This thesis investigates the role which Roman artefacts played within rural settlements in North Britain during the Romano-British period. The possibility that Roman artefacts were used by native Britons as markers of prestige is explored through the presence or absence of Roman artefact types. The more prestigious the occupants of the rural settlements were, the more likely they were to have access to a variety of exotic trade items. The methodology employed in this study has been adapted from previous studies on pottery types and settlement remains from Scotland. This thesis examines an area that centres on Hadrian's Wall, which at various times in its history acted as the frontier for the Roman Empire, as well as being a staging post for troops and a means of controlling the local population's movement. The study region includes land up to 50 kilometres either side of Hadrian's Wall, and examines rural settlements located within one or two days travel from the Wall. The excavation reports of rural settlements were examined, and include settlement types such as homesteads, hillforts and villas. From these sites, Roman artefact types were quantified and used to generate data for analysis. The results agree with the hypothesis that social hierarchy can be detected through the comparative presence or absence of Roman artefact types. It is also apparent that the settlements on either side of Hadrian's Wall, and either side of the Pennines mountain chain, were not part of a simple, homogenous culture. This thesis begins with an outline of the geographic and environmental nature of the region (Chapter 2), and an examination of settlement and society in North Britain during the preceding Bronze and Iron Ages (Chapter 3). An essay on Romano-British society and settlement is included (Chapter 4), and is followed by a brief discussion of post- Roman Britain (Chapter 5). Following an outline of the methodology used (Chapter 6), the results of analysis are presented in detail (Chapter 7). The Discussion chapter explores how the results of analysis meet existing theories of rural settlement and society, and compares North Britain with continental data from Germany and North Gaul (Chapter 8).

This thesis utilises the evidence from mortuary archaeology to explore the identity of the inhabitants of Britain during the period of Roman rule. It assimilates burial evidence from diverse sources both published and unpublished and integrates it with other material and literary evidence to investigate the people of the province and examine aspects of their lives. By assessing the extent and reliability of the mortuary evidence and by combining this evidence from major cemeteries, smaller burial sites and individual or isolated burials it has been possible to determine aspects of their lives from a different perspective than that previously employed. The thesis has been divided into five parts. Part 1 (chapters 1 to 3) serves as an introduction. Part 2 (chapters 4 and 5) considers the evidence available while Part 3 (chapters 6 to 8) focuses on specific groups within the population. Part 4 (chapter 9) looks at instances of death and burial that differ from the norm and Part 5 (chapters 10-12) presents a picture of the daily life of these people. The study concludes with a summing up of the evidence and a look at the future of mortuary studies of Roman Britain. The introductory chapters set out the objectives of the dissertation, look at the work that has already been done in this area and evaluates the need for a synthesis of the available evidence. The scope of the project, both temporally and geographically is outlined in chapter 2. The third chapter takes a look at the contemporary written evidence available, in the form of literary and epigraphic contributions, and assesses its reliability as an indicator of the appearance and lives of the Romano-Britons. This survey looks not only at the Roman view of the natives of the province but extends beyond the Roman period to examine the literary evidence that is available from the subsequent centuries. Chapters 4 and 5 take an in-depth look at the evidence available on the people of Roman Britain. The extent of the burial evidence is reviewed in chapter 4 while chapter 5 deals specifically and in depth with how this evidence can be utilised. The skeletal evidence is assessed for its extent and reliability. Factors affecting the survival of the remains is appraised and the effects of the biases created by such differential survival considered. Grave-goods and the organisation of the cemeteries are brought into the evaluation and the strengths and weaknesses of all of the evidence evaluated. The following chapters (6 to 11) focus on discrete aspects of the population. Chapters 6 to 8 look at the representation of specific groups within the community - the young, the elderly and those who arrived from other parts of the empire. With the aim of providing an indication of the diversity of both the composition of the population, the communities they represent and the associated burial rites, chapter 9 examines some of the more distinctive burials from Britain during this period. An area of intense interest, decapitation burials provides the focal point of this chapter. What may appear to be more mundane aspects of the lives of these people occupy chapters 10 to 12. What kept them busy, their occupations and their pastimes is viewed from the perspective of the burial evidence in chapters 10 and 11, while chapter 12 examines the mortuary evidence, in the form of funerary art and the remains of clothing, hair and accessories for their appearance.

This paper examines the Roman invasions of and interactions with Britain in the mid first century BCE and early first century CE and evaluates the results. Specifically, this paper analyzes motives and the actual military events of the invasions of Julius Caesar in 55 and 54 BCE and evaluates their aftermath, leading up to the invasion of Claudius in 43 CE. Caesar’s stated motive for launching the invasion was to prevent the islanders from interfering in the new Roman order being constructed in Gaul. However, as will be shown, Caesar’s more personal motives, in the form of a desire for wealth and glory, played as much if not more of a role in the launching of these expeditions. In light of these motives, the invasions can be defined, at best, as partial successes. The Romans militarily defeated the enemy but failed to materially benefit from that victory. Caesar’s account also leaves numerous points of scholarly debate unresolved on the surface, but a careful examination of the evidence allows us to answer them in part. This paper provides a thorough discussion of this interesting period as well as a look at the motives, actions, and fortunes of the participants. iii / vi, 148 leaves ; 29 cm