Simon Gardner Author

Debut Author, Family historian,history nut

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

The Roman scutum — protection, weapon and part of the legion’s fighting system.

Seeing one full-size makes you appreciate what Roman soldiers carried and fought behind.

Thanks to Ermine Street Guard at the Birdlip Roman History Festival.

#RomanBritain #RomanHistory #Scutum

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

#RomanBritain #HistoricalFiction #RomanHistory #RomanArmy #LegioIIAugusta #Britannia #AncientRome #HistoricalNovel #Bookstagram #TheIslandBeyondTheSea #SimonGardnerAuthor

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

🐾 Did you know?

Cats typically sleep 12–16 hours a day. 😴🐱

All that rest helps conserve energy for short bursts of activity.

Or, as cat owners know them: 3am zoomies. 😂

#CatFacts #CatVisitor #Cats

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

#SimonGardnerAuthor

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A real soldier of Legio II Augusta.

Lucius Diddius Bassus came from Macedonia, served in the Second Legion Augusta and died aged 55.

Nearly 2,000 years later, we still know his name.

Photographed at @dorsetmuseum.

#RomanBritain #LegioIIAugusta

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

Simple. Brutal. Effective.

Roman caltrops — tribuli. However they landed, one iron point faced upwards.

Imagine meeting these hidden in the grass during an attack.

Thanks to Ermine Street Guard at Birdlip.

#RomanBritain #RomanHistory #LegioIIAugusta

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

How much would you want to carry across Britannia?

Forget just the sword & shield. A Roman legionary had to get himself & his kit across the country before he could fight anyone.

How heavy do you reckon this was?

Thanks to Ermine Street Guard at Bibury Roman History Fair.

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

Not every Iron Age hillfort was a fortress waiting for Rome.

By AD 43, some remained in use, some had changed purpose — and many had already been abandoned.

What would the Romans find inside?

#RomanBritain #IronAge #HistoricalFiction

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

@nicola0852 Thank you kind of you 🙏 in answer to your question it just evolved , I love Roman Military always have but when they are fighting “my people “ felt like I had to give both sides at the ground level not the bigwigs , just the ordinary man and women 🤷‍♂️

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

It’s finally out.

The Island Beyond the Sea
Britannia, AD 43. Rome has crossed the sea.

Legio II Augusta. Invasion. Resistance. And the ordinary people caught between them.

Available now on Amazon Kindle and Kindle Unlimited.

#RomanBritain #HistoricalFiction #RomanHistory

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

The same man has his gravestone upstairs in same museum

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

Brilliant hologram live Roman Legionary Lucius Diddius Bassus at Dorset museum b you can even ask him questions!
@roman @legion @dorset @dorchester

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

Wonderful day out at the Birdlip Roman Festival great to see @Erminestreetguard gives me so many ideas 💡 for my books 📚 @roman @history @birdlip

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

We can’t give a weather forecast for the day
But evidence suggests Roman Britain exp a genmild climatic period — often called the Roman Warm Period.
doesn’t mean endless sunshine. Britain was still Britain: rain, storms and unpredictable weather were very much part of the pict.

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

What was the weather like when the Romans invaded Britain in AD 43?
We know Claudius sent four legions across the Channel — but what sort of Britain did they arrive in?
Was it colder than today? Wetter? Were the summers really as miserable as we imagine?

[Simon Gardner Author @SimonGauthor]

#RomanBritain #RomanHistory #AD43 #romaninvasion #roman