Warrior. Caratacus, rebel against Rome
Warrior. Caratacus, rebel against Rome is a historical novel written by English professor and author Simon Scarrow. The work was translated into Spanish by Ana Herrera Ferrer and published by the Edhasa publishing house in 2023. That year, the same house of letters awarded it the City of Tacoronte Historical Novel Festival Prize, which demonstrates its wide acceptance by Spain .
During that event, the author confessed through his translator that he felt very grateful to have received the award in the Iberian Peninsula, since it was his Spanish editors who were the first to become interested in his work internationally.. At the same time, the presenters noted how valuable Simon Scarrow was as a historian, a quality that has been endorsed by the majority of his readers.
Synopsis of Warrior. Caratacus, rebel against Rome
Before the great Roman empire there was a resistance
The whole world knows the history of Rome and its ancient power, and how its culture spread throughout the West. However, before this extraordinary civilization achieved political and military supremacy over the known territory of its time, conquered towns that, as it is logical to think, They did not agree at all with the invasion of their lands.
Among the holdouts were the Brigantes kingdoms to the north. But they weren't the only ones. In addition to them, there were also the tribes of Wales to the west and the towns belonging to the area of hegemony of the Catuvellauni.
The story that concerns us tells about two princes of this last mentioned clan. We talk about Caratacus and Togodumnus, the sons of the king of the Catuvellauns, Cunobelino, who had died at the beginning of the attack by the descendants of Luperca. First of the princes He was the leader of the resistance against the Roman invasion of Britain.
Britain, 43 AD. c.
The novel is set in the year 43 AD. At that time, after so many victories, The Romans felt completely confident in the power of their legions. That led to the invasion of Britain. A little after the start, the eternal city managed to impose its rule on most of the territory. To a certain extent, this occurred thanks to how fragmented and ill-prepared the enemy appeared.
Despite the defeat, the death and fear that the Romans instilled in the people, Carataco and company could not allow their people to surrender, especially since doing so meant the loss of everything they knew and loved. The protagonist of this story was the youngest son of the tribal king, and he had been trained all his life to become a warrior and lead his troops.
One of the bravest fighters in Western history
After being trained by the druids throughout his childhood and youth, The constant and exhaustive training turned Carataco into a strong and cunning adversary. He, by then, was a determined man, willing to return to his father's kingdom to start a rebellion against the soldiers of Rome. Some time later this happened: the peoples of Britain united under the command of Caratacus.
The men of Rome did not expect any battle, and that gave the tribal prince's warriors an advantage, who prepared all his weapons to defend his territory. Caratacus and his soldiers were not only fighting for the land, but also for his people and what was left of the culture that had preceded him, the one that their ancestors left behind, the one that they hoped to inherit to his children.
One of Rome's most dangerous contenders
In several interviews, when asking the author why he had focused on the figure of Caratacus to write his novel, he responded that there was no reason not to. In most of the books he had devised before he had dedicated himself to telling the history of Rome, and the way in which the armies of this great nation distributed their imperialism in all the regions they reached.
These measures also applied to Britain. However, Simon Scarrow had long thought about writing about the opposing side, how they experienced the war and how they felt during the invasion. The professor was especially fascinated with Caratacus, a tribal prince exiled in Rome, who manipulated the emperor Claudius into sparing his life.
How to tell a story from the past
Warrior. Caratacus, rebel against Rome is composed through a Roman historian, who becomes the narrator of this novel. Among other details, this man tries to gather all the information he knows about Caratacus, and prepares to tell the facts of his life. Simon Scarrow claims that his editor was very nervous the first time she heard his book idea.
She supposed it was too far-fetched to tell the story of an enemy of Rome through the voice of a Roman. Still, the woman ultimately let the author pursue that narrative line. Another of Simon Scarrow's points of inspiration was a question: Why are certain stories told while others are decided to be left behind, even though these are of equal importance?
About the Author
Simon Scarrow was born on October 3, 1962, in Lagos, Nigeria. He graduated in Teaching from the University of East Anglia. Later, he worked for the Inland Revenue, and later worked as a professor at City College, Norwich, and lived in several countries before settling in the United Kingdom.
He was a dedicated history teacher until, after years of research, became an international phenomenon in terms of historical narrative thanks to two of its series: Revolution y Eagle. The author is the brother of writer and graphic designer Alex Scarrow.
Other books by Simon Scarrow
Eagle Series
- The eagle of the Empire (2000);
- Rome Vincit! (2001);
- eagle's claws (2002);
- The Eagle Wolves (2003);
- The eagle leaves Britain (2004);
- The Eagle Prophecy (2005);
- The eagle in the desert (2006);
- Centurion(2007);
- The gladiator (2009);
- Legion (2010);
- Praetorian (2011);
- Blood Ravens (2013);
- Band of Brothers (2014);
- Britain (2015);
- Invictus (2016);
- The days of Caesar (2017);
- the blood of rome (2018);
- Traitors to Rome (2019);
- The Emperor's exile (2021);
- The honor of Rome (2022);
- Death to the emperor (2022);
- Rebellion (2023)
Revolution Series
- Young blood (2007);
- The generals (2008);
- By fire and sword (2009);
- Killing fields (2010)
Gladiator Youth Series
- Gladiator: the fight for freedom (2011);
- Gladiator: Fight in the streets (2013);
- Gladiator: The son of Spartacus;
- Gladiator: Revenge.
Sand
- Sand (2013);
- Barbarian (2012);
- Challenger (2012);
- First Sword (2013);
- Revenge (2013);
- Champion (2013);
self-conclusive
- The sword and the scimitar (2014);
- Stone hearts (2016);
- Pirates of Rome (2020)