Battle of Caer Caradoc
Who Fought
History & Significance
The final battle in Caratacus' resistance to Roman rule was fought in 50 AD. The Romans under Publius Ostorius Scapula defeated the Britons and in the aftermath captured Caratacus himself, since 43 the leader of armed opposition to the Roman conquest of Britain. He was paraded through Rome and given the opportunity to make a speech before the emperor Claudius, who spared his life and those of his family and retainers.
Tacitus outlines the campaigns leading up to the battle: The army then marched against the Silures, a naturally fierce people and now full of confidence in the might of Caratacus, who by many an indecisive and many a successful battle had raised himself far above all the other generals of the Britons. Inferior in military strength, but deriving an advantage from the deceptiveness of the country, he at once shifted the war by a stratagem into the territory of the Ordovices, where, joined by all who dreaded peace with us, he resolved on a final struggle.
Tacitus' account limits the location to the territory of the Ordovices, whose boundaries are no longer known. It included a large area of what is now central and northern Wales. He gives several details, which limit, but do not conclusively identify, the site of the battle: [Caratacus] selected a position for the engagement in which advance and retreat alike would be difficult for our men and comparatively easy for his own, and then on some lofty hills, wherever their sides could be approached by a gentle slope, he piled up stones to serve as a rampart. A river too of varying depth was in his front, and his armed bands were drawn up before his defences. His topographical details thus include an un-named river, fordable in some stretches, tactically close to high hills offering inaccessible slopes and many loose rocks, possibly scree, but also some paths up with gentler gradients, which trained men could climb while closely packed together in testudo formation.
Various sites have been theorised, though no suggested location has achieved academic plausibility nor fulfilled all of Tacitus' elements.
Tacitus does not name the river, but some local historians have supposed that it is the Severn hence proposed locations like Cefn Carnedd or British Camp in the Malvern Hills. However, the last wouldn't have been in Ordovices territory and the Severn, though visible from the Malvern Hills, is too distant to fit Tacitus's description of the site.
Alternatively, Caer Caradoc near Church Stretton in Shropshire or more likely Caer Caradog nearby Chapel Lawn in Shropshire, on the Redlake river, can be linked to the battle.. It is believed "by local tradition" and "with the support of instructed opinion" to be the site of the last stand.
The ground they fought on
The site of Battle of Caer Caradoc lies on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Neoproterozoic, bedrock that formed in the Neoproterozoic. The rock here is lava and tuff.
Frequently Asked Questions
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- Battle of Caer Caradoc · Wikidata
- Caratacus'_last_battle · Wikipedia