''Terry Jones' Barbarians'' is a 4-part TV documentary series first broadcast on

BBC 2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

in 2006. It was written and presented by

Terry Jones Terence Graham Parry Jones (1 February 1942 – 21 January 2020) was a Welsh comedian, director, historian, actor, writer and member of the Monty Python comedy team. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in English, Jones and ...

, and it challenges the received Roman and Roman Catholic notion of the

barbarian A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either Civilization, uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by som ...

. Professor

Barry Cunliffe Sir Barrington Windsor Cunliffe, (born 10 December 1939), known as Barry Cunliffe, is a British archaeologist and academic. He was Professor of European Archaeology at the University of Oxford from 1972 to 2007. Since 2007, he has been an Emeri ...

of the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

acted as consultant for the series.

Episodes

"The Primitive Celts"

First broadcast 26 May 2006, this episode challenges the popular view of Celtic society as a primitive culture that was uncivilised. Compared to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, it was actually an advanced society and, in some ways, even more advanced than Rome. For example, many of the roads in

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

that were assumed to have been built by the Romans were actually built by the Celts themselves. However, Gaul was rich and tempting to Rome. The Roman general,

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, and ...

, set out to conquer Gaul with a professional army. The Celts stood no chance against Caesar and the Romans and so today Rome's version of history is remembered.

"The Savage Goths"

First broadcast 2 June 2006, it discusses

Arminius Arminius ( 18/17 BC – 21 AD) was a chieftain of the Germanic Cherusci tribe who is best known for commanding an alliance of Germanic tribes at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD, in which three Roman legions under the command of ge ...

Trajan's Dacian Wars The Dacian Wars (101–102, 105–106) were two military campaigns fought between the Roman Empire and Dacia during Emperor Trajan's rule. The conflicts were triggered by the constant Dacian threat on the Danubian province of Moesia and also by ...

and

Alaric I Alaric I (; got, 𐌰𐌻𐌰𐍂𐌴𐌹𐌺𐍃, , "ruler of all"; c. 370 – 410 AD) was the first king of the Visigoths, from 395 to 410. He rose to leadership of the Goths who came to occupy Moesia—territory acquired a couple of decades ...

's sack of Rome.

"The Brainy Barbarians"

First broadcast 9 June 2006, it shows how Ancient Greeks and Persians were far from the Romans' view of them as effeminate and addicted to luxury. The Greeks valued science and mathematics, and the Persians had initially allowed

multiculturalism The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for "Pluralism (political theory), ethnic pluralism", with the tw ...

among the different ethnic groups of its empire (until years of war with Rome).

"The End of the World"

First broadcast 16 June 2006, this episode discusses two barbarian babies born in 400 AD. One would grow up to become the most feared of all,

Attila the Hun Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in March 453. He was also the leader of a tribal empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, and Bulgars, among others, in Central and Ea ...

. The other,

Geiseric Gaiseric ( – 25 January 477), also known as Geiseric or Genseric ( la, Gaisericus, Geisericus; reconstructed Vandalic: ) was King of the Vandals and Alans (428–477), ruling a kingdom he established, and was one of the key players in the dif ...

, led the

Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal Kingdom, Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century. The ...

whom history has cast as destroyers. It is claimed that

Roman civilization The history of Rome includes the history of the Rome, city of Rome as well as the Ancient Rome, civilisation of ancient Rome. Roman history has been influential on the modern world, especially in the history of the Catholic Church, and Roman la ...

ended not by the invasion of these tribes but by the loss of the African tax base. The common view of Rome and barbarians was a result of the Roman

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

popularizing the Roman version of the truth.

Companion book

* *

References

External links

BBC Worldwide press release
* {{Terry Jones history series 2006 British television series debuts 2006 British television series endings Ancient history Works by Terry Jones British television miniseries English-language television shows BBC television documentaries about prehistoric and ancient history