What Scottish Tribal Confederation Fought the Roman Empire? Meet The Maeatae (Dumyat Hill, Ochil’s)
Channel: Celtic History Decoded
Date: 2022-08-02

Please support this channel on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/historydecoded

Please donate through PayPal using this link: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=QFB9ZECHZJDF6 – you can also send money through PayPal straight to chdecoded@gmail.com if you don’t want to use the link.

Please Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/CelticHistory
 
Subscribe to Celtic History Decoded: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCS3M_uNHH2iOJkpGhkO2SA?sub_confirmation=1

What Scottish Tribal Confederation Fought the Roman Empire? Meet The Maeatae (Dumyat Hill, Ochil’s)

If I was to ask you what groups rebelled against the Roman Empire in ancient Scotland, what groups would come to mind? The Picts, the Caledonians, the Scots perhaps? How many of you would say the Maeatae however, the tribal confederation that inhabited Caledonia just north of Antonine’s Wall. 

Today, I’ve taken you to Dumyat, a hill in the Ochil’s range near Stirling. The name itself means hill fort of the Maeatae. In ancient times, this region was a stronghold of the Maeatae, and perhaps marked their northern border. Myot Hill near Fankerton, around a 25 minute drive south, or a 5 hour walk in ancient times, perhaps marked their southern border. 

The Roman historian Cassius Dio wrote that Maeatae lived between the wall and the Caledonians, with it being unclear whether he meant Antonine’s Wall or Hadrian’s Wall. Regardless, the Maeatae must have been in extremely close contact to the northern Roman frontier in ancient Scotland, with the Caledonians based further north. Considering their geographical proximity to the Roman position, it’s no wonder that the Maeatae got in so many scraps with the Romans. 

Exactly who the Maeatae were is not 100% clear, but there some speculation that they may have had a Norse origin. DNA analysis has shown that the DNA of the Maeatae is still present in Scots today however. From our records, it appears that the tribes that made up the tribal confederations of the Maeatae came together sometime in 180 AD when a number of peace treaties were signed with Rome after a revolt. The Romans had to pay the Maeatae coin as part of the terms of the deal.
 
Only a few decades, in 210AD, the Maeatae rebelled once again against the Roman Empire however, in a very bloody affair on both sides. The Maeatae inflicted heavy losses on the Romans. Whether this revolt was a response to a Roman campaign or whether it  preceded it is unclear. What we do know if that a force of 50,000 Roman troops invaded ancient Scotland in around 209 or 210 AD, killing thousands of Maeatae and Caledonians in a brutal campaign that reached as far north as Aberdeenshire. The Romans claimed that the Maeatae had broken a peace treaty, although who knows if this was just an excuse for conquest.
 
This campaign was led by the Roman Emperor at the time, Septimius Severus, who, according to the historian Dio, gave the following genocidal speech to his troops: 

Sources:

Brill, Maeatae Maeatae — Brill (brillonline.com)

Wikipedia – Maeatae https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maeatae 

The Independent - Ancient Roman ‘hand of god’ discovered near Hadrian’s Wall sheds light on biggest combat operation ever in UK https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/hand-of-god-ancient-roman-hadrians-wall-sculpture-bronze-found-latest-a8419131.html 

Scotsman, Scotland’s DNA: Descended from lost tribes… and related to Napoleon Scotland’s DNA: Descended from lost tribes… and related to Napoleon | The Scotsman 

Britannica – Brythonic Languages https://www.britannica.com/topic/Brythonic-languages 

BBC Sounds - The Maeatae, The Essay: Unearthing Britannia's Tribes https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0013sly 

#scotland #scottishhistory #romanempire