THE EARLY AGE OF GREECE VOL.I by W.Ridgeway 1901

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WHENCE CAME THE ACHEANS ? 371
south and east of England were undoubtedly xanthochrous, as is
clear from the description of Boudicca (Boadicea) which has
reached
us, and also from Caesar's statement that the people of
that part of Britain were the same as the Belgic tribes on the
other side of the channel. We shall presently see that it is
probable that in the north of England there were other tribes
of the fair-haired type, who at an epoch anterior to the settlement
of the Belgae in Britain had already got a foothold
there. Each body had found the small melanochrous race in
po.ssession and had either driven them back or reduced them to
subjection. But though the ancient writers regarded as homogeneous
all the fair-haired peoples dwelling north of the Alps,
nevertheless, the physical anthropologists divide them into two
distinct groups^
One of these is restricted to north-western Europe, having
its chief seat in Scandinavia. It is distinguished by a long
head and long face, a narrow a([uiline nose, blue eyes, very light
hair, and tall stature. Such ai-e the peoples who are conimoidy
termed Teutonic by modern writers.
The other has a round head, a broad face, a nose often
rather bi-oad and heavy, hazel-grey eyes, light chestnut hair,
and they are thick set and of medium height.
This race is
commonly called Celtic or Alpine from the
fact of its (jccurivnce all along the great mountain chain from
south-west France, in Savoy, Switzerland, the Po valley, and
the Tyi'ol, as well as in Auvei-giie, Brittany, Xorniand}',
Buigundy, the Ardennes, and the Vosgt'S.
It thus stands midway not only geogra]>hically but also in
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physical charactei'istics between the 'i'eutunic
tyj)e
of Scandinavia
and the Me(liteii'anean I'ace with its long head, long face,
its rather broad nose, dark hi-own or l)lack haii', dark eyes,
and a slendt'i- ti'anie of niedimu height.
The northei'U race has ever kt'pt j)i'essing
down on tlu>
bi-oad-skulled, ln'own cotii|ile\ioned
men of the Alps and
intermixing with them, and at times has swept right o\-er
the great, mountain chain inlo the tem])tiiig regiuns of the
372 WHENCE CAME THE ACHEANS ?
South. In its turn the Alpine race has pressed down upon
the melanochrous race of the Mediterranean either driven down
before the tall sons of the North, or swelling the hosts of the
latter as they swept down south.
As the natives of the southern peninsulas came into contact
with these mixed peoples, who though differing in cranial
formation, nevertheless varied little from each other in speech
and colour of the hair and eyes, the ancient writers not unnaturally
termed them all Celts. But as the most dreaded
of these Celtic tribes came down from the shores of the Baltic
and Northern Ocean, it is plain that the ancients applied the
name Celt to those peoples who are spoken of as Teutonic
in modern parlance.
Caesar's statement regarding the Celtic element in France
is very explicit and is in full accord with the general view
given by Diodorus.
Gaul was divided into three parts
;
the Belgae were in the
north: in the middle came those who "called themselves Celtae,
but who w^ere called Galli by the Romans " ;
these
were divided
from the Belgae by the Matrona (Marne) and the Sequana
(Seine): in the south-west lay the Aquitani, who were distinctly
Iberians, as we know from Strabo and other writers. Their
northern boundary had once extended up to
the Liger (Loire),
but by the Celtic conquests those of them who remained independent
were all driven south of the Cai'onne.
But though the Belgae and Celtae were the rulers in their
respective areas, it does not follow that there was not a large
remnant of the earlier population in their ten-itories. Indeed
Caesar makes it clear that such was the case. All the (Jauls,
he says, consisted of the nobles (nobile.s) and the common
])eople (j)lebs).
The foi'mer held all the |)ower, whilst the
latter wcic treated like slaves, had no voice in the council, and
were crushed by del)t, heavy taxes, and the injustice of the
powerful'.
From these two I'esjx'ctively
came two others the
Kquites and tlie Druids. The latter were the priests, and
performed all sacriHcos, wjiether public
oiprivate
; they
decided
(like the Iiish Brchons) in all cases of disj)ute, and if any
Cf. Arbois dc .Jubainvillc, rronicrs Ihihitdnt:^ de V Kitnijn-. vol. ii. p. 7.
l;ililr_V, y.'