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Calling all armchair generals! Boudica's Last Stand.
(09-08-2016, 02:27 PM)Theoderic Wrote: Catus only sent 200 poorly equipped soldiers to defend Colchester

sine iustis armis - 'without proper weapons', I think (Tacitus). These 200 men, I think, would be all that Catus had available - beneficiarii on his staff, stationarii guarding the port and the docks, plus perhaps some of the men he'd been using on his tax surveys. They didn't have 'proper weapons', presumably, because they weren't intended as combat troops.

In the circumstances, there wasn't much else that Catus could have done - besides sending messages to Paulinus and perhaps Cerialis. I don't think this suggests he wasn't taking it seriously.


(09-08-2016, 02:27 PM)Theoderic Wrote: When Catus realised how serious the situation was he fled to Gaul

Exactly. If there was no immediate threat to London Catus would not have fled, and Paulinus would not have evacuated the city shortly afterwards. We must assume, therefore, that the rebels were advancing on the city in great strength.



(09-08-2016, 02:27 PM)Theoderic Wrote: I agree with John that the tribes returned to their homelands and set up ambushes and against the Romans

As above - if they'd gone home again after Colchester there would be no reason for Catus to flee, and no reason for Paulinus to even go to London, let alone evacuate it. If the rebels were heading back north again, by going to London Paulinus would be placing a hostile enemy between himself and his route of retreat and reinforcement. He would have remained somewhere in the Midlands instead and waited for back-up. He didn't, so the rebels must have continued south-west after leaving Colchester.


(09-08-2016, 02:27 PM)Theoderic Wrote: Cattle can be driven at 15 miles per day over long distances and the base design for chariots can be easily adapted for horse drawn carts allowing for a mobile army.

One wagon could perhaps go at 15 miles a day, or even a few wagons. Hundreds of wagons could not. The larger the army, the slower it moves, and a force of the size that Boudica is supposed to have been leading would have moved very slowly indeed.

You could imagine smaller groups splitting off and moving faster, but they would have been easier to defeat individually. Far better if they stick together and use their strength of numbers, which is their only advantage over the Romans.
Nathan Ross
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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 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
RE: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica's Last Stand. - by Nathan Ross - 09-09-2016, 12:30 AM

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