SCOTLAND. 



or tradition, preferved to us the fmalleft trace of their hif- 

 tory, till the period of Agricola's invafion, when their de- 

 fcendants appear to have been divided into twenty-one diftinft 

 clan;;, called by the Romans the Ottadini, Gadeni, Selgovje, 

 Novantii, Damnii, Horeftii, Venricones, Taixali, Vacomajn, 

 Albaiii, Attacotti, Caledonii, Canta;, Logi, Carnabii, Ca- 

 tini, Mcrtae, Carnonacse, Creones, Cerones, and Epidii. 



Thefe various tribes, who are ufuallylnentioned in the 

 Latin writers by the generic name of Caledonians, on the 

 advance of the Romans into their country, united under the 

 authority of Galgacus, one of their moft powerful chief- 

 tains, to refill their progrefs. The utmoft efforts of va- 

 lour, however, proved unavailing againft. the military flcill 

 of the great Agricola, and the difcipline of the legionary 

 troops. In his tirll campaign in North Britain, A.D. 80, 

 that celebrated general penetrated, according to Tacitus, 

 as far as the river Tay ; and in the year following he con- 

 Itrufted a chain of forts between the friths of Clyde and 

 Forth, within which he had retired for the proteftion of the 

 fouthern country againft the inroads of the free tribes of 

 the North. The fummer of 82 was employed in fubduing 

 and fecuring the dillrift which extends from the Solway to 

 the Clyde. Thus freed from the danger of a flank attack, 

 he again palled the Forth, and advanced, without oppofition, 

 as far as Loch Leven, eftablifhing, as he proceeded, military 

 pofts to keep the inhabitants in fubjeftion. Thefe pofts the 

 Caledonians had the hardihood to attack ; and by this dif- 

 play of daring intrepidity, feem to have ftruck great terror 

 into the Roman foldiers. In this dHemma, Agricola di- 

 vided his army into tkree bodies, and puiJied forward the 

 weakell to Lochore, where he ordered it to encamp, while 

 he ftationed the other two at (hort dillances on the right 

 and left. The Caledonians, perceiving the Romans thus 

 feparated, made a vigorous attack during the night on the 

 intrenchments at Lochore, and had already entered the camp, 

 when Agricola arrived with the light troops of the other 

 divifions, and, after a furious combat, repulfed the aflailants, 

 and forced them to a diforderly and precipitate flight. This 

 viftory, though dearly bought, infpired the Romans with 

 renewed ardour ; but it did not intimidate the Caledonians, 

 who magnanimoully refolved to difpule every foot of ground 

 with the invaders. Agricola confequently found fufficient 

 employment during the remainder of the year in fubduing 

 the Horeftii, the inhabitants of the ifthmus between the Tay 

 and tlie Forth. The following year he advanced to thebafe 

 of the Grampian mountains, where the Caledonian warriors 

 lay encamped and prepared to receive him. The battle 

 which enfued was contefted with the moft obftinate valour, 

 but at length terminated in the complete overthrow of the 

 latter. Agricola, however, feems to have derived little ad- 

 vantage from his victory, for after a few days fpent in afcer- 

 taining the condition of the enemy, he led his troops back to 

 the country of the Horeftii, and terminated the campaign. 

 The Caledonians immediately advanced, and demolifhed all 

 the forts in the territories which the Romans had abandoned. 

 Agricola, in the interim, ordered the commander of the 

 Roman navy to fail round Britain, on a voyage of difcovery, 

 and with the defign of intimidation. This voyage was hap- 

 pily accomplifhed, by the return of the fleet to the Forth, 

 before the commencement of winter. With thefe remarkable 

 exploits the campaigns of Agricola terminated ; for, having 

 excited the jealoufy of the emperor Domitian, by the fplen- 

 dour of his achievements, he was foon afterwards recalled 

 to Rome. 



From this period to A.D. 120, the Roman authors are 

 entirely filent refpefting the affairs of Britain ; but from an 

 incidental expreflion in. Tacitus, fome later writers have 



fuppofed that, during that interval, the Caledonians fuc- 

 ceeded in recovermg the country conquered by Agricola, as 

 far as the Solway on the weft, and Tynemouth on the eaft. 

 This opinion feems to receive fome confirmation from the 

 faft, that when the emperor Adrian vifited our ifland in the 

 year laft mentioned, he caufed a rampart to bj conftrufted 

 between thefe two eituanes, " which has in every age beea 

 a monument of his power, and a memorial of his circumfpec- 

 tion " Chalmers, however, contends that this meafure was 

 merely precautionary, and that the Roman legions ftill held 3II 

 the country fouth of the Forth and Clyde. The emperor, on 

 his departure, left Julius Severus as his lieutenant in Britain, 

 who does not appear to have attempted any military exploit. 

 Antoninus, who aliumed the purple on the death of Adrian, 

 named Lollius Urbicus to the chief government of the ifland; 

 an officer who equally poffefTed talents for peace, and a genius 

 for war. Having tranquillized fome infurreClionary move- 

 ments in the fouth, he carried his arms from the Forth to 

 the Varar, and fettled llations in the intermediate country ; 

 throwing the whole of that extenfive diftricl into the form 

 of a Roman province. Under his direftions was conftrufted 

 the rampart of Antoninus (now called Grimes' dyke), 

 which extends from Caer-riden on the Forth, to Alcluidon 

 the Clyde, a diftance of thirty-fix miles, fix hundred and 

 twenty paces. Several military roads, and numerous ftations 

 and encampments, were likewife formed in all the provinces, 

 both of North and South Britain. Lollius was fucceeded 

 m his government by Calphurnius Agricola, during whofe 

 time the Romans abandoned all the country north of Grimes" 

 dyke. Chalmers afTerts that this retreat was not the con- 

 fequence of weaknefs, but fimply of choice. It neverthelefs 

 infpired the unconquered tribes with frefh vigour. Breaking 

 through the barriers of Antoninus, they pillaged a large 

 traft within that boundary, and put numbers of the Ro- 

 mans to the fword ; but Ulfius Marcellus foon drove them 

 back again into their own territories. They renewed their 

 inroads again in the year 200, with better fuccefs ; and for 

 fome years afterwards feem to have made fuch progrefs, as 

 to induce the emperor Severus to aflume the government of 

 Britain in perfon. On his arrival at the head of a larger 

 army than had ever before vifited this ifland, the Caledonian 

 tribes fued for peace, but Severus rejeAed their propofals. 

 The particulars of his expedition into Caledonia are very 

 imperfeftly narrated. It is clear, however, that he pene- 

 trated as far to the northward as the frith of Cromarty, 

 though, as Dion allures us, withtbe lofsof no lefs than 50,000 

 men. Before he fet out, he conftrufted a wall from the 

 Solway to the Tyne, parallel with the rampart of Adrian, 

 in order to facilitate his retreat in the event of difafter. 



On the return of Severus to York, he left his fon Cara- 

 calla in the government of North Britain ; whofe conduft is 

 faid to have incited the Caledonians to nAs of aggreflion. 

 Irritated at this, the aged emperor iffued orders to renew 

 the war, and to fpare neither age nor fe.\- ; but his death, 

 and the conteft for the empire between his fons, feem to have 

 prevented their execution. At all events, it is certain that 

 Caracalla made peace with the Caledonians, and gave up 

 to them all the country northward of the Forth and Clyde. 

 From this period, for nearly a century, we hear nothing 

 refpefting the Caledonians, who may therefore be prcfumed 

 to have made no ferious attempts to moleft the romanized 

 Britons. At length, however, about the year 306, we are 

 informed that the emperor Conftan? found it neceffary to come 

 into Britain to repel " the Caledonians and other Pifts." This, 

 Chalmers affirms, is the iirft time the Pifts are mentioned 

 in hiftory, and contends that the Caledonians were on this 

 occafion called Pifts, "owing to their peculiar feclulion from 



ihe 



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