”Of all the Britons, the inhabitants of Kent, an entirely maritime district, are by far the most civilised, differing but little from the Gallic manner of life. Of the inlanders most do not sow corn, but live on milk and flesh and clothe themselves in skins. All the Britons, indeed, dye themselves with woad, which produces a blue colour, and makes their appearance in battle more terrible. They wear long hair, and shave every part of the body save the head and the upper lip.”
Julius Caesar, Commentaries on the Gallic War
The following post has been written after reading the excelllent work of the amateur Welsh historian Eifion Wyn Williams, who painstakingly researches the old, long forgotten (by most of us anyway) stories of the ancient Britons, and who writes his own works of fiction. It’s a short article, but one that put’s a different, and valuable slant on what we thought we already knew. I have added some words here and there to include a little more information, but mainly the following is Williams’ work.
A vast amount has been written about the Roman Empire and Julius Caesar, but very little was actually recorded about his two ‘invasions’ of Britain, particularly the first one…
The only texts that survived detailing the events of when Caesar first set foot on British soil with just two legions, were the records from the man himself, which were written when he later arrived back in Gaul, obviously with the benefit of hindsight, and an eye on how best to present himself and his actions, when back in Rome.
But Williams has discovered some later-written Welsh manuscripts, containing long forgotten stories from this period, ones that were recorded by the Welsh Bards and recorded for posterity. Whether true or not, they tell a very different story of Caesar’s first visit to this island.
Most agree that his fleet landed at Pegwell Bay, not far from modern-day Ramsgate. According to these Welsh manuscripts, the allies’ first major contact with Caesar following his first landing on 23rd August 55 BC was made on a flat plain of land near a stronghold known as CaerCant, (Canterbury Fort in Kent). The story goes that during this battle, King Nynniaw, who was also a local sword-champion, managed to draw Caesar into single combat.
In this fight, Caesar struck Nynniaw a terrible blow to the head, and his sword stuck fast into his shield-rim. Nynniaw then threw down his own sword and released the Roman gladius from his split shield. Caesar fled at this shocking sight, and although badly wounded, Nynniaw killed many Roman soldiers with Caesar’s own blade. However, the Roman General managed to escape to the beachhead and make his way back to Gaul with the remains of his fleet. Rumour abounded that ‘Caesar the Treacherous’ had poisoned his blade, as all who had been injured by it subsequently died, including Nynniaw some fifteen days later in a fevered agony. Caesar’s suspected poisoned gladius was labelled ‘Crocea Mors’ by the Brythons at the time, meaning yellow or ruddy-death and eternally cursed.
In ‘De Bello Gallico’ (The Gallic Wars), Caesar states that he was forced to flee ‘Prittan’ and leave a great deal of booty, including prisoners taken earlier, on the beach, due to a ‘threatening and impending storm’ less than one month after his landing.
It seems that Caesar and his men only just escaped with their lives on that first, short incursion, and regardless of his later personal reports written in relative safety, it would appear he was given a bit of a beating on the fields and beaches of Kent by the allied Brythons, and possibly the weather. Led by the infamous sons of the late High-King Beli Mawr, Lludd Llaw Ereint, Nynniaw and Caswallawn, the Brythons, their internal squabbles temporarily forgotten, had united for the first time in their history and successfully repelled the first Roman ‘invasion’.
Although his sojourn here lasted just a month, and his army – less than 10,000 strong – did not campaign beyond east Kent, Caesar’s military venture caused a sensation in Rome. He was called a hero, as he had by ‘invading’ Britain, crossed beyond the world known to the Romans – what they called the orbis terrarum – and was awarded the longest ever (at that time) public thanksgiving in Roman history, a massive fifteen day holiday. In less than a year he would be back.
Check out Williams’ website at: https://iffy88227.wixsite.com/sonsofbelimawr
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