The Battle of Mons Grampius

The Battle of Mons Grampius (80 AD) was the first large battle recorded in Scottish history. This important battle took place 135 years after Caesar first landed in Britain and at a time when Roman Legions were advancing north from their provinces in Britain into what was soon to become Caledonia, and later Scotland.

Very little is known of Scotland at the time of the Roman invasion. The Irish, however, do give us some information on the people of the land. The Irish called the inhabitants of Scotland the Cruithne, a tribe with roots in Ireland as well. According to the legend, the first great King of this tribe was Cruithne, and he had seven sons who gave their names to the seven tribes of the Cruithne in Scotland. The sons' names were Fib, Fidach, Foltlaig, Fortrenn, Caitt, Ce and Circinn.

The tribe of Fib inhabited the area now known as Fife. The others tribes inhabited: Fidach unknown, Foltlaig inhabited Athfotla, Fortrenn in Fortriu, Caitt in Caithness, Ce in Aberdeenshire and finally the Circinn in Angus. Amazingly, Athfotla is said to mean new Ireland and takes in the area now known as Atholl. The exact date of this legends inception appears to be unknown, so this might concern a time after the Romans. Also, it could possibly be the confederation caused by the Roman invasion that is mentioned again later.

From Herodian, the Greek Historian, we have a description of these early inhabitants of the future Scotland. The Pictii or 'painted ones', as the natives were called by the Romans, ran around this harsh climate with almost no clothing. Their bodies were tattooed and almost completely covered with the designs of animals and symbols. They encircled their bellies and necks with iron rings and used smaller rings as a form of money. This tells us that they apparently understood and had the ability to smelt iron. This means that although the Romans would wish us to think otherwise, the Picts (or Cruithne) were not as backwards a people as the Roman histories so 'judiciously' paint.

For weapons they carried a short spear and a long sword with an unsharpened point. They also apparently had the ability to shoot darts by whatever means. In defense, they carried a small shield much like the Targe of the Scots, but the shield was oval instead of round according to the Romans.

In response to the Roman advance into Caledonia or Scotland, the tribes of the Cruithne combined forces in typical Celtic fashion. They put aside their differences in order to meet the greater challenge of an external foe. This may have been the beginning of the country of Caledonia.

As for the Battle of Mons Grampius, we have only the writings of Tacitus, the son in law of Agricola the Invader, to guide us. This source is not very reliable however, as Tacitus may have received his information second hand from his father in law. But the story is all that is written on the subject for us to draw upon.

Tacitus begins the story by quoting the speeches given by his father in law, Agricola and Galgacus (the leader of the Picts) to the formed troops. While this is entertaining, it is not very probable that the Romans heard everything said by the leader of the Picts (or Caledonians) and wrote it down for posterity. So it is believed that the author largely contrived these speeches. Interestingly, Tacitus brought up a sore spot with the Romans with his 'recorded' speech of Galgacus. The point being that the majority of the Roman army was made up of Barbarians and that any time that group could have turned on their masters. This was a subject, which haunted the true Romans for centuries.

The van of the Pictish or Caledonian force was arrayed from the plain below a hill and up the mountainside in the form of a huge arch. While the Barbarians had no cavalry, they did possess war chariots. These chariots had metal wheels on which were mounted blades designed to cut anyone the chariot passed close to. Before the battle, the chariots paraded back and forth across the plain in a show of formidability. On the high ground, the Pict reserve waited and in total the force is said to have numbered over thirty thousand.

The Romans had a much smaller force, consisting of about 24,000 troops. Most of these were not Romans, the auxiliary troops (probably Romanians) made up the center of the Roman line which was flanked by three thousand cavalry. In the rear sat the actual Roman legions in reserve.

The battle started with an exchange of missile weapons and was soon closed when Agricola ordered three Batavian and two Tungrian cohorts to advance. The other auxiliary Roman forces soon joined in the battle and the Romans for the moment were carrying the day. Once most of the auxillary troops were engaged, the Picts unleashed their main strategy. The Pictish reserve came down from the hill to encircle the main body of the Roman troops.

In response, Agricola committed his cavalry to prevent the encirclement and this action broke the will of the Pictish army. All semblance of order among the Pict force ended at this point and the battle turned into a rout. The Romans fell upon the retreating force and killed all the stragglers they could catch while daylight remained.

The next morning, there was no sign of the Pict (or Caledonian) army except for the dead. They had disappeared back into their native landscape and put fire to their own homes to prevent refuge for the victors of the battle.

The results of the battle according to the Romans appear a little prejudiced on the first glance. The Picts lost approximately ten thousand men while the Romans only 360. This is entirely possible, however, when one considers the fact that the Romans did not fight in most of the battle. They were only committed at the end when the enemy was retreating and most of their losses occurred when the pursuers stumbled into ambushes in the woods surrounding areas of the battlefield. Since the main Roman force was comprised of auxiliary Barbarian troops, their loss in battle was deemed of little consequence.

Although Agricola claimed complete victory over the island of Britain (including Scotland), in actuality the opposing army just evaporated into the mists of the land. There was no surrender, or even the capture of any territory of significance. The Picts learned from the battle and were better prepared the next time the two sides crossed swords. This first battle recorded in Scotland showed the traits that continue down through the history of the land: that being a strong wont and desire for freedom from oppression and the independence of spirit of Scotland's people.

by BW, March 2000

Suggested Reading:

Chronicles of the Barbarians, by David Willis McCullough, Times Books, 1998.

The Story of the Irish Race, by Seumas MacManus, The Devon-Adair Company, 1974

Links:

Lost Civilizations: The Picts

The Antonine Wall

The Decline of the Picts

The Picts

The Pictish Nation

Galgacus: On Roman Imperialism

Galgacus- First Chief of the combined Caledonian tribes

The Battle of Mons Grampius