Maeatae
Encyclopedia
The Maeatae were a confederation of tribes who lived probably beyond the Antonine Wall
in Roman Britain
. The historical sources are vague as to the exact region they inhabited.
Near the summit of Dumyat
hill in the Ochils, overlooking Stirling
, there are remains of a fort and the name of the hill is believed to be a corruption of "Dun Maeatae" - the hill of the Maeatae. This prominent hillfort may have marked their northern boundary, while Myot Hill near Falkirk plausibly marks their southern limits.
They appear to have come together as a result of treaties struck between the Roman Empire
and the various frontier tribes in the 180s AD under the governorship of Ulpius Marcellus
.
In 210 AD they began a serious revolt against the Roman Empire
.
The Miathi, mentioned in Adomnán's Life of Columba, probably to be identified with the Southern Picts
, appear to be the same ethnic group, their identity seemingly surviving in some form as late as the 6th or 7th centuries AD.
Antonine Wall
The Antonine Wall is a stone and turf fortification built by the Romans across what is now the Central Belt of Scotland, between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde. Representing the northernmost frontier barrier of the Roman Empire, it spanned approximately 39 miles and was about ten feet ...
in Roman Britain
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
. The historical sources are vague as to the exact region they inhabited.
Near the summit of Dumyat
Dumyat
Dumyat is a hill at the western extremity of the Ochil Hills in central Scotland. The name is thought to originate from Dun of the Maeatae....
hill in the Ochils, overlooking Stirling
Stirling
Stirling is a city and former ancient burgh in Scotland, and is at the heart of the wider Stirling council area. The city is clustered around a large fortress and medieval old-town beside the River Forth...
, there are remains of a fort and the name of the hill is believed to be a corruption of "Dun Maeatae" - the hill of the Maeatae. This prominent hillfort may have marked their northern boundary, while Myot Hill near Falkirk plausibly marks their southern limits.
They appear to have come together as a result of treaties struck between the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
and the various frontier tribes in the 180s AD under the governorship of Ulpius Marcellus
Ulpius Marcellus
Ulpius Marcellus was a Roman consular governor of Britannia who returned there as general of the later 2nd century.Ulpius Marcellus is recorded as governor of Roman Britain in an inscription of 176-80, and apparently returned to Rome after a tenure without serious incident...
.
In 210 AD they began a serious revolt against the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
.
The Miathi, mentioned in Adomnán's Life of Columba, probably to be identified with the Southern Picts
Picts
The Picts were a group of Late Iron Age and Early Mediaeval people living in what is now eastern and northern Scotland. There is an association with the distribution of brochs, place names beginning 'Pit-', for instance Pitlochry, and Pictish stones. They are recorded from before the Roman conquest...
, appear to be the same ethnic group, their identity seemingly surviving in some form as late as the 6th or 7th centuries AD.