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Agricola defeats the Caledonians at Mons Graupius

c. 83–84 CE, Caledonia. An event.

Where and when

c. 83–84 CECaledonia

about 1,943 years ago

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, Caledonia

The governor Agricola marches into what is now Scotland and wins a battle in the north. Tacitus was his son-in-law.

as far as the Grampian mountains, which the enemy had already occupied

Tacitus, Agricola 29Translated by A. J. Church and W. J. Brodribb (1877)Read the full passage (Tacitus, Agricola 29, opens scaife.perseus.org)

Background: Battle of Mons Graupius, Wikipedia (opens en.wikipedia.org)

Why it matters

Agricola's campaign effectively brought what is now Scotland under Roman control, but only briefly: within a few years Rome had pulled back and abandoned most of Caledonia.

Based on Wikipedia: Battle of Mons Graupius

Although Agricola's campaign effectively brought the whole of present-day Scotland under Roman control, the occupation was brief.

Within a few years, Roman forces had withdrawn to the line of the Forth–Clyde isthmus, abandoning most of Caledonia.

Wikipedia, Battle of Mons Graupius (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-30. Text CC BY-SA 4.0. Our line is checked against these sentences only.

Related moments

In time order, with this one in its place. Each says why it is here.

  1. set in c. 73–74 CEabout 9.5 years earlier Eleazar's speech at Masada, per Josephus Also about war and empire
  2. 79 CEabout 4 years earlier Vesuvius erupts and buries Pompeii Same years
  3. 80 CEabout 3 years earlier Titus opens the Colosseum with games Same years
  4. c. 83–84 CEThis momentAgricola defeats the Caledonians at Mons Graupius
  5. set in c. 83 CEAbout the same year Calgacus on freedom, as Tacitus wrote it Rests on this eventAlso in CaledoniaAlso about war and empire
  6. set in c. 83 CEAbout the same year Calgacus on slavery, as Tacitus wrote it Rests on this eventAlso in Caledonia
  7. set in c. 83 CEAbout the same year Calgacus on Roman peace, as Tacitus wrote it Rests on this eventAlso in Caledonia
  8. set in c. 83 CEAbout the same year Calgacus on fear and hate, as Tacitus wrote it Rests on this event

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