Prasutagus (died AD 60 or 61) was king of a British Celtic tribe called the Iceni, who inhabited roughly what is now Norfolk, in the 1st century AD. He is best known as the husband of Boudica.
Prasutagus may have been one of the eleven kings who surrendered to Claudius following the Roman conquest in 43, [1] or he may have been installed as king following the defeat of a rebellion of the Iceni in 47. [2] As an ally of Rome his tribe were allowed to remain nominally independent, albeit disarmed, and to ensure this Prasutagus named the Roman emperor as co-heir to his kingdom, along with his two daughters. Tacitus says he lived a long and prosperous life, but when he died, the Romans ignored his will and took over, depriving the nobles of their lands and plundering the kingdom. Boudica was flogged and their daughters raped. [3] Roman financiers called in their loans. [4] All this led to the revolt of the Iceni, under the leadership of Boudica, in 60 or 61.
Coins have been found in Suffolk inscribed SVB ESVPRASTO ESICO FECIT, "under Esuprastus Esico made (this)" in Latin. Some archaeologists believe that Esuprastus was the true name of the king Tacitus calls Prasutagus, while others think he was a different person. Others interpret Esuprastus is a compound name, with "Esu-" deriving from the god Esus and meaning "lord", "master" or "honour", and "Prasto-" being an abbreviated personal name, the coin inscription thus meaning "under Lord Prasto-". It is also notable that coins of the Corieltauvi have been found inscribed with the similar names IISVPRASV and ESVPASV. The name of an earlier king of the Iceni appears on coins as SCAVO, a name which may be related to the Latin scaeva, "left", and scaevola, "left-handed". Both rulers' coins are similarly Roman in style and language and were probably issued within twenty years of each other. Chris Rudd suggests that Esuprastus, whom he identifies with Prasutagus, succeeded Scavo after the Icenian rebellion of 47. [5]
Icenian coins dating from the 1st century AD use the spelling ECEN rather than ECE: [6] It has been argued that this change coincides with the start of Prasutagus's reign, with the coins of Antedios showing only the name of the ruler rather than the tribe. "If so, the coins suggest that the Prasutagus era commenced only after the events of 47". [7]
Boudica or Boudicca was a queen of the ancient British Iceni tribe, who led a failed uprising against the conquering forces of the Roman Empire in AD 60 or 61. She is considered a British national heroine and a symbol of the struggle for justice and independence.
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his death in AD 68.
The 60s decade ran from January 1, AD 60, to December 31, AD 69.
AD 44 (XLIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Crispus and Taurus. The denomination AD 44 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
AD 60 (LX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Nero and Lentulus. The denomination AD 60 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
AD 61 (LXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Turpilianus and Caesennius. The denomination AD 61 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Caratacus was a 1st-century AD British chieftain of the Catuvellauni tribe, who resisted the Roman conquest of Britain.
The Trinovantēs or Trinobantes were one of the Celtic tribes of Pre-Roman Britain. Their territory was on the north side of the Thames estuary in current Essex, Hertfordshire and Suffolk, and included lands now located in Greater London. They were bordered to the north by the Iceni, and to the west by the Catuvellauni. Their name possibly derives from the Celtic intensive prefix "tri-" and a second element which was either "nowio" – new, so meaning "very new" in the sense of "newcomers", but possibly with an applied sense of vigor or liveliness ultimately meaning "the very vigorous people". Their capital was Camulodunum, one proposed site of the legendary Camelot.
The Iceni or Eceni were an ancient tribe of eastern Britain during the Iron Age and early Roman era. Their territory included present-day Norfolk and parts of Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, and bordered the area of the Corieltauvi to the west, and the Catuvellauni and Trinovantes to the south. In the Roman period, their capital was Venta Icenorum at modern-day Caistor St Edmund.
Quintus Petillius Cerialis Caesius Rufus, otherwise known as Quintus Petillius Cerialis, was a Roman general and administrator who served in Britain during Boudica's rebellion and went on to participate in the civil wars after the death of Nero. He later crushed the rebellion of Julius Civilis and returned to Britain as its governor.
The Catuvellauni were a Celtic tribe or state of southeastern Britain before the Roman conquest, attested by inscriptions into the 4th century.
The Corieltauvi were a Celtic tribe living in Britain prior to the Roman conquest, and thereafter a civitas of Roman Britain. Their territory was in what is now the English East Midlands. They were bordered by the Brigantes to the north, the Cornovii to the west, the Dobunni and Catuvellauni to the south, and the Iceni to the east. Their capital was called Ratae Corieltauvorum, known today as Leicester.
Publius Ostorius Scapula was a Roman statesman and general who governed Britain from 47 until his death, and was responsible for the defeat and capture of Caratacus.
The Roman client kingdoms in Britain were native tribes which chose to align themselves with the Roman Empire because they saw it as the best option for self-preservation or for protection from other hostile tribes. Alternatively, the Romans created some client kingdoms when they felt influence without direct rule was desirable. Client kingdoms were ruled by client kings. In Latin these kings were referred to as rex sociusque et amicus, which translates to "king, ally, and friend". The type of relationships between client kingdoms and Rome was reliant on the individual circumstances in each kingdom.
Antedios or Anted was an ancient king of the Iceni, a Brythonic tribe who inhabited the present day county of Norfolk in Britain from approximately the 1st century BCE until the 1st century CE.
The Temple of Claudius or Temple of the Deified Claudius was a large octastyle temple built in Camulodunum, the modern Colchester in Essex. The main building was constructed between 49 and 60 AD, although additions were built throughout the Roman-era. Today, it forms the base of the Norman Colchester Castle. It is one of at least eight Roman-era pagan temples in Colchester, and was the largest temple of its kind in Roman Britain; its current remains potentially represent the earliest existing Roman stonework in the country.
Events from the 1st century in Roman Britain.
Boudica is a 2003 British biographical-historical television film about the queen of the Iceni tribe, Boudica. It stars Alex Kingston, Steven Waddington and Emily Blunt in her film debut.
This is part of a series on the History of Norfolk
The Boudican revolt was an armed uprising by native Celtic Britons against the Roman Empire during the Roman conquest of Britain. It took place circa AD 60–61 in the Roman province of Britain, and was led by Boudica, the Queen of the Iceni tribe. The uprising was motivated by the Romans' failure to honour an agreement they had made with Boudica's husband, Prasutagus, regarding the succession of his kingdom upon his death, and by the brutal mistreatment of Boudica and her daughters by the occupying Romans.