Infamous

Infamous Vortigern. What more can one say. Manuscripts published around the time that Tudor Trevor was born ca. 900 AD, continued the accounts of Vortigern. A Welsh manuscript translated by William Cooper contains more stories about grandfather Vortigern. This manuscript, written in Welsh, first sets the stage:

"And when Constantine was dead, there arose a great dispute amongst the nobles of the realm concerning the election of a new king. Some wished to have Ambrosius for their king, but others were swayed towards Uther, whilst yet others wished to make one of their own friends be king."

Constantine III was proclaimed emperor in Britain 407AD and led a revolt against central Rome authority. He ruled from Arles, and Britain revolts from his claims around 409AD. He falls 411AD, thus completely ending any Roman rule in Britain. It was after this year, that the "nobles of the realm" met to discuss what was to be done.

The manuscript continues:

"But at the last, when no agreement could be reached between them, there came Vortigern before them. And he was one of the elders of the land of Britain whose wisdom was deemed the highest."

As far as I know, this is the best words that any of the writers had to say about Vortigern. A wise elder of the land! From this point all else is down hill. Vortigern is given credit for setting up one of the sons of Constantine as the new king. He then gets the Picts to kill this new king because he (Vortigern) really wanted to be king himself. He then leaves the Picts to their own blame who get hung by those Britons who blame Vortigern. This action then excited the Picts to take vengeance upon the Britons, who then need the Saxons to help fight the Picts. When the Saxons succeed, the Britons then rebelled against the Saxons and Vortigern, led by the very sons of Vortigern. This throws Vortigern out of power, only to return after his eldest son is killed by poison from the hand of Vortigern's Saxon wife. The Saxons and Vortigern return to power, only to have the Saxons drive Vortigern to the western most part of the island...where the world ends!

Wow, sounds like one of those soap operas on afternoon T.V. At any rate, when Tudor born at a small hamlet called Trevor (Trefor) around 900 AD came into this world, you might understand how the family would not want to advertise that they were a direct descendant from this Benedict Arnold of the Welsh world!

The Welsh manuscript is called "Brut y Bryttaniait", "The Chronicle of the Early Britons". It is found at Jesus College MS LXI. An annotated translation is given by William R. Cooper MA, Phd, ThD. The story of Constantine III is given in the text by Peter Salway, "The Oxford Illustrated History of Roman Britain", starting p. 303.

Who's on First?

History does record that those who remained on the Island after the Roman legions where withdrawn requested military assistance in 410 AD. Honorius, the western Emperor responded by "enjoining and authorizing them to look to their own defence."

"Who's on first?" was the question of the day. Each prior Roman province was left to its own defense. At least they were given authority to defend themselves. Scant historical records and accounts exist to help us understand what really happened. Northern Britain (from Yorkshire to the Clyde) seemed to organize their defenses along the northern frontier. Coel Hen who some believe to be the legendary "Old King Cole" is credited to be the first local ruler to help stabilize this area. [ca. 410-430 AD] Southern Britain (England south of Yorkshire) seemed to organize around the tribal leaders from the southern tribes including the Cornovii. Here is identified a "High King" of Britain. Our Jones families' legends begin with this person called "Vortigern" or in the Latin "Vitalinus". In the Welsh language he is called "Gwrtheryn Gwrthenau" or Vortigern the Thin! He came to power around 425 AD, and is believed to be the first post-Roman ruler to be declared "High King". Vortigen is the 11th in descent from Beli Mawr. Perhaps it is this linage that gave him the right to be called "High King". Our Jones family comes through this line, but much more will be said about this.

The World Turned Upside Down

The world turned upside down! Rome had withdrawn its legions and military control. The towns, forts, barracks, and most importantly the maintenance of these were forever lost. Imagine what it would have been like to have 6,000 to 12,000 men leave the town (Viroconium Cornoviorum) where you had your business. Over night it would become a ghost town. Those remaining would most likely be the ones that Rome did not want to take, or perhaps those who were not required to go because of family ties or poor health. At any rate, the military and most of the governmental folks pulled out. Our Jones family (those not in the military) remained. What were we to do? The family leaders would be looked to for direction and leadership. Those who had become more "Roman" , but for whatever reason, remained behind, were seen as leaders. Someone take charge! The family leaders would turn to what they knew, to the Celtic ways. Roman influence and knowledge would remain among those "Romanized". [You can understand that anyone with Roman connections or background would be looked upon for leadership.]

This time in our Jones family history is the least documented of any period. Very little is written, and very little is really known about this time frame. [After the Roman withdrawal.] Those writing the history books had left, and those remaining did not write or record their history. Oral tradition, written down centuries later suggest that the areas occupied by Rome broke apart into multiple smaller sections. The most northern part seems to have clustered together forming "The Men of The North". This area was to become known as Strathcyde. Legend places Coel Hen [Old King Coel] at the head of this area south of Hadrian's Wall. This area came under fierce attack from the Picts.

The southwestern part of the island, centered at Cornwall and Devon, developed its own identity.
This area would even develop its own separate Brythronic language called Cornish.

The southeastern part (centered at Kent) seems to have come under the leadership of Vortigern, the direct descendant of Beli Mawr.

What a Mess

In 330 AD, Constantine transferred the seat of government to his eastern part of the Roman world called Byzantium. Here he built magnificent churches, and brought works of art from all parts of the known world. He wished to make this new capital "Constantinople" the center of Christian religion. He elevated the "Bishop of Constantinople" to a position equal to that of the "Bishop of Rome". This left our families' land pretty much out in the cold.

The pagan world would not sit quietly by, and there was a rebellion against the Christian world which tried to revive the Graeco-Roman religions. What a mess it was. In 392 AD, Theodosius declared all "Heathen" sacrifices to be high treason, thus establishing Christianity the sole religion of the state. The "Church" and "State" became one.

In our Western part of the Roman world, we had enough troubles of our own. The Roman Empire had withdrawn both the military and political organization that our Jones family had been part of for more than 400 years. The Western part of the Roman world was in a state of siege and near collapse. By 406 AD - 407 AD the Romans had "left the building" and we were on our own. The Gothic sack of the city of Rome took place in 410 AD. What were we to do?

Pagans We Were

As discussed in an earlier blog, Christianity probably entered Britain as a result of direct persecution. At the time of its arrival, [estimated to be between 249 AD - 305 AD], it was considered an "outlaw religion". You would want to keep things fairly secret since your life might depend on it. However, the spread of Christianity throughout the Roman Empire made it evident to the Roman rulers that those following Christianity had become too numerous and influential to be eliminated. An "Edict of Toleration" was pronounced in 311 AD, and Christianity was recognized as a legitimate religion. This edict declared: "We grant to the Christians and to all others full liberty of following that religion which each may choose."

Constantine the Great and his fellow emperor Licinius recognized Christianity as their "first and principal concern" at Milan in March 313 AD. This struggle [to recognize Christianity] has been recorded in great detail by Eusebius who lived between 263 AD and 339AD. His "The History of the Church", believed to have been written around 324 AD and describes the lives of 146 martyrs, and the teaching of 47 heretics. Eucebius was a personal friend and admirer of Constantine, and credits him as being the primary force to the declaration that Christianity would become the religion of the State. However, Constantine continued as the supreme pontiff of the religious affairs of the "State", calling himself the "bishop of bishops".

Constantine called the first general council of the Church, held at Nicea in Asia Minor. To this council bishops came from all parts of the Empire. [They traveled by the imperial post and at government expense.] It was by this time that the church in Britain seemed to be organized for they sent bishops from the dioceses of London, York, and Colchester. Thus by 325 AD, Christianity in Britain had been organized along standard church structure. Archaeological evidence shows that the early Christan church in Roman Britain was concentrated in the southeast, surrounding population centers such as London and Lincoln. To the north, this evidence is found around the city of York. There has been no evidence found that Christian burials, symbols, and churches were present in and around my Jones family land. Just imagine, before 325 AD, we were "pagans".

To reproduce another day

The Roman Empire fell apart by a complex interaction of forces. These forces included civil war, the dividing into the Eastern and Western Empires, a mixture of religious and political events (including the rise of Christianity), the breakdown of central power, bankruptcy, invasion of Germanic tribes penetrating the Rhine fromtier, internal military revolts, and many other factors. What a mess this must have been. On our Island, all this came to a head around 400 AD - 410 AD when the last of the Roman legions were withdrawn from the island.

At this time, it was common practice for Rome to recruit "barbarian" solders to help fill the ranks of the remaining legions. [Barbarian here meaning people alien to Roman culture usually believed to be inferior.] Often, one barbarian tribe was pitted against another barbarian tribe that had been "allies" just months before. What is not readily understood is that it was aginst Roman law for the Roman citizen to carry arms. Thus for hundreds of years, our family who had become "Romanized" would have lost their fighting skills and their weapons. When the legions left the home front, there were very few remaining tribes who could manage a defense against any who wished to take control of the former "Roman" land. The Picts from the north, and the Irish from the west, had already indicated their interest in our family's land even before the last of the legions had withdrawn from it. In spite of this, our Jones family still clung to its Celtic roots, culture, and language. It was the Celtic language, and its social system that remained after the Romans withdrew. Our Jones family would survive to reproduce another day!

Legionary Veterans

Legionary veterans were viewed as military reserve, but also became leading members of provincial society. This would especially be true around Vera (Chester) and Virconium (Wroxeter) where there was a large garrison maintained. Those who could speak both the Celtic and Latin languages would certainly have an advantage over those who could not. Soldiers were allowed to engage in business (other than farming) in the provinces in which they were assigned. Since our JONES family had farmed this land for centuries, it would allow one part of the family to continue farming (feed the troops)and another part to engage in business. Records from the period show that even "troopers" could have a slave or freeman, and often these individuals would be agents for the soldier. This process must have happened on such a scale that by 200 AD soldiers were granted the legal right to set up a home, including a wife, children, slaves, and freedmen. Our family must have gone through this process, for by the time the Anglo-Saxons arrived [in another 200 to 300 years], they called us "walas".

At retirement, soldiers often returned to the province in which they had previously been stationed. Certainly, our family members would have returned to the families' land. They most likely would have settled back on their family's land and brought with them their Roman world. A study of animal species bones found around Shropshire/Cheshire plain showed that cattle was the predominate animal. This was followed by sheep, ox, horses, and pigs. Cattle and sheep were to play a major part in our JONES families' future history.

Follow the Leaders

The town of Wroxeter contained a forum, a classical Roman temple, baths, aqueduct supply, a fortress and its defenses, and a lot of houses. There is a suggestion that a large municipal stone quarry was active just outside of town. Glass production was done. Access to multiple mining areas (lead, zinc, and cooper) were just northwest, into the mountains through the only land bridge available. It must have been a very active place. The key to participation in this new Roman way of life was of course Latin. It was essential to speak it to get around in this new and different complex world. The spread of Latin (practical Latin) must have been due to the army. Over time, legionary recruits tended to come from wherever citizens were found. This would be especially true around the civil settlements that were located near the legionary bases. Since our Jones family seemed to survive, some must have become "citizens" and certainly some joined the army. Thus at least part of our family would become "Romanized". You can imagine what it must have been like with more than 5,000 men spending their money (or free time) in the only town close by. It was not until around 200 AD that Roman soldiers (other than officers) were allowed to marry. Under Roman law, illegitimate children followed the social status of their mother. Thus, serving soldiers' children were citizens or non-citizens according to their mother's status. The grant of citizenship to retiring solders included the right to full legal marriage with the wives that they had at the time of their discharge from the army. The children, now being legitimate sons or daughters of Roman fathers, were Roman citizens. Thus for around 400 years our family would have gone through this type of social arrangement.

New Kids on the Block

The Romans had a keen sense of class and pride in their family histories. In spite of this, on the whole, there is little evidence that the Romans had much in the way of racial prejudice in the modern sense. Anyone could absorb Roman culture and manners. Rome, as a culture, treated a man on the basis of what he had obtained rather than on the background from which he had come. There were privileges attached to class and legal statue, but this did not "make the man". Broadly, the class system from top to bottom was; senator, equestrian, citizen or no non-citizen, freedman, and slave. I suspect that our JONES family was at first considered "slave", but those of us who managed to survive the first few waves of Roman occupation would be considered "non-citizen" and "freedman". It would become clear fairly early that participation in the Roman way of life was necessary to survive, and this participation required Latin.

The language of law and public administration was Latin. At first Rome organized our island into administrative units called "Britannia, Superior", and "Britannia Inferior". Our JONES tribal land was in "Britannia Superior" and under the military control of the Roman fortress of Deva (now called Chester). The town of "Viroconium Cornoviorum" (Wroxeter) developed at our families' front door. This would be the first "town" that our family would ever see. The XX legion (Twentieth legion) spent a fair amount of time around this area. The legion had a nominal strength of just over 5,000 men. The bulk of the legion was the infantry. This included engineers, architects, masons, clerks, medical staff, and any other needed trades. They built the town of Viroconium (Wroxeter) in our very back yard.

Survival

For roughly the next 400 years the descendants of Beli mawr mananged to survive the Roman invasion, the Roman military occupation, and the Roman administration. They (the Romans) came, they saw, they conquered.[As the saying goes.] Some tribal groups were devastated, some dispersed and absorbed into other tribes, and some remained on the most part unchanged. South of Hadrian's Wall, the island was placed at peace leaving the tribal groups that survived, pretty much up to their own devises. The tribal groups north of Hadrian's Wall were left alone to continue to cause trouble for those below.

It was during this time that cities were first introduced into the tribal mentality. Large military forts and stations were requied to keep the peace, and many of the tribal groups settled around or near to these establishments. Stone structures, temples, public baths, amphitheatres, roads, mail delivery, statues, and all kinds of new things were previewed for the first time by many in my Jones family. The family groups were able to leave their hillforts behind and move into a new environment. Cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, and horses must have been a major source of livelihood. It is during this time that my Jones family must have established their land settlements along the boarder of Roman control. They seem to have opportunity to settle land along a north to south path
connecting the River Dee and the River Severn. For us, the major city of Roman occupation was Wroxeter (in Salop)which contained a forum, baths, and aqueduct. It is this area that my Jones family came to occupy.

Several references are helpful:

Scullard, H. Roman Britain, Outpost of The Empire. Thames and Hudson, Ltd, London. 1979.
Bedoyere, G. Hadrian's Wall, History & Guide. Tempus Publishing Ltd.,Gloucestershire. 1998.
Jones, B., Mattingly, D. An Atlas of Roman Britain. Oxbow Books, Oxford. 1990.
Schama, S. A History of Britain, At The Edge of The World? 3500 B.C. - 1603 A.D., talk miramax books, NY. 2000.
Salway, P. The Oxford Illustrated History of Roman Britain. Oxford University Press, 1993.

The Roman Dance

It was the grandsons and great grandsons of Beli Mawr that had to dance to the Roman music as they took control of the island. A detailed chronology of this dance is given by Salway who states that the conquest of the south and east of the island was accomplished by 47 AD. There was a Roman military campain on the Welsh border 47-52 AD. He records the foundation of London around 50 AD, which would of course mean that the Romans had taken Lud's Town before this date. The conquest of Wales was continued 52 AD - 58 AD and reached the island of Anglesey 60 AD. The conquest of northern Britain and Wales was completed 71 AD - 84 AD. So there you have it. The family of Beli Mawr is lost to the Roman world for the next 400 years. Somehow, at least one son Afflech had a lineage to survive. As given by Dwnn:

"Vortiger ap Rhydern ap Dehenfraint ap Eidigant ap Eudeirn ap Enid ap Endos ap Enddolau ap Afallach ap Afflech ap Beli mawr."

This lineage is given in Dwnn, L. Heraldic Visitations of Wales and part of the Marches, Longman & Co., London, 1846. Vol I, pp. xv - xvi.

The chronology is documented in Salway, P. The Oxford Illustrated History of Roman Britain. Oxford University Press, 1993. pp. 539-540.

"Walas"

As the Roman Empire gradually conquered the known world, they produced a new Celtic culture that spoke both a Celtic language and a Latin language. The Germanic tribes that resisted the Roman advance remained mostly north of the Danube. [They were ultimately able to get their revenge sacking the city of Rome some 500 years later.] Those tribes remaining true to their German roots had a word for those Celtic folks to the south. These folks had betrayed their German roots and had become "Romanized". These Celts had taken on Latin, and of course, this was not acceptable to the true Germanic tribes. The Germans used the term "walas" to denote those "foreigners" who spoke Celtic languages but were also Latin-speaking. It was this term that was later applied to Celts in general. Little did these Germans know that years later, Angles, Saxons, and Jutes, would apply this term to describe the Britons who occupied the island yet to come, and the country yet to be, Wales. It is Wales that is home to our surname JONES.

Latin terms

Before the beginning of the Roman Empire, the territories occupied by the Celts eastward, included present day Turkey, known then by the name Galatae. Westward the Celts came to occupy Spain, then known as Iberia. Their culture and influence spread gradually along the Iberian peninsula, up the Atlantic coast to the channel that separated the mainland from the island known as Albion. Thus the "Celtiberians" became the major genetic root of those cultures yet to be established among those who where first to occupy the island. This genetic migration certainly appears to have occurred gradually with a mixture of Hallstatt and la Tene influence. Both bronze and iron appear in the weapons and art of the day. Certainly, the political, economic, and social order had been well established forming what came to be called Celtic society. Of course it would not be until the writers of history arrived some 300-400 years later that the Latin language and its vocabulary named those tribal groups formed over the centuries.

When these Latin writers arrived to the island, they recorded their own history through their own eyes. The first historian to arrive was Caesar, 55 BC. Caesar's regular word for large or political groupings was "civitas". This word became translated into English as "tribe". These tribes contained smaller groups for which Caesar's term was "pagus". It is unclear how Caesar used these terms in his own mind, for the Latin had other terms for family (gens), and people (populus). However, it is clear that when Caesar arrived, he saw distinct levels of our "Island society". First there was a large cultural group, geographically identified, which was then made up of much smaller units. These terms certainly applied to the concept of ethic groups centered upon distinct social and cultural organization and identity. Our JONES surname had it's roots hidden within these Latin terms.