- Venutius
Venutius was a
1st century king of theBrigantes in northern Britain at the time of the Roman conquest. Some have suggested he may have belonged to theCarvetii , a tribe which probably formed part of the Brigantes confederation. [ [http://www.roman-britain.org/tribes/brigantes.htm Brigantes] at [http://www.roman-britain.org Roman-Britain.org] ]History first becomes aware of him as husband of
Cartimandua , queen of the Brigantes, in about51 AD. After the British resistance leaderCaratacus was defeated byPublius Ostorius Scapula inWales , he fled north to the Brigantes, only to be handed over to the Romans by Cartimandua. While the Brigantes were nominally an independent kingdom,Tacitus says Cartimandua and Venutius were loyal to Rome and "defended by Roman power". However, after the capture of Caratacus, Venutius became the most prominent leader of resistance to the Roman occupation. Cartimandua had apparently tired of him and married his armour-bearer,Vellocatus , whom she elevated to the kingship in Venutius's place. Initially, Venutius sought only to overthrow his ex-wife, only later turning his attention to her Roman protectors. The Romans defended their client queen and Venutius's revolt was defeated byCaesius Nasica during the governorship ofAulus Didius Gallus (52 -57 AD). [Tacitus , "Annals" [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+12.36 12:36] , [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+12.40 12:40] ]Taking advantage of Roman instability during the
year of four emperors , Venutius revolted again, this time in69 AD. Cartimandua appealed for troops from the Romans, who were only able to send auxiliaries. Cartimandua was evacuated and Venutius took the kingdom. [Tacitus, "Histories" [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Hist.+3.45 3:45] ]This second revolt may have had wider repercussions: Tacitus says that
Vespasian , once emperor, had to "recover" Britain. He also says, introducing the events of the year of four emperors, that Britain was abandoned having only just been subdued (although some think this is in reference to the consolidation of Agricola's later conquests in Scotland). [Tacitus, "Histories" [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Hist.+1.2 1:2] ]What happened to Venutius after the accession of
Vespasian is not recorded.Quintus Petillius Cerialis (governor71 to74 AD) campaigned against the Brigantes, [Tacitus, "Agricola" [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ag.+17 17] ] but they were not completely subdued for many decades: Agricola (governor78 to84 AD) appears to have campaigned in Brigantian territory, [Tacitus, "Agricola" [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ag.+20 22] ] and both the Roman poetJuvenal and the Greek geographer Pausanias refer to warfare against the Brigantes in the first half of the 1st century. [Juvenal , "Satires" [http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/juvenal/14.shtml 14.196] ; Pausanias, "Description of Greece " [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Paus.+8.43.1 8.43.4] ]References
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