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Agricola |
Julius Gnaeus
Agricola (40 AD-93 AD) was born in Forum
Julii in Gaul (modern Frejus) and read
philosophy at Massilia (Marseille). Both his
grandfathers had been procurators under the
Caesars. His father was executed under
Caligula. After serving (at 21) as
Senatorial Tribune to Suetonius in Britain,
Agricola returned to Rome and held numerous
offices, ending with the consulship in 77
AD. In 78, he returned to Britannia and
served there for seven years as Governor.
His daughter married the historian Tacitus,
for whom, presumably, Agricola provided an
eye witness account of Boudica’s rebellion.
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Andraste |
A goddess invoked by
Boudica in her campaign against the Romans,
according to Cassius Dio (ca. 150 AD-235
AD), one of the two primary sources for the
rebellion of 60/61 AD. In the same passage,
Dio also mentions Andate (“their goddess of
victory”), who may or may not be the same
deity. Neither name appears elsewhere in
Dio’s work, nor anywhere outside it.
Andraste/Andate is the only Celtic war
goddess cited by name in any of the
classical commentaries. See also “Goddess
Names.” |
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Aquila Jovis |
“Jove’s Eagle,” a
likely enough name for a Roman flagship. |
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Aquilifer |
The highest ranking
standard bearer in a legion; he carried the
eagle (aquila), Jove’s sacred bird. |
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Arnemetta |
See
Goddess Names |
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Arretine |
Pottery produced in
Arretium (modern Arezzo, Italy) for a
limited period during the last century BC
and first century AD, generally regarded as
superior to products of the later factories
in Gaul. For dramatic purposes, its quality
has been somewhat exaggerated in this novel.
The scene on the Arretine platter in Tullus’
shop actually appears on the magnificent
silver dish (fourth century AD) found at
Mildenhall, Suffolk, in the 1940's. See also
“Samian.” |
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As |
See
Coins |
|
Atrium |
The central room of
one style of Roman house. Other rooms
(kitchen, bedrooms, office, dining room,
etc.) opened off the atrium |
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Auxiliary |
Support troops,
usually comprised of non-citizens from
provinces and allied countries, that made up
a Roman legion’s light infantry and
specialized units (e.g., cavalry, archers,
slingers, bargemen). Auxiliary soldiers
received Roman citizenship after 25 years of
service. At full strength, a legion had an
equal number of legionary and auxiliary
troops, all under the command of the
legion’s legate. Auxiliary units, 500 or
1000 strong, were of three types: cavalry
wing, infantry unit, mixed infantry/horse
unit. See also “Legion.” |
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Ballista |
Originally, very long
bows mounted horizontally on a frame, firing
large stones or other missiles. The bow was
later replaced by two separate horizontal
arms, each inserted into a vertical bundle
of twisted sinew, rope, horse hair or
(rarely) human hair. When a rope connecting
the horizontal arms was pulled back, the
torsion bundles were wound up like springs,
storing energy that was released at the
moment of firing. Modern experiments with
ballistae show that some of the larger ones
could project 6-8 pound stones for 400-500
yards. Smaller ballistae were mounted on
carriages for easy mobility. A large siege
catapult (onager), weighing up to six tons,
had a vertical throwing arm powered by a
torsion bundle. At full strength, a legion
might have up to 60 carriage ballistae and
ten onagers. |
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Basilica |
A large covered hall,
oblong and often colonnaded; the
administrative and judicial center of a town
(or legionary base). |
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Beltane |
One of the major
sacred festivals of ancient Celtic culture;
generally thought to have been celebrated on
what would be May 1 in the modern calendar,
although the correlation between the Celtic
year and ours cannot be positively
determined. The implication in this novel is
that Beltane occurs earlier than modern May
1, closer to the vernal equinox. The
festival was associated with the Celtic god
Belenos, whom the Romans equated with their
sun god, Apollo. Bonfires and the fertility
of humans and cattle are traditional aspects
of Beltane. |
|
Bireme |
A galley (vessel
propelled primarily by rowers) with two
banks, or tiers, of oars. |
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Brigantia |
See
Goddess Names |
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Briton |
In the time period of
this novel, the term “Briton” designates a
member of any of the many Celtic tribes that
had migrated from the Continent into Britain
during the last millennium of the
pre-Christian era. While the precise dates
of settlement are difficult to fix and
subject to frequent revaluation, the Celts
were certainly in dominance in Britain some
centuries before Julius Caesar’s invasion in
55/54 BC. Their language (a branch of
Continental Celtic known as Brythonic) is
the ancestor of Welsh, Cornish and Breton.
The various tribes in Boudica’s time spoke
essentially the same language, with minor
regional or dialectical differences not so
great as to prevent mutual intelligibility. |
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Camulodunum |
British-Celtic name
for site of modern Colchester in Essex,
meaning “fortified place of Camulos” (a
Celtic war god). It was the seat of
Cunobelin(us)’s domain from about 9 AD until
the Roman Conquest in 43 AD. Tacitus (56
AD-120 AD), one of the two primary sources
for the Boudican rebellion, calls the town “Camulodunum,”
but its more official Roman name seems to
have been Colonia Camulodunum and/or Colonia
Victricensis (“Colony of the Victorious”). |
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Caradoc |
The chief leader of
the British resistance to the Roman invasion
of 43 AD, known as Cara(c)tacus to the
Romans. See also “Cunobelin.” |
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Carnyx |
A long, vertical
battle horn popular among the Celts (and
other peoples of Europe) from about 200 BC
to 200 AD. Various representations of it
survive, most notably on the Gundestrup
cauldron, which shows three carnyces being
played in unison. Contemporary historical
accounts describe the sound of the carnyx as
strident and terrifying, the voice
attributed to it in this novel. John Kenny
(see Bibliography), playing a modern
reconstruction based on a carnyx head found
in Scotland about 1816, has shown that the
instrument had considerable subtlety of tone
and voice. |
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Catus Decianus |
The Procurator of
Britannia whose attack on Boudica’s village
provoked the rebellion. With typical and
tantalizing brevity, Tacitus tells us only
that as Boudica’s army closed on Londinium,
Decianus fled to Gaul. History has no record
of him after that. Perhaps it is not
altogether improbable that he did fall into
Boudica’s hands. |
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Cella |
The central,
rectangular room of a Roman temple,
surmounted by a gabled roof supported by
columns. |
|
Centurion |
Officer in charge of
a century. See also “Legion” and “Century.” |
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Century |
A sub-division of a
legion consisting of 80 men (not 100, as its
name would suggest). There were 60 centuries
per legion. Six centuries made up a cohort.
See also “Legion” and “Cohort. |
|
Cerberus |
In classical
mythology, the three-headed dog that guards
the entrance to Hades. |
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Claudius |
Tiberius Claudius
Drusus Nero Germanicus (born 10 BC) was
declared Emperor by the Praetorian Guard
after the assassination of Emperor Gaius
(Caligula) in 41 AD. Claudius’ death by
poisoning in 54 AD was probably the work of
his niece and second wife, Agrippina the
Younger. He was succeeded by Nero, her son
by a previous marriage. |
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Cohort |
A sub-division of a
legion consisting of approximately 500 men
(six centuries). There were ten cohorts to a
legion. See also “Legion.” |
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Coins |
1 aureus=25 denarius
1 dupondius=2 as
1 denarius=4 sestertium
1 as=2 semis
1 sestertium=2 dupondius
1 semis=2 quadrans
A rank-and-file legionary in Claudius’ reign
was paid 300 sestertii per year, with many
mandatory deductions. The price of a common
slave ranged from 500-1500 denarii. |
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Colonia |
A Roman settlement
(colony) in conquered territory, often set
aside for retired legionaries. Camulodunum
was the first such colony in Britain,
presumably for veterans of Legio XX. Three
other coloniae were later founded at Lindum
(Lincoln), Glevum (Gloucester) and Eburacum
(York). |
|
Coracle |
A small boat used by
the ancient Britons. It is made of a wicker
frame covered with hide. |
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Coventina |
See
Goddess Names |
|
Cunobelin |
Cunobelin (Latin
Cunobelinus, Shakespeare’s Cymbeline), a
powerful king of the Catuvellauni who ruled
from about AD 5-41, extending his empire
throughout southeastern Britain. After about
9 AD, he ruled from Camulodunum, which he
appropriated from the Trinovantes. He had
four or five sons, among them Togodumnus
(killed early in the invasion of 43 AD) and
Caradoc (Latin Cara(c)tacus), who resisted
Roman rule until betrayed to the Romans by
Cartimandua, queen of the Brigantes. |
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Danu |
See
Goddess Names |
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Decimation |
The killing of every
tenth man in a military unit, an extreme
form of punishment seldom invoked; Corbulo’s
use of it in Armenia is historical.
“Standards Forward” is a convenient fiction;
no such military signal is known to have
existed. |
|
Decurion |
Used in this book
only in its military sense: the leader of a
cavalry squadron. To avoid confusion,
“magistrate” and “councillor” are used to
designate the civil applications of the
word. |
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Denarius |
See
Coins |
|
Domitius Corbulo |
Famous general in
reigns of Claudius and Nero; hero of
campaigns in Germany and Armenia; reputed to
be a strong disciplinarian. He was recalled
to Rome in 66 AD; suspected by Nero of
treason, he was ordered to commit suicide. |
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Drieda |
While Boudica is
known to have had two daughters, their names
are not recorded. Drieda is a fiction of
this novel and not attested elsewhere. See
also “Epona.” |
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Drustan |
The name is attested
in various forms (Drustanus, Drust, Tristan)
among the Celts and Picts of early Britain,
but history does not record that Boudica
took another husband, lover or consort after
the death of Prasutagus. |
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Dunum |
Celtic for “fortified
place”; appears (alone or in compounds) in
numerous place names in Britain and on the
Continent; Irish dun, Welsh dinas; cognate
of English “town.” |
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Dundadgel |
Possible early form
of Tintagel (perhaps = “fort by the neck of
land”), in Cornwall. The actual name of the
site in Boudica’s time is not recorded. |
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