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Calling all armchair generals! Boudica's Last Stand.
Quote:People have not changed that much in two thousand years and refugees always flee away from the fighting not towards it. Rich refugees go first and take their portable wealth. You can look at any reports of refugees over hundreds of years and even to the recent wars in our times or more recent troubles in the Near and Far East.

Quote:As I have stated before human nature dictates that when Catus (the Procurator and therefore high government official) left so would the rest of the rich and powerful.
Even so, there will always be some who will stick it out for one reason or another. Perhaps they believe that the danger is not as great as has been made out or they think that help will come or they are reluctant to leave their homes for fear of looters or they simply refuse to leave. Logic does not always come into it and it is often those who feel that they have the most to lose who are the last to leave. Among the reasons given by Tacitus for people not leaving London with Paulinus was “the attractiveness of the place” (loci dulcedo)!


Quote:From what we can gather Catus was a rapacious and cowardly man who fled once the troubles that he was partly responsible for came to light. For him not to have taken wealth with him in the ships would have been against character.
Nevertheless, there is only so much that he could have taken with him.


Quote:You are correct about the rebels not knowing whether there was anything there but obviously were not overly concerned as it was not as we have both agreed their prime target.
I have emphasized the symbolic nature of Colchester and, geographically, it was the first Roman centre that the rebels would reach but I maintain that London was still a major target.


Quote:It would seem that this attacking of forts etc. would have been the spark that started the chain of messages to Colchester, Catus, Cerealis and Paulinus. I agree that it was the precursor to the destruction of Colchester and was the Iceni recapturing their homeland.


Quote:I have to agree with Webster when he states that the Brythonic Army was split into two, one for the attack on a virtually undefended town and one that defeated the Ninth Legion.

I think that the Iceni regained their homeland, destroyed the Ninth whilst the Trinovantes destroyed Colchester and regained their farms and homes which Tacitus states had been taken from them.
I doubt that we will ever agree about this but let me make two points. First, the Acricola carries the clear inference, it seems to me, that the force that attacked the troops and stormed the forts was the same as invaded the colony. Secondly, the attack upon the Ninth appears in the Annals immediately after the description of the storming of the Temple and was carried out by the “victorious Britons”. It is evident that both events involved the same rebel force or elements of it. Your previous suggestion that part of the rebel army “turned” to meet the Ninth seems to be entirely plausible.


Quote:There are many instances where the Legions rebelled against their commanders but in this case Postumus fell on his sword perhaps even to save the Legion who obviously agreed with him.
There is a danger here of re-writing history. Tacitus states unequivocally that Postumus committed suicide because he had disobeyed orders and denied his legion a share in the glory. It seems evident from this that, if he had obeyed Paulinus’ command to join him, the legion would have marched and would have taken part in the final battle.


Quote:The fact remains that after no doubt a number of messengers were sent that the Second did not come. If Paulinus could have got more troops easily (the rest of the Twentieth, the rest of the Ninth) no doubt he would have done. After all they were all nearer than the Second in Exeter.
I think that we are both of the opinion that Paulinus withdrew to the west. This would bring him nearer to the Second and further away from the other legions (unlike you, I believe that the Twentieth was in North Wales). Events moved too quickly for Paulinus to link with any of the legions that might have reinforced him but, if the rebels had not, in effect, followed him, I can envisage him establishing a base somewhere on the Fosse Way and commanding the Second, Twentieth and, if it could make it through enemy-held territory, the remnants of the Ninth to proceed along the Fosse to join him. Alternatively, he might have withdrawn as far as Gloucester or Usk.


Quote: Nathan Ross wrote:

Colchester was supposedly still the capital of Britain at the time - so the governor would be officially based there (although Paulinus clearly spent most of his time away with the army!). London may already have been the capital of the procurator though: Catus' successor Classicianus died there in office, and his tomb was built there.

When “order” was restored the political map had changed and the Romans knew who was loyal and who was not. London was a more central point to control the Province and London became both the Trading and Administrative centre for the Province until York seems to have superseded it later.
It is evident that Catus was not based in Colchester at the time of the revolt.
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)
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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 Renatus - 10-21-2012, 04:05 AM
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

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