The Fortress is the second book in the Eboracvm series, and follows events that lead to the final subjugation of Brigantia. In Eboracvm, The Village, Governor Petilius Cerialis began the process of domination in 71 A.D., culminating in the battle at Stannick (Stanwick). He did not, however, bring the same Roman peace to the north of Britannia that existed in the south. When he returned to Rome in 74 A.D., he left the fortress at Eboracum complete, and the Ninth Hispana Legion in garrison there, and at several other forts scattered about Brigante territory. He did not, however, leave a land that was at peace.
Under the rule of the client queen Cartimandua, Brigantia had once been a buffer against the quarrelsome tribes that lived further north. Now, any semblance of stability is vanishing, aggravated by the death of Venutius’s at Stannick. The Brigantes, along with their cousins the Carvetii, remain unwilling to accept the yoke of Rome; they are, nonetheless, ready to form new alliances with traditional tribal enemies.
It is 78 A.D., and Gnaeius Julius Agricola has been sent to Britannia, beginning an unprecedented term of six years as the Province’s governor. His aim is to finish, once and for all, Rome’s subjugation of the tribes, even if it means building forts and outposts all over the province’s north, and extending Rome’s dominance to the farthest tip of the island….
Eboracvm, The Village told the story of the minor Brigante chieftain Cethen Lamh-Fada and his wife, Elena, who were uprooted from their home; and how their destiny became fatefully entwined with that of Gaius Sabinius, the Roman tribune ultimately responsible for their exile. While Eboracvm, The Fortress continues their story, it now focuses on their children Rhun and Marcus, as many of the tribe choose to push further north rather than submit to Rome.
As in The Village, there are no real heroes in the story. There are only those normal, every day people who struggle to get on with their lives; facing every day problems as we might, only in a far harsher, dangerous and unpredictable time. The tale is told pragmatically in that events inevitably do go wrong, life is full of irony, and there is often humour (sometimes dark) to be found in many of life’s twists, turns and hardships.
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