[Music]
after the eagles was commissioned by
english heritage in 2010
to look at issues around the end of
roman rule in britain in the year 410
the play explores the dilemma for
citizens of britannia
at that time as they face an uncertain
future
the three extracts from the original
30-minute performance
explore themes of home history memory
and the importance of stories to our
shared past
excitingly for us after the eagles has
been performed at english heritage sites
on hadrian's wall
for several roman events it was an
incredible thrill to do the play in such
a famous location
we hope you enjoy it
[Music]
hmm
[Music]
picture an island
on the edge of imagination it's
fierce people are tribal no sense of a
nation
surrounded by sea in a land unforgiving
they've worked hard on the landscape to
eke out a living
they have village and hill forts not
cities or town
their customs and history is not written
down
on this far distant island where they
spend their days
they have their own gods their own laws
their own ways
and this island is rich with a plentiful
yield
of gold timber and corn from mine forest
and field
the people are hunters farmers craftsmen
and traders
and ready as warriors to see off
invaders
to fight with brave fury but little
direction
the sea round their island offers better
protection
now imagine an empire that wants to
expand
its people united under one man's
command its laws and its customs
written down regulated its greed and its
purpose
cannot be negated across this great
empire in all of its regions
young men are recruited to serve in its
legions and trained to fight not on
their own
but together to conquer all foes all
terrain in
all weather and this island that many
thought too far away
will now be drawn into the empire's way
so the eagles are raised up the ban is
unfurled and the legions take ship to
the edge of the world
their gods smile upon them they land
uncontested
a fort is constructed the eagles are
rested
then battle is joined against tribes who
divided
are beaten surrender or wait undecided
to the eagles the victory to the emperor
glory
to the ordinary people it's a different
story
and so it begins the roman invasion
to some it is progress to some
occupation
the eagles move quickly establish their
bases
linked by roads that are measured in
legionary paces
new settlements flourish replacing the
old
and a new breed of settler starts to
take hold
new masters to follow new rules to obey
a new language to learn
new taxes to pay the years pass by since
the eagles have landed
the settlers get greedy and more
heavy-handed
when the eagles go west to fight
turbulent priests
a full-blown revolt explodes out of the
east
roman cities are flattened with savage
atrocity
as queen boudicca's rebels attack with
verocity
outnumbered out maneuvered the eagles
fall back
the rebels relentless give chase to
attack
but the eagles have tricked them it's
all part of their plan
and boudicca's rebels are cut down to a
man
her people defeated learn a roman
refrain
to the victor the spoils to the
vanquished the pain
the eagles campaign and they do not
cease
they make desolation and they call it a
peace
an uneasy piece never too long enjoyed
the eagles in garrison wait to be
deployed
new forts mean new markets for trade
goods from rome
to nourish the eagles and remind them of
home slowly villages
and settlements begin to recover and
roman
and britain learn to live
with each other
it is the year 410.
for 15 generations roman citizens have
lived and worked in the province of
britannia
the events of the invasion and the
conquest are a dim
and distant memory with the passing of
time
romans and britain's have found common
ground
they are now the romano britons
trading with roman citizens from the
four corners of the empire
in the far north the emperor hadrian's
wall marks the extent of roman authority
an authority which in the year 410
is facing new challenges the empire is
divided
east and west have their own emperors
who compete for power
as the enemies of rome watch and wait
from their borders
two days ride from york ibarakum to the
people
of britannia lies a villa
with a mistress and servants who like
the rest of the empire
wait to see what the future holds
a visitor arrives with news
actors actors what a pleasure
to see you after so long now let's make
ourselves comfortable
and you can tell me all about your
adventures julia
whine for our guest yes domina
she used to be a noble she says
aristocracy
her father got into trouble got himself
arrested for treason and she was sold as
a slave
is this true a merchant who owed my
father money
reported him to the governor for selling
information about shipping to pirates
my family was arrested and was he
a traitor no sir
and uh what about your family what what
happened to them
they weren't as lucky as me
so act taurus the wanderer has returned
what adventures you must have had my
lady you are too kind
i'm just an old soldier who's going home
i've served the emperor like my father
and my grandfather before me
now i just want to breathe the air of my
homeland up i don't even know why
do you ever think of going back to the
land of your birth britannia is my home
now
i've traveled a long way from my
father's house
it looked out over a blue sea when i was
a girl
my father used to carry me to the
markets to watch him work
he said i could haggle in four languages
before i could walk
i listened to the merchants tell stories
of what they traded and what they valued
spices dates figs slaves
my father bought and sold them all what
made you want to come to this cold
corner
oh no when i was a girl i wanted to go
to rome
to walk the city that everybody had a
story about
i begged and nagged my first husband to
be allowed to go
he must have been a very strong man to
resist he couldn't understand what
the fuss was about wife
used to say the streets stink of sewers
the people are the rudest in the world
and the food
is inedible it just made me want to go
even more
rome as the soldiers i spoke to from
rome said that the
air of the city was sweet with the smell
of the world's spices
the people were kind and the food
better than the god seat i never did get
there
so what did you do to persuade your
husband
when my husband ship was lost i paid a
sea captain to get news of him
my first husband never came back and the
sea captain god rest his soul became my
second
i sold my business and off we went to
rome
and was it everything that you expected
ah
it was all the stories put together and
more as it turned out i didn't get to
stay there long
my new husband the sea captain the sea
captain god rest him he was a dreamer
he got news from his brother who was
here in britannia that there was money
to be made
his friends in rome told him not to go
that was too dangerous
but my husband said always go where your
business rivals tell you not to
he said people will always want a little
reminder of what they had left behind
wherever they call home trade keeps the
empire strong he always said
he was right poor man
i was sorry to hear of his death
still um with most of the legions
long gone and the soldiers all locals i
thought would be
fewer markets things have changed
there are two empires now and two
emperors
if the emperor does withdraw his
authority from britannia
we're hardly going to go walking over
the sea to rome to complain
what's that supposed to mean my lady i
i spent the last five years of my
service on the rhine
looking over the river into the forests
where the barbarians live
now from what our patrols could work out
those barbarians
were gathering in greater and greater
numbers they were they were being driven
into the forests by another band of
barbarians
even more savage and cruel than them
the forest couldn't sustain them the
only way that they could move was west
towards us
and the only thing stopping them was
that they couldn't walk on water
so we're safe
at the moment
but the winters are getting colder
if the rhine was to freeze over enough
riddles actors
britannia is roman and always will be
there's too much wealth involved let it
go the emperor knows that
trade keeps the empire strong
people will always want roman goods
this is my home
where are you from
the north my people had land in the
north
near azeri and brigantem we used to have
our own villa
my father said my ancestors had always
lived there
the family were very proud of that
my ancestors are from the finals so
um all the land and no land no villa
my father used to tell me stories of the
ancient times
when our people owned all the land in
the north
our neighbors were scared of us the
queen
back then was very clever she used that
fear to keep the peace
when the romans came her husband who was
a great warrior
wanted to go to war with them but she
said it would be better to watch
and wait she wanted to know more about
the men
under the eagles she went with the other
chieftains
when emperor claudius called them she
stood before them
he sat on a great grey beast with teeth
as tall as a man
wings for ears and a long nose like a
serpent
she saw the power that this one man had
over the world
the power of life and death and she
wanted to know the secret of how
this man could make the world do his
wishes
they treated him like a god
she made peace with rome she had roman
protection roman power roman goods
as other tribes rebelled and were
destroyed
her people prospered traded
paid taxes enjoyed peace
and plenty her husband said that she'd
given the people
a different kind of slavery a worse kind
because they put the shackles on
themselves
that they'd sold their honor and freedom
for a few worthless trinkets
when i was a the boy time i saw the
emperor hadrian's wall
i asked my grandmother what it was she
laughed and promised that she'd tell me
the tale
she told me that in the time of our
ancestors when the legions first came to
the north
that our ancestors and the legions
fought for many years
bloodshed and then
suddenly the legions disappeared my
ancestors thought that they'd won
but the legions hadn't gone
the first one stone tower
then another one then another one then
another one and then a wall
as tall as three men snaking
across the country until it went from
coast to coast
it took them 10 years my people rejoiced
they said we've won the eagles are so
scared of us they built a wall to hide
behind
and took a while for them to work out
the truth
why build a wall with so many gates
so now whenever my ancestors wanted to
go south to trade
they had to pass through the wall and
the eagles would look down on them from
their stone perches
years and years went by our
young men grew bored and restless
the eagles offered them an opportunity
for glory enlist today come and fight
for us
so off they went many of them never came
back
did their service settle down raised
families somewhere new
but those who did come back what stories
tales of the empire my grandmother said
my ancestors learnt roman discipline
they were paid in roman coin and they
spent it on roman goods
the romans made them roman without even
realizing it and they were proud they
were proud to belong to something
same as my grandfather and my father
they were proud to serve the emperor i
was proud to serve the emperor
those two worlds of long long ago
they've been one world for a very long
time
i mean if the empire did leave britannia
it'll still leave a lot of itself behind
the people
and we can't go back we're different
we're roman and trade
keeps the empire strong
[Music]
hmm
[Music]
you