The very title of this new survey gives a clear indication of its purpose. So, it should be judged on the degree of success it achieves in describing and – hopefully, freshly – interpreting that 400-year period of our history. Jackson investigates why the Romans went so far (literally) to conquer territory of dubious profit to them; the process by which they did this; and what the effects of Romanisation were on ‘Britannia’.
The author has spent most of his career in the law rather than academia; but his wide reading and enthusiasm for the revelations of archaeologists have put him in a strong position to add positively and enjoyably to the ever-growing stock of secondary material.
All the important persons, places, troop movements and cultural developments are here. Jackson begins with a useful summary of ‘Britain in the Iron Age’, reminding the reader of the existence of a far-from-primitive ‘Celtic’ culture – coinage and all. Julius Caesar of course comes and goes (twice) then Jackson gets into his stride with an excellent sequence of 13 chapters taking us from the Claudian invasion of 43AD to the abandoning of Britannia early in the 5th century.
Especially interesting is the inclusion – for the first time in a full-length study of Roman Britain – of writing about the Bloomberg tablets. Discovered in 2010–13 in the City of London, these documents make a fascinating addition to our store of knowledge, not least because some of them date from the earliest decades of Roman occupation and the growth/development of Londinium. Dare we to hope for any further such discoveries?
Chapter 9 ‘The Romanisation of Britain in the 1st century’ is particularly valuable. Jackson has thought long and hard about Romanisation actually means, and considers judiciously how this process differed between Britannia and other provinces. Chapters 17–20 (‘Towns and Urban Life’; ‘Life in the Countryside’; ‘Religion in Roman Britain; and ‘The Romano-British Legacy’) summarise those topics admirably, and could certainly help the subject to come more alive for school students studying The Romans in Britain topic for GCSE Latin ‘Literature and Culture’.
At practically no point in his narrative can the author resist a sharp aside or humorous comment. Not all of these work terribly well. After a digest of Tacitus’ account of the occupiers’ foul treatment of Boudica and her daughters following the death of Prasutagus, Jackson writes: ‘The Romans had much to learn in the sphere of bereavement counselling.’ Silly, and even a bit tasteless. More apposite perhaps is his observation, re the production of Tacitus’ Agricola: ‘It is a brave man who publishes books about his wife's family.’ Hit-and-miss jokiness aside, this book is the most informative (for its length) that can be imagined. It will be a valuable addition to any school library – not least for the up-to-date quality noted above - and should be reckoned useful for A Level and early undergraduate Classical studies too.
Open access
