario is that, having destroyed Colchester and before moving off for the next stage of the campaign, the rebels became aware that Cerialis and his forces were approaching. The fighting men then turned to confront him and, having defeated him, returned to their families at Colchester and set off to pillage and forage their way to London.


Quote:This again doesn’t seem to fit the early part of the war and we know it was regarded as a continuing war, even after Boudica’s defeat from SP’s later actions.

How on earth did a slow moving huge horde surprise the people of Colchester in such a manner that there were no preparations for defence made at all.

Especially as Roman forts were destroyed in the occupied territory.

Tacitus makes reference to the inhabitants of Colchester being re-assured by locals that it was nothing to worry about, but surely the inhabitants of Colchester would have had time to escape if the Brythons were travelling so slowly.....
There was time enough for the inhabitants to send messengers to Catus Decianus and to Cerialis requesting help and for both to respond. Indeed, it may have been the presence of wives and families that could have enabled what I have called the fifth column in Colchester to persuade the colonists that their fears were groundless and that those approaching were not a predatory warband but some sort of peaceful tribal movement. So far as the destruction of the Roman stations is concerned, knowledge of that would have depended upon someone getting through to them with the news. They may not even have known that this had happened.


Quote:The second is that the Iceni and the Trinovantes alone destroyed Colchester. In this second theory after the sack of Colchester, the Trinovantes reclaimed their land and farms (looted and plundered back from the Roman settlers if you like) whilst Boudica and her followers returned home to defend their land against the subsequent arrival of the next Roman army which did not invade but went to London.
That would have handed the initiative back to the Romans and would have been a been a fatal mistake. The rebels would have had to maintain their impetus in order to attract other tribes to their cause and to retain them. If they returned to their homelands without achieving that, they would be inviting massive retaliation by the Romans and inevitable defeat.


Quote:OK - not necessarily the “London Dash” but certainly leaving the infantry somewhere on Watling Street and approaching London with limited mounted forces only.
This is merely a variation on the 'cavalry dash' idea. Nathan has repeatedly made the point that this would be entirely alien to a cautious general like Suetonius. Moreover, we are told that he abandoned London because he considered that he had insufficient forces to defend it. This implies that there was at least half a chance that he could have mounted a defence. It would be a ludicrous statement if all he had with him was a cavalry bodyguard. Even if we were to accept the notion, it could only be on the grounds that the arrival of the legionary force was imminent, not that it was trailing its way down miles away up Watling Street.
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)
Reply


Messages In This Thread
Re: Calling all armchair generals! - by Ensifer - 03-11-2010, 03:13 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-18-2012, 06:26 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-19-2012, 12:02 AM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-19-2012, 02:50 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-19-2012, 05:40 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-19-2012, 11:26 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-24-2012, 05:11 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-24-2012, 09:42 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-24-2012, 10:10 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-25-2012, 03:11 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-25-2012, 03:25 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-25-2012, 08:36 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-26-2012, 02:57 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-27-2012, 01:50 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 08-05-2012, 02:24 PM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-07-2014, 02:18 PM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-08-2014, 01:50 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-11-2014, 02:03 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-18-2014, 07:54 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-20-2014, 02:37 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-25-2014, 08:29 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Renatus - 03-21-2015, 10:06 PM

Possibly Related Threads…
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  Armchair Wall walking mcbishop 3 3,479 01-11-2012, 03:22 AM
Last Post: Vindex

Forum Jump: