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Chronicle I of VI

Prehistoric & Roman Britain

Britannia

Stonehenge, the Celtic tribes, and four centuries of Rome at the edge of the world.

Span
9000 BC – 410 AD
Entries
16
  1. 9000 BC

    Mesolithic BritainCultural

    Hunter-gatherers return to a thawing island

    As the last glaciers retreat, Mesolithic bands recolonise Britain across the land-bridge of Doggerland, hunting red deer and aurochs through birch and pine forests.

  2. 4000 BC

    Neolithic RevolutionCultural

    Farming reaches Britain

    Continental farmers cross the new Channel bringing wheat, barley, cattle, and sheep. Within a few generations the woodland is cleared, long barrows are raised, and the first causewayed enclosures appear.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 2
  3. 3100 BC

    Late NeolithicReligious

    First stones at Stonehenge

    On Salisbury Plain the first earthwork and timber phase of Stonehenge is laid out — a circular ditch and bank enclosing cremation burials, aligned to the solstices.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 2
  4. 2400 BC

    Beaker BritainCultural

    Arrival of the Beaker people

    A new population from the Lower Rhine arrives with copper metallurgy, distinctive bell-shaped pottery, and a warrior burial rite. Genetic studies show they replaced as much as 90 per cent of the Neolithic gene pool within a few centuries.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3
  5. 800 BC

    Iron AgeCultural

    Hillforts and the Celtic Iron Age

    Iron-working spreads from the continent and the British landscape fills with hillforts — Maiden Castle, Danebury, Old Oswestry — defended hilltop centres ruled by chieftains of the tribes Caesar would later name.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3
  6. 55 BC

    Caesar in BritainMilitary

    Caesar's first expedition

    In late summer Julius Caesar crosses the Channel with two legions, the first Roman commander to set foot on the island. The reconnaissance ends in storm damage and an inglorious withdrawal.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  7. Claudian ConquestMilitary

    Claudius invades Britain

    Four legions under Aulus Plautius land in Kent at the order of the emperor Claudius. After defeating Caratacus and the Catuvellauni on the Medway, the army takes Camulodunum (Colchester); Claudius himself arrives with elephants for the triumph.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  8. Boudiccan RevoltMilitary

    Boudicca's rebellion

    Provoked by the seizure of Iceni lands and the flogging of their queen Boudicca, the eastern tribes rise in revolt. Camulodunum, Londinium, and Verulamium are burned and tens of thousands of Romans and Britons killed before Suetonius Paulinus crushes the rebels in the Midlands.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  9. 8 more entries, to AD 410