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The Great Invasion
Gives the background of Britain before the Roman invasion of 43 AD & goes on to describe the Roman forces, the personalities involved, the actual invasion--including the crucial battle on the Medway--& Claudius' triumphal entrance into Camulodunum, the British capital.
255 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1958
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37 people want to read
About the author
Leonard Cottrell
180 books24 followersLeonard Eric Cottrell was a prolific and popular British author and journalist. Many of his books were popularizations of the archaeology of ancient Egypt.
Leonard Cottrell was born in 1913 in Tettenhall, Wolverhampton, to William and Beatrice Cottrell (née Tootell). His father inspired his interest in history from a very young age. At King Edward's Grammar School, Birmingham, Leonard was notably only interested in English and history, in which he read widely.
In the 1930s, Cottrell toured the English countryside on his motorcycle, visiting prehistoric stone circles, burial mounds of the Bronze Age, medieval and Renaissance monuments. On those journeys, he was often accompanied by Doris Swain, whom he later married. After gaining experience writing articles on historical subjects for motoring magazines, he wrote his first documentary for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in 1937.
Cottrell was rejected by the RAF during World War II for medical reasons, but he joined the BBC in 1942 and was stationed in the Mediterranean with the RAF in 1944, as a war correspondent. His wartime experiences formed the basis of his book All Men are Neighbours (1947). He worked at the BBC until 1960, when he resigned and moved to a house overlooking the estuary of the River Kent in Westmoreland, Cumbria, where he stayed for the rest of his life, writing.
Among other achievements, Cottrell was the editor of the Concise Encyclopaedia of Archaeology (1965).
He was married and divorced twice, first to Doris Swain (divorced 1962) and Diana Bonakis (married 1965; divorced 1968). He had no children by either marriage.
Leonard Cottrell died on 6 October 1974.
Leonard Cottrell was born in 1913 in Tettenhall, Wolverhampton, to William and Beatrice Cottrell (née Tootell). His father inspired his interest in history from a very young age. At King Edward's Grammar School, Birmingham, Leonard was notably only interested in English and history, in which he read widely.
In the 1930s, Cottrell toured the English countryside on his motorcycle, visiting prehistoric stone circles, burial mounds of the Bronze Age, medieval and Renaissance monuments. On those journeys, he was often accompanied by Doris Swain, whom he later married. After gaining experience writing articles on historical subjects for motoring magazines, he wrote his first documentary for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in 1937.
Cottrell was rejected by the RAF during World War II for medical reasons, but he joined the BBC in 1942 and was stationed in the Mediterranean with the RAF in 1944, as a war correspondent. His wartime experiences formed the basis of his book All Men are Neighbours (1947). He worked at the BBC until 1960, when he resigned and moved to a house overlooking the estuary of the River Kent in Westmoreland, Cumbria, where he stayed for the rest of his life, writing.
Among other achievements, Cottrell was the editor of the Concise Encyclopaedia of Archaeology (1965).
He was married and divorced twice, first to Doris Swain (divorced 1962) and Diana Bonakis (married 1965; divorced 1968). He had no children by either marriage.
Leonard Cottrell died on 6 October 1974.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 24, 2020
A semi-interesting account of the Roman army's incursions into Britain, first in a all-too-brief invasion by Julius Caesar, and later by the emperor Claudius and his successors. Caesar came around 55 B.C. and left almost right away, while Claudius's forces started an actual occupation of the territory in 43 A.D. This occupation would last for almost five hundred years, but only the first forty or so years are dealt with by Cottrell since, as his title indicates, it is the invasion not the occupation with which he is concerned. By the last years of the Governorship of Agricola, around 84 A.D., the furthest limits of Roman power, which had by then spread to the southern part of Scotland, were essentially established.
The main difficulty I had with this work was that, unlike ancient Egypt, about which Cottrell also wrote, no actual written records survive. The Nile region is essentially arid; that of the British Isles is much the opposite: hence, paper records survive from the former but have been lost for the latter. Thus, a large part of Cottrell's work is a mere retelling of Caesar's own writings on his brief foray and the accounts of Agricola's battles penned by Tacitus, who was this Governor's son-in-law.
Archaeological evidence is often referred to, but other than establishing when this fort was built, is not much help in identifying the main issue I had: why did the Romans, rulers of the known world, choose to expand their empire to include this remote home of what they largely regarded as barbarians? Cottrell rather weakly answers the question thus:
Britain was a thoroughly unattractive place; wet, misty and dull, the home of barbarians, distasteful to a civilized, Mediterranean man. Yet there it was - a challenge. Because it was there.
The most telling point I hadn't appreciated before reading this work was the overwhelming cosmopolitanism of the Romans. Their four legions with which they occupied Britain were drawn not only from Italy, but also from Gaul, Syria, Africa, Germania and even the British Isles themselves. There was little if anything purely 'nationalistic' about their imperialism. Anyone could become a Roman citizen, or even Emperor, and though they kept slaves, those falling into this status did not do so because of their race or territorial background. Most were simply unfortunate in being on the losing side in a battle.
On battles this book is quite good. The rebellion of Boudicca which nearly succeeded in throwing the Roman forces back into the sea is well described, but an even more stirring narrative is reserved for the battle of Mona Graupius of Agricola against Calgacus. In both cases, the exceptional discipline of the Roman forces overcame the passionate, spirited but somewhat disorganized forces opposing them.
Cottrell's final pages make the argument that the main effect of the nearly five hundred years of Roman rule of his country were some quite good roads.
Needless to say, I found this work somewhat underwhelming.
The main difficulty I had with this work was that, unlike ancient Egypt, about which Cottrell also wrote, no actual written records survive. The Nile region is essentially arid; that of the British Isles is much the opposite: hence, paper records survive from the former but have been lost for the latter. Thus, a large part of Cottrell's work is a mere retelling of Caesar's own writings on his brief foray and the accounts of Agricola's battles penned by Tacitus, who was this Governor's son-in-law.
Archaeological evidence is often referred to, but other than establishing when this fort was built, is not much help in identifying the main issue I had: why did the Romans, rulers of the known world, choose to expand their empire to include this remote home of what they largely regarded as barbarians? Cottrell rather weakly answers the question thus:
Britain was a thoroughly unattractive place; wet, misty and dull, the home of barbarians, distasteful to a civilized, Mediterranean man. Yet there it was - a challenge. Because it was there.
The most telling point I hadn't appreciated before reading this work was the overwhelming cosmopolitanism of the Romans. Their four legions with which they occupied Britain were drawn not only from Italy, but also from Gaul, Syria, Africa, Germania and even the British Isles themselves. There was little if anything purely 'nationalistic' about their imperialism. Anyone could become a Roman citizen, or even Emperor, and though they kept slaves, those falling into this status did not do so because of their race or territorial background. Most were simply unfortunate in being on the losing side in a battle.
On battles this book is quite good. The rebellion of Boudicca which nearly succeeded in throwing the Roman forces back into the sea is well described, but an even more stirring narrative is reserved for the battle of Mona Graupius of Agricola against Calgacus. In both cases, the exceptional discipline of the Roman forces overcame the passionate, spirited but somewhat disorganized forces opposing them.
Cottrell's final pages make the argument that the main effect of the nearly five hundred years of Roman rule of his country were some quite good roads.
Needless to say, I found this work somewhat underwhelming.
February 24, 2020
A very readable, though slightly outdated, history of the Roman invasion and colonization of Britain c. 55BC - 70AD
December 20, 2010
THE BLURB IN THE SEARCH ENGINE STATES FIRST PUBLISHED 1965 I HAVE AN OLD 1960 RU EDITION OF MY GRANDFATHERS THAT STATES FIRST PUBLISHED 1958.THAT STATED,THIS IS SO FAR A VERY GOOD READ.A MUST FOR ANYONE INTERESTED IN ROMANO-BRITISH HISTORY.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews