Quintus Petillius Cerialis Caesius Rufus ( AD 30 — after AD 83), otherwise known as Quintus Petillius Cerialis, was a Roman general and administrator who served in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

during

Boudica Boudica or Boudicca (, from Brittonic languages, Brythonic * 'victory, win' + * 'having' suffix, i.e. 'Victorious Woman', known in Latin chronicles as Boadicea or Boudicea, and in Welsh language, Welsh as , ) was a queen of the Iceni, ancient ...

's rebellion and went on to participate in the civil wars after the death of

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68) was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his ...

. He later crushed the rebellion of Julius Civilis and returned to Britain as its governor. Because he probably succeeded Caesius Nasica as commander of Legio IX Hispana, and since brothers are often attested as serving in succession in the same post,

Anthony Birley Anthony Richard Birley (8 October 1937 – 19 December 2020) was a British ancient historian, archaeologist and academic. He was one of the leaders of excavations at of the Roman fortress at Vindolanda and also published several books on Roman ...

suggests that Cerialis was the younger brother of Nasica, and had been adopted by Petillius Rufus, who was known as

praetor ''Praetor'' ( , ), also ''pretor'', was the title granted by the government of ancient Rome to a man acting in one of two official capacities: (i) the commander of an army, and (ii) as an elected ''magistratus'' (magistrate), assigned to disch ...

in AD 28. However, in his monograph of naming practices in the first centuries of the Roman Empire, Olli Salomies argues that Cerialis was actually the biological son of Petillius Rufus by a woman named Caesia, who may have been the daughter of a Caesius Cerialis, therefore Caesius Nasica would not have been his brother "but a close relative."

Boudican rebellion

His first important assignment was as legate of Legio IX Hispana (Ninth Iberian Legion) in the

Roman province The Roman provinces (, pl. ) were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was ruled by a Roman appointed as Roman g ...

Britannia The image of Britannia () is the national personification of United Kingdom, Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used by the Romans in classical antiquity, the Latin was the name variously appli ...

, under governor

Gaius Suetonius Paulinus Gaius Suetonius Paulinus (fl. AD 40–69) was a Roman general best known as the commander who defeated Boudica and her army during the Boudican revolt. Early life Little is known of Suetonius' family, but it likely came from Pisaurum (modern Pe ...

. In the defeat of the 60/61 rebellion led by Queen

of the

Iceni The Iceni ( , ) or Eceni were an ancient tribe of eastern Britain during the British Iron Age, Iron Age and early Roman Britain, Roman era. Their territory included present-day Norfolk and parts of Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, and bordered the ar ...

, Cerialis suffered a serious defeat when attempting to relieve the city of

Camulodunum Camulodunum ( ; ), the Roman Empire, Ancient Roman name for what is now Colchester in Essex, was an important Castra, castrum and city in Roman Britain, and the first capital of the province. A temporary "wikt:strapline, strapline" in the 1960s ...

(

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''. Colchester occupies the ...

), which was taken by the Britons before he arrived. "The victorious enemy met Petilius Cerialis, commander of the ninth legion, as he was coming to the rescue, routed his troops, and destroyed all his infantry. Cerialis escaped with some cavalry into the camp, and was saved by its fortifications."

Civil war

As the son in law of

Vespasian Vespasian (; ; 17 November AD 9 – 23 June 79) was Roman emperor from 69 to 79. The last emperor to reign in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for 27 years. His fiscal reforms and consolida ...

, being the husband of Domitilla the Younger, Cerialis was made a hostage by Vitellius in 69, during the civil wars of the Year of Four Emperors. Cerialis managed to escape disguised as a peasant and joined the Flavian army. He was one of the cavalry leaders that conquered Rome for the approaching Vespasian. His role was to enter Rome via Sabine territory along the Via Salaria. This success and his brother-in-law's trust gave him the command of XIV ''Gemina'', then stationed in the difficult province of

Germania Inferior ''Germania Inferior'' ("Lower Germania") was a Roman province from AD 85 until the province was renamed ''Germania Secunda'' in the 4th century AD, on the west bank of the Rhine bordering the North Sea. The capital of the province was Colonia Cl ...

. Again, Cerialis had to deal with a local revolt, the Batavian rebellion, in which the local tribes, led by Julius Civilis, a romanized prince, besieged two Roman legions at Xanten. Cerialis was again successful and received honours from Vespasian, which included his first

consulate A consulate is the office of a consul. A type of mission, it is usually subordinate to the state's main representation in the capital of that foreign country (host state), usually an embassy (or, only between two Commonwealth countries, a ...

De vredesonderhandelingen tussen Claudius Civilis en Quintus Petillius Cerealis op de afgebroken brug Rijksmuseum SK-A-4853

Later career

In 71, Cerialis was appointed

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Roman Britain Roman Britain was the territory that became the Roman province of ''Britannia'' after the Roman conquest of Britain, consisting of a large part of the island of Great Britain. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. Julius Caes ...

, bringing the II ''Adiutrix'' with him to the province. He was supported by Gnaeus Julius Agricola, commander of XX ''Valeria Victrix''. As governor, Cerialis campaigned against the

Brigantes The Brigantes were Ancient Britons who in pre-Roman times controlled the largest section of what would become Northern England. Their territory, often referred to as Brigantia, was centred in what was later known as Yorkshire. The Greek geog ...

of northern England. In 74, Cerialis left Britain; a military diploma dated 21 May 74 attests he was consul a second time, with Titus Clodius Eprius Marcellus as his colleague. According to the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. Tacitus’ two major historical works, ''Annals'' ( ...

says that he was a bold soldier rather than a careful general, and preferred to stake everything on the issue of a single engagement. He possessed natural eloquence of a kind that readily appealed to his soldiers. His loyalty to his superiors was unshakable".

References

External links

Livius.org: Quintus Petillius Cerialis
{{DEFAULTSORT:Petillius Cerialis, Quintus 30s births 1st-century Romans Year of birth uncertain Year of death unknown Ancient Roman adoptees Ancient Roman generals Suffect consuls of Imperial Rome People of the Year of the Four Emperors Flavian dynasty Ancient Romans in Britain Cerialis, Quintus Roman governors of Britain Roman governors of Germania Inferior