Caratacus, commonly called Caractacus (and, in
Welsh Caradoc) was a son of Cunobelin or
Cymbeline, king of the
Catuvellauni[?], a powerful tribe of south-east
England during the period immediately before the
Roman invasion of Britain. Along with his brother,
Togodumnus[?], Caratacus led the defence of the country in AD
43, but they were defeated and Togodumnus was killed. Caratacus retreated westwards, and joined with the
Silures, a tribe of what is now south
Wales. The Romans inflicted a final, conclusive defeat on the British in around
50, and Caratacus was captured, thanks to the treachery of
Cartimandua, queen of the
Brigantes[?]. He was taken to
Rome, where the emperor
Claudius, impressed by his dignified appearance and conduct, pardoned him. Caratacus died in around
54.
His fame survived for several centuries. A genealogy of an otherwise unknown British king in the Historia Britonum traced his ancestory to Caratacus.