Nennius is a mythical prince of Britain at the time of

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

's invasions of Britain (55–54 BC). His story appears in

Geoffrey of Monmouth Geoffrey of Monmouth ( la, Galfridus Monemutensis, Galfridus Arturus, cy, Gruffudd ap Arthur, Sieffre o Fynwy; 1095 – 1155) was a British cleric from Monmouth, Wales and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography ...

's ''

History of the Kings of Britain ''Historia regum Britanniae'' (''The History of the Kings of Britain''), originally called ''De gestis Britonum'' (''On the Deeds of the Britons''), is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written around 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. I ...

'' (1136), a work whose contents are now considered largely fictional. In

Middle Welsh Middle Welsh ( cy, Cymraeg Canol, wlm, Kymraec) is the label attached to the Welsh language of the 12th to 15th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This form of Welsh developed directly from Old Welsh ( cy, Hen G ...

versions of Geoffrey's ''Historia'' he was called Nynniaw. In Geoffrey's story, Nennius is said to have fought Caesar in personal combat and taken his sword, which he used to kill many Romans. In the Tudor and Jacobean eras he became an emblem of British patriotism.

Geoffrey's account

The ''History'' gives the following account of Nennius's life: He was the third son of

Heli Heli, also ''heli'', ''heli-'' may refer to: People *Heli, King of Britain (mythical) *Heli (Bible), listed as an ancestor of Jesus *Heli (name) Places * Heli, Tangyuan County (鹤立镇), town in Tangyuan County, Heilongjiang, China * Heli, Funi ...

and brother of Lud and Cassibelanus (and according to Welsh sources, of

Llefelys Llefelys (Middle Welsh orthography ''Llevelys'', ''Lleuelys'', ''Llefelis'') is a character in Welsh mythology appearing in the medieval Welsh tale ''Cyfranc Lludd a Llefelys''. In the tale, Llefelys is king of Gaul while his brother Lludd is king o ...

). He fought alongside Cassibelanus when Caesar invaded. He and his nephew Androgeus led the troops of

Trinovantum Trinovantum is the name in medieval British legend that was given to London, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth's ''Historia Regum Britanniae'', when it was founded by the exiled Trojan Brutus, who called it ''Troia Nova'' ("New Troy"), which was g ...

(

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

) and

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

, when they encountered Caesar's own troops and Nennius faced Caesar in

single combat Single combat is a duel between two single warriors which takes place in the context of a battle between two armies. Instances of single combat are known from Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The champions were often combatants who repre ...

. Caesar struck Nennius a blow to the head, but his sword got stuck in Nennius's shield. After they separated in the melée, Nennius threw away his own sword and attacked the Romans with Caesar's sword, killing many, including the tribune

Quintus Laberius Durus Quintus Laberius Durus (died August 54 BC) was a Roman military tribune who died during Julius Caesar's second expedition to Britain. Caesar describes how soon after landing in Kent, the Romans were attacked whilst building a camp by the native B ...

(whom Geoffrey erroneously names Labienus, confusing him with

Titus Labienus Titus Labienus (c. 10017 March 45 BC) was a high-ranking military officer in the late Roman Republic. He served as tribune of the Plebs in 63 BC. Although mostly remembered as one of Julius Caesar's best lieutenants in Gaul, mentioned freq ...

). According to Geoffrey, "everyone whom Nennius struck with the sword either had his head chopped off or else was so wounded as Nennius passed that he had no hope of ever recovering". Fifteen days after the battle Nennius died of his head wound, and was buried at London (the "City of the Trinovantes"), near the North Gate. Caesar's sword, named '' Crocea Mors'' ("Yellow Death"), was buried with him.

Later versions

The Anglo-Norman writer

Wace Wace ( 1110 – after 1174), sometimes referred to as Robert Wace, was a Medieval Norman poet, who was born in Jersey and brought up in mainland Normandy (he tells us in the ''Roman de Rou'' that he was taken as a child to Caen), ending his car ...

expands on the story of the fight in his book ''Roman de Brut'', in which there is detailed description of the combat. Caesar defeats Nennius, but his sword is stuck in Nennius' shield, and he is forced to retreat when Nennius' friends come to his aid. In this version, the loss of his sword is a humiliation that leads to Caesar's withdrawal and inspires rebellion in France. In the Tudor period Nennius became a patriotic symbol of British independence. In ''

The Mirror for Magistrates ''The Mirror for Magistrates'' is a collection of English poems from the Tudor period by various authors which retell the lives and the tragic ends of various historical figures. Background This work was conceived as a continuation of the '' Fal ...

'' he is portrayed as an "inspirational lesson for future British people to defend their country from foreign invasion".Curran, John, ''Roman Invasions: The British History, Protestant Anti-Romanism, and the Historical Imagination in England, 1530-1660'', University of Delaware Press, 2002, p.167. In this version Caesar only defeats him by cheating—he poisons his sword-tip. Nennius also appears in plays in the Jacobean era, notably Jasper Fisher's '' Fuimus Troes'' and John Fletcher's ''

Bonduca ''Bonduca'' is a Jacobean tragi-comedy in the Beaumont and Fletcher canon, generally judged by scholars to be the work of John Fletcher alone. It was acted by the King's Men c. 1613, and published in 1647 in the first Beaumont and Fletcher ...

''. In the former he embodies the fighting spirit of the Britons and is given the patriotic opening speech exhorting the people to resist invasion. His funeral games after his fight with Caesar form the climactic point of the play. In the latter he is anachronistically portrayed as a contemporary of Boudica, acting as one of her generals.Jowitt, Claire, ''Voyage Drama and Gender Politics, 1589-1642: Real and Imagined Worlds'', Manchester University Press, 2003, p.107.

References

External links

, ''

Historia Regum Britanniae ''Historia regum Britanniae'' (''The History of the Kings of Britain''), originally called ''De gestis Britonum'' (''On the Deeds of the Britons''), is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written around 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. I ...

'' 3.20, 4.3-4 {{Geoffrey of Monmouth Traditional history of Julius Caesar's invasions of Britain Legendary English people