Wales Options

[WotWotius]

OK,
Why did it take so long for the Romans to conquor Wales?

[Pertinax]

I rifled through the OUP "Roman Britain" to see if it had any military references-(not really being a Welsh "expert") and can find no references to disturbances after the subjugation.Though scholars of the classics may be aware of some such event. I did note with interest that the next reference source is around AD550 suggesting that the area was the effective limit of Saxon conquest.
I think the role of the Classis Brittania is quite important, once Deva was fully established as a major port/fortress and major commercial centre ,command of the seas around Wales effectivley closed the net on any further discontent .The ability to strike from the sea seems to have totally demoralised the Brythonic tribes.Again I also suggest that once Romes mercantile tentacles spread the industrial and commercial influence of setlement would have weighed against previous traditional tribal forms.

This post has been edited by Pertinax: Jun 16 2006, 06:13 PM

[Primus Pilus]

Same as Pertinax...

There aren't any specific rebellions of 'Welsh' tribes after the Roman conquest, but it is likely that there were some disturbances. Considering the massive military presence though, the Romans were probably fast to react to the slightest incident.

During the rebellion that occured under Commodus through to the civil war following his death, I would find it hard to believe that the west wasn't at least a bit unsettled. When Clodius Albinus withdrew the legions from Britain to meet Septimius Severus, he essentially left the bulk of the province unmanned. Severus had his work cut out for him restoring order once he defeated Albinus and arrived in Britain. Though most accounts suggest that any tribal unrest had stemmed from the north (and hence the warrior emperor's return to the idea of Caledonian conquest), it would seem likely that the frontier regions of modern Wales was a bit troublesome as well.

Additionally, as I understand it the Ordovices and Deceangli never had their own tribal administrative center (civitas) as part of the empire, meaning that they were likely under Roman military government. Though most sources, including archaelogical evidence suggest that the Ordovices were severely punished by Agricola and the area did not recover for several generations. (I'm not sure that the Ordovices ever recovered but clearly other tribes would've moved in at some point).