British Tribes the Romans Found Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Romans built their town of Calleva Atrebatum where the ATREBATES lived.

Answer: Reading

The ruins of Calleva Atrebatum still exist near the village of Silchester which lies between the modern towns of Basingstoke (Hampshire) and Reading (Berkshire).

2. Venta Belgarum was built by the Romans in the land of the BELGAE and later became a Cathedral city.

Answer: Winchester

The Belgae tribe occupied lands ranging from the south coast in Hampshire, north west to the Bristol Channel. Venta Belgarum was indeed the Roman name for the town they built on the site of an Iron Age fort, and which later became the City of Winchester, Hampshire. Winchester later became the capital of Wessex under King Alfred.

3. The extreme south east of England was the land of the CANTIACI.

Answer: Canterbury

The area is now called the county of Kent, and the Romans built the town of Durovernum Cantiacorum as their local capital, now Canterbury. This place became the base for the spread of Christianity in England, and has a fine cathedral.

4. It was the chief of the CATUVELLAUNI who from his central position did his best to organise the British defence against the Roman invasion.

Answer: Colchester

Caratacus, the chieftain of the Catuvellauni, led a coalition of tribes resisting the Roman invasion. After his defeat the Romans built their town of Verulamium, near present day St. Albans, while the English tribe's capital Camulodunon was expanded by the Romans and became the capital of Roman Britain - now Colchester.

This was where the Emperor Claudius accepted the surrender of the British in 43 A.D. After his defeat Caratacus (also called Caractacus) fought a guerrilla war for several years until he was finally captured and taken to Rome.

5. The DOBUNNI lived by the lower reaches of the River Severn, on what is now the English side.

Answer: Gloucester

The Dobunni tribe occupied what is now the North Somerset/Gloucestershire region, and after the occupation the Romans built the towns of Colonia Nerviana Glevum (now Gloucester), and Corinium Dobunnorum (now Cirencester) which was the district capital.

6. The DUMNONII lived in the extreme south west of England.

Answer: Exeter

The area that is now called Devon and Cornwall was inhabited by a Celtic tribe called the Dumnonii. Their only neighbours were the Durotriges tribe, to the east. The Romans built a fort called Isca Dumnoniorum at what is now the City of Exeter, another city with an impressive cathedral.

7. In an area which connected the Jurassic coast of England with the Bristol Channel, lived a tribe called The DUROTRIGES.

Answer: Dorchester

After the Roman conquest, the main towns were Durnovaria (now Dorchester) and Lindinis (now Ilchester). To the west were the lands of the Dumnonii, and to the east the Belgae. Thomas Hardy in his Wessex novels called the old town Casterbridge.

8. The ICENI of East Anglia, whose queen is probably the most well-known ancient Englishwoman, did not oppose the Roman invasion at first.

Answer: Norwich

The Iceni were led by King Prasutagus and his wife Queen Boudica, and they allied themselves with Rome in 43 A.D., feeling that Roman occupation would probably increase prosperity in East Anglia. However Roman interference in their affairs, particularly a law forbidding the carrying of arms, led to an abortive rebellion in 47 A.D.

When King Prasutagus died in 60 A.D. the Romans took full control, committing outrages including the flogging of the widow Boudica and the rape of her two daughters. This led Boudica to launch a major revolt in 60-61, which included the burning of Londinium (London).

After the revolt was crushed the Iceni were fully incorporated into the Roman province of Britain.

9. The REGNENSES lived in the south coastal area, between the Belgae to the west and the Cantiaci to the east, with the Catuvellauni to the north.

Answer: Chichester

The Regnenses, Regni or Regini were a British Celtic kingdom and later a civitas (administrative area) of Roman Britain. Their capital was Noviomagus Reginorum, known today as Chichester in modern West Sussex. Chichester is yet another town with a great cathedral.

10. North of the Thames Estuary lay the land of the TRINOVANTES.

Answer: Chelmsford

The Trinovantes occupied the area north of the Thames estuary, in what is now Essex. Their name was given to one of the civitates of Roman Britain, whose chief town was Caesaromagus (modern Chelmsford, Essex). They collaborated with the Iceni in Boudica's unsuccessful revolt in 60 A.D.

Source: Author davejacobs

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Questions		Choices
1. Romans built their town of Calleva Atrebatum where the ATREBATES lived.		Colchester
2. Venta Belgarum was built by the Romans in the land of the BELGAE and later became a Cathedral city.		Chelmsford
3. The extreme south east of England was the land of the CANTIACI.		Canterbury
4. It was the chief of the CATUVELLAUNI who from his central position did his best to organise the British defence against the Roman invasion.		Gloucester
5. The DOBUNNI lived by the lower reaches of the River Severn, on what is now the English side.		Norwich
6. The DUMNONII lived in the extreme south west of England.		Exeter
7. In an area which connected the Jurassic coast of England with the Bristol Channel, lived a tribe called The DUROTRIGES.		Dorchester
8. The ICENI of East Anglia, whose queen is probably the most well-known ancient Englishwoman, did not oppose the Roman invasion at first.		Reading
9. The REGNENSES lived in the south coastal area, between the Belgae to the west and the Cantiaci to the east, with the Catuvellauni to the north.		Winchester
10. North of the Thames Estuary lay the land of the TRINOVANTES.		Chichester

When the Romans under Claudius invaded in 43 A.D., they found several rival tribes occupying various areas of Southern England. Do you know where they were? If I name the tribal areas, can you place a modern city or town within that area?