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October 9th, 2015 
Awake Goy
What is covered in this article
This article is the second of a three-part series examining the British uprising against Roman occupation in 60 AD led by the famed warrior Queen Boudica.
While the first article in this series detailed the background causes leading up to the uprising, in addition to the events that occurred during it, this second article will provide a detailed account of the Battle of Watling Street itself. In this account we will examine exactly why Boudica’s rebel force was annihilated, despite its massive superiority in numbers.
What is covered in Part 3 of this series
The next and final article in this series will take the military analysis even further by considering alternate military scenarios whereby Boudica and her field commanders consider different strategic and tactical options to defeat the Romans. Not only will we consider how this could have been achieved at Watling Street, but we will also consider the hypothetical scenario whereby Boudica refuses to give battle at Watling Street, and instead chooses other strategic options to defeat the Romans.
Background events behind Boudica’s uprising
Boudica’s all-out rebellion against the Romans in 60 AD followed a series of events provoked by the Romans themselves following the death of Boudica’s husband Prasutagus, king of the Iceni tribe.
The Romans moved in to claim the Iceni lands in the name of the Emperor Nero almost immediately upon the death of Prasutagus, violating all agreements previously made. Boudica was publicly flogged when she protested this, and her two young daughters raped in front of the assembled Iceni tribe. The nobility of the Iceni tribe were stripped of their titles, and the entire tribe itself was to be reduced to the status of slavery.
Boudica vowed revenge against the Romans and joined forces with her neighbours to the south, the Trinovantes. The Trinovantes too were on the verge of revolt against the Romans after severe mistreatment involving widespread land confiscations, enforced evictions and acts of brutality.
The Iceni and the Trinovantes hold a council of war, with Boudica being elected to lead the uprising.
And so, with a combined force of 80,000 British rebels from both the Iceni and Trinovante tribes among others, Boudica devastates Roman power in southern Britain. Her rebel force burns to the ground the Roman capital Camulodunum (Colchester), the Roman financial capital Londinium (London) and Verulamium (St Albans). Every Roman found is butchered. But the crowning achievement of Boudica’s uprising thus far is the annihilation of the Roman 9th Hispana legion, which was ambushed by a detachment of Boudica’s forces as it marched towards Londinium on a relief mission to save the city from destruction by the rebels.
These victories attract a steady flow of additional British volunteers from other British tribes, eventually swelling her ranks to a colossal 230,000. Many of these were non-combatants, many being family members of the fighters who were eager to watch the battle. Although it is not known how many actual fighters Boudica had, if we assume that a mere 25% of this huge number fought in the coming Watling Street battle, this still gives the Britons almost 60,000 fighters, a massive 6:1 numerical advantage over the Romans.
While the Roman Army was quite uniform, Boudica’s rebels consisted of a mixture of male warriors, female warriors, cavalrymen, and charioteers.
Paulinus chooses his position
After scraping together every last man he could muster, the Roman commander, Suetonius Paulinus, had barely two legions (10, 000 men) under his command.
Although not stated in the historical texts, it makes sense to assume that Paulinus would have been sending out cavalry scouts in order to monitor Boudica’s progress along Watling Street.
This would have given Paulinus time to ride along Watling Street himself to survey the surrounding geography, in order to find a position which would not only be visible to Boudica as she continued north along Watling Street, but one which would also offer his men maximum terrain advantage.
The skilled use of terrain to offset the tactical or numerical advantage of an enemy force is a recurring theme throughout all of military history. Arguably the most famous historical example of this was at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, where 7000 Greek warriors held up between 70,000 – 300,000 Persians for three days by utilizing a narrow pass, which funneled the Persians together, thereby neutralizing their numbers advantage.
Paulinus eventually found the ideal position to make a stand: a defile which was blocked off at the sides and rear by woods. This offered vital protection to both his flanks and rear. Now his legionaries could concentrate exclusively on what was in front of them without the concern of being outflanked and encircled.
But Paulinus’s position offered two further vital terrain advantages. Firstly, it was unmistakably conspicuous from Watling Street, ensuring that Boudica would clearly see the Romans as she continued along the road. And secondly, in order to engage Paulinus’s men, Boudica’s force would have to veer off Watling Street and advance across a wide plain which narrowed considerably the closer one neared the Roman position. This would have a substantial funneling effect on the Britons, thus neutralizing their huge numbers advantage.
This is an excellent example of an experienced commander choosing optimal terrain features which offered his side all of the advantages, while at the same time disadvantaging his opponent.
Where exactly did the battle take place?
Historians do not know the precise location where the battle took place. There have been many suggestions. It is believed by some to have occurred somewhere in the Midlands, possibly a little south of where the Fosse Way meets Watling Street (i.e. the A5).
The Britons arrive on the plain
Before long, Boudica appeared along Watling Street, and was clearly able to see Paulinus’s men at the narrow end of the plain.
It was now finally time to destroy Roman military power in Britain once and for all.
Before the Britons assembled for battle, they placed their supply carts in a long continuous line at the outer edge of the plain, a convenient point from which many of their families could watch an overwhelming victory against the hated Roman occupiers.
A comparative overview of fighting qualities
Before we look at how the battle of Watling Street unfolded, it is interesting to firstly take a look at the key factors contributing to each sides’ fighting ability, and present a very brief comparative overview of these factors as they relate to the British and Roman warriors:
Warrior culture.......Approximately equal
Numbers...............Britons - huge advantage
Morale................Britons - huge advantage
Motivation............Britons - huge advantage
Discipline............Romans - huge advantage
Armour................Romans - huge advantage
Weaponry..............Romans - huge advantage
Strategy / tactics....Romans - huge advantage
Experience............Romans - huge advantage
Commanders............Romans - huge advantage
It is immediately apparent from this list that the Romans hold distinct advantages in a number of critical areas, despite their significant numbers disadvantage, and their low morale on account of the situation they now faced, which would have also reduced their overall level of motivation.
Of course the reverse is now true for the Britons, whose spirits have been massively bolstered by their earlier successes and their huge numbers advantage.
A comparative overview of difference in tactical doctrine
One of the most telling differences between the two armies was in their tactical doctrine, and this stemmed directly from their culture and psychology.
Although the Britons and the Romans were both a very warlike people, they had completely different ideas about what constituted bravery and honour in combat.
While the Britons viewed individual one-on-one encounters as the true measure of a warrior’s worth, the Romans were instead imbued with the principles of unit cohesion in massed, organzied, disciplined ranks, utilizing specific formations depending upon the situation.
This stems directly from Rome’s history. The brutal Celtic incursions into the Mediterranean areas over the previous centuries had forged a highly militaristic ethos within Rome, whereby their military doctrine was gradually fine-tuned to allow its legions to take on Rome’s enemies in massive, fierce pitched battles, and to destroy them utterly.
The Britons did come together as large forces at times, but developed no tactical sophistication comparable to the Romans. They simply relied upon sheer numbers and frontal assaults rather than relying on concepts of unit cohesion.
The Romans organize into battle formation
The Romans numbered 10,000 men. This consisted of approximately 7,500 infantry, and 2,500 cavalry.
Paulinus arranged his 7,500 infantry to span most of the defile, while positioning his cavalry on either wing of the infantry in order to protect their flanks.
Flank vulnerability has been a perpetual concern throughout all of military history, whether one is referring to a squad, a platoon, a division, or even an entire army.
Paulinus ordered his legionaries to arrange themselves into one of the Roman Army’s most often-used configurations: the wedge formation. This formation consisted of a series of wedges resembling the teeth running along a saw. We shall soon see exactly why this particular formation was so devastating when dealing with massed formations.
By now the Romans could see the ocean of Britons across the plain, howling and shrieking at them, working themselves into a frenzy. It must have been a frightening sight.
Tacitus claims that at this point, however, Paulinus addressed his legionaries with the following words, steeling their courage somewhat:
“Despise the savage uproar, the yells and shouts of undisciplined Barbarians. In that mixed multitude, the women out-number the men. Void of spirit, unprovided with arms, they are not soldiers who come to offer battle . . . they have often fled before you, and will again betake themselves to flight when they see the conqueror flaming in the ranks of war . . . It will be your immortal glory, that with a scanty number you can equal the exploits of a great and powerful army. Keep your ranks; discharge your javelins; rush forward to a close attack; bear down all with your bucklers, and hew a passage with your swords. Pursue the vanquished, and never think of spoil and plunder. Conquer, and victory gives you everything.”
– Suetonius Paulinus
Boudica’s speech
From Tacitus’s account, Boudica gave the following speech to her warriors before the battle began:
“This is not the first time that the Britons have been led to battle by a woman . . . The vindictive gods are now at hand . . . From the din of preparation, and the shouts of the British army, the Romans, even now, shrink back with terror. What will be their case when the assault begins? Look round, and view your numbers. Behold the proud display of warlike spirits, and consider the motives for which we draw the avenging sword. On this spot we must either conquer, or die with glory. There is no alternative.”
– Boudica
The Furor Celtica is unleashed
Finally, the moment had come. Boudica blew on the traditional British war horn, and the Battle of Watling Street had began.
The fate of Paulinus’s two legions, and control of the country, now completely hinged on whether Roman discipline, tactics and superior weaponry could prevail against the massive Celtic onslaught.
The standard Celtic battlefield tactic was rudimentary but brutally effective. The Furor Celtica, as the Romans called it: a wild, frenzied, all-out charge relying upon sheer numbers to smash through an opponent’s line and completely overwhelm them.
And so, all at once, the screaming Britons charged towards the Roman position: men, women, chariots and cavalry alike. Boudica herself charged forward on her chariot, in no doubt that the massed frontal assault of all of her warriors world carry the day and cut the Romans to pieces.
Paulinus now made his move. He ordered his men to commence firing with arguably the most lethal piece of field artillery possessed by any army in the world at the time: the deadly scorpio.
The scorpio was essentially an early version of the crossbow – large, fixed to the ground, and extremely powerful. It fired heavy bolts easily capable of penetrating shields and body armour. These weapons were deadly accurate at a distance of 100m in the hands of a skilled operator, and had a phenomenal range of 400m. Each legion typically possessed 60 of these weapons.
Using the data and assumptions described in the Appendix section regarding this weapon, we can estimate that the Romans would have been able to achieve a rate of fire of 4 – 6 bolts per second with non-precision aiming. Non-precision aiming from the scorpios would have sufficed in this battle, since the funneling effect of the terrain would have packed the British warriors closely together. Therefore any bolt fired straight ahead almost certainly would have hit something.
Despite the Romans’ superior training, discipline, tactics, weaponry, experience, and leadership, many of the legionaries must have thought that they had seen their last day on earth. The thundering of hooves and the sight of tens of thousands of rebels coming straight for them with the Furor Celtica must have been terrifying.
But as the Britons closed in, Roman training and discipline kicked into action. As per their usual tactics, the legionaries waited until the Britons were 25-30m away, then hurled their light javelins. The rebels were showered with thousands of deadly missiles that could penetrate right through shields and armour. This volley would surely have taken down several thousand Britons.
The Romans then followed this up with a second massive strike, this time by launching their heavy javelins when the Britons were were only 15m away, again bringing down thousands.
Although it is difficult to know for sure, the Britons had probably positioned their most experienced and best-equipped warriors at the front of their army. And as we can now begin to appreciate, this is the very worst thing they could have done. Following the merciless hail of Roman missiles, the Britons’ front by now would almost certainly have been decimated, and the casualties would probably have included many of the British lieutenants.
If this was in fact the case, the Britons by now would have consisted largely of a disorganized mass of less-experienced warriors, many of whom were poorly equipped. Nonetheless, the Britons still had their overwhelming numbers advantage.
Despite the success of Roman discipline so far, the legionaries would still have been quite fearful at this point. They knew full well that if the Britons’ huge numbers did manage to overwhelm them, any of them who were taken prisoner could expect torture, impalement and decapitation. Paulinus himself would have been under no illusion at all that he would have been singled out for the worst possible treatment.
Finally, contact occurs as thousands of screaming Britons smash into the Roman line. Many historians believe that what followed next was fast, extremely violent, and decisive.
The Roman wedge formation
As stated earlier, Paulinus had ordered his men to form up in a configuration known as the wedge formation, which was often used by the Romans when engaging a massed enemy. The wedge formation gave the Romans a solid shield wall in the shape of a series of wedges similar to the teeth running along a saw.
Once the Roman line had halted the momentum of the British charge, the Romans immediately began to push slowly forward.
By pushing forward, the tips of the Roman wedges began to plough into the ranks of the Britons, breaking up their front line and funneling their soldiers between the wedges. And as the Romans continued to push ahead, the Britons caught between the wedges were progressively hemmed in tighter and tighter, to the point where they were unable to raise their swords or their shields, or to even move.
The Roman legionaries along the sides of each wedge could then stab at them from both sides, in complete safety from behind their large shields.
Amidst this carnage, the Britons, dead and dying, would then simply be trampled underfoot by the Romans, who continued to slowly plough forward, gradually funneling every Briton in front of them between the wedges.
Without some innovative battlefield tactic or specialized weaponry, the Roman wedge formation – provided protection to its flanks was maintained – simply could not be halted once it had engaged a massed enemy. It was an unstoppable juggernaut.
It was now that the Britons’ enormous numbers began to work against them. As the Britons towards the rear pushed forward in their eagerness to get to grips with the enemy, they were literally pushing their own comrades right into the jaws of Roman wedge death trap.
The Britons soon realized the hopelessness of the situation, and began to make an disorganized, undisciplined retreat.
But at the same time, the Roman cavalry bore down on the Britons from the flanks, cutting them down and spreading terror and confusion amongst them.
Before long, the chaotic retreat became a full-scale rout.
As the Britons fled for their lives, they were harried mercilessly and cut down by both the Roman cavalry and infantry.
But the most horrific part of all was yet to come. As the Britons attempted to escape the plain, they found themselves trapped against their own line of supply carts. And even worse, many of the families who had come to watch a famous British victory were now themselves caught up in the melee.
The Romans were by now in full bloodlust mode. They turned on every Briton they could see, even the children. What began as a defeat had now turned into an horrific massacre, with the Romans not even sparing the Britons’ pack animals.
The corpses of the slain, strewn all over the field, were left to rot where they fell, in order to act as a deterrent to other Britons who might harbour any thoughts of challenging Roman rule.
According to the Roman historian Tacitus, some 80,000 Britons lay dead after the battle, while the Romans themselves suffered 400 killed (although many historians feel that British casualties were exaggerated by Tacitus for propaganda purposes).
It may have only taken a mere 30 minutes or so to reach this point, during which time scorpio volleys were released, javelins launched, swords drawn, wedges driven into the enemy, and the Roman cavalry unleashed. It was rapid and it was violent. Essentially, Britain’s future for the next 350 years was determined in 30 minutes or less.
What happened to Boudica?
No historian knows exactly what became of Boudica. The most popular legend has it that she poisoned herself that same day. This stems from Tacitus’s account.
Cassius Dio on the other hand claims that Boudica eventually fell ill and died, after which she was given a heroine’s burial.
Whatever the truth may be, Boudica has assured her reputation and her legend as one of the most revered heroines of all time, and she will never be forgotten. Although no longer with us physically, the great Warrior Queen Boudica has become both spirit and inspiration – an enduring icon of pride in one’s culture, an enduring icon of courage, and an enduring icon of vengeance!
The factors explaining Boudica’s defeat
One must agree that Boudicca did very well at undermining Roman power in Southern Britain. Her strategy was sound, and the warrior queen indeed had a good run.
But in the end, like so many who had made a stand against the Romans, neither Boudica nor her generals had any idea of the kind of strategic or tactical approaches needed to defeat an enemy as powerful as the Romans. They were simply too far out of their depth.
In the final analysis, we cannot ascribe Boudica’s defeat to merely one or two factors. As with virtually every battle, there were a number of factors in play. Nonetheless, an overview of the relevant factors accounting for Boudica’s defeat are as follows:
- The outright mismatch between the two armies: The two armies differed from each other in virtually every way imaginable: discipline, armour, weaponry, tactical doctrine, and experience. This was displayed in dramatic fashion by the devastating effect of the Roman missile barrages, in addition to the Roman wedge formation, which promptly destroyed the Britons’ efforts to achieve anything of military significance at Watling Street
- Terrain: The Britons engaged the Romans at a position that had been carefully selected by the Romans themselves to offer them all of the advantages, while at the same time disadvantaging the Britons
- British overconfidence: Boudica’s faith in her huge numbers, in addition to her initial successes, simply bred an over-confidence that would only help lead to the Britons’ defeat. Almost certainly the biggest misjudgement was the Britons’ assumption that the engagement with Paulinus would turn out exactly like their encounter with the 9th Hispana legion which they had annihilated
In a fascinating and ironic manner, the two main advantages held by the Britons over the Romans – numbers and morale – did nothing but backfire against the Britons in the end.
Aftermath
As per the Romans’ usual modus operandi, murderous reprisals were carried out in various parts of the country in order to discourage future uprisings.
“. . . and the tribes which had shown themselves dubious or disaffected were harried with fire and sword.”
– Tacitus
The Iceni kingdom itself was dissolved and its inhabitants forcibly resettled in a Romanized town.
With the exception of a much less significant revolt 9 years later in 69 AD, there were virtually no further challenges to Roman rule in Britain after this. This marked a period of relative peace in the country which lasted until 410 AD.
The whole Boudica saga begs the question to the enquiring mind whether or not it would have been possible for the British rebels under Boudica to have triumphed over the Romans, and this fascinating question will be considered in the next and concluding article in this three-part series.
Appendix – the scorpio
The firing rate of this awesome weapon was 3 – 4 bolts per minute with non-precision aiming. With precision aiming, on the other hand, it has been suggested that the rate of fire would have been reduced to 1 – 2 bolts per minute. As explained during the account of the Watling Street battle, however, the Romans probably would not have had to rely upon precision aiming, as the Britons were quickly crowded together by the funneling effect of the terrain.
Each legion typically possessed 60 scorpios. This would have given each legion a rate of fire of 180 – 240 bolts per minute, or a staggering 3 – 4 bolts per second!
Paulinus did not have two fully-equipped legions. His force was a somewhat ad-hoc collection of whomever he could round up, so it seems reasonable to assume that he probably had 1½ legions-worth of scorpios, giving him a total of 90 of these weapons.
Working with these figures and assumptions would therefore have provided the Romans with a rate of fire of 4 – 6 bolts per second.
References
Athena Review Vol.1, No.1. Description by Tacitus of the Rebellion of Boudicca (AD 60-61): http://www.athenapub.com/britsite/tacitus1.htm
Cassius Dio, History of Rome. The Neronian Revolt of the Iceni under Suetonius Paullinus. Book LXII, Chapters 1-12 (AD61): http://www.roman-britain.org/books/dio.htm#b62c01
Assess the factors that lead to the defeat of Boudica and the Iceni in the Battle of Watling Street: http://www.markedbyteachers.com/as-and-a-level/history/assess-the-factors-that-lead-to-the-defeat-of-boudica-and-the-iceni-in-the-battle-of-watling-street.html
Battlefield Britain (DVD) – Episode 1: Boudicca’s Rebellion Against the Romans
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Watling_Street
New World Encyclopedia – Battle of Watling Street: http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Battle_of_Watling_Street
Wikipedia – Roman infantry tactics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_infantry_tactics
Why did Boudica lose? | Military History Monthly: http://www.military-history.org/articles/why-did-boudica-lose.htm
YouTube video of Battlefield Britain – Episode 1: Boudica’s Rebellion Against the Romans:
Source Article from http://renegadetribune.com/boudicas-uprising-romans-part-2-3-battle-watling-street/
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