In the 1st century, Rome was the absolute hegemon in Europe, the Roman legions were frightening, and the peoples of Europe had to succumb to the intimidation of Rome. In Britain, however, a queen led her people to rise up against Roman oppression. She is Budika.
Rome's allies
Boudicca was the queen of an ancient Celtic tribe named Issini on the island of Britain, and her husband was Plasutagus, king of Issini. The Assini tribe was roughly located in present-day Norfolk, and in 43 AD, when the Roman Empire began to conquer southern Britain under Emperor Claudius, Plasutagus chose to ally with Rome. When the Roman governor Ostorius planned to disarm all the British people under Roman rule, the Britons revolted. Although these uprisings were suppressed by the Romans, Essini was not annexed by the Roman Empire and remained relatively independent. This may be related to the pro-Roman tendencies of Prasutagus, who not only supported the invasion of the Roman Empire in 43 AD, but also helped the Romans in the revolt of 47-48 AD.
Roman Emperor Claudius
The Romans established numerous towns and military fortresses in Britain to consolidate their rule, and the difficulties that the Romans brought to the local people were all-encompassing. Economically, the local population had to pay tribute and food to provide for the Roman soldiers living in Britain, and the local governors imposed heavy taxes. Culturally, the Roman rulers wanted to root out the Druid sects that were popular in Britain and promote the belief in the Polytheistic system of Rome.
Druidism
Plasutagus was actually a puppet of Rome, but under his rule the Essini maintained good relations with the Romans. As the wife of Prasutagus, Budika's activities during this period were not well known, and perhaps at this time she only played the role of a husband and son, hoping only to live a peaceful life. However, the weather eventually became a symbol of tribal freedom in Britain, leading the people against the mighty Roman Empire.
Ancient Greco-Roman polytheism
Second, unveil the pole
The situation changed after the death of Prasutagus, who had signed a "financial agreement" with the Roman Emperor Claudius, and in return, Prasutagus divided his kingdom in two in his will, leaving half to his wife and children and the other half to Claudius's successor Nero. However, the greedy Roman officials in Britain were treacherous and tried to take the entire kingdom of Essini for themselves. Since Prasutagus and Budika had no male heirs, Budika became queen of Essini. Budica was arrested and tortured, and her two daughters were defiled by the Romans. The property of the Issini nobles was also plundered by the Romans, and many were sold into slavery by the Romans. The humiliation of the Romans, which infuriated the Boudiccas and the Essinis, became the trigger for an uprising.
Queen Boudicca
In order to plan the uprising, Budica secretly gathered a large number of British tribes that hated the Romans, and they decided to launch an attack on Kamrodonu, the center of Roman rule in Britain. In the summer of 61 AD, while the Roman commander Suetonius was fighting in Wales, Budica led the Tribes of Britain to gather an army of 120,000 to attack Kamrodonu, a town that was not well defended due to the arrogance of the Romans. The rebels painted themselves blue to intimidate the enemy, and both men and women participated in the struggle against the Romans. The rebels plundered the town, slaughtered many Romans, and even cut off the head of a bronze statue of Emperor Nero. The Roman army that came to support from nearby was defeated and almost completely destroyed. Although Suewetonius led his army to retreat immediately after receiving news of the outbreak of rebellion, it was too late.
Leader of the uprising, Budika
Over the next period of time, Budica's army launched successive attacks on several Roman towns, causing severe damage to the area. During the uprising, between 70,000 and 80,000 Roman residents were said to have been killed, and the Britons had no interest in captivity, and they sent the defeated to the gallows and burners, or as sacrifices.
Third, although defeated, it is still glorious
In addition to victory, the seeds of defeat have been sown. The rebels missed their harvest because they thought they could plunder the Romans' food reserves, and on the other hand, Suewetonius ordered the grain to be burned, so the rebels faced a severe famine. In addition, Budica's armies, though brought together by a common hatred of Rome, were complex and difficult to control. The Roman army, on the other hand, was highly disciplined.
Roman legions
When Budika's army attacked Verulamim, Suvitonius gathered his army and prepared for a decisive battle. The location of Suewetonius' deployment of his army remains a mystery to this day, with some speculating that it is today's Watlin Street. It is said that the rebel army may have 230,000-300,000 people, while the number of Roman troops may have just exceeded 10,000. Despite being absolutely inferior in numbers, the Roman army won the victory with its military equipment and discipline. The victorious Roman army also slaughtered the rebels, both men and women, young and old, and even livestock.
Roman slaughter of women and livestock was rare, because most of the time the Romans would choose to sell it for wealth, and from this point of view, there was indeed a deep hostility between the Roman and British tribes. After the defeat of this war, the British Uprising failed, and Budika died shortly after. Regarding her death, conventional wisdom holds that she returned to her kingdom after defeat and eventually committed suicide by poisoning.
Wen Shijun said
Although Budika's uprising failed, the spirit of the British people in fearing power and pursuing freedom is still very positive, and this uprising almost made Emperor Nero abandon Britain. The Roman historian Tacitus documented the uprising, arguing that the responsibility for the uprising of the British people lay with the oppression and brutality of the Roman rulers, and Thatbicah thus became a representative of a free and courageous woman.
bibliography
[Ancient Rome] Tacitus: Chronicles, translated by Wang Yizhu, The Commercial Press, 1981.
[Ancient Rome] Suvertonius: Biography of the Twelve Emperors of Rome, translated by Zhang Zhuming, Wang Naixin, and Jiang Pingping, The Commercial Press, 1995.
(Author: Haoran Wenshi · Friends of ABC)
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