share only of his possessions, and secure the remainder for behoof of his children. On the death of Prasutagus, the crown and government of the Iceni devolved upon his wife, Boadicea. At the time, the Roman interests in the eastern part of the realm were represented by the tribune Catus, the procurator or collector of the imperial revenue. He was a cruel man, and guilty of great rapacity among the Britons of the east. No sooner did he learn the death of this Icenean king, than he pounced upon his possessions, and seized the whole in the name of the Emperor Nero, who himself was a monster of cruelty. Boadicea resisted the unjust proceedings of Catus and his subordinate officers, producing her husband's last deed and testament, wherein he bequeathed the bulk of his possessions to his two daughters, while apportioning a goodly portion to the emperor. This document Catus would not acknowledge, and used forcible means to take possession of the deceased's wealth. Boadicea could not stand by and see herself and children impoverished by this rapacious tribune, and threatened to bring force against force. The ire of Catus was now raised, and he seized the persons of Boadicea and her two daughters. Then, with revolting and unmanly cruelty, he caused the mother to be scourged by whips publicly, while the young women were exposed to the brutality of the Roman soldiery. In consequence of these atrocities, the Iceni entered into a treaty with their neighbours the Trinobantes, who dwelt in what is now Essex and Middlesex, to avenge themselves on their persecutors, and try to throw off the Roman yoke. For this purpose they combined their forces, and Boadicea took command of the army in person. In order to stir up their hearts for vengeance on their oppressors, she rode in a war chariot with her two daughters, and exhorted the army in stirring language, dwelling upon the ignominious punishments they had received. On they marched with wild enthusiasm towards the Roman colony of Camalodunum, where Colchester now stands. The attack was commenced and carried on with irresistible force, so that the garrison, however bravely they fought, could not withstand the onslaught. Every soldier was killed, and the place utterly destroyed. Meanwhile, a Roman legion from the west, under command of Petilius Cerialis, came to the relief of Camalodunum. These troops were attacked in the field, and defeated, with great slaughter on both sides. Elated with these successes, the heroic Boadicea led on her victorious army to the fortified Roman post of Verolamium, now known as St Albans. After a stubborn resistance by the garrison, every man was slain, and the fortifications destroyed. Although the Britons suffered heavily in these engagements, by the numbers of killed and wounded, yet the strength of their force was augmented by recruits from the tribes as they passed along. Accordingly, when they reached London, Boadicea's army was stronger than at first. There, from the surrounding heights, at what is now Hampstead, she surveyed the chief commercial city of the Romans in Britain, and vowed to deliver it from the thraldom of their conquerors and oppressors. At this day, where a multitude of houses cover the area of the great metropolis, we can have no idea of the surrounding country. It was then in a state of nature, with forests and thickets on both sides of the Thames harbouring wild animals. Through these extensive woods Boadicea led her undisciplined forces, captured the city of Londinium, and drove the Roman garrison to flight. These victories were followed up by desultory attacks upon other Roman stations, where the garrisons were slain by the Britons without mercy. At length Boadicea stayed the arm of her vengeance, for the outrage upon herself and daughters, and the oppression of her subjects. Her people were satiated with the blood of their enemies, and she was satisfied at driving Catus from the island, who fled into Gaul. Of the sanguinary extent of this campaign under Boadicea, we have the most authentic accounts in the Annals of Tacitus, who was nearly contemporary with the valorous queen of the Britons. On his authority it is stated that the Roman legions, and their allies among the British people, were destroyed to the number of seventy thousand, many of whom perished under torture for the crimes committed upon the Britons. Meanwhile General Suetonius having subdued the Isle of Mona, and the stronghold of the Druids, learned with alarm the destruction of the Roman colonies in East Anglia by the invincible Boadicea. Without delay he hastened to the scene of action, with all his available disciplined forces. He saw that the whole province of Britain would be lost to Rome if he did not hasten to retrieve their losses. Accordingly he marched upon London with ten thousand veteran soldiers. Seeing that he had no means of securing that city, he abandoned the attempt, as he could not occupy it. He then took up his position in a narrow pass, where his rear was defended by a forest. There a pitched battle was fought in the year, A. D. 61. The Britons, as before, were commanded by Queen Boadicea, who, in her war chariot with her two daughters, went from one tribe to another exhorting them to fight bravely. The battle was fought with great obstinacy on both sides, and for a time with doubtful success, but at last the victory inclined to the Romans. The Britons seemed to have the usual fate of uncivilised armies. Without combination, encumbered by their very multitude, impeded by their women, who surrounded them, and by their unwieldy chariots, they suffered terrible carnage. Tacitus informs us that the number of people destroyed upon this occasion was no less than eighty thousand persons,-an incredible number, although he says that the Romans did not spare even the women and the animals, who added to the heaps of slain. Boadicea, finding herself in a worse position than before, having no army to strengthen her cause, abandoned herself to despair, and rather than be captured alive a second time by her implacable enemies, she ended her woes by taking poison. Of the fate of her daughters history does not give us any information. Thus perished the valiant Queen Boadicea, a striking example of Heroism in Time of Peril. |