caldrail

Some hillforts were abandoned before the Roman occupation. In my area, Liddington Hill had lost its population hundreds of years earlier. Barbury remained occupied throughout but was never bothered by the Romans. The reasons were simple - the people of Barbury caused no trouble and paid whatever taxes were due. The mistake most people make about Romano-Britain is that they assume everyone donned a toga and lived in villas. Not so. As anywhere in the empire, local peoples were left to carry on life as they had before provided they behaved and paid tax on demand. Some cultural fuzziness and cross fertilisation occurred - the wealthy elite preferred to walk the walk and talk the talk as it were, and less important people garnered Roman style goods over time, but note the emphasis in archaeology on 'Romano-Britiain. Both cultures lived alongside each other. That was typical of provinces in most parts of the empire. I don't know anything about the Blundson or Purton sites. The pottery style unique to Duroncornovium is, as far as I know, limited to the local area - it really wasn't popular and there was plenty of competition. Savernake Forest, linked to the town of Cunetio ten or so miles south, was far more popular but again, locally biased, as most pottery industries were. Gallic pots, or 'samian', were more often imported as luxury or desirable goods. You won't find the Durocrnovium style on sale today (I don't even know what it looked like - you would have to ask an archaeologist who knows it)

Forts were not always high up. I agree there was land suitable for such work, but there is no sign of such frtification. The hill seemed more valuable for stone, and we know the Romans quaaried there (the remanant of the quarries can still be traced, albeit enlarged in subsequent periods). The original camp was for the construction of the roads which came down off the Marloborough and Lambourn Downs around Swindon Hill before heading NW toward the site of Corinium. Defense was not the point, and that camp was abandoned when the troops moved on with the construction work. Back in 1840 there was talk of a Roman camp at South Marston, later work suggests a causeway or something similar as the area was a flood plain in ancient times. Although nno actual camp is officially recognised, I have been informed that a ditch with an 'ankle breaker' cut has been unearthed near Durocornovium, but this again is on the lowland, not Swindon Hill or the plateau to the south (which did have local populations and hill forts pre-existing, plus at least one villa complex on the Cunetio road at the brow of the slope. The placement of a mansio dictates the main use of the site early on, though some do note the potential for agricultural use, and clearly the town had a market for local produce, pottery included, however badly it sold. It would seem Durocornovium never made the grade as a protected site in any case, as it was never invested with permanent stone walls in the late empire and allowed to wither. Further, the possiblity of a Roman as evidenced by ditches and embankments (or at least the remains of them) were overliad by the town buildings, thus any fortification was temporary and the area considered secure. There is no evidence of local strife in the Roman occupation, and local hill forts were not apparently bothered by the Roman presence at any stage, aside from Liddington Hill which was re-occupied in the late empire have been abandoned before the Romans arrived.

The Romans believed in a free economy. They exercised little controlover it and even when laws were passed to doso, they generally failed. What you will find are a few mentions of deals (the literate were often higher clas and thus not supposed todo business), and a whole heap of endless stiocktakes. There is evidence of contracts, both in archaeological form and mentions in sources when such things went awry, but this was not evidence of a planned economy. Rulers achieved power by opportunism and support, be it military, political, or regional.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durocornovium http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swindon http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Wessex_Downs http://www.bl.uk/reshelp/findhelprestype/maps/interactivemap/ Not at all. Firstly no significant remains were revealed during thehighway development, secondly, the water temple would be on dry land as much as any other. It is true that the ancient Britons have a reverence for water and would iften deposit objects in it as a scrifice, a practice known to have continued in Roman times as the occupiers respected and amalgamated local deities, but the attraction of the Durocornovium site has an ephemeral beginning. Hill forts existed along the Ridgeway to the south, Barbury being the nearest, with another at Purton (a local village), and also at Blunsdon (north Swindon) on the side of the plateau. Some suspect another fort existed where Swindon Old Town is, the old market town on the hill, but early maps show no evidence. There were alsoolder religious sites there - a stone circle used toexist on what is now the edge of Broome Manor golf course. The development of Durocornovium is discussed in the Wikipedia article. There has always been a grey area of interpretation where Roman finds are concerned, inspiring claims of very distant colonisation, but at best this was trade missions occupied intermittently, areas of refugee population, or simply trade goods passed on.

Stone Age peoples used various means to dispose of their dead too. Many of the barrows found in Wiltshire contain jjumbled bones that are laid at random, with obvious signs of defleshing. The issue is not cannabalism (though that cannot be ruled out, as this was before the neolithic farming prosperity and cremations), but rather a means of speeding up the interment process without having to put up with rotting corpses.

What kind of temple? Swindon is a known area of springwater (most have gone dry since the Victorian era), and shrines to water deitieis are found locally. Given the lack of any overtly religious building found so far, and the proximity of springwater, the distribution of shrines which radiate out from the old Roman town, the archaeologist concerned is supporting the idea that a temple to a water god has gone undetected, but as I say, bases of columns for a large building were noted before the bridge was erected, but never investigated. In Britain any potential find on a construction site has to be evaluated and if necessary, archaeologists can register a request for work to be halted until a dig has been performed (a lost medieval village was found nearby in that manner recently). Such powers are limited of course, but construction companies are often keen for the publicity and willing to comply. However, in the case of the bridge concerned, the highway is a major route around the town (following the course of a Roman road no less), and is a substantial reinforced concrete structure that renders the potential site unavailable. Since the remains were not seen to be significant a the time, and situated away from the Roman town centre, no-one thought anything of it. There is one fly in the ointment - that side of the road was a known Roman cemetary (parts of Swindon overlay it), thus the proximity of a large temple and a graveyard are unusual, or at least as far as I know.

It might come as a suprise but the Romans were not especially concerned with economic productivity, merely profit. After all, Domitian had ordered that half the grape vines in Italy should be destroyed because he thought people were drinking too much (though I accept the command was not fully carried out). The sort of economic control you infer was not part of Roman methodology, who basically left it to market forces and native labour, taxing the wealth as part of their social system. Varus for instance known for stripping Syria of wealth, and that meant his concern for the local economy could not have impeded him for a moment. Wealth was the marker of social status in Roman society. Since wealth in the hands of natives, who were not necesarily latinised if under Roman jurisdiction, could be used to fund unrest in an area of known instability, perhaps the governor was trying to forestall local influence?

There was no similarity between English and American civil wars. Quite why you think the Book of Revelations has anything to do with either conflict is beyond me. Perhaps a little less metaphysics and more history might help your argument.

Erm... If there's only one tree of that species, how did it fertilise another? There's some seriously dodgy sex going on here...

Possibly. However, since the Romans had occupied Judaea and fought a war there (Nero had sent Vespasian to settle the 'Great Revolt', the one leading to the destruction of Jerusalem and the siege of Masada) , the Book of Revelations takes on the character of a political rant, rather like the pseudo-religious threats and propaganda that islamic militants spread on the internet today. (I seriously do not believe that the Book of Revelations has any modern day context or prophetic value whatsoever). However, the issue of Nero coming again? The sins of both Nero and Domitian were distant, not affecting Judaea directly, however much rumour had disturbed judaean sentinent. Further, the issue of who ruled Rome would have been well known to the Judaeans. Images of the current Caesar would have been seen, both in monumental form, sporadically, or at the head of legionary gatherings, never mind official notices. The imperial cult, particularly for a caesar that demanded the status of a god and to be addressed as such, must have been clearer to them than your point suggests. After all, aside from the lives of the wealthy and well-connected, native life in Judaea predominated under Roman aegis, and indeed, a later war in the reign of Hadrian was ignited because Hadrian had reneged on his promise to rebuild Jerusalem, choosing to create a new Roman city on the same site.

There's a great deal that doesn't get excavated. Now that magnetic, sonar, and satellite mapping is available, more of it is charted rather than dug. There's a Romano-British twon where I live. Although six or seven digs have taken place, many of the significant buildings (it's all buried - there's nothing to see there) have been left untouched including a substantial mansio. There aremany sites in north Africa that remain untouched, or at least, by archaeologists. Far to many there have already been looted, some stripped away by JCB's. Berenice, one of the most profitable sea ports of the ROman empire on the Red Sea coast, has hardly been touched as far as I know. Again, it's only in recent years that Germano-Roman towns across the Rhine have been found and investigated. Plenty left to find it would seem. Incidentially, a local archaeologist has long held the belief that a major Roman temple ought to sited in my area. So far that hasn't come to light, though indications are that developers have already built a concrete highway bridge over it without knowing it was there.

Portents were important in the story of Domitian. Nerva was due to be killed but Domitian decided to forestall that on the basis of a prophetic interpretation. It seems our Domitian was a very superstitous man among a superstitious people. As for sixth sense in the ancient world, it might merely be an attempt to rouse local support for a known assassination attempt, or even a coincidence. Or simply never actually happened.

It was recorded that on September 18th, in the year 96, a man named Apollonius of Tyana stood upon a rock at Ephesus and praised 'Stephanus' for bloody violence. His curious audience did not know that at the same time, a freedman named Stephanus would burst into the bedchamber of the Caesar Domitian to stab him. Parthenius, Sigerus, and Entellus, seniormadministrators of one sort or another, rushed in and finished the job of murdering the ruler of the Roman world, apparently making sure that Stephanus would die as well. Domitian could not defend himself against this suprise attack. His sword, habitually kept under his pillow, had been disabled by removing the blade. Nerva moved quickly to replace the dead man, having himself declared Caesar as predicted by astrologers the same day, fully aware that Domitian was to be murdered.He had reason to ensure the act was committed for Domitian had already marked him down for death, not only because of an obscure prophecy, but also possibly because a young Domitian had been debauched by the older Nerva. The plot was already known because a list of those to be executed had been stolen by one of his 'naked whispering boys' , subsequently found by his divorced wife, terrified of her husbands hatred after the actor Paris was killed in the street because of her, and she had narrowly avoided being put to death for adultery. Many men were approached with a view to dispatching their emperor, but most refused for fear it was a test of loyalty. By all accounts, Domitian was a very dangerous character. He was suspicious of flattery and intolerant of those who did not offer praise. He hated the successful and blamed those who failed. We read how he deliberately played on peoples fears or enjoyed creating a false sense of security, pretending to like those he despised. He would, reputedly, turn on those who helped him. Domitian was the first Caesar to overtly demand the status of God. Domitian exceeded all his predecessors in cruelty, luxury, and avarice... Nea Historia (Zosimus) For nearly two millenia Roman emperors have been portrayed as the worst examples of human excess. Yet this popular image rests on the shoulders of merely two of them. Whether it's the madness of Caligula, or the decadence of Nero, we acknowledge their sins, admire their unlimited extravagance, or raise our eyebrows at their antics. Domitian was described in the same tone, but remains a shadowey figure in Roman history who does not attract the same attention to the modern audience. He certainly fits the popular image of a Roman emperor. Clearly however there is a common theme here, a facet of Roman mindset that survives in these descriptions. For all their positive acts and behaviour, those Caesars who find themselves rejected by senior Roman opinion attract the same sort of vilification in the sources. Some historians have pointed at mentions in the sources of his diligence in administration, debating whether Domitian has been miscast. He was equally free from any suspicion of love of gain or of avarice, both in private life and for some time after becoming emperor; on the contrary, he often gave strong proofs not merely of integrity, but even of liberality.... Life of Domitian (Suetonius) Tacitus had no illusions about him, for Agricola, a relative of his, had been recalled to Rome when his campaign to conquer Caledonia was on the point of success. Asked whether he wanted a triumph, Agricola had wisely refused, aware that Domitian was preparing an excuse to rid himself of a potential rival. Domitian may have raised the troops pay to four hundred sesterces a year, an increase of a third, but he had also reduced the number of legions and knew his frontiers were insecure. He was also aware that a victorious general commanded more loyalty from his men than a distant Caesar who was remarked upon for his lack of personal attention to Rome's military activities. ... But he did not continue this course of mercy or integrity, although he turned to cruelty somewhat more speedily than to avarice. Life of Domitian (Suetonius) Domitian was not only bold and quick to anger but also treacherous and secretive; and so, deriving from these two characteristics impulsiveness on the one hand and craftiness on the other, he would often attack people with the sudden violence of a thunderbolt and again would often injure them as the result of careful deliberation. Roman History Book 67 (Cassius Dio) Domitian was clearly attracted to the spectacular. He was noted for giving frequent games, including a naval contest in the Amphitheatre, more sea battles staged in an artifical lake, mock battles in the Circus Maximus, adding two new chariot teams to plentiful race meetings and even reducing the number of laps so a hundred races could be staged in one day. Notably, he features contests involving women. Various writers mention women fighting dwarves, women fighting each other, or against lions in hunts staged within the arena. This was not a new innovation - Nero had done similarly - but Domitian seemed especially keen to see such things. His own gladiators entered the arena to pomp and ceremony. He pleased the fans of the gladiators Myrinus and Triumphus by summoning both to fight each other. Costs were rising. A ruler cannot pay huge sums of money for public entertainment, impressive building projects, extravagant living, and military budgets without finding the cash to do it. Whilst Domitian was not as ruthless as Nero had been in raising money, Domitian too followed that precedent and quickly turned Rome's elite against him as the list of dead patricians began to rise, many executed for the most trivial reasons. Perhaps this is partly the history written by the survivors, as some believe, but the pattern is familiar. Rumours of conspiracies and plots began to circulate. A rebellion in the provinces was put down. Tyrants do face the prospect of inevitable escalation - Domitian was no exception and his behaviour condemns him. Was he the cruellest of all Caesars? The evidence cannot be ignored. As a consequence of his cruelty the emperor was suspicious of all mankind, and from now on ceased to repose hopes of safety in either the freedmen or yet the prefects, whom he usually caused to be brought to trial during their very term of office. Roman History Book 67 (Cassius Dio) When news of Domitian's death reached the public, they seemed oddly indifferent. The legions wanted Domitian deified officially but no-one spoke for them. The Senate wanted him damned, his images removed, and of course they got their way. As for the conspirators who had rushed into the bedchamber that day, they were never brought to justice. Domitian's wife however was deemed innocent. The Senate asked what boon she wanted for her loss, and all she desired was the body parts of her dead husband. It was said she had the parts sewn together and used to model a brass memorial that remained in public view from that day. Was he the cruellest of all Caesars? Perhaps, but for all his civic beautification, frontier wars, public entertainment, and capable administration, Domitian is nonethless a strangely diminished personality in th history of the Roman Empire.

Romania is a name that certainly shows Roman influence, as does the ltin based native language spoken today. However, the Romans are adamant - it's Gaul that was the closest emulator of latin culture. Most places only had Roman amentieis, public buildings, and a section of the populace that went latin in order to further their interests. Crowning Octavian as king of Rome would have been a death sentence, however much of a king he actually was. In the provinces, there was less concern. Running provincial Egypt was not the same as running the city that ran the empire.

Egpyt never properly integrated? Egypt was a personal preserve of Augustus and a major supplier of 'corn' to the city of Rome. Since there were never any serious problems with natives in Egypt, one wonders why it was considerred not properly intergrated. As for the priesthood, since egyptian religions were still current (and one or two quite popular in Rome, Isis for a long time, it makes sense that casting Augustus in the light of Pharoah was going to happen. To assume that Egypt became an identikit part of Roman culture is sheer nonsense - no province of the ROman empire ever did that. Gaul was considered the closest emulatior, but all provinces retained their own flavour and native populatiions even to the very end.

The problem with the BBC as is popularly known in Britain is that it's irredeemabl;y politically correct. It doesn't like car driving, doesn't like Clarkson, and doesn't like the public deciding for itself what is responsible television viewing, or at least in general. As to the specifics of the 'fracas' I can't say - I wasn't there - but one gets the impression that certain people were tired of Clarkson and only to glad to remove him one way or another. The Beeb say Top Gear will be back in a revised format in 2016. It won't be any better than the other Top Gear programs shown in America, Australia, Germany, or where-ever, and might even prove to be somewhat worse. We shall see. At any rate I'm not interested in a program discussing car safety, green issues, lorries that can save the whale, or fun packed city electric mobility buggies that drive available in pink and other inducements toward liberal social groups. But then I'm the same generation as Clarkson and to be honest, I do share many of his sensibilities.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romans_in_Arabia

Large sections of Hadrians Wall were first erected as turf. Packed in bulk, it forms a heavy barrrier. Not as sturdy as tone perhaps, but not to be underestiomated. Wooden walls do tend to fall apart - these are the sort of fortification s that require constant maintenance and for that matter are bio-replaceable. Neat. Now we call blame the Romans for global warming.

However it's also true that running water was not universal to Romano-British homes, and indeed, many of the smaller villas wouldn't have had such an amenity.

I wouldn't know where the encampment was - I don't know of any source or archeology that locates it - and the only description of a gothic camp I can think of was at Adrianople, away from the town and formed as a defensive ring from their wagons, which might have been circumstantial and not necessarily how they would ordinarily lay themselves out, especially since they were not technically a nomadic people even though they migrated and later expanded into Roman territory. I would have said that the Goths were likely to camp in a concentrated manner anyway - that's normnal behaviour for large groups of human beings whether military or not. They would want to be out of missile range, preferably on suitable dry ground, and whilst a water source nearby wasn't absolutely essential, it was certainly more convenient.

Doc! Good to see you in the 'hood

The big deal this week was the fire alarm at work. Like all other businesses large enough to have fire wardens we regularly have fire drills, but nobody expected the alarm to go off fifteen minutes before the end of shift. Even after hearing the noise I still didn't realise a real fire alarm was happening , right there, right then. Finally somebody remembered that a fire alarm sounded like that and we were supposed to exit the premises by the nearest convenient exit. So we did. It wasn't too cold, but none too warm either. We spread out across the car park aimlessly before the management began herding us in a quiet corner, and just in time, because the fire engine turned up, blue lights flashing. Looks like a real fire then. Rumours were spreading. Something had burst into flames. A few firemen loked busy but there wasn't any smoke or signs of heroic fire fighting. Everything seemed quite calm and businesslike. Then a second fire engine turned up. Oh hello... Is this a serious fire? Rumours began to spread again. Apparently a forklift battery charger had ignited itself. By now the more curious of us were brandishing mobile phones with the vain hope of videoing the end of the warehouse in glorious high definition. Now a third fire engine turned up. Only this one stopped at the entrance to the car park and then reversed away. "Put that fag out!" Yelled a manager. For the unenlightened, 'fag' is British slang for a cigarette. A startled warehouseman did his best to look innocent. "I'll see you tomorrow" The manager warned. And then, a fourth fire engine turned up. It didn't even stop, turning around to go home disappointed that the building wasn't burning to the ground, or more likely, that the naughty warehouseman had put his cigarette out as ordered. The 'All Clear' was given so we went home. Didn't even miss the bus. The Importance Of Doing Nothing Of late I've been pretty busy at work collecting wooden pallets and related tasks. It gets a bit physical, even on the days when I can get a powered pallet truck to use, which isn't so easy because another section tends to nab one sooner than me. One of their team doesn't like doing manual labour. On one day the manager told me pallets were an emergency because no-one had left any from the previous shift. I was lucky to get a truck that day, but as compensation for the forthcoming 'headless chicken' duty, I was to be given the help of Hamster (not related to a certain Top Gear presenter). There's a number of youngsters in the warehouse who form a social clique all of their own. Basically they do all the things the managers don't want them to, but because there are two senior youngsters, Baby Face and Hamster, they pretty much get away with their shenanigans. I was just preparing to shuttle lots of pallets in 'rush hour' when I spotted Hamster walking past. Usually he drives a powered truck of a different type, and seeing him walk is a rare event. I asked him where he intended starting pallet collection, only to be told that he didn't have a truck. I see. Well, how about grabbing a hand truck and manually stacking pallets so I could wheel them to their destination? He walked away. Hamster doesn't do manual work. His job is to look important driving pallet trucks. Oh, and laugh at Baby Face's jokes. Very important duty onbviously. It Happened Again Apparently there was a solar eclipse last friday. I wouldn't know. Partly because the sky was cloudy, partly because I live too far south, partly because I had dozed off watching a dull episode of Star Trek, and partly because I seem fated never to see a real astronomical event ever. Almost time to go back to work. Welcome to my life. Cigarette Of The Week At last the working day has come to an end and warehousemen in various stages of tiredness and disgruntlement amble up the road to catch the bus. Many of us face very long walks home if we miss the last one. One of my colleagues has become quite popular with the managers, mostly because he comes across like Paddington Bear with a midlands accent. He's not as cute and cuddly as the managers think but since when did a manager ever assess someone correctly? Anyway, once at the bus stop Bear felt the need for a smoke before the bus arrived. Suddenly there was a desperate need for a lighter, because he didn't have one, neither did I, nor anyone else, so he took to waylaying colleagues on bicycles as they rode by. Finally he managed to get one to stop and help him out. Just as he was about to take that first puff on the wretched cigarette a passing lorry blew it out. His midland accent remained, but where was the Paddington Bear demeanour all of a sudden?

Drivel. Atlantis was a fictional version of the thera explosion (Santorini) that destroyed the Minoan EMpire, used by Plato as a morality tale. There was never a land mass out there in the Atlantic - Plato conceived it there because no-one could tell him it wasn't there, since the sea was unknown back then, rather like Edgar Rice Burroughs inventing a south american plateau where dinosaurs lived - in an area then unexplored. Same litaray device.

You will find that the sort of detailed information you're looking for is hard to come by regardin g ancient battles for two reasons. Firstly, the ancient historian likely wasn't there, and therefore only reports the brief information that was generally known back at home, and secondly, that there was never much sophistication about tactics, battle lines, and so forth. Ancient battles were usually simple affairs, blocks of men facing off, with cavalry usually taking all the initiative such that battles often started between them for control of the flanks. What you ought to spend more time looking for are the circumstances because that was often a deciding factor. What time of day did the battle start? Who decided the battlefield? Who was suprised? Who had a better plan? Where was the sun? Ancient battles are more often decided the day before than by the sword, all things being equal.

The website report is a bit off on important details. As we know, Julius Caesar wasn't born in 178BC.