Was the British King Who Urged the Romans to Invade Actually a Queen? One Archaeologist Thinks So

Linguistic clues and ancient coins could suggest that Verica—a ruler who fled Britain and convinced Roman Emperor Claudius to launch an invasion across the English Channel—has been misgendered for centuries

Soumya Sagar | Correspondent

November 5, 2026 4:38 p.m.

In 43 C.E., the Roman Emperor Claudius invaded Britain, leading to its transformation it into an imperial province for nearly 400 years. This invasion was launched at the behest of an ousted British king named Verica, who fled across the English Channel to seek Roman aid. Now, a British archaeologist suggests that Verica was no king at all, but rather a queen.

The reassessment by Miles Russell, an archaeologist at Bournemouth University, reinterprets one of the most consequential figures of the late British Iron Age. Writing in Current Archaeology, Russell argues that “the assumption that this powerful ruler must have been male reflects a degree of unconscious bias, and perhaps a hangover from the patriarchal mindset of early Classicists.”

Verica was a Roman ally who led the Atrebates, a tribe whose territory spanned modern-day Berkshire, Hampshire and West Sussex. Around 40 C.E., during territorial upheavals following the death of powerful tribal leader Cunobelinus and the ascent of his son Caratacus, Verica was deposed and fled to Rome.

Roman historian Cassius Dio, writing in the early third century C.E., recorded that a Briton called “Berikos,” or “Bericus,” appealed directly to Claudius, handing the emperor a pretext for invasion. Without this appeal, “it’s likely that Rome would never have invaded,” Russell tells Gizmodo’s Ed Cara.

He adds: “Verica was a major player in the story of how Britain became a Roman province and has been discussed in many books, papers and articles, but has always been misgendered.”

The first evidence that Russell presents to support the female identification is linguistic. In Iron Age Britain, personal names terminating in “-a” were overwhelmingly feminine. Two of the most prominent female British rulers—Boudica of the Iceni and Cartimandua of the Brigantes—both share this naming convention. Male names, on the other hand, tended to end with “os” or “us,” such as Cunobelinus. “It’s not a clear-cut rule,” but it applies to “about 95 percent of Iron Age British names,” Russell tells New Scientist’s Michael Marshall.

Numismatic evidence also presents a striking departure from standard Iron Age coinage. While contemporary male leaders like Cunobelinus decorated their currency with overtly masculine warriors, coins struck under Verica depict “slender, bare-breasted equestrian figures that appear irrefutably female,” Russell writes.

Furthermore, some of Verica’s coins have the Latin abbreviation “COM F,” which is traditionally translated as Commios filius, or the “son of Commios,” a leader of the Atrebates tribe who allied with Julius Caesar during his invasion of Gaul. As Russell points out, that could just as easily denote Commios filia, or “daughter of Commios.” While the coins carry the Latin title “rex,” Russell argues that the designation is a “non-gender specific title” that shows Verica ruled with the “the full authorization of the emperor,” according to a statement.

A female Verica could also explain the sharp anti-Claudius barbs in classical accounts by Roman chroniclers, who frequently portrayed the emperor as an easily swayed, “henpecked” figure, Russell writes.

Presenting Claudius’ invasion as prompted by a woman fits this narrative pattern. “In effect, [Cassius] Dio was saying that the campaign was undertaken solely because of the whisperings of a barbarian femme fatale,” Russell explains in the statement.

The idea also fits recent insights into the period. In 2025, Russell co-authored a study of ancient southern British cemeteries showing that Iron Age communities were matrilocal: Women remained settled in their ancestral communities while men moved, suggesting land and status were passed down the female line.

Did you know? Changing Britain

Under Roman rule, Britain was a highly urbanized place with tiled-roofs, road networks and a coinage system. Centuries after the Romans left, however, Britons had gone back to living in homes with thatched roofs and reverted from market-based trades to subsistence farming.

However, not all scholars are convinced. Katharina Rebay-Salisbury, an archaeologist at the University of Vienna, remains skeptical of the numismatic evidence. “I find it a bit difficult to differentiate a naked female body from a naked male body in these very stylized images,” she tells New Scientist.

Roger Tomlin, a specialist in Roman epigraphy at University of Oxford, tells the Guardian’s Nicola Davis that while the feminine “-a” ending is plausible, Cassius Dio explicitly assumed the ruler was male, referring to him as “Bericus.” He also disputes Russell’s claim that “rex” had been used for both male and female rulers.

Russell welcomes the scholarly debate. “If it does create debate and argument, I think that's for the better,” he tells the Guardian. “The one-sided story’s been there for so long. We need that to change.”

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• Roman Empire
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• Women's History