The Wolf and the Hare

Chapter 7 places Boudica’s revolt in the context of other native revolts against Rome in order to demonstrate both the similarities between provincial uprisings and the uniqueness of Boudica as a female leader. While Dio connects Boudica to the revolt in Dalmatia in AD 6–9, Tacitus aligns Boudica with Arminius and his destruction of Varus and his three Roman legions in AD 9. Dio uses similar terms in his discussion of the Dalmatian revolt and that of Boudica, which question the morality of the Romans’ actions in their provinces. In Tacitus’s accounts, the memory of Varus reminds readers that Boudica’s revolt could have lost the Romans full legions and an entire province. However, readers must question Boudica’s lasting memory in light of her ultimate failure to stem the imperial progress of the Romans.