The Caledonians (Latin: Caledonii) or Caledonian Confederacy, is a name given by historians to a group of the indigenous Picts of Scotland during the Iron Age. They were enemies of the Roman Empire, which was then occupying southern Great Britain in the province they called Britannia. We do not know by what name the Caledonians referred to themselves. Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ... The indigenous peoples of Europe are those peoples identified as indigenous peoples, as per the modern global interpretation of that term. ... A replica of the Hilton of Cadboll Stone. ... Motto: , traditionally rendered in Scots as Wha daur meddle wi me?[1] and in English as No one provokes me with impunity. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ... The Roman Empire is the name given to both the imperial domain developed by the city-state of Rome and also the corresponding phase of that civilization, characterized by an autocratic form of government. ... Map of the Roman Empire, with the provinces, after 120. ... Principal sites in Roman Britain Roman Britain refers to those parts of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between 43 and 410. ...

The Caledonians were hillfort builders and farmers who defeated and were defeated by the Romans on several occasions. The Romans never fully occupied the territory they called Caledonia (broadly corresponding to modern Scotland) and resistance by the Caledonians was one of the factors that led to the Romans' abandonment of plans to occupy the area. The term hill fort is commonly used by archeologists to describe fortified enclosures located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. ... Caledonia is the Latin name, given by the Roman Empire to a northern area of the island of Great Britain. ...

Nearly all of the information that we have about the Caledonians comes from their enemy, therefore it is necessary to be aware of the possibility of bias in the historical record. Tacitus mentions that they had red hair and large limbs (Agricola, 11) Gaius Cornelius Tacitus Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (c. ... Red hair (also referred to as auburn, ginger, or titian) is a hair color that varies from a deep red through to bright copper. ... A limb (from the Old English lim) is a jointed appendage of the human or animal body; a large or main branch of a tree; a representative, branch or member of a group or organization. ... The Agricola (full Latin title: De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae) is a book by the Roman historian Tacitus, written c. ...

An assessment by a modern historian

Peter Salway considers the Caledonians to have consisted of indigenous Pictish tribes augmented by fugitive Brythonic resistance fighters fleeing from Britannia. The Caledonii tribe, after which the historical Caledonian Confederacy is named may have been joined in conflict with Rome by tribes in northern central Scotland by this time, such as the Vacomagi, Taexali and Venicones recorded by Ptolemy. It should be noted that there is some conjecture as to whether the Picts were themselves Brythonic, and that the Romans reached an accommodation with Brythonic tribes such as the Votadini as effective buffer states. Peter Salway is a British historian and probably the leading authority on Roman Britain alive today. ... The indigenous peoples of Europe are those peoples identified as indigenous peoples, as per the modern global interpretation of that term. ... The Brythonic languages (or Brittonic languages) form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family. ... Gary Taxali Taexali (tribe), Celtic tribe in Britain Category: ... The Venicones were an ancient Celtic tribe of Britain that lived in what is today Tayside in the first century, around the time of the Roman invasion. ... A medieval artists rendition of Claudius Ptolemaeus Claudius Ptolemaeus (Greek: ; c. ... The Votadini (the Wotādīnī, or Votādīnī) were a people of the Iron Age in Great Britain, and their territory was briefly part of the Roman province Britannia. ... A buffer state is a country lying between two rival or potentially hostile greater powers, which by its sheer existence is thought to prevent conflict between them. ...

The history of the Caledonians from the Roman perspective

In AD 83 or 84, led by Calgacus, the Caledonians' defeat at the hands of Gnaeus Julius Agricola at Mons Graupius is recorded by Tacitus. Tacitus avoids using terms such as king to describe Calgacus and it is uncertain as to whether the Caledonians had single leaders or whether they were more disparate and that Calgacus was an elected war leader only. For other uses, see number 83. ... Centuries: 1st century BC - 1st century - 2nd century Decades: 0s BC - 0s - 10s - 20s - 30s - 40s - 50s - 60s - 70s - 80s - 90s - 100s Years: 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 Events Possible date of Battle of Mons Graupius (83 or 84) Pliny the Younger was sevir... Calgacus was the Romanised name of the leader of the Caledonian Confederacy who fought the Roman army of Gnaeus Julius Agricola at the Battle of Mons Graupius in AD 83 or 84. ... Gnaeus Julius Agricola (July 13, 40 - August 23, 93) was a Roman general responsible for much of the Roman conquest of Britain. ... The Battle of Mons Graupius took place in AD 83 or 84. ... Look up monarch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

In AD 180 they took part in an invasion of Britannia, breached Hadrian's Wall and were not brought under control for several years, eventually signing peace treaties with the governor Ulpius Marcellus. This suggests that they were capable of making formal agreements in unison despite supposedly having many different chieftains. However, Roman historians used the word "Caledonii" not only to refer to the Caledonii themselves, but also to any of the other tribes (both Pictish or Brythonic) living north of Hadrian's Wall, and it is uncertain whether these later were limited to individual groups or wider unions of tribes. For other uses, see number 180. ... Sections of Hadrians Wall remain near Greenhead and along the route, though other large sections have been dismantled over the years to use the stones for various nearby construction projects. ... A peace treaty is an agreement between two hostile parties, usually countries or governments, that formally ends a war or armed conflict. ... Ulpius Marcellus was a Roman governor and general of the later 2nd century AD. He was sent by the Emperor Commodus to govern Roman Britain and suppress a serious revolt in AD 180. ... Sections of Hadrians Wall remain near Greenhead and along the route, though other large sections have been dismantled over the years to use the stones for various nearby construction projects. ...

In 197 AD Dio Cassius records that the Caledonians aided in a further attack on the Roman frontier being led by the Maeatae and the Brigantes and probably inspired by the removal of garrisons on Hadrian's Wall by Clodius Albinus. He says the Caledonians broke the treaties they had made with Marcellus a few years' earlier (Dio lxxvii, 12). Events Roman Emperor Septimius Severus sacks Ctesiphon and captures an enormous number of its inhabitants as slaves. ... Dio Cassius Cocceianus (c. ... The Maeatae were a confederation of tribes who lived probably between Hadrians Wall and the Antonine Wall or possibly just on either side of Hadrians Wall in Roman Britain. ... The Brigantes were a British Celtic tribe which lived between Tyne and Humber. ... Clodius Albinus. ...

The governor who arrived to oversee the regain of control over Britannia after Albinus' defeat, Virius Lupus was obliged to buy peace from the Maeatae rather than fight them. Principal sites in Roman Britain Roman Britain refers to those parts of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between 43 and 410. ... Virius Lupus was a Roman soldier and politician of the late second and early third century AD. He served as a legate of one of the German provinces and supported Septimus Severus during the civil war that followed the murder of Pertinax. ...

The Caledonians are next mentioned in 209, when they are said to have surrendered to the emperor Septimius Severus after he personally led a military expedition north of Hadrian's Wall, in search of a glorious military victory. Herodian and Dio wrote only in passing of the campaign but describe the Caledonians ceding territory to Rome as being the result. Dr. Colin Martin has suggested that the Severan campaigns did not seek a battle but instead sought to destroy the fertile agricultural land of eastern Scotland and thereby bring about genocide of the Caledonians through starvation [1]. Events Publius Septimius Geta receives the titles of Imperator and Augustus from his father, Roman emperor Septimius Severus. ... Lucius Septimius Severus (b. ... For the grammarian, see Aelius Herodianus. ... Look up Genocide in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

By 210 however, the Caledonians had re-formed their alliance with the Maeatae and joined their fresh offensive. A punitive expedition led by Severus' son, Caracalla was sent out with the purpose of slaughtering everyone it encountered from any of the northern tribes. Severus meanwhile prepared for total conquest but already ill, he died at York in Britannia in 211. Caracalla attempted to take over command but when his troops refused to recognise him as emperor, he made peace with the Caledonians and retreated south of Hadrian's Wall to press his claim for the throne. Sheppard Frere suggests that Caracella briefly continued the campaign after his father's death rather than immediately leaving, citing an apparent delay in his arrival in Rome and indirect numismatic and epigraphic factors that suggest he may instead have fully concluded the war but that Dio's hostility towards his subject led him to record the campaign as ending in a truce. Malcolm Todd however considers there to be no evidence to support this. Events Caracalla is Roman Consul Births Dexippus, Greek historian Mani, founder of Manichaeism (approximate date) Deaths Sauromates II, King of Bosporus Claudius Galen, Greek scholar Monoimus, Arab gnostic (approximate date) Zhou Yu, Chinese strategist Category: ... Caracalla Caracalla (April 4, 186–April 8, 217) was emperor of the Roman Empire from AD 211–217. ... York is a city in Northern England, at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss. ... This article is about the year 211. ... Dr Sheppard Frere is a British historian and archaeologist studying the Roman Empire. ... Malcolm Todd is a British historian and archaeologist with an interest in the interaction between the Roman Empire and Western Europe. ...

In any event, there is no further historical mention of the Caledonians for a century save for a c. AD 230 inscription from Colchester which records a dedication by a man calling himself the nephew (or grandson) of "Uepogenus, [a] Caledonian" [2]. This may be because Severus' campaigns were so successful that the Caledonians were wiped out and replaced by the broch-building peoples of the far north [3]. Events Pope Pontian succeeds Pope Urban I Patriarch Castinus succeeds Patriarch Ciriacus I as Patriarch of Constantinople Births Deaths Categories: 230 ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Dun Carloway broch, Lewis, Scotland The Broch is an Iron Age dry stone tower of a type which is unique to Scotland. ...

In 305, Constantius Chlorus re-invaded the northern lands of Britain although the sources are vague over their claims of penetration into the far north and a great victory over the "Caledones and others" (Panegyrici Latini Vetares, VI (VII) vii 2). The event is notable in that it includes the first recorded use of the term 'Pict' to describe the tribes of the area. Events May 1 - Diocletian and Maximian, emperors of Rome, retire from office. ... On the reverse of this argenteus struck in Antioch under Constantius Chlorus, the tetrarcs are sacrificing to celebrate a victory against the Sarmatians. ... The Panegyrici Latini or Latin Panegyrics is a collection of twelve ancient Roman panegyric orations. ...

Name Etymolgy

Possibly derived from "Gall" meaning Gaul or Celt and "donia" related to "dun" meaning fort.

See also

• Caledonia
• Dicalydones
• Antonine Wall

Caledonia is the Latin name, given by the Roman Empire to a northern area of the island of Great Britain. ... The Dicalydones were mentioned by the 4th century writer Ammianus Marcellinus as one of the two branches of the Picti, the Picts, the inhabitants of modern-day Scotland (the other being the Verturiones). ... The Antonine Wall, looking east, from Barr Hill between Twechar and Croy The Antonine Wall, remains of Roman fortlet, Barr Hill, near Twechar Location of Hadrians Wall and the Antonine Wall in Scotland and Northern England. ...

Bibliography

• Cunliffe, B, Iron Age Britain, Batsford, London, 2004, ISBN 0-7134-8839-5
• Frere, S, Britannia, Routledge, London, 1987, ISBN 0-7102-1215-1
• Salway, P, Roman Britain, OUP, Oxford, 1986
• Todd, M, Roman Britain, Fontana, London, 1985. ISBN 0-00-686064-8

Barrington Windsor Cunliffe (born 1939) has been Professor of European Archaeology at the University of Oxford since 1972. ... Dr Sheppard Frere is a British historian and archaeologist studying the Roman Empire. ... Peter Salway is a British historian and probably the leading authority on Roman Britain alive today. ... Malcolm Todd is a British historian and archaeologist with an interest in the interaction between the Roman Empire and Western Europe. ...

External links

• The Scotsman - Mons Graupius, where the Romans defeated the Caledonii
• Famous Scots - Galgacus
• Historic UK - Romans in Scotland
• History Scotland Magazine