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Finis Britanniae: A Military History of Late Roman Britain and the Saxon Conquest
A new analysis of the evidence shows that the end of the Roman era and birth of Anglo-Saxon rule in Britain was a long, drawn out process and that much of the nuances have been lost over time. This fascinating insight into an often neglected time in history offers an important re-evaluation of the period.
The end of Roman Britain and the Saxon invasions were part of the most disruptive period in Britain’s history, ending centuries of relative stability as a Roman province and beginning centuries of invasion and destruction. It is a period which is also difficult to understand, coming at the end of the Roman era and in the pre-dawn of the Medieval. It is a Dark Age, both in terms of our apparent lack of source material and in our understanding of events. As a result, several legendary figures appear – it is the age of Arthur, Merlin and others; figures steeped in mystery, mysticism and magic, allowed to thrive in the paucity of the source material.
In this new analysis, Murray Dahm explores the military history of the long end of Roman Britain, going back to the roots of the province’s final rupture from Rome in the fifth century and the subsequent invasions. Using a wide array of sources, the author illuminates this dark world and examines what we know (or what we think we know) of the Angle, Jute, Saxon and other invasions that took advantage of Rome’s absence and which, in their own way, shaped the Britain of today.
The end of Roman Britain and the Saxon invasions were part of the most disruptive period in Britain’s history, ending centuries of relative stability as a Roman province and beginning centuries of invasion and destruction. It is a period which is also difficult to understand, coming at the end of the Roman era and in the pre-dawn of the Medieval. It is a Dark Age, both in terms of our apparent lack of source material and in our understanding of events. As a result, several legendary figures appear – it is the age of Arthur, Merlin and others; figures steeped in mystery, mysticism and magic, allowed to thrive in the paucity of the source material.
In this new analysis, Murray Dahm explores the military history of the long end of Roman Britain, going back to the roots of the province’s final rupture from Rome in the fifth century and the subsequent invasions. Using a wide array of sources, the author illuminates this dark world and examines what we know (or what we think we know) of the Angle, Jute, Saxon and other invasions that took advantage of Rome’s absence and which, in their own way, shaped the Britain of today.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published March 15, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 8, 2025
The author does an excellent job bringing together a wide variety of sources on the subject, and teasing a narrative out of some very disparate accounts. However, I feel like he doesn't succeed in giving the book a clear thesis, and it ends up being quite a cumbersome read.
September 11, 2026
Murray Dahm’s Finis Britanniae is an engaging exploration of one of the most dramatic turning points in British history: the collapse of Roman rule and the emergence of Anglo-Saxon Britain.
What sets this book apart is its military focus, moving beyond the familiar story of the Romans leaving and the Saxons arriving, examining warfare, fortifications, armies and the changing political landscape that shaped Britain’s transformation.
I particularly liked the occasional asides, which show the period as brutal as anything in ‘Game of Thrones’:
"Hengist prepared an entertainment, to which he invited the king, the nobles and military officers. He ordered three hundred Saxons to conceal each a knife under his feet, and to mix with the Britons, and when they are sufficiently inebriated, he would cry out, ‘Nimeder Sexa!’ the let each draw his knife and kill his man, by which were slain three hundred nobles of Vortigern." (Save the king, held for ransom.)
Accessible and thought-provoking, Finis Britanniae is recommended to anyone interested in Roman Britain, Anglo-Saxon England or early medieval warfare. It brings a fascinating but often misunderstood period to life.
Tony Riches
What sets this book apart is its military focus, moving beyond the familiar story of the Romans leaving and the Saxons arriving, examining warfare, fortifications, armies and the changing political landscape that shaped Britain’s transformation.
I particularly liked the occasional asides, which show the period as brutal as anything in ‘Game of Thrones’:
"Hengist prepared an entertainment, to which he invited the king, the nobles and military officers. He ordered three hundred Saxons to conceal each a knife under his feet, and to mix with the Britons, and when they are sufficiently inebriated, he would cry out, ‘Nimeder Sexa!’ the let each draw his knife and kill his man, by which were slain three hundred nobles of Vortigern." (Save the king, held for ransom.)
Accessible and thought-provoking, Finis Britanniae is recommended to anyone interested in Roman Britain, Anglo-Saxon England or early medieval warfare. It brings a fascinating but often misunderstood period to life.
Tony Riches
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews