Caesar's Invasions of Britain
Caesar crossed to Britain in 55 BC with two legions and came back with almost nothing but a reputation. The stated reason was that the Britons had been sending help to the Gauls he was conquering, which was probably true and was not the point. Britain was at the edge of the known world, and a Roman general who landed there would be reported in Rome in a way that another Gallic campaign would not. The first expedition in August 55 was barely a reconnaissance. He took no cavalry transports that arrived, landed on an open beach near Deal against opposition — the standard-bearer of the Tenth jumping into the surf to shame the troops ashore — and had his ships damaged by a storm and a spring tide he had not anticipated, since the Mediterranean has almost none. He withdrew within three weeks. The second, in 54 BC, was serious: five legions, 2,000 cavalry, and some 800 ships. He crossed the Thames, took the stronghold of Cassivellaunus, and accepted the submission of several tribes and a promise of tribute. Then a revolt in Gaul required his attention and he left before winter. No tribute is recorded as having been paid. The Commentaries describe the island, the chariots, the blue dye and the interior no Roman had seen, and Cicero's brother Quintus wrote letters home from it. Rome did not return for ninety-seven years. The propaganda value was the point and it worked. The senate voted twenty days of public thanksgiving for a campaign that gained no territory, and Caesar's name was attached to the edge of the world for the remainder of his political career.
- Year: 55 BCE
- Category: Military
