Calling all armchair generals! Boudica's Last Stand.

[Hanny]

Firstly, from London Paulinus was retreating. Therefore Rule Number 2 of Campaigning in Russia applies: when retreating don't withdraw back down the road you used to advance (ask Napoleon). That's just one reason why I don't think P. took Watling Street.

Secondly, Boudica and the tribal leaders knew that once they started this bloody rebellion they had to destroy P. quickly. Therefore, B. must follow P. as rapidly and directly as possible, catch him and destroy his force. To fail in that task, or foolishly return home beforehand, is to hand yourself and your family members a death sentence. The rebels understood that if P. escaped with his force to units in the west then he would return, probably in the Spring, possibly earlier and ruthlessly destroy their homelands. "I shall return", General MacArthur, Corregidor, March 1942: and he did, with a vastly superior force and vanquished his enemy. That is what P. would have been thinking and the Brits knew it!

First, Napoleons logistics for Russia were determined by the roads, these roads went through population levels that did not allow living of the land by the number of men moving over them, hence the greatest loss of life was getting their in summer from attritional effects. But every musket rnd and and supply came over them so when he retreated back along the same line of supply he moved onto his supply line, just as in this case, back along the route he knew was safe and towards supply and reinforcements and Romans were hindered by 000 of civilians trying to evacuate and clogging up the roads, slowing March rates.Roman options were limited to the road net and its need to protect non coms.

Second there was little time pressure on the celts, it was all on the Romans who were chased to ground and forced to fight at 20 to one odds against. The celts  strategically had the central position, so they were well placed to defeat in detail the Romans,  defeating elements of 9th legion and turning on the next legionary force, both  battles had number odds no Roman army had ever won at  before If we take the numbers as accurate, the one not wanting to fight was P.Major cities with grain stored till next harvest came in gave the celts all the grain supplies they required when taken, 70000 dead Romans meant around 20,000 tons of grain were in the grain silos so The celts had what they needed short term.