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TheClassis Britannica (literally,British fleet, in the sense of 'the fleet in British waters' or 'the fleet of the province ofBritannia', rather than 'the fleet of the state of Britain') was a provincial naval fleet of thenavy of ancient Rome. Its purpose was to control theEnglish Channel and the waters around the Roman province ofBritannia. Unlike modern (and some contemporary Roman) "fighting navies", its job was largely the logistical movement of personnel and support, and keeping open communication routes across the Channel.
There is no literary reference in the classical historians to theClassis Britannica by that name, and archaeological evidence is also tantalizingly scant (although tiles stamped CLBR are common along the east Kent coast and in London, suggesting either government buildings or an early instance ofarmy surplus), meaning that details of its history and form are unfortunately based on a large degree of interpretation.
A fleet was originally raised for theinvasion of Britain underClaudius, with the task of bringing an invasion force of 40,000 men from theRoman army, plus supplies, toGreat Britain. It continued after the successful invasion to provide support for the army, shuttling massive quantities of supplies across theEnglish Channel.
This fleet played a major role in the subsequent conquest of Britannia. However,Tacitus states that strangely, about twenty years after the invasion, it was not present atSuetonius Paulinus's crossing of theMenai Strait toAnglesey (also known as Ynys Môn) before theBoudican Rebellion.[1] This suggests the force was still occupied in the Channel area, unsuitable to the long voyage up to the north ofWales, or too small by then to offer any useful level of support to the ground troops.
In theFlavian period what had been raised initially as a temporary invasion fleet was formalised as theClassis Britannica and made permanent in statute. Also in the Flavian period, under the governorAgricola, it circumnavigatedCaledonia (Scotland), and in 83 attacked its eastern coast. One year later the fleet is recorded as having reached theOrkney Islands.[2]
Due to the lack of serious naval opposition in the early Imperial period in the area of the fleet's operations[3] – the invasion crossing, for example, went navally uncontested – the Classis's main role was as logistical support both to the army inBritannia, and also to armies campaigning in later years inGermania.
In the Weald of south-east England stamped tiles of the Classis Britannica have been found at sites associated with the production of iron.[4] The largest of these is atBeauport Park, nearBattle, East Sussex, where more than 1000 tiles were used to roof a substantialbath house adjacent to a largeiron smelting site.[5] Other iron production sites where tiles have been found are atBardown, nearWadhurst, Sussex,[6] and Little Farningham Farm, nearCranbrook, Kent.[7] Three other sites where tiles have been found had access to navigable water in Roman times, and two of them, atBodiam,[8] and at Boreham Bridge nearNinfield,[9] both in Sussex have associated ironworks. The implication is that theClassis Britannica not only transported iron but was involved in its production as well.
The fleet disappears from the archaeological record towards the middle of the 3rd century but is known from contemporary sources to have continued in existence after this date.
In 286,Carausius, a Roman military commander of Gaulish origins, was appointed to command theClassis Britannica, and given the responsibility of eliminatingFrankish andSaxon pirates who had been raiding the coasts ofArmorica andBelgic Gaul. However, he was suspected of keeping captured treasure for himself, and even of allowing the pirates to carry out raids and enrich themselves before taking action against them, andMaximian ordered his execution.
In late 286 or early 287 he learned of this sentence and responded by usurping power and declaring himself emperor ofBritannia and northernGaul. When the British fleet was attacked by a Rhine fleet representing theRoman Empire, the British fleet was victorious, showing that it must have been substantial at the time. The would-be invaders, however, blamed poor weather for their defeat.
By 300, however, Britannia was once again a part of the largerRoman Empire, and theClassis Britannica restored as a Roman imperial fleet.
In the final years ofRoman Britain, the fleet was devoted almost entirely to protecting the Eastern and Southern coasts of Great Britain against first piratic actions[citation needed] and, shortly before the withdrawal of troops from Britain, againstSaxon raids against coastal towns and villages on what came to be known as theSaxon Shore. The fleet probably had some role in the operation of theSaxon Shore forts.
It was originally believed that the main base of the fleet was inRutupiae (Richborough) but more recent archaeological work has uncovered one of only three surviving forts occupied by the fleet's marines atDubris (Dover), suggesting this was in fact a major base of the Classis. It may even have been its primary base, though one of the other surviving fleet forts, atBoulogne-sur-Mer, is far larger and thus said by some to be a more likely contender than Dover for that role.[citation needed]Portus Adurni (which was later adapted and known asPortchester Castle) at the north ofPortsmouth harbour is another contender and believed to have been at the very least a major base for the fleet.[10]
