Iron Age Gangland Executions Spanned Generations Dorset Cemetery

Recent research by archaeologists at Bournemouth University has overturned the long-held belief that a mass burial site at Maiden Castle in Dorset was the result of a Roman massacre. Radiocarbon dating reveals that the 62 individuals, initially thought to have died in a single battle with Romans, were actually victims of gangland-style executions carried out by rival Iron Age groups over several decades before the Roman arrival in 43 AD. The skeletons show evidence of brutal killings, primarily repeated sword blows to the head with no defensive wounds, suggesting these were public executions intended as warnings. Dr. Miles Russell, lead researcher, compares the violence to Mafia-like dynastic conflicts akin to a 'Game of Thrones' scenario, involving power struggles and control over trade and protection rackets. The findings challenge a narrative popularized since the 1930s, which depicted the deaths as a poignant episode of Roman invasion, instead revealing a complex picture of internal tribal warfare and political turmoil in Iron Age Britain. This new interpretation reshapes understanding of the period’s social dynamics, emphasizing inter-tribal conflict rather than Roman aggression at this site.