The place we know as Britain has seen human occupation since the early Stone Age. Immigrants from continental Europe first crossed via a land bridge, during the last Ice Age. As the climate warmed and sea levels rose, Britain became an island. For several thousand years, these Paleolithic hunter-gatherers were left to develop on their own. Until, that is, people built boats capable of surviving on the open waters of the North Sea and the English Channel. They came bringing gifts… the knowledge of metal-working and agriculture. The island passed through the Bronze Age, and with the coming of the Celts (early first millenium), entered the Iron Age.

For nearly 600 years, it was a time of hill forts and tribal chieftains. However, contrary to popularized beliefs, it was not all raiding and riotous feasts. Most of the settlements were agricultural farmsteads, occupied by one or two families. Though the island had been heavily forested, much of the old-growth timber was harvested for building purposes and the cleared land was tilled and planted.

When the Romans (Caesar) arrived in 55 BC, they found a militant, pre-feudal society, with chiefs and chieftains controlling the embanked hillforts. Although these put up a fierce resistance, within four days the two Roman Legions had established a beachhead and had effectively won the First Battle of Britain. Caesar took many hostages to ensure his control over the populace.

The Celts had no written form of their language, which was probably Brythonic. It was Roman historians who recorded the earliest history of this land, and they did not consider it "civilized". However, by their definition, to be civilized meant living in cities. In fact, the society of warriors, druid-priests and artisans that thrived inside and outside the walls of these hill forts was highly cultured. The great hill forts that dominated the landscape of ancient Britain gave protection to the people, enabling them to establish farms and small settlements in the surrounding fertile fields. Eventually these hill forts lost their military importance and became the centers from which towns began to develop. There were gathering places for seasonal celebrations. There were workshops and forges where the unique metalworking of this period thrived. And there were resourceful traders who enhanced their society with wealth and culture from far beyond the island's shores.




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