Learning About Celts Through Roman Authors
The Celts left very little written documentation behind them. What is
known about the Celts has been discovered through archaeology and
through the writings of Roman authors such as Caesar, Strabo and
Tacitus. Caesar wrote about the Celts in his Gallic Wars as he
documented his arrivals in Britain in 55 and 55 BC. Strabo was a Roman
geographer, and included his knowledge of the geography of Britain in
his texts, and Tacitus in his "Agricola", his histories and his annals
also wrote of his knowledge of the Celts. These three authors, amongst
others, gave us written evidence of the agricultural lifestyle of the
Celts, their trading, commerce and economy, their tribal system, their
politics and their religion.
However, all the Roman authors' works are subject to bias, either
pro-Roman (as in Caesar and Strabo) or of flattery (as in Tacitus, who
was writing a eulogy). Caesar's first paragraph in his account of the
first invasion of Britain, for example, states that the Celts had been
sending reinforcements to the Gauls on the continent during Caesar's
Gallic campaigns. The full truth of this statement is unknown, however
it is unlikely that the Celts would have been interested in sending
men out to Gaul, as it would have been harvest time during that
period, and the Celts were primarily a farming people.
Roman authors tended to share the same opinions concerning the
geography of Britain as each other. Caesar, Strabo and Tacitus all
wrote of Britain as being triangular in shape. Caesar stated that the
southern side faced Gaul and measured roughly 475 miles, the western
side faced Spain, me...
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...litical situations, perhaps the only true
form of politics that all the Celts shared.
The druids were an immense power base in Britain, due to the fact that
the country was highly religious, and the gods could only be contacted
through the druids. The druids also acted as judges in many legal
matters. They were seen as a threat by Caesar and Agricola, who both
launched campaigns on their headquarters in Anglesey.
To conclude, the literary evidence that exists of the Celts that was
written by Roman authors gives a fairly detailed image of the Celtic
lifestyle, although it is, naturally, subject to an amount of bias.
Archaeology has supported a large amount of the evidence given to us
by the Romans, and therefore it is at least possible that to a large
extent, the assertions of the Roman authors were fairly truthful.
P Bradley. Ancient Rome, using evidence. (2000) [United Kingdom] Cambridge University Press. Pgs 516-519, 534-535, &555-557
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When the Romans Invaded Briton each Celtic tribe was treated differently. The Celtic Iceni tribe kept out of the violent conflict, and because of this they were awarded ‘client kingdom’ status by the Romans. Being a client kingdom meant that the Iceni tribe maintained a considerable amount of independence. They were allowed to keep their rulers, and they were allowed to mint coin. They were bound by treaty to Rome, who in return would back them up, often against rival tribes. Yet the Romans took the view that they had the authority, to at any time intervene in the internal affairs of their client kingdoms. On the other hand the main city of the Trinovantes tribe, which was located just south of the Iceni tribe, was declared by Emperor Claudius as the capital of his British province. The Trinovantes people lost their freedom as well as having most of the...
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Questions- What were the three areas in which the Romans made lasting contributions to Western Civilization?
Heichelheim, Fritz, Cedric A. Yeo, and Allen M. Ward. A History Of The Roman People. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1984.
“This account I have given the reader, not so much with the intention of commending the Romans, as of comforting those that have been conquered by them, and for the deterring others from attempting innovations under their government. This discourse of the Roman military conduct may also perhaps be of use to such of the curious as are ignorant of it, and yet have a mind to know it.” –excerpt from “Description of the Roman Army,” by Josephus