When the
Romans invaded
Britain in AD 43, their most implacable
enemy was Caractacus, the
chief of the Catuvellauni
tribe.
Caractacus was the overlord of all the tribes of south-eastern Britain. When the Roman
army landed, led by Plautius, Caractacus gathered his
warriors and headed south to meet them. The two armies met on the banks of the
River Medway.
After two days of ferocious fighting, the Britons were forced to retreat. Caractacus turned to fight at the
Thames, but was again beaten. His
kingdom was conquered by
Rome, but Caractacus was not.
He moved westwards with a warband of picked Catuvellauni warriors. For the next four years Caractacus launched numerous
raids on Roman Britain. By AD 47 Caractacus had gathered a sizeable force and had gained the
loyalty of the western tribes. He launced them in a major attack on the Romans. The new
Governor, Ostorius, only managed to push Caractacus back with difficulty.
The next year, Ostorius launched a Roman attack, only to fail when faced by a fresh attack by Caractacus' Britons.
The strong charismatic leadership of Caractacus held the
free tribes of Britons together while his careful planning launced them on a series of successful attacks which the Romans could barely withstand.
In AD 51, Caractacus was betrayed to the Romans by the
queen of the Brigantes tribe. He was taken to Rome in chains and paraded through the streets by the
Emperor Claudius. His capture was a great victory and the Romans were determined to make the most of it. The last word though belonged to Caractacus. Gazing at the mighty
temples and
palaces of Rome he asked the Emperor: "Why, when you have all this, did you want my poor
hut?"