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Picts(or from lat. Picti- “painted”, or from their self-name) - the oldest known people who inhabited Scotland.

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According to one point of view, the Picts were descended from the Celts, but the Pictish branch separated from the Celtic family very early, probably at the beginning of the 1st millennium BC. According to another hypothesis, the Picts are the heirs of the first waves of Proto-Indo-European migrants who entered the territory of Britain back in the Early Bronze Age and were not particularly closely linguistically related to any of the currently existing language groups of the Indo-European language family. Supporters of this version compare the Picts with the Iberian Lusitanians - representatives of the first wave of Indo-European migration that penetrated the Iberian Peninsula long before the arrival of the Celts. Finally, according to the most common hypothesis, the Picts were the remnants of the pre-Indo-European population of Europe. Thus, some British researchers, following Julius Caesar, believe that the Picts are close in origin to the indigenous inhabitants of Iberia. The petroglyphs of Galicia (northwest Spain) have much in common stylistically with petroglyphs discovered in Britain. However, this fact only testifies in favor of a possible relationship (or close contacts) between the pre-Indo-European population of Iberia and Britain, but does not indicate the origin of the Picts themselves.

People related to the Picts were the Cruithnis ( Cruthin, Cruithnig, Cruithni), living in Ireland.

The Picts inhabited areas of central and northern Scotland, north of the Firth of Forth. The Picts constantly raided southern Britain; in the 360s they reached London. Initially, the Picts were a union of tribes; by the 6th century, several state entities had formed, which later united into the Kingdom of the Picts. In the 6th century, the Picts were converted to Christianity by the Irish missionary Columba. The heyday of the Pictish state came in the 8th century, after the Picts managed to stop the advance of the Angles to the north (the Battle of Nechtansmere), and later repel the onslaught of the Scots from the west.

A feature of the Pictish government was the transfer of the throne not through the male line, but through the female line. As a result, at different periods of time, the kings of the Picts were representatives of the royal dynasties of Gaelic Dal Riada, British Strathclyde, English Northumbria, descendants of Pictish princesses. In the city, King Kenneth I of Dal Riada became king of the Picts. He succeeded in uniting the states of the Picts and Scots into the Kingdom of Scotland. Gradually, the Gaelic language of the Scots replaced the Pictish dialect (the genetic identity of which is disputed), and soon, as a result of assimilation, the Picts ceased to exist as a separate people.

In Welsh literature the Picts are called Pryden, and the British Isle - in a word Prydain. Thus, the names “Britain”, “Britons” could initially refer to the Picts and only then move on to the entire island and its inhabitants.

In literature

• One of R. L. Stevenson's ballads is dedicated to the Picts "Heather Ale"(verbatim: "Heather Ale") (1890), the translation of which into Russian by S. Ya. Marshak under the title “Heather Honey” became very popular. Based on this translation, the cartoon “Heather Honey” was released.
• Rudyard Kipling, in his series of stories “Puck of the Hills,” writes about a centurion who served on the Great Pictish Wall and became acquainted with the customs of the Picts. He also owns the poem “Song of the Picts”.
• Picts are characters in some of the fantasy stories of the American writer Robert Howard, in particular, in the cycle about the fictional Pictish king Bran Mac Morn; also appear in his works about Kull and Conan and many others.
• The Pictish people are also mentioned in the third book of the Taltos series of books, The Witches of Mayfair, by American writer Anne Rice.
• In the work of Wilhelm Hauff “The Cave of Steenfall. Scottish saga" mentions a Pictish altar.

In cinema

• “King Arthur” () is a feature film by Antoine Fuqua in the historical action genre. The film describes the story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table from the perspective of a theory identifying Arthur with the Roman general Lucius Artorius.
• “Centurion” () - a feature film by Neil Marshall in the genre of historical thriller about the death of the IX Spanish Legion, which went north to destroy the Picts and their leader.
• “Eagle of the Ninth Legion” () - a feature film in the genre of historical action film, dedicated to the expedition to the lands of the Picts of a Roman centurion, who was looking for the symbol of the legion of his deceased father. Directed by Kevin Macdonald based on the novel of the same name by Rosemary Sutcliffe.

In music

• The English rock band Pink Floyd has a song in their album Ummagumma called “Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict.” Several individuals of small furry creatures gathered in a cave and goofing around with the Pict).
• The Russian folk rock groups “The Hobbit Shire”, “Wallace Band” and “Melnitsa” have songs “Heather Honey” translated by S. Ya. Marshak.
• Scottish prog-rock band "Writing on the Wall" recorded their only studio album " The Power of the Picts"(1969) (The Power of the Picts).

In computer games

see also

• The Pictons are a Gallic tribe.

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Excerpt characterizing the Picts

Rostov and Ilyin were in the most cheerful mood. On the way to Bogucharovo, to the princely estate with an estate, where they hoped to find large servants and pretty girls, they either asked Lavrushka about Napoleon and laughed at his stories, or drove around, trying Ilyin’s horse.
Rostov neither knew nor thought that this village to which he was traveling was the estate of that same Bolkonsky, who was his sister’s fiancé.
Rostov and Ilyin let the horses out for the last time to drive the horses into the drag in front of Bogucharov, and Rostov, having overtaken Ilyin, was the first to gallop into the street of the village of Bogucharov.
“You took the lead,” said the flushed Ilyin.
“Yes, everything is forward, and forward in the meadow, and here,” answered Rostov, stroking his soaring bottom with his hand.
“And in French, your Excellency,” Lavrushka said from behind, calling his sled nag French, “I would have overtaken, but I just didn’t want to embarrass him.”
They walked up to a barn, near which stood a large crowd of men.
Some men took off their hats, some, without taking off their hats, looked at those who had arrived. Two long old men, with wrinkled faces and sparse beards, came out of the tavern and, smiling, swaying and singing some awkward song, approached the officers.
- Well done! - Rostov said, laughing. - What, do you have any hay?
“And they are the same...” said Ilyin.
“Vesve...oo...oooo...barking bese...bese...” the men sang with happy smiles.
One man came out of the crowd and approached Rostov.
- What kind of people will you be? - he asked.
“The French,” Ilyin answered, laughing. “Here is Napoleon himself,” he said, pointing to Lavrushka.
- So, you will be Russian? – the man asked.
- How much of your strength is there? – asked another small man, approaching them.
“Many, many,” answered Rostov. - Why are you gathered here? - he added. - A holiday, or what?
“The old people have gathered on worldly business,” the man answered, moving away from him.
At this time, along the road from the manor's house, two women and a man in a white hat appeared, walking towards the officers.
- Mine in pink, don’t bother me! - said Ilyin, noticing Dunyasha resolutely moving towards him.
- Ours will be! – Lavrushka said to Ilyin with a wink.
- What, my beauty, do you need? - Ilyin said, smiling.
- The princess ordered to find out what regiment you are and your last names?
- This is Count Rostov, squadron commander, and I am your humble servant.
- B...se...e...du...shka! - the drunk man sang, smiling happily and looking at Ilyin talking to the girl. Following Dunyasha, Alpatych approached Rostov, taking off his hat from afar.
“I dare to bother you, your honor,” he said with respect, but with relative disdain for the youth of this officer and putting his hand in his bosom. “My lady, the daughter of General Chief Prince Nikolai Andreevich Bolkonsky, who died this fifteenth, being in difficulty due to the ignorance of these persons,” he pointed to the men, “asks you to come... would you like,” Alpatych said with a sad smile, “to leave a few, otherwise it’s not so convenient when... - Alpatych pointed to two men who were running around him from behind, like horseflies around a horse.
- A!.. Alpatych... Eh? Yakov Alpatych!.. Important! forgive for Christ's sake. Important! Eh?.. – the men said, smiling joyfully at him. Rostov looked at the drunken old men and smiled.
– Or perhaps this consoles your Excellency? - said Yakov Alpatych with a sedate look, pointing at the old people with his hand not tucked into his bosom.
“No, there’s little consolation here,” Rostov said and drove off. - What's the matter? - he asked.
“I dare to report to your excellency that the rude people here do not want to let the lady out of the estate and threaten to turn away the horses, so in the morning everything is packed and her ladyship cannot leave.”
- Can't be! - Rostov screamed.
“I have the honor to report to you the absolute truth,” Alpatych repeated.
Rostov got off his horse and, handing it over to the messenger, went with Alpatych to the house, asking him about the details of the case. Indeed, yesterday’s offer of bread from the princess to the peasants, her explanation with Dron and the gathering spoiled the matter so much that Dron finally handed over the keys, joined the peasants and did not appear at Alpatych’s request, and that in the morning, when the princess ordered to lay money to go, the peasants came out in a large crowd to the barn and sent to say that they would not let the princess out of the village, that there was an order not to be taken out, and they would unharness the horses. Alpatych came out to them, admonishing them, but they answered him (Karp spoke most of all; Dron did not appear from the crowd) that the princess could not be released, that there was an order for that; but let the princess stay, and they will serve her as before and obey her in everything.
At that moment, when Rostov and Ilyin galloped along the road, Princess Marya, despite the dissuading of Alpatych, the nanny and the girls, ordered the laying and wanted to go; but, seeing the galloping cavalrymen, they were mistaken for the French, the coachmen fled, and the crying of women arose in the house.
- Father! dear father! “God sent you,” said tender voices, while Rostov walked through the hallway.
Princess Marya, lost and powerless, sat in the hall while Rostov was brought to her. She did not understand who he was, and why he was, and what would happen to her. Seeing his Russian face and recognizing him from his entrance and the first words he spoke as a man of her circle, she looked at him with her deep and radiant gaze and began to speak in a voice that was broken and trembling with emotion. Rostov immediately imagined something romantic in this meeting. “A defenseless, grief-stricken girl, alone, left at the mercy of rude, rebellious men! And some strange fate brought me here! - Rostov thought, listening to her and looking at her. - And what meekness, nobility in her features and expression! – he thought, listening to her timid story.
When she spoke about the fact that all this happened the day after her father’s funeral, her voice trembled. She turned away and then, as if afraid that Rostov would take her words for a desire to pity him, she looked at him inquiringly and fearfully. Rostov had tears in his eyes. Princess Marya noticed this and looked gratefully at Rostov with that radiant look of hers, which made one forget the ugliness of her face.
“I can’t express, princess, how happy I am that I came here by chance and will be able to show you my readiness,” said Rostov, getting up. “Please go, and I answer you with my honor that not a single person will dare to make trouble for you, if you only allow me to escort you,” and, bowing respectfully, as they bow to ladies of royal blood, he headed to the door.
By the respectful tone of his tone, Rostov seemed to show that, despite the fact that he would consider his acquaintance with her a blessing, he did not want to take advantage of the opportunity of her misfortune to get closer to her.
Princess Marya understood and appreciated this tone.
“I am very, very grateful to you,” the princess told him in French, “but I hope that all this was just a misunderstanding and that no one is to blame for it.” “The princess suddenly began to cry. “Excuse me,” she said.
Rostov, frowning, bowed deeply again and left the room.

- Well, honey? No, brother, my pink beauty, and their name is Dunyasha... - But, looking at Rostov’s face, Ilyin fell silent. He saw that his hero and commander was in a completely different way of thinking.
Rostov looked back angrily at Ilyin and, without answering him, quickly walked towards the village.
“I’ll show them, I’ll give them a hard time, the robbers!” - he said to himself.
Alpatych, at a swimming pace, so as not to run, barely caught up with Rostov at a trot.
– What decision did you decide to make? - he said, catching up with him.
Rostov stopped and, clenching his fists, suddenly moved menacingly towards Alpatych.
- Solution? What's the solution? Old bastard! - he shouted at him. -What were you watching? A? Men are rebelling, but you can’t cope? You yourself are a traitor. I know you, I’ll skin you all... - And, as if afraid to waste his reserve of ardor in vain, he left Alpatych and quickly walked forward. Alpatych, suppressing the feeling of insult, kept up with Rostov at a floating pace and continued to communicate his thoughts to him. He said that the men were stubborn, that at the moment it was unwise to oppose them without having a military command, that it would not be better to send for a command first.

Picts. Origin and history

“Venit et extremis legio praeterna Britannis, Quae Scotto dat frena truci ferronque notatas Perlegit examines Picto moriente figuras (This is the legion that restrained the wild Scott and studied the drawings made with iron on the face of the dying Pict).” The Romans called these pre-Celtic people Pictii or “painted ones,” but Claudian's words above may be evidence (as many scholars claim) that the ancient Picts tattooed their bodies. However, the version that the Picts simply painted their bodies before battle has a right to exist, since some Celtic tribes that were in close contact with them in Britain did just that, although such a custom was not noted among their continental relatives. However, it is still not clear whether the word “pictus” is the name assigned by the Romans to the hostile tribes of Northern Britain or whether it is their self-name. To the non-Romanized Celts - the Scots and Irish - they were known as "cruithni".

Who are the Picts and where did they come from? This is one of the many mysteries surrounding this mysterious people. The history of the origin of the Picts is surrounded by many myths, legends and outright fiction.

The earliest traces of human habitation in Scotland date back to around 8500 BC. Several thousand years before the birth of Christ, Neolithic people from Spain and France were already crossing into Scotland and raising livestock there. Some archaeologists suggest that these people also built huge stone burial grounds (cairns) that are scattered throughout Scotland. It is also believed that their descendants later mixed with the “Beaker people” who apparently came from Northern Europe, and this ethnic union gave rise to the pre-Celtic race of Northern Britain.

The connection of this early population with their Iberian ancestors can be found in the many spiral patterns carved into the stones and rocks of the northern lands of Britain, which can also be found in Spain, France and Ireland. The design of the burial grounds located on the Orkney Islands is also important evidence of the Iberian origin of their builders. Agriculture appeared on these islands around 4000 BC. (3000-4000 years after its origin in Asia Minor) replacing the nomadic way of life, and Orkney became fortified islands with many stone fortifications (broch). At the time when Rome became a world empire, the Orkneys were considered by the Romans to be a powerful sea power. According to recent archaeological excavations, it can be assumed that the Orkney people were slender, dark-haired people of the Caucasian type, with long narrow heads.

Large stone circles such as Sankhani were probably built around 3300 BC, probably at the time when the “Beaker People” arrived from northern and central Europe. These new settlers were ethnically different from the Iberians in Northern Britain, as their skulls were wider and rounder. Evidence of a connection between this new people and their continental ancestors has been discovered through several archaeological excavations, which may also provide evidence of thriving trade between ancient Scotland and Europe. Some scholars suggest that the union of these two different tribes led to the emergence of a pre-Celian people who were known to the Romans as the Picts and to the Celts as the Cruithni.

The arrival of the Celts in Britain and Ireland brought a different culture to these territories. The Celts arrived in Britain around 500 BC. The people, whose culture spread from Eastern Europe to Iberia, were usually described by the Greeks as fair-haired, tall and fierce warriors (since many Celts dyed their hair, many scholars believe that this is what the Greeks meant when they called them fair-haired). However, the British Celts encountered by the Romans were described by them as dark-haired and short. Being a warlike people, the Celts once almost destroyed Rome at the dawn of its existence, for which they became an enemy of the empire, for whom it had no mercy. Because the first historical mention of the Picts, dating back to 297, lists them as enemies of Rome along with the Hibernians (Irish), Scots and Saxons, some scholars suggest that the Picts were simply another Celtic tribe. While it is possible that this was one of the Celtic tribes within the federation of tribes that eventually became the Pictish nation, it seems more likely that most of the Picts, at least north of the Forth, were still pre-Celtic. by the people. The Picts who fought Agricola at Mont Grampia were described as tall and fair-haired. However, the Romans then encountered another tribe of barbarians, whom they described as dark-skinned and similar to the Iberians they had conquered in Spain. Although some Celtic scholars believe that the Picts spoke a Brythonic-Gallic form of the Celtic language, Adomnan, the biographer of St. Columba, quite clearly notes that the Irish saint needed a translator in order to preach to the Pictish king Bruda, son of Malcon , at his court near Loch Ness. It is known that the Picts used the Ogham script, known in the Celtic world, but the surviving inscriptions they left were not written in the Celtic language.

One of the main proofs of the non-Celtic origin of the Picts is their custom of inheritance through the female line, which is rare among Western societies. None of the Celtic tribes had such a custom. Apparently, the royal crown was inherited by members of the seven royal houses within which marriages took place. However, it was this rare form of inheritance that brought the crown of Pictia to the Scot by blood, Kenneth Mac Alpin, in 843, who destroyed the remaining members of the seven ruling houses. After this there was an extraordinary disappearance from history of both the Pictish people and their culture. In fact, after only three generations of kings of the Mac Alpin dynasty, their name became legendary.

All that remains of the Picts are stone sculptures. Were the Picts descendants of the ancient Basques, known to the Romans as Pictonians, or were they the heirs of the Scythians, as some ancient authors wrote? Only the stones left from them in Scotland know about this.

“We are the most remote inhabitants of the earth, the last of the free, were protected ... by our remoteness and the unknown surrounding our name ... There are no peoples behind us, nothing but waves and rocks.” These words of the Pictish leader Kalgak, recorded by his Roman enemies in the person of Tacitus, once again confirm that even at that time the Picts were a mysterious and legendary people.

The Romans came to Scotland and even defeated the Picts in battle, but were never able to conquer them and the lands belonging to them. In the 3rd century, the Roman commander Agricola destroyed the Pictish army led by Calgacus (according to Roman sources, 10,000 Picts and 340 Romans were killed). Agricola's legions stopped near Abergardy in Perthshire, where they built a fortification. To keep Agricola's conquest under control, seven fortresses were built from Callander (near Stirling) to Perth. For 30 years the Picts burned and destroyed Roman fortifications, and according to Victorian legend, the famous IX Legion was sent north from Inchtuthil, probably to contain their pressure. Legend says that the legion was completely destroyed and disappeared forever in an unknown battle with the painted people of the north. However, history shows us that the IX Legion later appears in Judea.

Emperor Hadrian decided that Scotland was not worth sending more legions there, and pushed the empire's borders back to the Tyne and Solway. Here he built the famous wall, 70 miles long from sea to sea, which bears his name. Perhaps because hostilities and attacks on the wall continued, Antoninus Pius later moved the border back to the narrow Scottish Isthmus between the Forth and Clyde. The 39 mile long wall, with 20 stone fortresses, may have divided the Pictish tribes on either side. It was defended by the II, VI and XX legions for 40 years. The Picts never stopped their attacks on it, and the Romans lost and recaptured it twice before finally retreating towards Hadrian's Wall in the late 2nd century. We know from the words of Dio Cassius that the northern tribes “crossed the wall, caused great destruction and killed the general and his troops.”

In 208, the ruler of Britain was forced to turn to the emperor for help against the barbarians, and Septimius Severus decided to go to Britain with his sons. The old soldier led the Roman fleet with 40,000 legionnaires to the Firth of Forth and landed the army on shore. Although he defeated all the Pictish armies he encountered and beheaded all the Pictish leaders he captured, he was unable to conquer the country he called Caledonia and died soon after. However, the cruel lesson taught by the Romans and the executions led to the fact that peace was maintained here for almost a century. The Romans fortified themselves on Hadrian's Wall, and the northern tribes, stopped by their cruelty, inhabited the hills to the north of it.

War broke out again in the 4th century, and in 305 the Romans again fought against “the Caledonians and other Picts.” In addition, the Scots, Saxons and Franks invading southern Britain added problems to the Romans. In 343 Constant began a campaign against the Picts and probably concluded a truce with them. In 360, Ammanius Marcellus argued that "the Picts are now two peoples - the Dicalidons and the Verturions." That same year, the truce was broken and the Picts, united with the Irish Scots, crossed the wall into Northern England, but were repulsed. They continued to attack the wall, and may have actually joined a tribal alliance against Rome. In 382-383, in alliance with the Scots, they again invaded England, and this time the destruction they caused to the wall and its fortifications was never repaired, although the attackers were repulsed by Magnus Maximus. The end of the century brought another Pictish attack, this time met by the great Roman general Stilicho.

In 409, the last Romans holding out in Britain abandoned it, and the Britons were told to fend for themselves. Around this time, the Celtic Gaelic tribe of Scots began to move into South West Scotland, creating the kingdom of Dalriada in Argyll. Forced to defend themselves against the barbarian Pictish and Scots hordes, the Britons, who spoke a Celtic language very similar to that of their kindred Celts in Wales, created the new kingdom of Strathclyde. In 450 the Picts again invaded the south, and the monk Gildas called them “the dirty hordes of Picts and Scots, like a heap of black worms that crawl out of clefts in the rock when the sun is high and warms the air.” This was the last time we hear of the Picts and Scots fighting as allies, and if Gildas is to be taken literally, the Scots returned back to Ireland around this time.

By studying the Roman accounts of the Pictish wars, as well as later sources, it becomes clear that the Pictish lands were mainly located north of the Forth-Clyde line, i.e. north of the Antonine Wall. Roman pacification, as well as Celtic and Saxon migrations from the south, eliminated any possible Pictish claims to lands south of the wall. In the west, the Pictish presence in Argyll was to quickly disappear with the arrival of the Scots of Dalriada around 500, but a megalith at the entrance to Inveraray Castle in Campbell country suggests that they were there at one time. In the north, Pictish influence extended as far as the northernmost islands, and their megaliths have been found on almost every one of them. This country continued to defend itself for a long time after the departure of the Roman legions. The Picts fought the Scots in the west, the Britons and Angles in the south, and the Vikings in the north. Sometimes they lost great battles and lost vast territories, only to gain them back in the terrible wars of the Dark Age. In the 7th century, the Scots pushed their borders far to the north, and a victorious Celtic army marched half a day to the Pictish capital of Inverness in the north, destroying it. In the south, the Angles led their Germanic armies north and captured Pictish lands and held them for 30 years before being defeated and routed south by a united Pictish army.

Many consider the Picts to be the most mysterious people who ever lived in Britain. They left no written records behind them, and researchers have to be content with the obscure symbols that the Picts applied to processed boulders in the valleys of Scotland.

Already for ancient Roman historians, the origin of the Picts looked very mysterious. Some considered them to be descendants of the Celts and inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula, while others considered them to be descendants of the Scythians. Descriptions of the appearance of the Picts also vary: sometimes they looked like fair-haired giants, sometimes like short brunettes. Information about the presence of two languages ​​among the Picts may also seem strange, but modern historians explain this paradox by the fact that the Picts were a mixed people. The common people, as scientists believe, descended from the ancient non-Indo-European population, related to the Spanish Basques, and the aristocracy - from the Celts. Moreover, the non-Indo-European language of the Picts was never written. Only a few inscriptions remained, carved into stone using the so-called Irish Ogham alphabet - they probably depicted some unusual names.

As for Ogham writing, it is a unique writing system in which short notches were made on the edge of the stone; Each letter was designated by a specific number of notches applied at a certain angle. Moreover, scientists believe that the Picts borrowed the Irish Ogham quite late - in the 8th century.

Two lists of Pictish kings were also created in Irish. Otherwise, the Picts and their history have to be judged only by archaeological finds, as well as by the written evidence of other peoples: the Romans, Britons, Irish, Scots and Anglo-Saxons.

It is still unknown whether the name “Picts” was the self-name of these mysterious tribes or came from the Roman word “Pictians”, that is, “painted”, “painted”. The Irish called them “Cruithni”, and the inhabitants of Roman Britain, that is, the Britons, called them “Pryteni”. At the turn of our era, Roman sources mention the Prytenian tribes of the Caledonians, the Vacomagians. Tedzalov and Venikonov. Over time, the Caledonians subjugated everyone else.

STRANGE TRADITIONS

Neighboring peoples were surprised by the Pictish custom of covering their bodies with numerous multi-colored tattoos. That is why the Picts were called “the painted people.” Tattoos were more than just decoration. They carried information - for example, about the social status of their owner - and symbolically depicted various representatives of the animal world or fantastic creatures - the same as on the surviving Pictish stone slabs. In these images one can easily discern some similarity with the Scythian animal style.

The Pictish rules of matrimonial inheritance also seemed strange to the neighbors. Thus, the Anglo-Saxon chronicler Bede the Venerable wrote: “When in doubt, they choose a king from the female heirs rather than the male heirs, and this custom, as is known, is preserved among the Picts to this day.” Bede the Venerable wrote his chronicles in the 8th century, and the custom of such inheritance dates back to the Bronze Age, if not earlier. Contemporaries were also amazed by the sexual freedoms that existed among the Picts. The Roman writer Dio Cassius said that Empress Julia Domna, the wife of Emperor Lucius Septimius Severus, reproached a certain Pictish woman for depravity, but she replied that Roman women secretly became the mistresses of the most miserable men, while Pictish women openly married the best husbands of their people by their own choice. This custom is also very similar to the Scythian one.

For their residence, the “painted people” built brochs - stone towers up to 15-18 meters high, which were folded without the use of a fastening mortar. Outwardly, they were similar to the ancestral towers that were built at one time in the Caucasus. Moreover, such structures can be found not only in modern Scotland, but also on the Orkney and Shetland Islands, which speaks of the skill of the Pictish seafarers. Archaeologists also find large underground rooms in which the prytenae most likely kept livestock during the winter. The earthen ramparts, reinforced from the inside with stones and logs, with which the Picts fenced their settlements, have also been preserved.

IN CLASHES WITH ROME

The Picts were an extremely warlike people. The Roman Tacitus recorded the following words of the Prytenian leader Kalgakos: “We are the most remote inhabitants of the earth, the last of the free, were protected... by our remoteness and the obscurity surrounding our name... Behind us there are no peoples, nothing but waves and rocks.” From here, from the ends of the earth, the Picts made their raids on the southern part of Britain. To protect this remote province with its tin mines from the “painted people”, the Romans built two protective walls here. The Picts repeatedly attempted to storm them, sometimes successfully. In such cases, the border territories of Roman Britain were subjected to severe devastation.

In 208, the ruler of Britain was forced to turn to the Roman emperor for help against these barbarians, and Emperor Septimius Severus decided to go there with his sons. He led the Roman fleet with 40 thousand legionnaires to the Firth of Forth (a bay of the North Sea off the eastern coast of Scotland) and landed the army ashore. Despite the fact that Septimius Severus defeated all the Pictish troops he encountered and beheaded all the Pictish leaders he captured, the emperor was never able to conquer the country he called Caledonia, and soon died, unable to withstand the climate of Britain. Later, the Roman general Agricola defeated the Prytenian army led by the mentioned leader Calgacus. 10 thousand Picts and 340 Romans died in the battle.

But not much time passed, and, according to the legend of the Victorian era, the famous IX Spanish “Triumphal” Legion was almost completely destroyed in an unknown battle with the “painted people”. This theory formed the basis of Rosemary Sutcliffe's series of novels, The Eagle of the Ninth Legion, as well as a 1977 BBC series of the same name and a 2011 feature film.

According to available information, in the 60s of the 4th century, the Picts even reached London on one of their campaigns.

WHEN THE TIMELESS ENDED

At the turn of the 4th and 5th centuries, Emperor Flavius ​​Stilicho inflicted a series of brutal defeats on the Picts and their allied Scots, who were migrating in waves from Ireland to the northern part of Britain. But Flavius ​​had to withdraw his troops from Britain in order to fight the Goths.

In 409, Emperor Honorius, who came from the famous Vandal tribe, wrote to the leaders of the Britons that from now on they must take care of themselves. Imitating the Romans, who willingly recruited Germanic tribes into their service, the leaders of the Britons began to invite the tribes of Saxons, Angles, Jutes and Frisians for protection from the Picts. But this played a fatal joke on the Britons: numerous settlers began to flow from the continent and began to seize the lands of their “employers.”

As a result, the southern part of Britain was soon fragmented into numerous British and Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, and in the northern part, next to the Picts, a Scots kingdom called Dal Riada appeared. The Picts were certainly culturally influenced both by settlers from Ireland and by the powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria. It was under this influence that the Picts underwent Christianization, and their king Nechton at the beginning of the 8th century even decided to end his days within the walls of the monastery. It was under Nekhton that the first stone church appeared on the lands of the Picts. He also proved himself to be a skillful diplomat and was able to make Northumbria his ally in the fight against Dal Riada and the British kingdom of Strathclyde.

Following Nechton, Aengus ascended the Pictish throne. He defeated other contenders for power on the battlefields, after which his ambitions went beyond the borders of the country of the Picts. He conquered the kingdom of Dal Riada, extending Pictish laws to it, and even transported his army to Ireland. But after his death, strange times came, when for a whole century the Pictish kings ruled Dal Riada, then, on the contrary, the Scot kings from Dal Riada ruled the Picts. Timelessness ended with the fact that in the middle of the 9th century, Kenneth mac Alpin, king of Dal Riada, finally subjugated the Picts, completely exterminating their nobility.

As far as one can judge from chronicles and legends, at first a large army of Picts, uniting almost the entire military strength of their kingdom, suffered a crushing defeat from the Vikings. After this, Kenneth mac Alpin invited the surviving nobility to a feast, where the Pictish leaders were made drunk and then killed. As the influx of Scots from Ireland continued, within just a century the Picts were assimilated and eventually became, in Scottish folklore, a race of pygmies, or underground dwellers, sometimes identified with elves. But the Scots were never able to find out the secret of the magical heather ale that these fabulous people brewed.

“For quite a long time, the ancient people of the Picts were undeservedly forgotten. Only occasionally, his name, in novelized form, appeared on the pages of works of fiction, such as “Briar Honey” by R. L. Stevenson, or “Puck of the Hills” by R. Kipling. Official science relied entirely on the evidence of Roman authors, who were far from having the best opinion about the Picts. And they all say in the same way that the Picts were the worst and most savage of all the barbarians that the Romans ever encountered. But, despite such unflattering epithets, it is difficult to accuse them of bias - they saw mainly warriors who were truly shocking with their appearance, and knew nothing about the way of life of this people.”

And therefore it is not surprising that not so long ago, the only thing we knew about Picts, is that they were fierce warriors, going into battle naked, after being painted from head to toe with blue paint. But what was perceived by the Romans as evidence of extreme savagery was in fact a psychological element of military organization Picts. And, based on what they remembered most, it can be assumed that more than one battle-hardened legionnaire lost their nerve at the mere sight of this, to put it mildly, strange army. Throughout their history, the Picts terrified all the peoples who settled in Britain. It was to protect against their attacks that the Romans built Hadrian's Wall, only occasionally daring to move further north. And the harsh Angles of Bernicia and Deira lived in constant fear, being in close proximity to the borders of the Kingdom of the Picts.

Picts, as the name of the people, the name by which they are now known, was given to them by the Romans - Picti(colored). There is a version that they called themselves as Pryden, but be that as it may, this people entered history at the instigation of the Romans as Picts, and will remain so, even if some new details hitherto unknown to science are discovered. Regarding their ethnicity, there are now three main versions:

1) The Picts are of Celtic origin, but became an independent branch at the beginning of the 1st millennium BC. e.;

2) They were descendants of Indo-European tribes that penetrated the British Isles in the 4th-3rd millennium BC. e.;

3) The Picts were an indigenous people Britain.

The latest version finds some confirmation, in particular that the language spoken by the Picts has nothing in common with Celtic. Moreover, it has no family ties with any of the groups of Indo-European languages ​​known to linguists. In addition, traces of Pictish activity in Britain date back to the middle of the 9th millennium BC. e., to this time, dates back to the beginning of their construction of stone burial grounds on Orkney Islands, which later arose throughout the entire island of Britain. And this was long before the start of the Indo-European migration, and especially the appearance of Celtic tribes in these parts, which occurred no earlier than 500 BC. e. Based on this evidence, it can be argued that even if the Picts were not the indigenous people of Britain, then, in any case, they were the most ancient. And they can well be called aborigines, and not only Scotland, and throughout Britain, and perhaps even Europe, along with the Basques.

This is all the more obvious because of all the peoples who have ever inhabited Europe, the Picts are closest to the Iberians and Lusitanians, who are considered the indigenous population Iberian Peninsula. It is not known whether we can talk about some degree of kinship between these peoples, but the spiral petroglyphs The Picts and Iberians are very similar in style. And here we can talk about, at a minimum, fairly close contacts that took place between them in ancient times. The same is true with the mysterious " people of cups”, who settled on the Orkney Islands in the middle of the 4th millennium BC. e., with whom the Picts maintained close ties. This, in turn, gave rise to some scientists to argue that assimilation took place between them, the result of which was the emergence of a fully formed Pictish people. This is unlikely, but there is no doubt that the “people of Beakers” had a strong influence on the culture of the Picts, who, after meeting them, began to build stone circles like Sankhani(c. 3300 BC). Shortly before this, obviously also under the influence of aliens, the Picts, who had previously been a nomadic people, switched to a sedentary lifestyle and took up farming.

As for the Celts who moved to British Isles in the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e., then the Picts did not have a good relationship with them from the very beginning. It is not known what the area of ​​Pictish settlement was at the time of the arrival of the Celtic tribes, but after that it was constantly reduced, and by 100 BC. e. they were driven out to the territory beyond the Firth of Forth. But, despite the fact that from that time on, they were effectively locked in Central Scotland, constantly made trips to the south, sometimes reaching the Thames itself.

Romans first “met” the Picts in 83 AD, when they fought with them in battle near the Grampian Mountains. At that time, all of Britain except Pictavia was completely conquered, the then governor Gnaeus Julius Agricola decided to correct this oversight, and in 82 BC the advance to the north began, by that time they were united into two tribal unions - Veniconia And Caledonia, after whom the Romans subsequently named the whole of Scotland. According to Tacitus, Agricola’s son-in-law, both “kingdoms” fielded 30,000 warriors (in reality, there were no more than 8,000) and they were led by the Caledonian leader Kalgak. In this battle the Picts were defeated, because... The Romans were better organized and armed, but it was difficult to call it a defeat, because the Picts, without any stampede, retreated in an organized manner. After this, the Romans captured almost all of Southern Scotland, where they built 7 fortresses along the Stirling-Perth line, but they only partially occupied the territory of Pictavia proper.

Soon the Romans realized that this acquisition would do them more harm than good, because this region was quite poor; maintaining garrisons so far in the north was inconvenient and very expensive. On top of this, the attacks of the Picts kept these garrisons under constant tension, their fortifications were periodically burned, and while they were rebuilt, the attacks became even more intense. While on the territory of Southern Scotland, the Romans constantly suffered significant losses, and their justification was questioned. This place became a real nightmare for Roman soldiers. Despite the harsh measures, cases of desertion became more and more frequent, which had never happened before in the Roman army. Understanding the senselessness of this enterprise, and fearing the brewing open rebellion in the army, the emperor Adrian ordered the legions to be withdrawn to the south. Here, at the narrowest point, between the Tyne and Solway in 122-126. built a chain of fortifications now known as Hadrian's Wall. It was quite an impressive structure: a stone wall reaching 6 m in height, with towers and forts built at equal distances from each other, in which garrisons were located, which were in relative safety.

In 142 Antoninus Pius considered this decision reckless and the Romans again occupied the territory of Lothian, moving even further north into the lands of the Picts. In the area of ​​​​present Edinburgh, between the Fort and the Clyde, along the narrow Scottish Isthmus, they began to build a new fortification, called Val Antonina. But it could not even be completed due to constant attacks from the Picts. Just 2 years later, in 144, the Romans were thrown back to their original positions - behind the walls Hadrian's Wall, which, without repair, gradually deteriorated, and some of its sections fell completely into disrepair. And, despite the fact that the Romans constantly kept 3 legions on the rampart, the Picts penetrated almost unhindered into the territory of Roman Britain and plundered and burned their settlements with impunity. And the initially powerful wall soon lost all significance as a defensive facility, becoming useless against the incessant invasions from the north.

By the end of the 2nd century. attacks Picts took on such an intense and fierce character that the II, VI, and XX legions defending Hadrian's Wall were forced to abandon their positions in 193 and retreat far to the south. Well-organized Pictish troops devastated Northern Britain for 15 years, indiscriminately plundered and burned Roman villas and Briton villages, and the waves of their atrocities reached almost as far as Londinium. The situation became catastrophic, and in 208 the governor Ulpius Marcellus had to actually beg the emperor for help. Next year Septimius Severus personally arrived in Britain with a fleet and army of 40,000 soldiers. Having landed at the mouth of the Firth of Forth, the emperor inflicted real terror on the inhabitants of Caledonia. All the Pictish armies he encountered were defeated, and dozens of tribal leaders were beheaded. But to conquer Pictia he never succeeded, and in one of the campaigns, in 211, Septimius Severus died.

However, the Picts learned for a long time the cruel lesson taught to them by the Roman emperor, the raids into Northern Britain stopped, and peace and silence reigned in Caledonia for almost a century. The Roman garrisons returned to Hadrian's Wall, repaired it and thoroughly strengthened it. In 305 invasion Picts resumed, moreover, now they acted not alone, but in conjunction with Scotts who became their allies. Attacks were repeated in 343 and 367 when the allies broke through the wall, devastated northern and central Britain, and attempted to take over Londinium. But the city was strongly fortified and had a large garrison, the attack was repulsed, and the Picts and Scots, loaded with booty, returned to Caledonia. In 383 the allies tried again, but they failed to advance far and were stopped and driven back by Magnus Maximus. In the same year, the Romans left the wall; as a result of the last invasion, it was so destroyed that they did not begin to restore it. And in 409, the last Roman legions left Britain forever, abandoned to the mercy of fate.

After the Romans left, the Picts had a new sworn enemy - the Scots, who had previously been their allies and took part in all the predatory campaigns on Roman territory. And here, the proverb: There is no worse enemy than yesterday’s friend, fully justified itself. In 498 the Scots, who had already settled in Argyll, led by Fergus Mor Mac Erc, attacked the western lands of the Picts and captured the region of Epidia, which belonged to the latter. In 501 Fergus More became the ruler of the kingdom he formed Dal Riada, Epidia became part of it. In response to this, the Picts united all their lands into a kingdom in 508 Fortriu led by Drest Gurdinmokh son of Nekhton Morbet. As a result of the outbreak of war, Dal Riada was defeated and split into the small kingdoms of Lorne, Gebren and Aengus, which became vassals of the Pictish king.

In the middle of the 6th century. the kingdoms of the Angles were formed south of the borders of Fortriu Bernicia And Deira, soon united into a kingdom Northumbria, which immediately began expansion to the north. The Picts repelled all attempts to seize their lands, but then the Scots intervened in the war, who treacherously struck them in the back and destroyed the capital of the Picts Inverness, and pushed them far to the north. But the fruits of their victory fell into their hands English, who captured Southern Pictia, and at the same time almost all of Dal Riada. The new Pictish king Drest, son of Garthnaith, tried to regain the lost territories, but was defeated by a Northumbrian army led by King Ecgfrith and, returning to the north, was deposed by Brude, son of Beli.

King Brude III the Great began his reign with the capture in 681 of the ancient fortress of his people Dunnotar, which at that time was held by the Scots. In 682, he, at the head of the Pictish fleet, sailed to the Orkney Islands, where he utterly defeated the Orkneys, who were allies of the Angles, and either sank or burned almost all of their ships. Returning to Fortriu, the next year he went to the southwest, where he captured and completely destroyed the capital of the Scots Dunnat, thus taking revenge on them for their treachery. In 685, at the battle of Nehtansmere, Brude the Great defeated the army of the Angles. The Northumbrian army was completely destroyed, King Ecgfrith was killed, the Angles, who had already settled in the lands of Southern Pictia, were killed without any mercy, their remnants fled in horror to the south. For Northumbria it was a devastating blow from which it never recovered. Pictia, for a short time, became the most powerful state in Scotland.

In 847, Drest son of Ferach died, and since among the Picts the right of inheritance passed through the female and not the male line, the crown Pictians went to Kenneth Mac Alpin, whose grandmother was a Pictish princess. Kenneth was also king at that time Dal Riads, in 848 both kingdoms were united as a personal union, and a new state entity called Alba arose. The capital of the new kingdom was Scone, where the Pictish kings were crowned. Gaelic became the official language, Gaelic culture quickly replaced Pictish, and there was no oppression or violence from the Scots. After 150 years, Alba began to be called Scotland (Land of the Scots), by this time everyone had forgotten about the Picts, and not only in the name of the state. And it is completely incomprehensible how, in just three generations, the Picts on their own land turned into a ghost people.

The Picts are the most mysterious people of medieval Europe. Almost nothing is known about the "barbarians" who controlled the lands north of Hadrian's Wall between the Roman invasion and the Viking raids. These ancient inhabitants of northern Scotland were as mysterious to both the inhabitants of that era and modern scientists. They spoke a language unknown to anyone, had intricate tattoos on their bodies, ruled the seas and practiced succession through the female line.

1. Painted Viking enemies.

The Picts did not leave behind any written records. Almost everything that modern scientists know about them is based on the records of their enemies. In 297, the Roman writer Evenius first referred to the inhabitants north of Hadrian's Wall as being "painted" or "painted". The Irish referred to the Picts as the "cruithneys" or "painted people". This close parallel to the Roman name suggests that "Pict" was the self-name of the northern Scots.

Essentially, the Picts were a confederation of tribes who united to fight a common enemy. The Romans tried to defeat them many times, but always failed. The Picts later united against the Vikings. By 900 they had completely disappeared from the historical record, apparently due to fusion with the culture of the southern Scots. Some modern scholars claim that they called themselves "pekht" ("ancestors").

2. The mystery of the Pictish language

In his Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation, the historian and theologian Bede noted that there were five languages ​​in eighth-century Britain: English, Latin, Brythonic, Gaelic and Pictish. In The Life of Columbus, Admonan states that Saint Columba needed a translator among the Picts. Without written records, today the only evidence of this mysterious language are place names, a series of personal names and mysterious Pictish cave paintings.

Some believe that the Picts spoke an indigenous language, perhaps a Bronze Age language that was closer to Basque than Celtic. Others believe that the Picts spoke an ancient Celtic language that was akin to the Brythonic language still found in Wales today. Proponents of this theory point out that the names of the Picts in north-eastern Scotland are clearly Indo-European and related to other Celtic languages. A third theory suggests that they spoke a Goidlic language brought into their territory by the Irish. The Picts also adopted the Ogham script, which originated in Ireland.

3. Succession through the female line

One of the most persistent myths about the Picts is that they practiced matrilineal succession (through the mother's side). In his Ecclesiastical History of the English People, Bede the Venerable notes that when the Picts arrived in Britain by sea from Scythia, they had no wives and sought brides from the Scots of Ireland. The Scotts provided them with women on one condition: “they were to choose a king from the female royal line, and not from the male royal line.” Written in the 14th century, the Pictish Chronicle lists the kings and the length of their reigns.

Interestingly, the sons of their fathers never became Pictish kings until the end of the seventh century. However, kings were identified by the names of their male relatives. Critics believe that Bede's tales may have been a ruse to prove Irish rule over the Pictish lands. Some, like Celts and the Classical World author David Rankine, believed that matrilineal succession may have been a legacy of pre-Indo-European powers.

4. The face of a Pictish victim

Last week, researchers from the University of Dundee published a reconstruction of the face of a Pict who was brutally murdered 1,400 years ago. Named "Rosemarik", the skeleton lay in the caves on the Black Isle. Radiocarbon dating showed its age to be between 430 and 630 AD. The skeleton lay with its legs crossed and a large stone crushing it. Forensic anthropologist Sue Black said Rosemaric was brutally murdered with at least five head injuries. His teeth were knocked out, his jaw was broken, his skull was punctured and crushed. Despite the brutality of the murder, there is evidence that the man was buried with great care.

5. The Man from Rini

In 1978, a Scottish farmer unearthed a massive stone slab depicting a man carrying an ax near the Scottish village of Reenie. Called the "Man of Rini", this 2-meter stone with carved ornaments still haunts archaeologists. Dating to around 700 AD, the stone depicts a bearded man with a long pointed nose, wearing a headdress and tunic. The "Man of Rini" was discovered in close proximity to the "Cawstone", another Pictish carved stone depicting a salmon and an unknown animal.

Excavations in the Rhine between 2011 and 2012 revealed artifacts including Mediterranean pottery, French glass and Anglo-Saxon metalwork. Archaeologists have also discovered evidence of advanced metallurgy at Rini. The most common interpretation of the Man of Rini is that it depicts Esus, the Celtic god of trees and forestry. The area also contains stones with Irish Ogham script and Celtic designs.

6. Painted Pictish stones

Pictish-painted pebbles have been the subject of heated debate since the 19th century. These small quartzite stones were painted with simple symbols. According to local beliefs, they were called “talisman stones” or “cold stones.” Even as late as 1971, these “magic” stones were used to treat diseases in both animals and humans. An alternative theory proposes that the stones were sling ammunition, with "markings" on them identifying the owner.

In 2014, stonemason Robbie Arthur and researcher Jenny Murray wanted to copy these stones. They discovered that the stones were colored with a dark substance produced from burning peat. Peat was a common fuel for domestic and smelting fires in Scotland. Researchers found that if this pigment is left on the stone overnight, it does not wash off later even with hot water. Similar painted stones have been found in central France, the Pyrenees and southern Italy. They date back 10,000 - 12,000 years.

7. Naval power of the Picts

In 2015, archaeologists discovered an Iron Age fort built by the Picts, demonstrating their power as a naval force during those times. The fort, located at an altitude of 6 meters on the Dannikaer cliff, could only be reached by climbing a steep cliff. Built between the fifth and sixth centuries, it was probably part of a series of forts controlling the east coast of Scotland. The massive stones used to build the fort were brought from other places.

On them there are stylized drawings of fish and rings with broken spears in them. Dr Gordon Noble of the University of Aberdeen notes: "The Picts were known as sea raiders, and forts like this may have helped bolster that naval power." Noble and his team discovered the remains of a protective rampart, loopholes and the remains of a hearth that still contained coal. Noble suspects that the site was also the site of a Pictish settlement, built of wood and long since destroyed.

8. Kenneth McAlpin

Almost nothing is known about the most famous king of the Picts, Kenneth I MacAlpine. By the mid-ninth century, the Vikings had destroyed the Pictish kingdom. McAlpine took advantage of this lack of power. Born around 810 to a Gaul father, King Alpine II and a Pictish princess, MacAlpin decided to unite the Pictish and Gaelic kingdoms. Naturally, he had competitors. Legend has it that seven royal houses of the Picts, led by Drest X, marched against MacAlpin.

One of McAlpin's more sinister stories of "treason" involves him luring his drunken competitors into thorn-filled pits. However, this is unlikely. Around 848 MacAlpin united the Picts and Gauls. But the Viking threat has not gone away. One story says that 140 Viking ships attacked the Gaelic kingdom of Dal Riada, causing it to disappear from history. After MacAlpin's death in 858, the Picts also disappeared.

9. Beast of the Picts

In 2011, archaeologists discovered an image of a mysterious "Pict beast" carved into the wall of a farm on the Black Isle. Dating from the 5th to 7th centuries, the stone was perfectly preserved and showed almost no signs of weathering. Researcher Keith McCullagh believes the stone was buried for a long time before being placed in the wall. Isobel Henderson, a specialist in early medieval sculpture, was the first to stumble upon the mysterious carving of a mysterious animal, as well as images of a crescent, a crest and a mirror. In a nearby farmhouse, Henderson discovered a second Pictish carving depicting either fish scales or goose feathers. 50 years ago, both stones were owned by the same family.

10. Still alive today

Scholars have long wondered what became of the Picts when they disappeared from history around the ninth century. In 2013, DNA analysis showed that the Picts are very much alive and well. Geneticist Jim Wilson has identified a Y chromosome marker in the direct descendants of the Painted People. Of the 1,000 Scottish men surveyed, 10 percent had the R1b-S530 marker.

Less than 1 percent of English men have this chromosome. Picts have also been found in Northern Ireland, where 3 percent of the population are carriers of R1b-S530. However, only one participant in 200 in the south of Ireland had this Y chromosome. Politically, the Picts seem to have disappeared after the Viking battle of Strathmore in 839 and Kenneth MacAlpin's unification of the Gauls and Picts. Genetic analysis tells a different story. The Picts are all among us.