The Brigantes were a
British Celtic tribe which lived between
Tyne
and
Humber. They were probably a confederation of smaller tribal
groups, including the
Carvetii and
Parisii. Their name comes from the
Celtic goddess
Brigantia. It is thought that the word "brigand" may have
derived from them.
During the Roman invasion of AD
43 the Brigantes were
arguably the most powerful Celtic tribe in Britain, dominating the north of the
country. Brigante settlements were to be found at
Catterick,
Aldborough,
Ilkley and York.
In the beginning, led by their queen
Cartimandua and her husband
Venutius,
they were on friendly terms with the Romans, acting as a "client-kingdom", a
nominally independent ally beholden to Roman power. In about
51 the British
resistance leader
Caratacus
was defeated by
Publius Ostorius Scapula in
Wales, and fled
north to the Brigantes. Cartimandua proved her loyalty by handing Caratacus over
to the Romans.
This was followed by a split with Venutius, who became the most prominent
figure in the resistance to Rome. Cartimandua had apparently tired of him and
married his armour-bearer,
Vellocatus,
who she elevated to the kingship in Venutius's place. Initially Venutius only
sought to overthrow his ex-wife, only later turning his attention to her Roman
protectors. The Romans defended their client queen, and Venutius's revolt was
defeated by
Caesius Nasica during the governorship of
Aulus Didius Gallus (52
- 57).
Taking advantage of Roman instability during the
year of four emperors, Venutius revolted again in
69. Cartimandua
appealed for troops from the Romans, who were only able to send auxiliaries.
Cartimandua was evacuated and Venutius took the kingdom.
It is likely that Venutius was defeated, and the Brigantes conquered, during
the governorship of
Quintus Petillius Cerialis (71
- 74). Certainly
Gnaeus Julius Agricola (governor
78 -
84) was able to march
through Brigantian territory without difficulty on the way to his Scottish
conquests. Nevertheless, the Roman poet
Juvenal
depicts a Roman father urging his son to win glory by destroying the forts of
the Brigantes and it is possible that one of the purposes of
Hadrian's Wall was to keep the Brigantes from making discourse with the
Scottish tribes on the other side.
A tribe named the Brigantes is also shown in
Ireland by
the Ptolemaic
map.
