Legatus Legionis: Book Two in the Gaius Claudius Scaevola Trilogy (35 page)

Eventually, Falco came to see him. "Sir?"

"Yes?"

"I have organized supplies for our men, and for the various parties, but . . ."

"But?"

"Well, sir, with all due respect . . ."

"You can say what's on your mind," Gaius said, as he smiled to try to put Falco at his ease.

"Well, sir, I have carried out a survey of the food reserves around Camulodunum, including the nearby villages, and there is no way there will be sufficient food to support three legions. There's another problem too."

"Which is?" Gaius smiled in encouragement.

"There is no nearby port. If I were Caratacus and I wanted to get my own back, when we need to ship food in, I would raid whatever port we used, and as far as I can tell, there is no good port around here safe from winter storms. Feeding three legions will need a lot of food, sir, and for that matter, there really may not be sufficient forest around here to provide the necessary firewood without removing too much of it for the future. "

"And you would recommend?"

"Go somewhere fresh, while we can, sir."

"Then you shall get your wish," Gaius said. "That was a good analysis. We need to control both our food supply and a port, so we are going to set up a temporary base at the Thames, so you can go and get the legion ready to march. As soon as you can get them ready, we head south."

"They'll be ready the day after the
Princeps
leaves," Falco assured Gaius.

Chapter 27

The day following Claudius' departure for Rome, a bitterly cold wind blew up, rain drifted in from the north, and the air was full of swirling brown leaves. Winter was approaching, and if the twentieth was to move, now was the time. The troops were less than happy at having to march in the cold and wet conditions, but march they would.

It was now that Gaius envied Vespasian. The
Augusta
had begun preparations to winter over with the Roman allies, the Atrebates, near the south coast. The client king, Cogidumnus, was there solely because of Roman power so he would return the favour and supply the legion, while the legion would protect him from raids from other tribes and from internal plots. Securing the Atrebates as allies would then free up the
Augusta
and permit it to drive westward along the southern coast next spring.

The
Hispana
would go north during the next spring, so it would now march northwards and find the nearest coastal port, so that it could be supplied from the sea. Moving north would also give it the opportunity to scout out the first territory it had to cover, and it would also give the Romans the opportunity to approach the Iceni.

There was a further military requirement, related to communications. The Thames provided a natural harbour, but it also provided a natural barrier to land transport. Plautius' answer was to eventually construct a bridge over the river, and also to construct a fort to station some defensive forces. That required some labour, which suggested that a legion should winter over there. Since the
Valeria
was to advance on Vespasian's right flank, Gaius had volunteered. Thus the day after Claudius' departure, the
Valeria
marched south.

One of the clear benefits of just having defeated Caratacus at his capital was that a reasonable amount of his wealth had remained, now to be confiscated by the Romans and sent to Rome. The conquered lands, however, included some of the prime agricultural land in Britain, and while the Celtic farmers were poor in gold, Gaius noted wryly, if the new taxes were paid in food he could just about afford to feed his legion over the winter.

While the weather cleared on the second day of the march, the skies were greying as the Thames came into view, and since a decision was required as to where the legion should camp, the legionary surveyors were sent ahead to scout a possible position, with an objective of being at the most convenient point to put a pontoon-type bridge across the river, and also permit ships to berth nearby. While wherever they stopped was unimportant for the Valeria, it was desirable that the initial site could become a more permanent site as a transport centre. They soon found what they considered to be a satisfactory spot, and the legion marched towards it. Both bridge and legion would be downstream from a Celtic settlement that was far too small to be of any use for housing the legion.

The following morning, the infantry set about obtaining timber from the nearby forest to build barracks, while the cavalry began surveying the countryside for sources of food. While this was going on, Gaius sought out the Chief of the Celtic settlement that was a few miles upstream.

The first thing Gaius noted was that this chief was very young, not that that should be held against him since he, Gaius, was not much older, and he commanded a legion. However this Celtic Chief was also furtive, insecure, brash and angry; not a good mixture. Gaius immediately guessed the reason for his being so young: he had succeeded his father, who had died in battle. That would explain the anger, while the insecurity would come both from having a legion on his doorstep, and the possibility of a challenge from one of his tribesmen.

"I can guess how you feel," Gaius started, "but I suggest you start to think a bit. Believe me, the Roman Army is here to stay. This isn't like Caesar, who came and collected some tribute, and left for what he considered more important business. The
Princeps
needs this invasion to succeed, so the Britons either defeat four legions, or you accept us. If you opt for the first, you've made a bad start."

The Celtic Chief began to make a retort, but then stopped.

"What you should do," Gaius nodded, appreciating that this Celt could at least maintain some self-control, "is see this as a personal opportunity."

"Opportunity?" the Celt scowled. "For whom?"

"For you, to cement in your position as Chief. Otherwise, you had better be a better warrior than virtually all the others in your tribe."

"What do you mean?" At least there was interest on his face.

"Celtic Chiefs can be overthrown by combat," Gaius shrugged, "and also by a knife in the back while you're asleep."

"So you're promising guards?" the Celt smiled derisively. "Presumably around my bed and . . ."

"What I promise, assuming we can come to some agreement, is that if you die by foul play, I shall crucify whoever replaces you, and if I think he's some dolt put there to take the punishment, the next replacement. Nobody will challenge you if they can't replace you, and I promise you, the cross is not the most pleasant way to die."

"They won't believe me if I say that."

"They'll believe me if I say it," Gaius replied harshly. "I will announce that at the same time I announce the punishments for breaking various laws I shall impose."

"So what am I supposed to agree to?" At least, Gaius noted, there was interest.

"Surprisingly little," Gaius replied. "Your people will undertake to accept our presence, pay the taxes we impose, and go on with their lives and keep our laws. In return, your people will have complete freedom to do whatever they wish with their lives."

"Yes, but what are your men going to eat over the winter? Steal it from us?"

"We shall pay for what we take," Gaius nodded. "However, you have raised a good point, indeed the point I came here to discuss. We shall pay for food, but there has to be enough here for both our legion and your people. I need you to take stock of how much is in storage."

"And if there isn't enough?"

"There won't be, so we have to find some more before winter makes the finding too difficult," Gaius replied. "The only question I have is how much do I have to find?"

"And you want me to do what?"

"Find out how much food is stored, how much is going to be needed by your tribe, and what the difference is. If you're truthful, nobody need go hungry, because we'll find food somehow. If you lie, it will be your people who'll pay. Don't forget, if I have to get food, the sooner I find out how much, the better."

"Then give me two days."

* * *

The days were now cool enough to be unpleasant if standing around, which, Gaius noted, encouraged the soldiers to cut timber faster. The better the barracks were, the warmer they would feel. However, five thousand men could do quite a bit of work, and Plautius had also sent a number of the elephants to help with moving logs. Since the men knew what a German winter was like, they guessed that the British one would not be much better, and this encouraged them to ensure that their barracks would be built properly, and there was plenty of firewood. After all, they were at the end of the queue.

For food, Gaius sent
Exploratores
back to the villages he had already passed through. He knew roughly how much food was there, and he knew that the tribesmen would appreciate the money, or the chance to off-load tax liabilities. Archers were sent out to seek game, and local fishermen were encouraged to work a little harder. Nevertheless, there would still be difficulties so he also sent ships back to Gaul to bring more. This was one of the advantages of being camped adjacent to a harbour.

Gaius was a little surprised when the young Chief reported on the third day that his village had a small surplus of grain, and was prepared to sell this and certain vegetables throughout the winter, in return for appropriate payment. He also named some nearby villages that he felt would also have food to spare. Gaius thanked him; it was not a solution to the problem, but it was a contribution.

Chapter 28

"I have brought you all here," Gaius addressed the Tribunes and a number of others, "to outline what has to be done over winter. Our first task is to erect fortifications and to put a bridge over the river. Problems?"

One of the engineers stood up and began to answer, "Sir, a full timber bridge could not be constructed over this winter, coupled with what else we have to do."

"I was thinking about a pontoon-type bridge. Can you manage that?"

"Providing I get enough timber," the engineer nodded. "I will need some supplies such as nails and pitch from Gaul, but provided I get the timber and reasonable access to the men, this is not a problem."

"Falco, you are in charge of organizing timber collection for the engineers. They will tell you what is required; you will organize getting it.

"That gets rid of the bridge problem," Gaius nodded. "The next problem is food. Matius, you will take cavalry back into the lands of the Catuvellauni and forage for what you can get. Remind them their taxes are due, and that will be paid in food. Set a fair price, and under no circumstances leave them to starve. Understand?"

"Yes sir."

"Remember this. These Celts are recently conquered, and they won't like us one little bit. They won't fight right now, but that doesn't make them friendly either. I do not want to have to refight them, so try not to start a rebellion. Be firm, but go overboard to be fair."

"Lupus, you will organize excursions down south to the land of the Cantiaci in search of supplies. Same general orders. Technically, they are allies, but they could be very weak allies, so don't turn them into foes.

"Which gets me to the next point. We have to be firm with the Celts, but fair. I will not tolerate soldiers carrying on private rape and pillage. Let the word be known on that. Basically, in the long run we want the Celts as allies, and that isn't going to happen unless we treat them reasonably. The best way to avoid trouble is to keep the soldiers busy doing something. Collecting wood and building the bridge and fortifications is good, but also remember, we don't want to suffer from Celtic raids that get to where they shouldn't, so you will maintain good scouting exercises, and keep firm watch. Do you all understand? Are there any problems?"

Everybody understood. There were no problems. Not yet.

* * *

As the ships brought supplies from Gaul, they also brought a letter from Vipsania.

My Darling Gaius,

Once again winter approaches, and once again I miss you very much. However, at least I know you have been very successful. Claudius has returned in triumph, and what a magnificent ceremony it was. Timothy took me to watch the procession and events in the Circus Maximus, and Claudius made a truly magnificent figure in his Toga Picta. The sun shone brilliantly on the purple, the gold really flashed, and since he was standing in his chariot, his often awkward stance was absent, or at least not noticeable. The carts had plenty of spoils and he brought a reasonable number of captives, none of whom, you will be pleased to hear, were sacrificed. Some thought it a small triumph, in part because he did not bring his army back with him, nevertheless it was long enough for me.

Claudius invited me to an evening the following day, and he was as pleased as he could be with himself. He asked me what he could do for me. It almost looked as if he would grant me anything, but I didn't know what to do, so I asked him to grant you whatever you asked when you returned to Rome. He nodded, and said he was going to do that anyway, because it was you who really deserved the triumph. So there! You'll really get something. Of course I know you think you might not get back until Rome falls, but that's just plain stupid. All you have to do is stay alive, and Claudius will bring you home after the next year of campaigning.

The general consensus is that this triumph will secure Claudius, and he need worry no further about plots. Certainly some of the senators such as Marcus Vinicianus and Valerius Asiaticus are maintaining low profiles, but I am far from convinced that we have heard the last of them. When Claudius does bring you back, you may end up with the job of uncovering further plots. Claudius has often mentioned that if he had one wish fulfilled, he would wish for a Marcus Agrippa. Claudius may hope you will fill that role.

Timothy has been a considerable help around here. It's quite amazing what he knows, and he has straightened out several things around the estate. The corn issue may have been solved also. Timothy decided to raise the issue with Quintus, but not in an accusatory manner. He merely said that the issue was really puzzling, but he was working on it, and he would have watchers at the port to find out who was helping themselves. The latest shipment arrived without losses. Of course, as Timothy pointed out, that doesn't mean that it was Quintus, but it does suggest it was someone around Ostia. I gather Timothy will be making further enquiries.