User:Jennashill/Iceni

[Feedback from Dr Austen - I think you have identified some good areas for development here Jenna, and hope to see some of these additions soon. I have added in a few notes in brackets in the body of the text below with some more specific thoughts that will hopefully help you plan and execute your next steps!]

Archaeology
Archaeological evidence of the Iceni includes torcs — heavy rings of gold, silver or electrum worn around the neck and shoulders. The Iceni began producing coins around 10 BC. Their coins were a distinctive adaptation of the Gallo-Belgic "face/horse" design, and in some early issues, most numerous near Norwich, the horse was replaced with a boar. Some coins are inscribed ECENI, making them the only coin-producing group to use their tribal name on coins. The earliest personal name to appear on coins is Antedios (about 10 BC), and other abbreviated names like AESU and SAEMU follow.

It has been discovered that the name of Antedios’ succeeding ruler Prasutagus appears on the coins as well. H. R. Mossop in his article “An Elusive Icenian Legend” discusses coins that were discovered by D. F. Allen in Joist Fen, Suffolk, and states, “It is the coins Nos. 6 and 7 which give an advance in the obverse reading, confirming Allen’s attractive reading PRASTO, with its implied allusion to Prasutagus” (Mossop and Allen 258).

Sir Thomas Browne, the first English archaeological writer, said of the Roman occupation, Boudica and Iceni coins:"That Britain was notably populous is undeniable, from that expression of Caesar. That the Romans themselves were early in no small Numbers, Seventy Thousand with their associates slain by Bouadicea, affords a sure account... And no small number of silver pieces near Norwich; with a rude head upon the obverse, an ill-formed horse on the reverse, with the Inscriptions Ic. Duro.T. whether implying Iceni, Durotriges, Tascia, or Trinobantes, we leave to higher conjecture. The British Coyns afford conjecture of early habitation in these parts, though the city of Norwich arose from the ruins of Venta, and though perhaps not without some habitation before, was enlarged, built, and nominated by the Saxons."The Icknield Way, an ancient trackway linking East Anglia to the Chilterns, may be named after the Iceni.

John A. Davies and Tony Gregory conducted archaeological surveys of Roman coins that appeared during the period of Roman occupation of Norfolk. Their study showed that the bulk of the coins circulating before AD 60 was Icenian rather than Roman. They speculated that Roman coins were not adapted into the Iceni area until after AD 60. The coin study also showed that there was not a regular supply of Roman coinage from year to year:"The predominance of specific issues at sites across the province and relative scarcity of coins of some emperors illustrates the point that supply was sporadic and that there were periods when little or no fresh coinage was sent to Britain from the imperial mints."In certain rural regions of Norfolk, Davies and Gregory speculate that the Iceni farmers were impacted very little by the civitas, seeing as there is a scarce presence of coinage and treasures. On the other hand, their surveys found "coin-rich temple sites, which appear to have served as centres for periodic fairs and festivals and provided locations for markets and commercial transactions within their complexes and environs. In such rural areas, producers and consumers would have been attracted to these sites for commerce from afield"

'''Excavation done within the area has revealed multiple structures. These buildings include public baths, two temples, and the forum basilica .'''

Roman Invasion
Tacitus records that the Iceni were not conquered in the Claudian invasion of AD 43, but had come to a voluntary alliance with the Romans. However, they rose against them in 47 after the governor, Publius Ostorius Scapula, threatened to disarm them. D. F. Allen explains in further detail, in his article "The Coins of the Iceni," that Scapula had been "preoccupied with defense against the unconquered Silures in South Wales and Brigantes in Yorkshire." Allen informs readers that this was how Prasutagus had come to gain full control over the Iceni (Allen 2). The Iceni were defeated by Ostorius in a fierce battle at a fortified place, but were allowed to retain their independence. The site of the battle may have been Stonea Camp in Cambridgeshire.

A second and more serious uprising took place in AD 61. Prasutagus, the wealthy, pro-Roman Icenian king, who, according to a section in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography titled "Roman Britain, British Leaders", was leader of the Iceni between AD 43 and 50 (Todd 4), had died. It was common practice for a Roman client king to leave his kingdom to Rome on his death, but Prasutagus had attempted to preserve his line by bequeathing his kingdom — which Allen believes was located in Breckland, near Norwich (Allen 15) — jointly to the Emperor and his own daughters. The Romans ignored this, and the procurator Catus Decianus seized his entire estate. Prasutagus's widow, Boudica, was flogged, and her daughters were raped. At the same time, Roman financiers called in their loans, like Seneca who had forced a loan upon the Iceni poeple [COULD PROBABLY EXPAND THIS SMALL ADDITION EVEN MORE - INCLUDE MORE TACITUS HERE?]. Catus demanded the Iceni people return funds he had gifted them, and members of the royal family were forced into slavery. While the governor, Gaius Suetonius Paulinus, was campaigning in Wales, Boudica led the Iceni and the neighbouring Trinovantes in a large-scale revolt:

Further Topics I May Add
-Economy of the Iceni: Agriculture (Wheat and Barley), Sheep farming [YES - VERY MUCH LIKE THIS IDEA AS A NEW SECTION]

-Add Boudicas speculated suicide [TAKE A LOOK AT THE BOUDICA ARTICLE FOR HELP ON BIBLIOGRAPHY HERE].

-Pottery

-mentioned in a few sources but would like to find archeological records [AGREE THAT ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS WOULD BE A NICE ADDITION]

-Other archeological evidence besides coins (http://ethnicjewelsmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/NA2016-p2-Harlow.pdf)

- not sure what kind of reference this is, its from google scholar [IS THIS A QUESTION RELATED TO THE ETHNIC JEWELS ARTICLE? YOU WOULD BE ALLOWED TO INCLUDE A LINK TO THIS ARTICLE AS PART OF YOUR BIBLIOGRAPHY/CITATIONS].