Venutius was a 1st-century king of the Brigantes in northern Britain at the time of the Roman conquest. Some have suggested he may have belonged to the Carvetii, a tribe that probably formed part of the Brigantes confederation. History first becomes aware of him as husband of Cartimandua, queen of the Brigantes, in about 51 AD. After the British resistance leader Caratacus was defeated by Publius Ostorius Scapula in

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, he fled north to the Brigantes, only to be handed over to the Romans by Cartimandua. While the Brigantes were nominally an independent kingdom,

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 Cartimandua and Venutius were loyal to Rome and "defended by Roman power". However, after the capture of Caratacus, Venutius became the most prominent leader of resistance to the Roman occupation. Cartimandua had apparently tired of him and married his armour-bearer, Vellocatus, whom she elevated to the kingship in Venutius's place. Initially, Venutius sought only to overthrow his ex-wife, only later turning his attention to her Roman protectors. The Romans defended their client queen and Venutius's revolt was defeated by Caesius Nasica during the governorship of Aulus Didius Gallus (52 - 57 AD). Taking advantage of Roman instability during the year of four emperors, Venutius revolted again, this time in 69 AD. Cartimandua appealed for troops from the Romans, who were only able to send auxiliaries. Cartimandua was evacuated and Venutius took the kingdom. This second revolt may have had wider repercussions: Tacitus says that

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 ...

, once

emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

, had to "recover" Britain. He also says, introducing the events of the year of four emperors, that Britain was abandoned having only just been pacified (although some think this is in reference to the consolidation of Agricola's later conquests in Caledonia (Scotland)). What happened to Venutius after the accession of

is not recorded. Quintus Petillius Cerialis (governor 71 to 74 AD) campaigned against the Brigantes, but they were not completely subdued for many decades: Agricola (governor 78 to 84 AD) appears to have campaigned in Brigantian territory, and both the Roman poet

Juvenal Decimus Junius Juvenalis (), known in English as Juvenal ( ; 55–128), was a Roman poet. He is the author of the '' Satires'', a collection of satirical poems. The details of Juvenal's life are unclear, but references in his works to people f ...

and the Greek geographer Pausanias refer to warfare against the Brigantes in the first half of the second century.

, '' Satires''
14.196
Pausanias, ''

Description of Greece ''Description of Greece'' () is the only surviving work by the ancient "geographer" or tourist Pausanias (geographer), Pausanias (c. 110 – c. 180). Pausanias' ''Description of Greece'' comprises ten books, each of them dedicated to some ...

'
8.43.4
/ref>

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=December 2019 Briton monarchs Celtic warriors People of the Year of the Four Emperors 1st-century monarchs in Europe