All language subtitles for Secrets.Of.The.Celtic.Grave.2021.720p.WEBRip.x264.AAC-[YTS.MX]

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[narrator] In a remote corner
of the United Kingdom...

a mysterious Iron Age grave
is being uncovered.

Official YIFY movies site:
YTS.MX

[woman 1] This is really
exciting because it's so rare.

2000 years old, the find
is throwing new light

on a critical moment
in history.

When Imperial Rome's
war machine
came to conquer Britain.

[woman 2] Rome
was a real superpower
in the ancient world.

There was nothing
standing in its way.

[narrator] But in Britannia,
Rome's legions
would meet their match.

Fearsome, tribal warriors
and the rebel queen Boudica.

[man 1] The British tribes
are faced with annihilation,
what do they do?

They're gonna
fight a war of survival.

[narrator] In an
archaeological race

-against time...
-Got it, got it.[grunts]

...what secrets will emerge
from this astonishing site?

This is an incredibly
important discovery.

[narrator] Could this new dig
help unlock the hidden story

of the violent birth
of Roman Britain?

Wales...
The Wild West of Britain.

A small country with a rugged
and spectacular landscape.

A nation with its
own ancient language

and a history bound up
with myth and mystery.

In its Southern corner,
on the Atlantic seaboard

the rural county
of Pembrokeshire.

Here for the last 40 years,
amateur metal detectorist

Mike Smith has scoured
the local hills and fields.

[Mike] It's always been
a fascination of mine,
finding something

in the ground that's been
there for hundreds of years,

sometimes thousands of years

Your imagination runs wild
as to who was the last person

to hold that before you.

In early 2018, Mike was
searching fields

on an isolated sheep farm.

[Mike] We'd had nearly
a month of solid rain,

so I couldn't really
go out as much
as I wanted to.

I haven't made
any finds for a while.

I was sort of on the verge
of giving up...

But on the seventh of February
we had a dry day

and this was my driest field
I like to go to.

-[detector beeping]
-Normally when you climb
the gates here,

-any sheep sort
of scatter, they run.
-[sheep bleats]

But on this day when
I climbed over the gate

they wouldn't leave me alone.

I was, um, holding that
detector up 'cause I thought
they were gonna step on it.

I don't know whether they were
trying to tell me something.

[narrator] About 100 yards
into the field,

Mike started to pick up
a powerful reading.

He dug a hole, and just a few
inches below the ground,

found the first of several
astonishing metal objects.

I was looking at these items
sort of looking back at me

and I just couldn't believe
what I was looking at.

[narrator] Three ornate pieces
of mysterious metalwork.

Mike immediately sensed
that these were rare
and ancient artifacts.

It was an intriguing
discovery...

and the beginning
of an extraordinary
investigation.

An investigation helping
to rewrite the story...

of one of the critical
moments in British history.

The twilight of the Iron Age.

And the bloody dawn
of Roman occupation.

One of the key things
to remember about
the Roman Empire is

in the first century AD,

it is the only superpower
in its known world.

[narrator]
The Romans transformed
the land they conquered

using engineering
and technology.

Rome itself became
a dazzling metropolis.

And the Roman elite enjoyed
a sophisticated lifestyle

of extraordinary decadence.

All payed for with
the wealth flowing

from the
ever-expanding empire.

Control over this vast
territory rested

in the hands of one man.

A 50 year old scholar
named Tiberius Claudius,

who unexpectedly became
emperor in 41 A.D.

Overnight he found himself

commander in chief
of the world's largest army.

A military industry machine
of 300.000 men.

Its main function, to expand
the empire

and bring gold
and glory back to Rome.

When Claudius came to power,
he had a lot to prove.

Nobody thought he was going
to me emperor and there were

plenty who wanted
to see him fail in the task.

Now, one of the most
important features

of Roman masculinity
was military prowess.

Claudius casts around
about what he could do

across the empire
in terms of conquest

to make himself worthy
of being emperor.

What could amaze
the population of Rome?

And he alights on the most
unlikely of operations.

He decides to invade
mis-making, never conquered,

far beyond the seas Britain.

But there was
definitely a downside

to Claudius' plan.

In the minds of the Roman
Legionary ordered on board

the invasion fleet...
Britain was a kind of hell.

[Dr Elliott] They would
picture mist,

they would picture
banks of fog,

they would picture
terrifying Oceanus.

'Cause they would have known
the Northern waters

they got to cross in the first
place to get to Britain.

They'd have heard
of the druids,
of human sacrifice.

Anybody who would've landed
there was going to die.

So it would have been truly,
truly terrifying.

[narrator]
These blood curdling tales

almost stopped Claudius'
invasion before it began.

At the port
in Northern France,

the Roman troops
refused to embark.

In the end, it took
accusations of cowardice

before they were shamed
into boarding the ships.

Was this fear justified?

What was first century
Britain really like?

Before the Romans landed,
ancient Britons

were living in what's
now called the Iron Age.

The arrival of Iron
had sparked
a technological revolution

that changed every
aspect of people's lives.

One of the major changes that
happened is in fact warfare.

Once you've
extracted the iron

it can be changed
into almost any shape.

Suddenly you get tribes
able to equip
their entire population

with something
as simple as a pretty
decent sword.

[narrator] Iron didn't just
bring new weapons.

It also enabled new,
life-improving technology.

It gives you the possibility
to make better ploughs,

so you can plough
the land better,

you can plough areas you
couldn't expand into before,

make better tools you can
work with better.

Thanks to iron, more food
could be cultivated

and the population grew.

But Iron Age culture
wasn't just about iron.

They master a whole range
of different materials.

Gold, bronze, glass,
textile, leather.

And these crafts
get brought together

in some of the pinnacles
of technology and art

that we see in these islands.

[narrator]
Far from the primitive place
the Romans imagined it to be.

Iron Age Britain was home

to a highly sophisticated
and thriving society.

But this way of life now
faced potential annihilation.

When Julius Caesar
conquered Gall,

he killed a million
and he enslaved a million.

The population
of late Iron Age Britain
was two million.

So you can do the numbers.

Basically they knew,
if they lost, they were gone.

[narrator] So what happened
when these two worlds
came face to face?

Today, the true story
is beginning to emerge
from the ground.

When metal detectorist
Mike Smith

made his discovery
in a field in Pembrokeshire.

He felt sure he'd found
something important.

Now it was time
to contact the experts.

He sent photographs
of the objects

to the National
Museum of Wales.

A world center
for archeology.

[Dr. Gwilt] The first I knew
of this discovery was

when I received an e-mail
with two photographs attached.

I think my jaw dropped
at that point.

It is fair to say
it's a find of a lifetime.

[narrator] But what exactly
are these pieces of metal?

Senior conservator
Louise Mumford

is one of the first experts
to examine them.

One of the things
that really struck me
about this assembly,

looking at them
under the microscope,

is how beautifully
they're made.

This one is so special.

These two opposed trumpets
and the bit in between,

are the finest, thinnest piece
of enameling I've ever seen,

I think
it's absolutely beautiful.

[narrator]
After carefully analysis

the objects have been
given an identification.

They are almost certainly
pieces of an Iron Age
horse harness.

Some of the finest examples
ever found in Wales.

But just how old are they?

And how did they
end up buried
in the middle of a field?

In the National Museum
of Wales Laboratories

experts are examining three
spectacular and ornate pieces

recently discovered
by a metal detectorist.

The once glistening bronze
has oxidized
and turned green.

But these are still
stunning objects.

They are really highly
decorative pieces

and very significant
in their size as well.

So if you imagine the impact
it would have had,

this bright bronze color

contrasting with this red
glass decoration.

[narrator] These were
the luxury goods of their day.

From the level of
craftsmanship,

it's clear
they must have belonged

to an important
and powerful individual.

It's astonishing to find
metalwork of this quality.

But it's the date
of the objects

that really captures
the team's attention.

The unusual red enamel...
indicates that these bronzes

are from the mid- to late
first century AD.

From the styles represented,

we can be fairly certain
that it dates to

the period when the Roman army
was campaigning into Britain.

These sit, if you like,
on the cusp of history.

[narrator] So,
can these artifacts
shed new light

on one of the most violent
periods in the story
of ancient Britain.

When the Roman invasion force
landed in 43 AD,

they faced little opposition.

But as they marched through
South-Eastern England

they were eventually
confronted by
a vast army of Britons.

A major battle took place at
a crossing point on a river.

All the evidence
leads to a location
on the river Medway.

Roman legionaries
took up position
on the Southern bank.

Their commander,
the blue blooded senator
Aulus Plautius.

Clever, ruthless and here
to make a name for himself.

On the other bank,
two brothers,
Togodumnus and Caratacus.

At the head
of a giant crowd of warriors.

At this point, the legionaries
and the auxiliaries

are on the river bank
here where I'm standing.

The shields go up,
the gladiuses are drawn

and they stamp their way
across the river, being
careful to keep their footing.

They get to the far bank and
they have to fight their way

up the slippery slope,
and as they're doing it

they start coming under fire
from the native Britons

throwing stones,
throwing javelins.

[clamoring]

And then the Romans
get to the top of the far bank

but they can't get any further
and they fail.

[narrator] So Plautius
came up with a plan.

Within the ranks
of his auxiliaries,

he had a unit of Batavians.

Crack amphibious troops
from the Rhine Delta

renowned for their ability
to swim in full armor.

Claudius ordered them
to go down river

and swim across
in the middle of the night.

They then circled to the back
of the British camp

where their enemy's horses
were tethered.

[Dr. Elliott] And they sneak
in, and they hamstring,

so they cut the backs
of the legs
of the British horses

and at that point,
where there's pandemonium,

Plautius strikes.

The legions do
the same thing again,
they march across the river

they force the bank
and the battle is won.

[narrator] From the Medway,
Aulus Plautius pushed on

toward the British power base
of Camulodunum.

Here he was joined
by the emperor Claudius.

In an uncompromising display
of Roman power.

Claudius and his army
marched into the settlement

accompanied by war elephants.

Britain was now Roman
and the emperor headed home.

Claudius may have returned
to Rome after 16 days

but his power,
his presence did not.

In Camulodunum was built
a gigantic temple,

dedicated to
the worshiping of Claudius.

It was probably
more magnificent,

larger than anything else
that had been built
in Britain at that time.

[narrator] But while Southern
and Central Britannia
fell under Roman control...

other regions remained
fiercely independent.

Following defeat
at the Medway,

the British leader
Togodumnus
was killed in fighting...

but his brother Caratacus
fled West.

And here in the Welsh hills
and forests

he joined forces
with militant local tribes.

British resistance
was far from over

and its stronghold
was now in Wales.

The archaeologists
are convinced,

the newly discovered
bronze harness pieces

can help unlock the story

of this crucial chapter
in British history.

[Dr. Lewis] When
new discoveries are
brought to us,

we often have
to apply forensics skills

to work out when further
investigation is necessary.

[narrator] Mark Lewis believes
it's not just the finds

that need closer scrutiny.

The site where they were
discovered

also needs a second look.

I think seeing the metalwork

coming from such a small site
in one field...

It was perfectly clear
in my mind

that this needed
immediate investigation.

[narrator] The team
begin by undertaking
a magnotometry survey.

A technology that helps
detect objects buried
beneath the ground.

It's not long before
the survey uncovers
an intriguing result.

Okay, so it has this
very strong central
magnetic anomaly,

showing up quite strongly.

There were these
enormous anomalies

suggestive
of the presence of iron,

glowing from
the geophysics results.

[narrator] The question is,

what's causing
this unexplained object
or anomaly to show up?

It seems increasingly likely

that the artifacts
found so far

are just
the tip of the iceberg.

On a farm,
in the far West of Wales,

a metal detectorist has
discovered

three pieces of Iron Age
horse harness.

Including an elaborately
decorated harness ring
and a bridle bit.

Now, a geophysical
survey of the field
where they were found

suggests that there
is more to be uncovered.

[Dr. Gwilt] What was
going through my mind

was that this may have been
buried as a group of objects

in the ground
at the same time.

These are called hoards.

[narrator] It's believed
most hoards
were valuable objects

buried as some kind
of ritual offering.

So could these bronze pieces
be part of a gift to the gods?

The team decides to undertake
a short, exploratory dig.

Joining them
is Adelle Bricking

A rookie archaeologist
from Kentucky.

[Adelle] You know,
when we started the dig,
I was so excited

and I felt extremely
privileged and excited
to be a part of it.

Little did I know
it was gonna end up

probably being the highlight
of my entire career.

[narrator] The metal object
detected by the survey

appears to be located
in the middle of a pit

that has been dug
and then backfilled.

This pit is surrounded
by a circular ditch.

Time is tight.

They only have
the resources and manpower
to dig for a week.

It's tough going.

An unexpected heatwave has
baked the ground solid.

[Adelle] It was dusty,
it was hot,

it's very
challenging archeology

and there wasn't anything
to show for it,

we weren't finding anything.

[narrator] After several
day's hard labor,

the team
are still drawing a blank.

But archeology
is a game of patience.

[man] Whoa.

Astonishingly, just poking
through the ground...

another remarkably
well preserved piece
of Iron Age metalwork.

It's seeing daylight for
the first time in 2000 years.

If everyone would just
break a minute.

We've come up with this
beautiful bridle bit here.

[man 2] Look at that!

[narrator] The discovery
of a second bridle bit

cast a whole new light
on the dig.

It's no longer looking
like a hoard.

But something
even more extraordinary.

The second but is located
just a few feet

from where the first
was uncovered

by the metal detectorist.

And both bits share
a matching design.

So we're now not dealing
with a single animal,

we're dealing
potentially with two.

And you can't ride two animals

but two animals
can draw a vehicle.

And so we're starting to think

that there's a probability
of some form of vehicle

associated with horses
that would have drawn it.

[narrator]
If the team are right,

and these objects belonged

to a two-horse vehicle,

then most likely...
it's a chariot.

Today the word chariot
conjures images

of the lightweight
racing buggies
used in ancient Rome.

But in Iron Age Britain,

the chariot is best known
as a vehicle used in battle

by aristocratic warriors...

So if this is the harness
gear of a war chariot,

what conflict would
it have fought in?

The most significant
and long-lasting warfare
of the era

took place in the bad lands
of the Welsh borders.

It was here that
the Roman invasion force

finally met its match.

Anyone who's ever visited
the Welsh border
knows what it's like.

Magnificent terrain
but pretty unforgiving.

Steep hills, valleys, rivers,
harsh weather...

and this is what
the Romans encountered

when they moved West
into Wales.

[narrator] It was to Wales
that Caratacus
the British warlord fled

in the aftermath of his
defeat at the river Medway.

Here he forged an alliance
with two major tribes.

The Ordovices
and the Silures.

[Dr Chidwick] Now the Silures
knew the hostile terrain

of Wales as their own,

but the Romans didn't.

And this meant that they
engaged the Romans

in what we would describe
today as guerilla warfare.

They mostly fought
in woodland and bogs.

They set traps and ambushed
the Romans.

[clamoring]

[narrator] This shadowy,
ruthless enemy

on Roman Britain's
Western border

would remain a major threat

to the stability
of the whole province.

So could the harness fittings
found in Pembrokeshire

be connected with this
long-running conflict?

The dig team is searching
for further clues,

but so far there is nothing
to show for it.

And it was really...
The day before
the last day of digging.

I remember Mark Lewis
was excavating

in one quarter of the pit

and he just called us over

and said, "I think we got
an interesting find here."

[detector beeps]

[narrator] There's
a thin piece of metal
rising above the ground,

and the metal detector
is picking up much more.

-[man] Signal?
-[Dr. Lewis] Yep.

I'm getting an overload.
So that's big.

[narrator] The team
strongly suspects

the metal object
is an ancient tire.

And what's even more
astonishing...

it's upright in the ground.

As if still attached
to a vehicle.

If this is a chariot,

could there be
a second wheel close by?

[Adelle] Sure enough,
did some digging

where the other tire
should be...

...and there was the top
of the second tire.

And I remember I had
to just grab onto
the person next to me

because I felt like
I was gonna fall over,

I was completely blown away.

[man] It does look a lot
tire-like, doesn't it?

So we have two tires,
the bridle bit...

this is a whole chariot.

[man laughs]

[narrator] The team can
hardly believe their luck.

This is
the first whole chariot

ever discovered in Wales.

[Adelle laughs] Oh, my God!

[Dr. Lewis]
That was astounding

and I just savored
that moment.

[narrator] Unfortunately,
the euphoria of discovery

soon turns to alarm.

[Dr. Lewis] Very soon,
after the first exposure
of the iron tire,

it went orange
before our eyes,

over a period about an hour.

And that gives us alarm bells

that there is
ongoing corrosion

once exposed
to the atmosphere.

[narrator] The fragile
remnants of ironwork

are starting to decay
before their eyes.

And the archaeologists
have neither the time
nor the resources

to get them safely
out of the ground.

[Dr. Lewis] So the best thing
under those conditions

was to backfill and recreate
the burial conditions

that were stable
for this artifact

over the last
nearly two millennia.

[narrator] It's frustrating,
but all the team
can do for now

is cover up the tires
and pray they can return

before the fragile
ancient ironwork

completely disintegrates.

February 2019.

Eight months since
archaeologists discovered

the remains
of an Iron Age chariot.

The first ever found
in Wales.

Fear that the ancient
ironwork might corrode

when exposed to the air,

meant that no sooner
was it found,

than the team were
forced to rebury it.

It's been an agonizing
wait... but now they're back.

With the resources
for a full excavation.

Hoping the chariot
will have survived.

Once again,
weather conditions
are causing big problems.

[Adelle] 60 mile an hour
winds, hail, rain...

Every horrible winter weather
that you could expect,

all in one dig.

[narrator] Eventually,
there's a break
in the clouds

and the team manage to erect
a cover over the site.

And after several days'
careful digging,

the team discovers
the chariot tires

are still intact.

Painstaking work
uncovers the structure
of the whole wheel.

[Adelle] As I'm working
on this tire,

I was kind of
holding my breath
the whole time

and I was afraid of being

a little too heavy handed

and removing part of the wheel

and having that bit
of information lost forever,

so it is sort of high stakes.

[narrator] Over the centuries
the wheels have been crushed

by the weight of the earth
above them.

But for the archaeologists
there's now no question.

This is a chariot.

So what would
it have looked like?

In the search for answers,
one of the world's
leading chariot experts,

Robert Hurford has
drawn on archaeological data

to reconstruct
a replica vehicle.

A chariot may look like
an everyday two-wheeled cart

but its simplicity
is deceptive.

And one its most impressive
features are the wheels.

Each is made of a single
piece of wood.

Molded into shape
using steam,

then encircled
with an iron tire.

You heat it up
and shrink it
around the wheel,

pulls all the joints together
and keeps the wheel
in compression.

So this wheel will withstand
a lot of hard use.

[narrator] Today,
carriage-driving expert
Rowena Moise

is taking the reconstructed
vehicle for a test drive.

Good boy. All right, good boy.

[narrator] Pulling the chariot
will be two indigenous
Welsh mountain ponies.

Almost certainly the type
used in the Iron Age.

[Rowena] It's okay,
good ponies.

[narrator] One of
the stand-out finds
from the Pembrokeshire dig

is a large ring,
called a tarot.

Archaeologist Adelle
is keen to understand
its functions on the chariot.

How does it all work?
So the reigns
go through the tarot.

-[Rowena] Yeah.
-And then how does it work?

This reign goes through
to the right hand side
of each pony

and that reign goes through
to the left hand side--

Oh, so the tarots are holding
them in place, they keep
the reigns from crossing.

[Rowena] They keep the reigns
from getting entangled
in anything else.

[narrator]
Driving the vehicle takes
some getting used to.

The only safe position
is on your knees.

Go on! Go on!

The flow is quite springy.

[narrator] The base
of the chariot,

made of strips
of rawhide leather

turns out to offer
a brilliant,

if slightly squeaky
form of suspension.

[Rowena] It's a great little
speed chariot.

[narrator] It's no wonder
chariots have been dubbed
the Ferraris of the Iron Age.

And not just because
of their acceleration.

These vehicles were
designed to turn heads.

[Dr. Giles] Each chariot
is unique.

They're highly decorated

and that was a sight

that most Iron Age people
would have been familiar with.

It was spectacular.

Imagine the jangle
of horse gear,

the thud
of the pony's hooves...

You arrived in splendor.

[Adelle] Seeing it
in the ground sort
of in pieces is one thing,

but to see it sort
of in action makes me
understand it all.

That was the coolest thing
that I've ever seen
in my life.

That was spectacular.

[narrator] It's no surprise
this vehicle

posed a significant threat
on the battle field.

For British resistance
leader Caratacus,

high speed chariot attacks
were a vital weapon
in the war against Rome.

The Britons would fight
from their chariots
in open formation.

They were so fast
that the Romans

heavily armored,
bearing all this kit

couldn't keep up with them.

Roman historians describe

how the British charioteers
would start
by hurling javelins

from their chariots.

Creating chaos and disorder.

Then they would
jump down from the chariots
to fight on foot

and be ready
to jump back in

and to flee the battle field
if necessary.

[narrator] Caratacus'
guerilla campaign,

supported by an alliance
of Welsh rebel tribes

proved highly effective

in sabotaging the invasion
of the West.

But how long could they keep
the mighty Roman army at bay?

Back at the dig, the team
continues their search

for more fragments
of the vehicle

from this period of conflict.

But a new metallic find now
being unearthed...

doesn't seem to be
part of the chariot.

Although heavily corroded,

it looks like this
could be a sword.

[man] You can just see here
the sword grip.

We all look at each other

and talk, like, "Right, okay."

This is really some discovery.

[narrator]
It's a hugely significant
and intriguing discovery.

Could analysis of the sword

reveal any clues about
the owner of this chariot?

Could it even explain
how it ended up buried

in this Welsh field?

At the dig site
in West Wales

archaeologists have uncovered
an Iron Age sword.

The fragile pieces
of mineralized metal

are being transported back
to the National Museum

for further analysis.

They're keen to understand
more about this weapon.

Can it help unlock the story

of the very chariot
from the era
of the Roman invasion?

In 50 AD, after seven years
of guerilla warfare,

rebel leader Caratacus
finally decided to risk

a full scale battle.

The consequences
were disastrous.

[clamoring]

Of course, for anybody,
over a long period of time

who resists the power of Rome
things don't go well.

At this time, the Romans
defeat Caratacus.

[narrator] Caratacus was
eventually captured

and sent to Rome in chains.

He should have been
publicly strangled.

But after a dramatic appeal
to the emperor Claudius...

received a pardon.

Unlike many people
defeated by Rome

he gets to enjoy
his remaining years,

living a life of
relative luxury in Rome.

[narrator] But although
Caratacus and his
rebel alliance were crushed,

resistance in the West
was far from over.

The Silures continued
to sabotage Roman attempts

to control their territory.

In 52 AD, they sent
shock waves
through the empire

when they ambushed and
destroyed an entire legion.

And further to the North,
the Romans would soon
face a whole new challenge.

From a mysterious
and powerful force

known as the druids.

In the laboratory,

the sword is being examined

under a high-powered
microscope.

[Louise] Part of our job
is like forensic science
of the past.

We're looking for the tiny
traces that you might miss.

[narrator]
Louise's examination is
already turning up new clues.

Straight away we could see
that underneath it there were

traces of wood parallel
to the length of the sword.

There's no trace
of wood on the top,
it's an accident of survival,

so it suggests
that it might have had
a wooden scabbard.

[narrator] But that's not all.

Intriguingly, the microscope

picks up several layers
of iron within the sword.

It looks like this was once
a highly sophisticated
piece of metalwork.

So what might this weapon
have looked like
2000 years ago?

To find out, Louise has
called on the expertise

of a specialist historic
bladesmith.

Tom Timbrull is attempting
to produce a replica.

[Tom] So what I'm just doing
at the moment

is working this billet of iron
out into a long flat bar,

then fold that over.

Using the fire, I'll weld
it back together again
so it's one bar again

and forge it out and repeat
that a couple of times.

[narrator]
This repeated folding

builds up as many as
a thousand layers of iron

and gives the blade
incredible strength.

[Louise] Beginning to
look like a sword!

[Tom] Absolutely, you can see

we're just putting that
cutting edge on as we go,

working a bit on one side
then the other.

Until we got the full width
of the sword.

[narrator] It's
a time consuming process,

but at the end
of a very long day

the blade is ready.

Now all it needs
is a handle.

When I had a look
at the handle
under the microscope

it was clear that
what remains were left
on it, that it was horn.

[Tom] Typically when it comes
to the Iron Age swords,

I would actually say it's
ram's horn or goat's horn.

[narrator] There is no denying

the reconstructed sword
is a beautiful object.

And clearly, the sword
found at the dig site

would have been highly valued.

But what was its function?

Ceremonial duties or combat?

There's only one
way to find out.

A pig carcass
may seem gruesome.

But the only effective way
to test the sword
is on flesh and bone.

[Louise]
That's absolutely horrible.

[Tom] It certainly done
its job, hasn't it?

It really really does
bring it home to you
what these weapons can do.

[narrator]
It's shocking proof.
This is a lethal weapon.

Evidence that the sword
discovered at the dig site

was fit for an elite Iron Age
warrior.

For the team,
it offers a further
tantalizing new clue.

A person probably doesn't
stray far from their sword

and the sword probably doesn't
stray far from a person.

So one huge question

began to be the burning
question for this site.

Was there a body
within that pit?

[narrator]
Is the investigation
about to take a darker turn?

In a remote corner of Wales,

archaeologists excavating
an Iron Age chariot

have found the remains
of a sword.

Now they're hunting for clues
to help try and identify

the warrior who owned
this deadly weapon.

A warrior they suspect might
even be buried here.

A warrior who would've
lived an fought

through one of
the most intense eras

of conflict in the story
of Roman Britain.

In 60 AD, nine years after
the Silures tribe slaughtered

an entire legion
in South Wales.

Roman governor
Suetonius Paulinus

launched a fresh campaign.

Suetonius Paulinus
was looking for retribution.

He was trying to pacify Wales

and stamp out
resistance to the Romans,
once and for all.

[narrator] The campaign
led Paulinus

to North West Wales
and the island of Mona.

Modern day Anglesey.

Mona was the center
of the resistance movement.

A haven for fugitives from
the wars against the Romans.

It was also the power base
for the mysterious druids.

[Professor Green] A druid
is a high-ranking
priest who is in charge

of all religious matters,
including sacrifice.

They were terribly important,
never did anything
without the god face though.

And because the druids
were the communicators

between the material
and spirit worlds,

they were absolutely central
to the civilization,

absolutely central to
the whole of British society.

[narrator] But
these spiritual leaders

weren't afraid
to get their hands dirty.

The druids were
seen by the Romans to be

freedom fighters, agitators,
seditionists.

There was a sense
in which the druids

were very much
a focus for rebellion.

[narrator]
Archaeological evidence
for the druids is limited.

But construction work at
an air-force base on Anglesey

uncovered
an extraordinary find.

A large hoard
of Iron Age objects

thrown into a lake
as offerings.

What they found here were
170 individual items of iron

and copper alloy
or bronze objects.

Mainly objects of military
nature, swords,
shield bosses...

And these would have been
deposited in order
to placate the gods

of some description,
to ask for favors
in times of need,

for instance when
there was a harvest needed,

maybe a military
victory needed,

or maybe
when there was disease.

[narrator]
But that wasn't all.

With the metalwork
they found a fair amount
of animal bones here,

and significantly, human bone.

And because druids
have been, in the past,

associated with sacrifice

there's always that idea
that "Were people
also sacrificed here?"

[narrator] Whether
the druids practiced
human sacrifice or not,

there's no doubt the Romans
considered them dangerous.

Sufficient threat
for the governor Paulinus

to march his legions over
the mountains of North Wales

to attempt to crush them.

[Dr. Jones] When Paulinus
and his Roman soldiers

came down to the edge
of the mountains

he would have seen
Anglesey lying directly

across the Menai Straits
in front of him.

And this looks
a fairly barren place.

A place you wouldn't
dream of crossing,

to be honest,
when the tide's in.

But once the tides go out,

and these mud flats
stretch all the way across

to a very narrow channel,

where it would have been
possible to cross.

[narrator] It provided
the eerie setting

for an extraordinary encounter

between the old world
and the new.

The scene was vividly
described by the Roman
historian Tacitus.

He describes
the Roman soldiers

frozen to the spot,
literally frozen with fear

because they could
see the other side

not only the warriors
who were waiting in
full regalia, but women.

Women in black running amok
amongst the warriors

holding flaming torches.

[clamoring]

Also druids,
with their arms held aloft,

cursing the Roman soldiers
who were waiting for them.

It's no wonder they froze.

[narrator] It was
almost a catastrophe
for the Romans

but eventually
the legionaries
overcame their terror.

And the druid were
massacred on the sands
of the Menai Straits.

Paulinus was ready to press
on and take the island.

But before he was able
to complete his assault,

he received shocking news.

A violent uprising
in the South,

the warrior queen Boudica

was laying waste
to Roman Britain's
largest settlements.

At the dig site, discovery
of a sword might mean a link

to the rebellion
against Rome.

Could this be the grave
of an Iron Age warrior?

So far there's
little evidence.

All organic material

has rotted away
in the acidic soil.

But then the team
makes a breathtaking
new discovery.

[Dr. Lewis] As we excavated
around the sword area,

I noticed a velvety purple
coating on some of the stones

that eventually turned black.

[narrator]
Could this forensic trace

help explain why the chariot
was buried here?

In West Wales
a team of archaeologists
have identified

a mysterious black stain
on rocks

at the center
of their dig site.

So was there something else
buried in this pit?1

To find out archaeologist
Mark Lewis has taken a sample

back to the lab
to run some tests.

He's using an X-ray gun

to analyze the chemical
profile of the black stain.

What we're trying
to do here is identify

what elements are present
in front of the gun.

[narrator] The chemical data
could help identify
the source of the stain.

So it's starting the analysis.

These are just the iron
from the red soil and the lock

but there's a very strong
Manganese peak coming up

where the black stain is.

[narrator] This concentration
of Manganese
is a chilling result.

Once a body decays
it has a capacity
to incorporate Manganese

from the surrounding soil.

An element that's present in
a natural rock and soil

but it gets concentrated
by the decaying body.

It does look
as though there was once

a body decaying
in the bottom of this pit.

[narrator] It's a
game-changing revelation.

It's now clear, the team
are excavating a grave.

The pieces of this
archaeological jigsaw are
finally falling into place.

The placing of a chariot,
a high-status artifact

with other
high-status material

like all the horse harness
equipment,

and the personal affects,
a sword...

It strongly suggests
that this was
a high-status chariot burial

of an individual
that was hugely respected

and honored, with this type
of burial, by their community.

[narrator] So who was
the person laid to rest

with such
a spectacular burial?

The sword and chariot
suggest this could
be some kind of warlord.

Maybe someone who even played
a role in the resistance.

If so, could they have been
connected with the greatest

anti-Roman uprising
of the era?

The revolt of Boudica.

While Roman governor
Suetonius Paulinus

was fighting the druids
in North Wales

chaos erupted
in Southern England.

A tribe known as the Iceni

had mounted
a furious rebellion.

Their target, the Roman
settlement of Camulodunum.

Lead by their
fearless queen Boudica,

they were a people
with nothing left to lose.

[Dr Chidwick] When Boudica's
husband died,

the Romans responded
by confiscating
their territory.

Ransacking the kingdom.

And worst of all,
they assaulted Boudica
and her daughters.

[narrator] The focus
of Boudica's
violent uprising...

was the temple of Claudius.

The ultimate symbol
of Roman rule.

Surrounding the temple complex
with a substantial army,

she burnt it to the ground.

Mercilessly slaughtering
the inhabitants
sheltering inside.

[screaming]

It was a response that shook
Roman Britain to its core.

Today, Camulodunum
is buried under the modern
day city of Colchester.

But clues to its brutal
history surface

in the most unlikely
of places.

Adam Wightman,
the archaeologist on duty
during the construction

of a new elevator
in Fenwick's
department store

was shocked to uncover

the original floor
of a Roman house.

We were just standing back
and looking at the floor,

we spotted this small hole
that'd been excavated
into the floor.

Little bit
of a trowel over it,

and there was gold
sticking out of the ground.

[narrator] What he had found
was the jewelry
of a wealthy Roman family

hastily hidden from Boudica's
approaching army.

[Adam] Straight away there was
this great glimmer of gold,

came out of the ground--

and we were all
totally blown away.

It's very very rare
that we find gold on
an archaeological excavation

and we were
all completely shocked.

[narrator] There were
also the tell-tale signs
of violence.

[Adam] We made another very
very spectacular find.

The human remains of some
of the people

who died in the fighting
of AD 61.

This is a human mandible,

this is from the left hand
side of a jaw.

Belongs to a male in his
mid-twenties to mid-thirties.

There's a little bit missing
off of the hinge
of the mandible just here,

which could have happened
from a very sharp blow
to the side of the head.

[narrator] And that wasn't
the only gruesome find.

[Adam] We also have the top
of the shin bone effectively.

And just here, there's
a great big slice
missing off of the bone.

We think that that is done

by a large, sharp metal
implement, probably a sword.

[narrator]
Nothing could provide
more graphic evidence

of the veracity
of Boudica's uprising.

Although the rebellion was
ultimately defeated,

its effect reverberated
throughout Britannia.

Nowhere more so than
on the Western frontier.

Heartland
of the Silures tribe.

[Dr Davis] Roman troops would
have been withdrawn

and so there would
have been a relief, almost.

Even feelings of victory.

Of you know, we have--
We've won,
we've pushed back...

[stutters] ...the would-be
conquerors.

[narrator] It's
impossible to know

if the chariot warrior
was involved in this revolt.

But it's hard to believe
this fighter was unaffected

by such a major conflict.

There is no doubt that this
person, who must have been

somebody of incredible
importance and seniority,

would have known
perfectly well about
the Boudican rebellion.

And the ripples
would have gone out,

right as far as Pembrokshire.

[narrator] The archaeologists
have begun
the delicate process

of lifting
the chariot's wheels.

-Let's go, I've got it.
Got it, got it.
-[man grunts]

[narrator] There's no doubt,
this grave is a rare
and important find.

But why was it dug here,
in this location?

While the excavation
continues ,

a survey team
have begun to explore

the wider area,
looking for an explanation.

[indistinct conversation]

Almost immediately,
they encounter unusual
features in the landscape.

Very close to the find spot,
hidden in woodland,

there appeared to be
quite an interesting
archaeological site.

And it was clear that really
needed more investigation.

First point.

[narrator] It appears
to be evidence

of a completely unknown
Iron Age settlement,

just yards from the dig site.

Could this new discovery

help unlock the secrets
of the chariot grave?

The archeology team
at the Welsh dig site

are investigating
what they think

are the remnants
of an Iron Age settlement.

They believe it could
shed light on the story
of the chariot warrior

and the moment
when Roman legionaries

finally marched into
the far West of Wales.

In the years following
Boudica's revolt

the Silures tribe continued
their resistance.

But in the late 70s AD,
they were finally defeated.

This was the breakthrough
that allowed the Romans
to push on

into modern day
Pembrokeshire.

Here, they encountered
a people called the Dematae.

The Dematae were farmers,

who grazed their livestock
on the open moor land.

But using well-built
defensive structures

they were also a tribe
who knew
how to protect themselves.

[Dr Davis] We know
very little, historically,
about the Dematae.

However, we know
quite a lot archaeologically.

So the settlements
they lived in,

the hill forts
absolutely proliferate

in this part of the world.

There are hundreds of really
enigmatic monuments

to the lives of those people.

[narrator] Could these
banks and ditches

just yards from
the chariot burial site

indicate the discovery
of an Iron Age hill fort?

The earthworks
are heavily overgrown.

So to help make sense
of the new find,

the team is studying one
of Pembrokeshire's

greatest Iron Age
hilltop settlement.

Okay, taking off.

Foel Drygarn, or the bald
summit of the three cairns,

is located
in the Presceli Hills.

This is a landscape steeped
in prehistoric mystery.

5000 years ago,

giant blocks of blue stone
were carved from these hills.

They were then transported
a staggering 140 miles

and used to construct
the enigmatic wonder

of the ancient world
we call Stonehenge.

Archaeologist Toby Driver

is using
a drone mounted camera

to reveal the footprint

of the Foel Drygarn
settlement.

You see so much archeology,
you can see
all these pock marks

these house platforms
within this site.

Yeah, each one probably held
a round house.

We can see them clustered
around these cairns.

[narrator] Indentations
in the ground

are unmistakable evidence
of Iron Age houses.

Over 300 of them.

This would have been
a busy Iron Age village.

[narrator]
Key to its attraction
as a place to live...

was the high level
of security.

[Toby] We have three great
walled enclosures here,

huge, two to three meters high
stone walled ramparts.

Principally, it's
a defended village.

[narrator]
The fort's greatest military
strength was its location.

[Toby] This hill can be
seen from miles around
on a clear day like today.

So anybody looking at this
fort in the Iron Age,

would have been left
in no doubt about the power

of the leader
who ran this site

and the people
who lived here.

[narrator] Foel Drygarn
showcases
the Dematae's skill

in exploiting the natural
features of the landscape.

And at the dig site,
the survey team are
increasingly confident

that they have identified
another remarkable

and ingeniously
constructed hill fort.

Could this have been
the military stronghold
of the chariot warrior?

On a dig site in Wales,
a team believe they have

discovered an unknown
Iron Age hill fort

just yards from a newly
excavated burial site.

Now the archaeologist are
heading into the woodland

to investigate further.

Could this be
the military stronghold
of the chariot warrior?

[man] There's a ditch that's
still visible here, must be...

three or four meters.

Valley's steep bank
on the other side.

Here you get the sense,
don't you, of actually the big

-ramparts--
-Yeah, absolutely magnificent.

Look at the height
of it there.

[narrator]
Although the ramparts

are now heavily overgrown,
it's clear.

These were once
impressive defenses.

[man] It's so steep.

That really does
give sense of scale...

-Yeah.
-...absolutely incredible.

[narrator] The defensive bank
was 12 to 14 feet high.

And would have
been reinforced
with a stone facing.

The survey have identified
three tiers of ramparts

built on ascending levels
up the hillside.

On top of each rampart
a high wooden palisade.

This is just an incredible
undertaking.

To mine out all this earth
and rock and then pile it up.

We wonder how many people
must have come together
to create something like this.

[Dr Davis] Enormous
amounts of labor

would have been
put into the construction
of these hill forts.

So you could think about
a community coming together

to help build these places

and in doing so,
almost building
themselves into a community.

You're bringing
people together,
and they're having a party,

they're doing some hard work,

they're catching
up on the gossip.

You know, the building
of a hill fort is probably

one of the key events in
many Iron Age people's lives.

[man] I think we're looking
at the entrance here,
interesting the way

that the banks just
stops short of the edge
of the valley here.

You funneled into the fort.
It's really telling you,

-you know, you've come
somewhere important.
-Oh, yes.

[narrator]
The approach to the fort

was through a complex series
of timber gateways.

The final gate included
a defensive tower

that could be manned by
guards in case of attack.

After passing
through the gateway,

a visitor could walk
to the top of the fort

and the promontory
overlooking the valley.

It's interesting that we're
located between
two tributaries,

where they meet
we have the end of the fort.

It's accessible
but it's tucked away--

just a little bit away
from the waterway.

[narrator] At
the top of the hill fort
is a small plateau

where nine or ten
round houses stood.

From here the inhabitant
enjoyed a commanding view
out over the valley.

With waterways and steep
escarpment on either side

the fort is perfectly
positioned to exploit

the landscape's natural
defensive features.

It's certainly built
to impress and
possibly to instill

a sense of war I think
in anybody approaching.

[narrator]
It's increasingly clear.

This was a strategically
located and cleverly

engineered military
stronghold.

A refuge in time of trouble.

So what kind of trouble did
the inhabitants face?

How would
the chariot warrior

and the hill fort community
have responded

when the Roman army came
marching into Pembrokeshire.

An archaeological
team in Wales

have uncovered
a mysterious chariot burial

in the shadow
of an Iron Age hill fort.

Now in the search
for further clues

about the chariot warrior
and his community,

the team have dug
a number of trenches
across the field.

[Adelle] This site is
the gift that keeps on giving.

From one minute to the next,

we have no idea
what to expect,

it just keeps giving us these
wonderful surprises.

[narrator] The excavation is
now beginning to uncover

tell-tale fragments
of Roman pottery.

[Adelle] Here we have
a Roman flagon

and a Roman mortarium,

and these are both
used for cooking.

[narrator] These
are tantalizing discoveries.

Clear evidence,
this community at the
Western edge of Britannia

had a relationship
with the Roman world.

But what kind
of relationship?

How did they deal
with the troops,

who more than three decades
after Claudius' invasion

finally marched
into their territory.

Archaeological information
about the encounter

between the Dematae
and the Romans

is frustratingly limited.

But a fort on Hadrian's wall

Britannia's other militarized
border in the North,

offers some intriguing clues.

Archaeological excavation
at Vindolanda has revealed

the layout of a classic
Roman fort.

Except for one highly
unusual detail...

[Dr Birley] Underneath
this traditional fort,
we found something that was

completely unique, something
we hadn't anticipated

something that had never been
found on any Roman fort

anywhere else
in the Roman Empire.

Not rectilinear buildings,

not normal massive
military construction

but small circular huts,
round houses.

[narrator]
In the third century,

there were as many
as 150 of these
round houses in the fort.

These were dwellings
for local Britons

right in the heart
of a Roman military base.

They provide clear evidence
of a close relationship

between occupying soldiers

and the local population.

Other remarkable artifacts
discovered on the site

reveal the intermingling
of Roman and
Iron Age culture.

One of the most astonishing
and dazzling finds
from Vindolanda

Is a Romano-Celtic
silver brooch.

[Barbara] This is what
we call a duck brooch.

In the Roman culture ducks
were known for symbolizing

trustworthiness and integrity

but they were also
about transition

because of their
migratory nature

so there's a lot of symbol

that is wrapped up
in this little object.

But the style
of it is very Celtic

and so it's showing those kind
of mixing of some of the ideas

of what would be British
and what would be Roman.

[narrator] So how
did this relationship

between soldiers
and locals work?

[Barbara] Vindolanda itself
is not just this bastion

of high-roaming society like
one would find back in Rome.

You've got soldiers
from all over the Empire.

We've got Cyrian archers,
we've got

people from the Euphrates
and from what we now know

as the Netherlands,
Belgium and France.

And they're bringing
their native cultures

as well as mixing with
the Romano-British culture.

So you've got these cultures
that are all coming together

as one giant melting pot.

[narrator]
Vindolanda shines a light

on the pragmatic relationship
between Roman soldiers

and local people
at Hadrian's wall.

But what about
the Roman and the Dematae?

Did they find
a way to co-exist?

Available evidence shows
that any relationship

between Romans and these
remote Welsh tribes

must have
been severely limited.

[Dr Giles] Towns which become
heavily Romanized,

this is the arrival
of civilization.

That feels very different
if you're living in upland
and rural regions

where the hand of Rome
is probably only felt a moment

of judicial savagery

or rare markets where you
might experience

that very different
way of life.

[narrator] Wales proved
a long term security problem

for the occupying forces.

Across most of the region,

the Romans were confined
to military outposts

like this garrison base
at Caerleon.

Big enough to have its own
6000 seat amphitheater.

[Dr Elliott] In Roman Britain,
there are usually
three legions

and they're in the same place
for most of the
occupation in Britain.

Two of the legions,
10.000 legionaries,

the elite warriors
of the ancient world
are on the Welsh border.

Why are they there?
Largely because the Central
Wales has not been pacified.

[narrator] The Dematae
in the South

may have accepted
Rome's military control

but evidence indicates
the invasion force
had far less

influence on their
customs and culture.

The dig is coming to an end.

But there's one last
intriguing discovery.

Excavation around
the chariot grave

has revealed
a number of small pits

containing unexpectedly
large flat stones.

They've been transported to
the lab for further analysis.

Certain surfaces are
completely clean

as one would expect for
any stone on the site,

but the other surfaces
blackened.

[narrator] X-rays show
that the black residue

is the last trace of
a long since decayed body.

These stones were used
to construct simple
burial chain.

Iron Age graves of any kind
are incredibly rare.

But in a remarkable
development it's clear that

this is now an excavation
of multiple burials.

It rather looks like there was
a primary central burial

associated with the chariot
and the sword

and then on the outer edges
of a ring ditch

around that burial,

two other burials, or three
perhaps, seem to have been

interred later on, respecting
that central important burial.

[narrator]
An increasingly complex
picture is emerging.

So what did this settlement
look like 2000 years ago,

when the chariot burial
took place?

And how does
this intriguing collection

of archaeological
discoveries fit together?

In remote West Wales,
the chariot dig is over.

Grass has grown back over
the excavation.

But today archaeologist Adam
and Mark are back on site

trying to work out how
the different elements

of this Iron Age jigsaw
fit together.

It is now clear that
the chariot burial
was carefully located

on this particular
spot for good reason.

People would have walked past
here 2000 years ago

down from the top of the field
and come along here,

past this mounded burial

which was itself inside
a rectangular enclosure.

[narrator] The mound
would have been
much more than a grave.

Positioned at
the entrance to the fort,

protected by
its own enclosure.

It became an important
landmark.

[Dr. Lewis] So
this is a really,
really central feature

and it was placed here
as a monument I think,

so that people could view it

as they approach
the fort itself.

[narrator] Survey
of the wider area

has also revealed
evidence of two further
ditches and ramparts.

It completely changes
the team's understanding

of the scale
of the hill fort.

That discovery enlarged
what we could see

of the fort,
so that we know it was

three times the area
of the fort
that we can see today.

[narrator] Chemical analysis
has confirmed

the existence
of several graves

in the ring ditch surrounding
the chariot burial.

And more have been identified
beyond the outer rampart.

The exact date
of these burials is still
to be determined.

But they indicate the
continued use of this site

long after the chariot was
placed in the ground.

It's clear in the case,
particularly, of this burial

that later generations,

centuries later,
know of this site, come back

and bury their dead in
the ditch surrounding it.

So it's clearly
an iconic monument

in a very dramatic
landscape setting.

[narrator]
It seems increasingly
likely that this hill fort

was in use for
hundreds of years.

Both before and after
the Romans arrived
in Pembrokeshire.

But what about the human
story at the center
of this excavation?

The person in the grave
was a figure of importance.

A leader or an elder
in the community.

From the weaponry, it seems
they were probably male.

And almost certainly
a warrior.

It is also clear that this
was someone loved

and respected
by his community.

[Adelle] When we realized
that it was a burial,
I became extremely...

sort of, emotionally attached
to the person

who was buried there.

This was a person
who the community wanted
to be remembered.

They built a mound
over this person,

and they wanted this person
to be, you know, a monument
on the landscape.

[Professor Green] It surely
would have been
a long procession.

People dressed
in their very best.

carrying the body, so that
everybody could see it.

And the chariot would either
have been carried

or even possibly
driven to the site.

The grave would
have been already dug.

The person would have laid in
state for a long while

so that people could
have sat around and
look at him and remember him.

[narrator] The funeral
would certainly have been

a significant event
for the community.

Participating in a burial
of an important person

would have been
a really important event

in the lives
of these people.

Not only for the emotion
that's invested

in placing someone to rest,

but in the actual meeting
of people you haven't
met for a long time.

The relationships
that you are renewing.

Those kind of thing
would have been
incredibly important.

[narrator] This site
opens a thrilling
new chapter

in the story of
ancient Britain's Wild West.

And the transition from
Iron Age to Roman Britain.

This chariot burial
is a powerful symbol
of the end of an era.

[Barbara] It's rather like
watching the spectacle
of the horse-drawn carriage

disappear in the world
of the motor car.

Things are about to change
radically and yet,

there is a glory and a power
embodied by this vehicle.

[narrator] It's not just
the funeral of a warrior...

but the last rites
of a traditional society.

[Barbara] When he dies,
I think he manner
of his burial

tells us
that he's celebrating.

Kind of a last hurrah
of that Iron Age culture.

[narrator]
Roman military control
of Britannia would continue

for another 300 years.

But at the fringes
of the province,

in areas like
the West of Wales...

local people retained much
of their own language,

culture and independence.

Characteristics still
powerfully in evidence,

even to this day.