Boudicca's Rebellion Research Paper

Boudicca’s uprising was ultimately futile and it did very little in the way of revolutionising policies in Roman Britain. However, the short term effects of Boudicca’s revolt did change the ways in which the Romans governed the Britons, despite the loss (British National Party, 2011). According to the Biographer Suetonius, it was clear to the Romans that Boudicca’s uprising highlighted the threats to their ability to subdue all of Britain (Mattingly, 2007), and their military honour and confidence suffered due to the death toll of the Romans reaching into the thousands. As a result on this, they increased their military power as a precaution (Mattingly, 2007). As Tacitus stated in the Annals, ‘It was a glorious victory….the whole army was now

The quality and detail of these accounts themselves are quite variable and Boudicca remains a mysterious figure and, in fact, virtually nothing concrete is known about her. Boudicca’s legacy is that she was a great heroine of the British Empire, who united the people against the forces of Rome and fought for their freedom. There is evidence, however that suggests that she was anything but. It is important to examine what is known about the woman herself, when examining her legend, as the mystery that surrounds her stems from the fact that there are only two primary sources. Boudicca is depicted in the most savage of terms by Cassius Dio: "She was huge of frame, terrifying of aspect, and with a harsh voice. A great mass of bright red hair fell to her knees: She wore a great twisted golden necklace, and a tunic of many colours, over which was a thick mantle, fastened by a brooch. Now she grasped a spear, to strike fear into all who watched her...…” (Dio’s Roman History). The quote, while appearing to describe Boudicca, could possibly have been exaggerating her appearance for the purpose of dramatic colouring, or even simply describing the typical Celtic warrior woman. Another possibility is that Dio simply exaggerated her appearance so as to minimise the embarrassment of the Romans having been defeated by a woman. As has been discussed, in contemporary sources, Boudicca is often described as a great heroine of the British Empire. However, the evidence suggests that she was absolutely brutal, punishment being non-exclusive. When the army razed the cities to the ground, they left no survivors, not even women and children (Brondou, 2011). Evidence found at an archaeology dig in Colchester supports this accusation that the brutality of the army was undeniable. Jason Burke, writing for