Page 69 - All About History - Issue 38-16
P. 69
Celts: Cult of Death
Boudica was queen of
the Iceni tribe and led
an uprising against the
occupying forces of the
Roman Empire Women warriors
Both on the front line and in peacetime
society, women played a huge role as
warriors and queens
The Celts were leagues ahead of their counterpart ancient
civilisations in gender equality, allowing females to be both
warriors and queens, as the likes of Boudica and Cartimandua
demonstrate. Although men held the ultimate power, the political
freedom and lawful protection given to women was unparalleled
compared with Greek and Roman lands. Classical Roman authors
were notoriously fearful of the Celtic women as they fought as
hard in battle as men. Girls were trained in the arts of war as
much as boys, and would learn how to carry weaponry, ght o
invaders and even lead their own ghting schools. The Iceni from
south-eastern England were one of the most prominent tribes to
use women in battle as they drove the Romans out of Londinium.
Women were also important in spiritual ways. They could
become druids and were not excluded from any occupation.
Celtic mythology told of a Land of Women. This island formed
part of the conception of the afterlife, and according to the
Roman writers Posidonius and Strabo, was a place where men
could not go for fear of death as women literally ripped each
other apart.
The Battle of Alesia, which took place
in 52 BCE, was a major clash between
Caesar's army and Gallic tribes
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