Battle of Mons Graupius - Aftermath

Aftermath

Following this final battle, it was proclaimed that Agricola had finally subdued all the tribes of Britain, which is not strictly true, as the Caledonians and their allies remained a threat. Indeed, even if the inflated account of Caledonian fatalities were to be accepted, the bulk of their forces were still intact to fight again. Soon after Agricola was recalled to Rome, and his post passed to Sallustius Lucullus. It is likely that Rome intended to continue the conflict but that military requirements elsewhere in the empire necessitated a troop withdrawal and the opportunity was lost. That Agricola's successor(s) failed to neutralise the threat to Roman security in the north of Britain had important consequences for the remainder of the period of occupation.

Tacitus' statement Perdomita Britannia et statim missa (Britain was completely conquered and immediately let go), denotes his bitter disapproval of Domitian's failure to unify the whole island under Roman rule after Agricola's successful campaign. Some have doubted whether Agricola had defeated the last of British resistance, pointing to the uneasy peace of the next few decades and the construction and occupation of the Glenblocker forts and Inchtuthil in succeeding years, bases for a garrison of the southern part of modern Scotland.

As has already been suggested, in the absence of any archaeological evidence and with the very low estimate of Roman casualties, the decisive victory reported by Tacitus may be an exaggeration or even an invention, either by Tacitus himself, or by Agricola, for political reasons. This view is not held by the majority of historians however who believe an engagement of some description did occur, noting it would be dangerous for an aspiring rhetorician and historian such as Tacitus to have completely fabricated such events. Agricola had been a governor for an unusually long period and his recall to Rome was perhaps overdue, therefore little can be read into this. One author has suggested that Domitian may have been informed of the fraudulence of his claims to have won a significant victory. Despite these claims it should be noted Agricola was awarded triumphal honours and was offered another governorship in a different part of the empire, so it would seem unlikely Domitian doubted he had achieved substantial successes. Suggestions that he invented the entire episode and was thereafter shunned by the emperor do not seem likely given he was awarded honours on his return.

Whilst there may be no other accounts of the battle apart from Tacitus's account this is not unusual given the scanty nature of sources in general for this period of history. It has been stated there are no references in histories pertaining to the legions that supposedly took part and no legends or traditions inherited by Scottish descendants describing such a battle or Calgacus the supposed leader, but there are no complete 'regimental histories' for legions of the period. and we have no legends or traditions whatsoever from the native inhabitants of Caledonia. Whilst Agricola was Tacitus's father in law and therefore is undeniably biased towards the subject of his history, he is generally regarded as one of the most reliable historians of the period.

It has been alleged that the account of the battle is a complete contradiction to Caledonian warfare experienced by later Roman expeditions which was almost exclusively Guerrilla warfare including fort raids, ambushes and other hit and run tactics. Roman military doctrine found these tactics very frustrating to deal with because they had to spread their forces out. The lightly armoured and fast-moving Caledonian skirmishers and horsemen with their knowledge of the terrain could easily outrun and outmanoeuvre marching Roman columns, ambushing isolated elements and then disappearing again before reinforcements could arrive. Tacitus in fact describes the fustrations experienced by the Romans during their campaign, noting the Caledonian preference for ambush tactics and their reluctance to offer a pitched battle. Clearly the Caledonians understood they had little chance of winning such an engagement and sought to avoid one until Agricola had penetrated deep into their territory and reduced them to the necessity of risking such a dangerous gambit. As noted above Agricola had advanced far enough to threaten their vital interests, indeed his strategy was no doubt formulated with the end in mind of forcing just such an engagement as Mons Graupius.

If we are to accept Tacitus's account the victory although impressive was not comprehensive, and occurring late in the campaigning season gave Agricola little chance to exploit his success. Contrary to his account archaeological evidence indicates that Domitian did not immediately abandon all efforts to subjugate the remainder of Britain. The construction of a series of forts beyond the Forth, in particular the legionary fortress of Inchtuthil were perhaps intended to act as a springboard for further advance, and at the very least were intended to control the territory over which Agricola had advanced. Despite this within the next few decades the Romans conducted a staged withdrawal towards the eventual frontier demarcated by Hadrian's Wall. Although it is probable that Agricola's campaign was a severe shock and setback for the British tribes that inhabited the area which would become Scotland, it did not ultimately achieve the aim of incorporating them into the empire, nor was this ever achieved.