The Eagle - Blood and Steel With Shreds of History

            The Eagle (2011) is a film set in the year 140 CE on the island of Britain.  It follows the story of a Roman centurion by the name of Marcus Flavius Aquila.  Marcus’ father was the commander of the 9^th legion who 20 years prior to this movie marched 5000 men into the unconquered territory in northern Britain.  During this incursion the 9^th legion vanished along with their standard, the golden eagle.  The Aquila family has been shamed because of the loss of the eagle and Marcus must fight with this fact as he takes his first command.  Eventually Marcus hears rumors that one of the northern tribes holds the eagle and he along with his slave Esca set out to try to retrieve it and regain his families honor. 

            This movie is not a go to movie for teaching about the Middle ages.  It is a movie about one man’s struggle to regain his families honor as a soldier.  It does hold some historic significance in teaching about Roman military.  For the most part this is an action movie with little bits of history sprinkled in.  The thing it shows best is the strained relationship between the Romans and the natives of Britain.  In all it is a very entertaining and good movie that has bits of history sprinkled in but relaying history is not the main purpose. 

            The first problem this story runs into is in the preface.  The movie states that Marcus’ father was sent into the unconquered lands of northern Britain where they vanished.  According to the movie “Shamed by this great loss, the Emperor Hadrian ordered the construction of a giant wall to cut off the north of Britain forever.  Hadrian’s Wall marked the end of the known world” (2:07).  According to historians at History.com this is wrong.  They state that “by the time Emperor Hadrian came to power in 117 A.D., the Romans no longer sought to expand their territory.  Instead, they wanted to protect what they had – from the Caledonians and others” (History.com Editors).  Also, that the wall was built by Roman governors to protect their territory from the barbarians of the north.  Not because some legion was lost along with their standard.  According to Judith Bennett "barbarians lurked threateningly on the borders of the empire; Roman troops made and unmade emperors so often that (to exaggerate only slightly) a man might be a general one day, emperor the next, and dead the third..." (Bennett, 8).  This is both seen and mentioned early on in the film.  It is mentioned when Marcus tells his second in command to send out a patrol to discover what has happened to the food delivery.  His second tries to advise him not to stating that there have been sightings of a druid about.  The threat the barbarians posed is seen soon after.  Marcus wakes up during the night just before a raid launched by the barbarians.  

           According to Joshua J. Mark, an editor and director of the Ancient History Encyclopedia, the movie is correct in just how important the standard was to the Roman military.  He states “So important was the Standard to the armies of Rome that battles were fought for their return… The Standard, then, represented not only the legion or cohort which carried it but the citizens of Rome, and the policies the army represented” (Mark).  This meant to lose one of these standards was to lose a piece of Rome. 

            The bits of history that this movie focuses on are Roman military practices and beliefs.  It does a great job depicting Roman fighting stiles and the importance of their standards to them.  As well as showing their armor and equipment.  However, it does bend some facts to make the story more exciting and important than it really was.  

Bennett, Judith M. Medieval Europe: a Short History. 11th ed., Langara College, 2016.

History.com Editors. “Hadrian's Wall.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 19 Jan.          2018, https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-rome/hadrians-wall.

Mark, Joshua J. “Roman Standard.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, Ancient History Encyclopedia, 2 Sept. 2019, https://www.ancient.eu/Roman_Standard/.