Claudius Orders the Roman Invasion of Britain
43 CE · Classical Antiquity
In 43 CE, Emperor Claudius dispatched an invasion force of approximately 40,000 troops under general Aulus Plautius to southeastern Britain. The force, comprising four legions including II Augusta commanded by the future emperor Vespasian, landed at Rutupiae (modern Richborough, Kent). After defeating the Catuvellauni at the Battle of the Medway, Plautius halted at the Thames and summoned Claudius, who arrived to lead the march on Camulodunum (Colchester), where he received the surrender of eleven British kings. The campaign established the Roman province of Britannia.
Key Figures
Emperor VespasianClaudiusAulus Plautius
Locations
RutupiaeCamulodunum
Topics
Roman EmpireClaudiusBritanniaRoman legionsmilitary conquestAulus PlautiusCatuvellauni
Connected Events — 4 Connections
Vespasian who commanded Legio II Augusta during the British invasion later became emperor and ordered his son Titus to besiege Jerusalem destroying the Second Temple in 70 CE Destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem
Vespasian a junior commander during the British invasion later founded the Flavian dynasty and commissioned the Colosseum in 72 CE Construction of the Colosseum
Claudius was proclaimed emperor immediately after Caligula assassination; his need for political legitimacy motivated the British invasion two years later Caligula's Assassination
Germanicus brother Claudius became emperor and redirected Roman expansion toward Britain rather than Germania, influenced by the failed Rhine campaigns Germanicus Leads Punitive Campaigns Across the Rhine
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