Celtic Kingdoms of the British Isles

Iceni (Cenimagni?)

Made famous by their uprising against the Romans, the Iceni (or Eceni) were a Celtic tribe based in what is now Norfolk, north-western Suffolk and eastern Cambridgeshire. They may also be identified with the tribe of the Cenimagni ('Ceni' or Iceni and 'magni', 'great'), who sided with Caesar during his invasion of 54 BC, perhaps signalling the beginnings of the Iceni's pro-Roman policy. Like their neighbours, they were probably a Belgic tribe from the North Sea or Baltics, part of the third wave of Celtic settlers in Britain.

The Iceni are linked to the La Téne period in Europe, thanks to the work of Hawkes (1931) and Childe (1940), both of whom are cited by Jones (1997). He noted that Childe interpreted the burials and stray objects regarded as characteristic of the La Téne tradition in East Anglia as the culture of ‘Marnian Chieftains’ who established control of the ‘Halstatt peasantry’ and later founded the Iceni tribe.

In the first century BC, the Wash, on their western border, may have had its coast much further south than has been previously thought, in which case the Catuvellauni territory may have extended to that virtually uninhabited Fenland coast, dividing the Iceni from their westerly Coritani neighbours. To the south of the Iceni were the Trinovantes.

Edward Dawson points out that while the Britons used the 'k' pronunciation of the letter 'c', the Romans used a 'ch' sound, as did the later Angles, Saxons and Franks. However, this 'k' sound would have been lost in East Anglia due to Roman dominance there, affecting the later pronunciation of the names of towns or forts containing the letter 'c'. Under later Germanic rule the Latin 'castra' became 'chester' everywhere, but in areas where the wilder British tribes survived (to the west) the 'k' sound survived and the spelling became 'caster' instead in many places. The Iceni would have used a 'ch' rather than a 'k' sound simply because the inhabitants would have been far more Romanised than the western Britons. Indeed, it is even possible that during the Roman period most people in the south-east of what is now England spoke mostly Latin instead of Brythonic, due to far a far greater level of colonisation by Roman citizens. This would have impinged on local pronunciations, making some letter sounds more accessible for the invading Angles.

(Additional information by Edward Dawson, and from The Oxford History of England: Roman Britain, Peter Salway.)

75 BC

An Iron Age road is constructed in timber, possibly part of a route across the River Waveney and surrounding wetland at Geldeston in Norfolk. It is investigated by archaeologists in June 2011 after being discovered the year before, and is thought to have been built by the Iceni tribe. Tree-ring samples date the find fairly confidently to this period. Thanks to its wetland environment, the timber posts are preserved in remarkable detail, still showing the signs of tool marks. The surviving section forms a four metre wide (thirteen feet) route, running for five hundred metres across wetland right up to the river.

The remains of the Iceni road and its intact timber structures were still being excavated in 2011 for the new series of the BBC's Digging for Britain

54 BC

The second expedition by Julius Caesar from Roman-occupied Gaul sees him achieve more success than previously. In his battles against the Catuvellauni he is supported (or at least, not opposed) by a tribe known as the Cenimagi, probably the Iceni of later years. The name can be translated as 'Great Iceni', suggesting that the tribe at this time is much more powerful or has far greater prestige than perhaps it does a century later. The reason why it might enjoy greater prestige has been lost to prehistory. By this stage the tribe may be minting its first gold and silver coins, although some sources claim a later date of about 10 BC.

fl c.AD 20s

Can-

Abbreviated name found on coins.

Can- is the first king of the Iceni to issue coins bearing his own name, based on those issued by the Cantii.

fl c.25 - 47?

Antedios (Anted-)

The abbreviated form of the name is found on coins.

Antedios issues coins bearing his name, but these are later retracted, perhaps due to pressure being applied by other Iceni nobles. Subsequently, Antedios issues coins marked 'ECEN', referring to the tribe's name.

43/44

The Iceni welcome the Romans under Governor Aulus Plautius, probably being quite happy to see the fall of their over-powerful neighbours, the Catuvellauni. However, judging by the coins issued around this period, some factions within the Iceni may be unhappy with Rome's confirmation or acceptance of Antedios as the sole ruler of the Iceni. Two nobles or rival kings issue their own coins briefly.

fl c. 45

Aesu- (Aesunos?)

The abbreviated form of the name is found on coins.

fl c. 45

Saemu- / Saenu- (Saenuvax?)

The abbreviated form of the name is found on coins.

47

While handling an attack by hostile northern tribes immediately following his appointment, the second Roman Governor of Britannia, Publius Ostorius Scapula, tries to disarm the Iceni, but his heavy-handed tactics cause a serious uprising. This uprising is put down with brutal efficiency by Rome following a battle, possibly at Stonea Camp in Cambridgeshire. The Iceni officially become a client kingdom and it is at this stage that the pro-Roman Prasutagus is apparently installed, perhaps following the execution of all three previous contenders for supremacy within the Iceni.

47 - 59

Prasutagus

Pro-Roman client king.

59

Once Prasutagus dies, the Romans begin to ignore the terms of the Iceni's client-statehood. The king had stipulated in his will that half his property be given to Rome, but Roman administrators interpret this as a submission to the Roman state, and move to appropriate all of the Iceni lands and disarm the tribe.

59 - 61

Queen Boudicca (Boadicea)

Wife. Led the uprising and later died by her own hand.

59 - 61

Stirred up by imperial heavy-handedness, Boudicca (or Boudica) leads a powerful Celtic uprising in AD 60 involving the Iceni, the Trinovantes and other tribes. It results in the loss to the Romans of lower eastern Britain. After sacking and burning Camulodunum (Colchester), Londinium, and Verulamium (St Albans in the former Catuvellauni territory), the Celts are confronted by a fresh Roman army under Governor Gaius Suetonius Paulinus somewhere along Watling Street. Coming directly from warfare against the Deceangli, Roman military discipline and might proves unbeatable, the Celts are massacred and the rebellion is defeated. Boudicca's fate is unknown, but it is presumed that she commits suicide rather than allow herself to fall into Roman hands.

Two sides of a coin issued about AD 61 showing the face of Boudicca and a horse, which was a valuable commodity amongst the Britons

To pacify the Iceni (or to reward a pro-Roman faction which did not join the uprising), the Roman city of Venta Icenorum is built (possibly over an Iceni town, although nothing has been found to prove this). It is located at modern Caistor St Edmund (otherwise known as Caistor-by-Norwich), immediately south of Norwich. Although perhaps meant to be an impressive town, it seems to be little more than a run-down outpost, with shoddy building quality away from the centre and plenty of empty plots (possibly for grazing or cultivation). Celtic roundhouses are even built near the walls, some in the second century AD, and a diagonal road leads out of the town (very unusual in Roman towns) to a Celtic temple to the north-east.

It seems that the Iceni resign themselves to their fate and move into the new town, but they appear to be unprepared for urban life. The town apparently fails to a large extent, becoming a backwater. The once-important (and perhaps even great) Iceni tribe are relegated to complete unimportance, living a very unremarkable (and unremarked) existence on the edge of Roman Britain.

c.170 - 175

Coastal raids by barbarians have developed into a serious problem. Archaeological finds for this period show a layer of destruction along a great deal of the North Sea and Atlantic coast of Europe, between Belgica and southern Gaul, and in eastern Britain, well inside the territory of the Iceni. The Chauci are prime suspects for the raids, and Rome responds with improved defensive measures over the following thirty years or so. Fortifications are put in place at sites including the Iceni civitas of Venta Icenorum (modern Caistor-by-Norwich), the Trinovantes town of Caesaromagus (modern Chelmsford), and the civitas of the Canninefates, Forum Hadriani (modern Voorburg). This is the start of the system that will develop into the Saxon Shore in Britain.

c.240 - 275

Never the success of other cantonal capitals, Venta has become increasingly vulnerable to Teutonic raids from the start of the third century, and well-made protective ramparts are built between these years.

c.350

Here, as elsewhere along the eastern shore, Angle and Saxon settlers are to be found in small communities from at least this date (if not earlier), doubtlessly hired as laeti to aid the British defence of the area.

Caer Went

Following the expulsion of Roman administration from Britain, the Iceni do not appear to have re-emerged with a kingdom of their own. As with much of the south-east of the country, the region apparently remained under British central control for much of the fifth century, until the invading Angles took over. However, a possible territory or kingdom may have started to emerge in the form of the postulated Caer Went. Or the name may simply have been the Romano-British version of the town of Venta Icenorum. Unfortunately, there is no firm information for any conclusion to be reached, probably owing to the speed with which it was overrun by Angles.

Neglect of the Roman engineering works and land subsidence after AD 450 reduced drained fenland to marsh, isolating Ely and other islands in the west of the territory. Within these areas lived an independent people with dark-hair, called the Gywre (or Gyrwas), who were possibly Celtic in origin. One theory is that they were refugees from Caer Went. They survived on a semi-independent basis until at least the middle of the seventh century.

c.475 - 495

Angles arrive and begin to take over control of the region, settling first in the north. They intermingle with the Saxon descendants of Roman foederati. It is possible that the defenders of Venta Icenorum carry out some ditch-digging to construct an enclosure in the north-west of the town. Elements of this ditch have been found to cut through the Roman road there. The marks in the ground made by possible structures are visible here.

The Roman town of Venta Icenorum shown at its height, which was probably short-lived and perhaps not as prosperous as shown here. The unusual diagonal road leading to the north-east can clearly be seen

c.495 - 560s

The Angle settlers secure their hold on the region, forming into two main groups in the north and south (North and South Folk). There is the possibility that the Iclingas may be the first to gain any form of power in the region, as they appear to take their name from the Iceni themselves. If this is correct then it shows that the Iceni name does in fact survive this far (the Cantware are another example of the new arrivals taking an existing British name for themselves).

Subsequently the Romano-British administration collapses in the region and Venta Icenorum is abandoned (possibly following a massacre of its people). The Anglian tribes form their own settlements, ignoring the Roman city and most British place names, too. Only a half-dozen Romano-British place names remain today in the region, such as Girton, Comberton and Chatteris. During this period the Angles coalesce into the East Angles.