An Ancient Battle for Britain Trivia Quiz

Answer: They were levied from the farms.

Four legions totaling 20,000 troops supplemented with an equal number of Roman auxiliaries made up the army that invaded Britain. Both auxiliaries and legionnaires were trained, professional soldiers. Warrior-aristocrats led the British fighters, the bulk of whom were soldier-fighters.

Answer: All were required

Roman legions provided an exceptional opportunity for soldiers while operating as a supremely effective tool for the expansion and defense of the empire. Roman citizenship conferred important legal, social, political and economic privileges. Citizenship effectively coupled the interests of the individual legionnaire to those of the Empire.

The literacy requirement assured an ample supply of administrative talent - so necessary for the governance of the conquered territory.

Answer: All benefits were provided to both

Few careers in ancient (or for that matter modern) times virtually guaranteed opportunity for advancement, regular monetary wages and retirement benefits. On retirement, Roman auxiliaries received Roman citizenship allowing their sons to join the better paying and more prestigious legions.

This provided a pathway by which families could become incrementally Romanized and at the same time it assured a steady stream of recruits for the Roman legions.

Answer: Celtic foot soldiers

Roman tactics depended on closing with the enemy force. In close quarters the disciplined and tightly packed Roman lines, protected by their body armor, could wield their short swords to devastating effect.

Answer: Chariot

The Celtic charioteers were probably too small in number to inflict major damage on the well-disciplined Roman army even at times when the terrain favored their use.

Answer: Armored infantry with short swords and javelins

Calvary or infantry charges against Roman infantry were subjected first to a withering barrage of javelins. As previously mentioned, short swords, armor and disciplined, tightly packed lines strongly favored the Romans once combatants closed with one another.

Answer: Ambush

The Romans under Augustus suffered one of their most crushing defeats when Germanic fighters ambushed troops under the command of Quinctilius Varus. The demoralized Augustus revised Rome's long policy of expansion, never following through on plans to invade Britain.

When Claudius, seeking to establish his leadership through the time-honored means of military conquest, did invade Britain, ambush again proved the most effective tactic against the Romans.

Answer: False

Celtic farmer-soldiers could campaign for only part of the year; failure to care for crops doomed families to starvation. The Romans had developed a highly organized and effective supply system. Roman soldiers could campaign for as long as the weather allowed and then retire to well-provisioned, fortified stockades for the winter.

It could be viewed as ironic that in the American colonial rebellion, British troops enjoyed many of the same advantages that the Romans did during the conquest of Britain, yet the British did not prevail in their conflicts with indigenous, soldier-farmer colonials. An interesting difference is that the literacy level favored the colonials in the latter conflict.

Answer: Some resisted fiercely.

In the 1st century AD, the Romans fielded the well-coordinated military machine to be expected from a massive, cohesively governed empire. The Celtic tribes were often rivals and had neither the resources of government nor the necessary mutual goodwill to present a unified front.

Answer: All were used

Siege engines and small cavalry contingents were standard components of Roman legions. Elephants were employed for Claudius's entry into the principal British town of Colchester.

The ancient Britons did not have the military capability to withstand the Roman's well organized and trained invasion force. That the campaign required several years despite the many advantages that the Roman soldiers enjoyed is a testimony to the dogged determination of the resisting tribes.

"The Oxford History of Britain" was the source for most of the information contained in the quiz.