Calgacus

Calgacus (whiles cried Calgacos or Galgacus) wis a Caledonian chieftain that wis the leader o the Caledonian Confederacie that focht agin the Roman airmy o Gnaeus Julius Agricola at the Battle o Mons Grapius in northren Scotland in AD 83 or 84.

His name

His name is thocht tae mean "The Swordsman".

His life

Awmaist naething is kent anent the life o Calgacus. It isna e'en kent gin he existit or no. If he wis real then aw that can be said anent him is that he wis a gey pouerfu man that cam tae be the Pechts' leader. John Prebble haes this tae say anent him:

"Gin name an man wisna invenitit bi Tacitus [a Roman historian] he is the first o Scotland's indwallers tae hae a recordit identity. Prehistory endit wi his appearance."

The ane historical soorce that haes him in it is Tactius' Agricola, that cries him:

"The maist distinguished for birth an valour amang the cheiftains"

Calgacus isna mentionat durin or efter the battle an he isna named as ane o the preesoners Agriocola teuk wi him efter pittin the Caledonians tae flicht. It isna clear syne gin he wis slain in the fecht or gin he escapit tae play a pairt in the uneasy peace o the follaein years.

His speech

Tacitus scrievit a speech an attributit it tae Calgacus afore the Battle o Mons Graupius that descrieves the spulyiein o Britain bi Rome an rouses his sodgers for the fecht. The historian Simon Schama cried it

"the first o the great back-tae-the-waw, anti-imperialist speeches on Scotland's syle, an ringin appeal for his ain kintra's freedom."

Here is the speech as scrievit bi Tacitus in the Agricola (Beuk 30):

"Ilka time I leuk at the stairtin o this war an the needfuness o wir staundin, I hae muckle confidence that this day, an this union o yers, will be the stairtin o freedom tae the hail o Breetain. Tae aw o us slaverie is a thing unkent; the arena ony kintras ayont us, an e'en the sea isna sauf, menaced as we are bi a Roman fleet. An thus in war an battle, that the brave find glore in, e'en the couart will find saufty. Aulder contests, that, wi divers fortuin, the Romans war resistit, still left in us a last howp o easedom, sin we are the maist weel kent kintra o Breetain, bidin in the verra hert o the kintra, an oot o sicht o the shores o the defeatit, we coud aye keep wir een untaintit bi the disease o slavery. Tae us, that bides on the uttermaist launds o the yird an o freedom, this remote sanctuary o Breetain's glore has up tae this time been a defence. Nou, but, the farthest o Breetains mairches is hurled open, an the unkent aye passes for the mervelous. But there's nae tribes ayont us, naething indeed but waves an stanes, an the yet mair terrible Romans, frae whase oppression escape is socht vainlike bi obediance an submeesion. Reivers o the warld, haein bi their hailyird plunder exhaustit the laund, the pilfer the deeps. If the enemy be rich, they are rapacious; if he be puir they are lusty for lairdship; no the east or the wast haes been able tae please thaim. Tae reivery, slauchter, spulyie, they gie the fause name o "empire." They mak a muir an they caw it peace."

O this speech, Schama scrieves:

"We hae nae evidents, o coorse, that Calgagus iver said sic things. The impassioned appeal for freedom comes straucht frae Roman republican, raither nor Celtic tribal, rhetoric o whilk we can ken naethin."

Soorces

Simon Schama - A History of Britain 3000BC - AD 1603
John Prebble - The Lion In The North