Roman Penetration in Strathclyde South of the Antonine Wall PART TWO: ROMANIZATION

Abstract

SummaryIt will be shown that at the time of Roman conquest, the Damnonii in Strathclyde consisted probably of a decentralised grouping of tribesmen whose political fragmentation is evidenced by their ubiquitous smallscale structures. Some form of hierarchical society is indicated with wealth based on ownership of land and stock and mixed farming the basic element in an embedded economy. Archaeological evidence suggests the Damnonii may have undergone a degree of agricultural revolution in the pre-Roman Iron Age sufficient to meet the demands of an invading and standing army. Roman finds clearly datable to the 1st century AD have been found on only three native sites at the extremities of the area under investigation, their presence suggesting not casual drift from Roman to native, but deliberate Roman policy to control the Damnonii through a few leaders rewarded with Roman patronage. The points of contact are widened in the 2nd century AD. Bearing in mind that Romanization in southern Scotland is different from that of the fully Romanized province of southern Britain and that Roman occupation in Scotland was relatively brief and essentially military, southern Scotland in effect being a frontier zone, it will be shown that the degree of Romanization is not insignificant and Romanization itself may even have gained momentum after the departure of the Roman army. An examination of the finds from Buiston crannog shows elements of continuity as well as discontinuity with Roman culture and technology. Perhaps the clearest expression of Romanization in the longer term, is the emergence of the Romano-British church in the Early Historic period in south-west Scotland.