Black Romans in Britain

Black Romans At Hadrians Wall ... There was a “Moorish” Division of Roman Soldiers stationed on Hadrians Wall at Burgh-on-Sands, near Carlisle. The division was ... SkiptocontentTheideaofBlackRomansmayatfirstseemfanciful.InBritain,wetendtothinkofRomansasItalians,butthisisnotspecificallythetruth. TheRomanEmpirespannedahugeareaandwasmadeupoffightingmenandtheirfamiliesfromalltheconqueredterritoriesrangingfromNorthernEuropetotheMiddleEastandNorthAfrica. Inaddition,theRomansdidsendexpeditionsintotheSubSaharanInterior,wheretheywouldhavecertainlycomeintocontactwiththelocalpeople.AndreiNacuBlackRomansAtHadriansWallTherewasa“Moorish”DivisionofRomanSoldiersstationedonHadriansWallatBurgh-on-Sands,nearCarlisle.Thedivisionwasnamed(NumerusMaurorumAurelianorum)afterMarcusAureliusoranotheremperorwhomayhavebeenknownbythesameofficialname. WhilstMoorisatermgenerallyacceptedforNorthAfricanswedoknowthattherewereMany‘Sub-SaharanAfricansamongstthe‘Moors’whoconqueredEurope,soit’snotunlikelythatsomeofthemoorsatHadrian’swallwouldalsohavebeenblackRomans. TheAfricanbornEmporer,SeptimusSeverustravelledtoBritainwherehespenttimeorganisingthestrengtheningofHadrian’sWall,andtheAntonineWallWhilstthereisnoevidencetosuggestthatSeptimusSeveruswasa“BlackAfrican”HecertainlylivedinNorthAfrica,wherehehimselfwouldhavebeennostrangertothepresenceofBlackAfricans.SeptimusSeveruswasinspectingthewallintheyear210whenhewasreputedlymockedbyan“Ethiope”(oldtermforAfricans)whowaswearingagarlandofCyprusleaves.TheCyprusboughwassacredtoPluto,theRomangodoftheunderworld.Whenorderedaway,theBlacksoldierrepliedwithsarcasm “Youhavebeenallthings,conqueredallthings,now,Oconquerer,beagod!” Severusperceivedthistobeabadomen.HediedshortlyafterwardsinYork.DNATracesof BlackRomans?Dr.RichardBenjaminofLiverpoolMuseum,writesthisonBlackRomans:“ItwasrecentlysuggestedthatAfricanDNAmightbefoundtobepresentinthelocalpopulationsneartoHadrian’sWall,forinstance,Burgh-by-Sands.However,thiswouldnotconclusivelyshowthattheblackRomansoldiersonthewallintermarriedwiththelocalpopulationbecauseoftheproblemofadmixture.AdmixtureisaprocesswherebytheDNAofapopulationbecomesdilutedovertimeanditcannotbeshownatwhatperiodintimethatdilutiontookplace.”Aswellasthecommonsoldier,theremaywellhavebeenofficersorPrefectsfromNorthAfricalivinginthearea.In1951aRomano-BritishcemeterywasunearthedinYork.350skeletonswerefoundofwhichseveralexhibitlimbproportionswhichsuggestthattheywereBlackAfricans.Sources:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_people_in_Ancient_Roman_historyhttps://www.yorkshiremuseum.org.uk/collections/collections-highlights/ivory-bangle-lady/https://www.historyextra.com/period/roman/how-ethnically-diverse-was-roman-britain/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2010/feb/26/roman-york-skeletonhttp://www.heritageeastbourne.co.uk/ancestors.aspxhttps://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-25962183https://blackpresence.co.uk/black-romans/CopyandpasteURLsforyourfurtherinvestigation.Wedonotlinkallarticlesformaintenancepurposes.LeaveaReplyCancelreplyYouremailaddresswillnotbepublished.Requiredfieldsaremarked*Comment*Name*Email*WebsiteSavemyname,email,andwebsiteinthisbrowserforthenexttimeIcomment.ΔThissiteusesAkismettoreducespam.Learnhowyourcommentdataisprocessed.TopicsAfricanAmericanHistory(41)AfricanHistory(37)BlackBritain&BlackBritons(120)BlackCulture(80)BlackHistory(429)BlackInvolvementinSports(25)BlackLeadership(26)BlackSoldiers(35)BlackWomen(27)CaribbeanHistory(32)EditorsBlog(24)GuestsBlogPosts(8)TheSlaveTrade(12)RecentPostsBlackLoyalistsin18thCenturyLondonDianeAbbottBlackNightlifein18thCenturyLondonFrankBrunoMBEOlaudahEquiano-AbolitionistWhenDidTheFirstBlackPersoninEnglandArrive?BritainsFirstBlackPoliceWomanStayingPower:TheHistoryofBlackPeopleinBritain(GetPolitical)Bayonets,MangoesAndBeadsForgotten:TheUntoldStoryofD-Day’sBlackHeroesAutomatedpagespeedoptimizationsforfastsiteperformance