- This topic has 6 voices and 18 replies.
-
Posts
-
Wouldnt you have to explain the Roman conquest of Britain before getting on a role and blaming the Romans leaving for their further Subjugation? I mean the Britons were weak enough that they couldnt fight off the Romans in the first place, if anything the addition of Roman blodd should have made them tougher to defeat in the future.
I don't believe there was that much Roman blood. Many of the troops were from Gaul and Iberia and I doubt many true Romans would have taken Briton wives.
I don't believe there was that much Roman blood. Many of the troops were from Gaul and Iberia and I doubt many true Romans would have taken Briton wives.
If that is the case then the Romans in Britian broke the mold. There is a long and venerable tradition of soldiers taking foreign wives from wherever they happen to be stationed. One look at all the Korean and german stores outside any US militay installation will show you that. One look at all the amerasians in Vietnam today gives the lie to this concept as well.In antiquity, the Romans guaranteed a soldier a plot of land outside his local fort upon retirement for several reasons, one of which is the high of intermarriage with the local population. I remember reading a letter from a tribune to the Senate where he implored them for more funds to pay for the upkeep of the soldiers wives to stem desertion rates.
Again remember most “Roman” solders were not from Rome. While the Tribunii, Legatus, and Consul were usually of Roman origin, these were appointed members and probably had much less time with the respective legion than those actually IN the Legion. Plus for many years the mass of troops were filled with locals. Allowing local men to “join” the legions with the promise of Roman Citizenship was a way that Rome could assimilate conquerored peoples into the Empire. If there were any foreigners intermarrying with the Britons, they were far from “Roman” and would do very little for to increase British stock.
Agreed, most Roman soldiers were not from the city of Rome. However in the time of the British conquest 1st century B.C to 1st century A.D., the large majority of Legionnaires were of Italian extraction, an area that had been part of the Empire for over 300 years at that point. Locals were enrolled only as auxiliaries, it was not until later when an area had been largely pacified that they were allowed to join the Legion with the promise of citizenship. Even then, most locals were sent to other parts of the Empire to serve because it helped to ensure their loyalty if they were not at home. Third World internal security forces still do this, mainly because it works. The chances that there were many Britons in the Legions stationed in Britain is actually quite small.Legionnaires also were not allowed to marry until they had completed twenty of their twenty-five years. The land grants were to keep them near the fort and available to be recalled to the colors at need.
