Leaving Brittania

[Pertinax]

The so called "saxon shore " forts are a good call on this topic-(its a later term) remember also Brancaster as a major security port at the junction of the "two" Britains-though once again the command of the "Ocean" lead to the declaration of yet another Imperial pretender. Britain itself was a well preserved and well developed province , tin, (with copper) and lead were mined extensivley.

Perhaps peripheral location to the seat of power is the real reason for the drift away from Rome-Byzantium struggled on for a year or two afterwards....

[Guest Nomad]

Legions and troops of various kinds went off with pretenders from Constantine onwars - probably lastly Magnus Maximus c 383, and a later "Emperor" Constantine III, but there were probably still locally based soldiers on the Wall and elsewhere. These were often Frisians or germans imported from Europe.

 

 

Gentlemen,

 

Although I do not want to interrupt your very lucid conversation, I was hoping for some help on the presence of the Frisians in Roman Britain. I know they were on Hadrian's wall in the 4th century, but I was wondering if they had been there much earlier. In 250, there was a great flood in Flanders, causing the Frisians to move. That they all, for the most part, chose to migrate to Kent, England indicates to me they had been there before. Therefore, I wonder if they had been there as part of the Roman army? Earlier than 250, I imagine they would have formed an auxiliary force rather than being part of the infantry. If so, what skills did they have that the Romans needed, and when was the earliest time they might have appeared in Britain?

 

Thank you very much, in advance, for your reply.

 

Nomad

[caldrail]

Also there's evidence that some units simply disbanded here in england, or simply melted away when the pay stopped. These men would have merged into civilian populations without difficulty since they almost had already by that time.

[Pertinax]

Legions and troops of various kinds went off with pretenders from Constantine onwars - probably lastly Magnus Maximus c 383, and a later "Emperor" Constantine III, but there were probably still locally based soldiers on the Wall and elsewhere. These were often Frisians or germans imported from Europe.

 

 

Gentlemen,

 

Although I do not want to interrupt your very lucid conversation, I was hoping for some help on the presence of the Frisians in Roman Britain. I know they were on Hadrian's wall in the 4th century, but I was wondering if they had been there much earlier. In 250, there was a great flood in Flanders, causing the Frisians to move. That they all, for the most part, chose to migrate to Kent, England indicates to me they had been there before. Therefore, I wonder if they had been there as part of the Roman army? Earlier than 250, I imagine they would have formed an auxiliary force rather than being part of the infantry. If so, what skills did they have that the Romans needed, and when was the earliest time they might have appeared in Britain?

 

Thank you very much, in advance, for your reply.

 

Nomad

 

You might flick through my Vindolanda/Vircovicium pics (gallery) and blog entry -are the Frisii you speak of distinct at this time from Batavii?

 

http://www.roman-britain.org/places/vindolanda.htm-have you seen this info source? Try scrolling through the Wall epigraphic evidence per fortlet.As you can see Northern Europe was well represented by Auxilliae.

Edited February 22, 2006 by Pertinax

[Andrew Dalby]

Legions and troops of various kinds went off with pretenders from Constantine onwars - probably lastly Magnus Maximus c 383, and a later "Emperor" Constantine III, but there were probably still locally based soldiers on the Wall and elsewhere. These were often Frisians or germans imported from Europe.

 

 

Gentlemen,

 

Although I do not want to interrupt your very lucid conversation, I was hoping for some help on the presence of the Frisians in Roman Britain. I know they were on Hadrian's wall in the 4th century, but I was wondering if they had been there much earlier. In 250, there was a great flood in Flanders, causing the Frisians to move. That they all, for the most part, chose to migrate to Kent, England indicates to me they had been there before. Therefore, I wonder if they had been there as part of the Roman army? Earlier than 250, I imagine they would have formed an auxiliary force rather than being part of the infantry. If so, what skills did they have that the Romans needed, and when was the earliest time they might have appeared in Britain?

 

Thank you very much, in advance, for your reply.

 

Nomad

 

Interesting. Someone, some time, will have to give a real explanation of why English is more closely related to Frisian than to any other language. Does Nomad's comment help?

[Northern Neil]

I would be interested to know when the last recorded governor presided. Or even if the concept of a governor existed in this, and other provinces in the 5th century empire.