Iron Age Celts
Iron Age people are often called Celts because they spoke a
Celtic language. Things changed a lot over this long time – the
settlement grew and declined, different houses were built, and iron
became the vital metal for tools and weapons.
Left:
Reconstruction of a typical Iron Age house.
Iron Age people were farmers, living off the land – but as time
went on some groups became richer and more powerful. They built
bigger and more impressive houses, learned rare skills like
bronze-casting and glass-working – and were able to acquire unusual
objects like amber and gold. The people at Birnie grew rich and
strong.
Left: Typical Celtic jewellery from north-east Scotland.
The world outside was changing too. Far from Birnie, a small
Italian city grew more and more powerful. Its armies were stronger,
better-equipped and better trained than other armies. They
conquered more and more land. Eventually these armies of Rome came
to Scotland – and came to know the people at Birnie.
The Romans in Scotland
The Romans came to Scotland in the late 70s AD. Three times they
tried to conquer the country. Each time they held parts of lowland
Scotland for a few years – but each time they withdrew to Hadrian’s
Wall in northern England. These maps
show you how far the Romans got in each invasion (2 MB).
Left: Roman legionaries on a grave stone from Croy hill, North
Lanarkshire.
Roman armies passed through the Birnie area at least once, and
perhaps more. However, they did not occupy the region permanently.
The people at Birnie would know about the Romans, but they did not
have daily contact with them.
Yet although the Romans didn’t conquer all of Scotland, they had
a big impact. Rome’s influence did not stop at Hadrian’s Wall. To
keep the frontier secure, they sent patrols and diplomats into the
‘barbarian lands’. Valuable Roman objects were given to important
local leaders – gifts to encourage them to stay friendly. The
people at Birnie developed strong links to the Romans over a long
period of time.