Boudica (Queen of the Britons - AD 60)
d. AD 60/61
When the Romans invaded Britain in AD 43, they allowed some tribal rulers to remain as 'client kings' under the Roman Emperor. One such was prasutagus, who ruled the Iceni (in the East Anglia region) with his queen, Boudicca. When he died in AD 60, the Romans ignored his will, which left the kingdom to his daughters jointly with the Roman Emperor, and instead took control themselves. For good measure they publicly flogged Boudicca and raped her daughters.
In response, Boudicca mustered the support of other English tribes and rose up against the Romans. From her chariot, her daughters at her side, she led an army of some 100,000 men, which destroyed the Roman capital at Camulodunum (Colchester), went on to devastate the Londinium and Verulamium (St Albans), and slaughtered the 9th Roman Legion, despite being vastly outnumbered.
The Romans rallied, however, and eventually defeated Boudicca, perhaps in the West Midlands. Boudicca herself died, having reputedly taken poison. Nothing is known of the fate of her daughters.
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