BattlefieldsPaulinus's Campaign against the Ordovices
Roman Period

Paulinus's Campaign against the Ordovices

58–59
Gwynedd, Wales
Also known as: Roman Conquest of Mid-Wales · Ordovician Campaign 58-59 AD
Era
Roman Period
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
Gwynedd, Wales
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
Ordovices
Forces
c. 3,000–5,000 Ordovices warriors.
VS
Victor
Rome (Suetonius Paulinus)
Forces
c. 5,000–7,000 Roman legionaries under Paulinus
Outcome
Ordovician resistance crushed; Paulinus advanced to Anglesey
The Battle

History & Significance

Suetonius Paulinus spent two years subduing the Ordovices of central and north Wales before his assault on Anglesey in 60 AD. The Ordovices were mountain fighters who used the Cambrian ranges as effectively as the Silures used the valleys of the south. Paulinus's methodical reduction of their resistance — cutting roads, destroying food supplies, securing river crossings — allowed him to approach the Menai Strait.

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