The Celtic warrior: violent assemblages in the Iron Age of Britain

Professor Melanie Giles will be at Henley Business School, Whiteknights Campus on Wednesday 25 November, talking about the Celtic warrior and violence in Iron Age Britain. The lecture runs from 18:00 to 19:00 in room G11, and it's part of the University of Reading's Public Lecture Series.

Most of us have a pretty fixed image of the Iron Age: noble fighters, war-crazed charioteers, and fearsome swordsmen. Giles spends the hour pushing back on those stereotypes. She works from archaeological evidence found across Britain to look at how conflict actually changed in the centuries before the Romans arrived and the threat of conquest became a reality. The talk builds its case around the objects left behind — swords, shields, chariots, and war horns — and what they tell us about the people who used them.

Giles is a professor of European Prehistory at the University of Manchester and a fellow of the British Academy. Her research focuses on later prehistoric Europe, with a particular interest in Iron Age violence and burial, Celtic art, and warfare. This isn't just a general overview; it's her area of expertise.

The talk is the annual Richard Bradley lecture, held in honour of the Professor Emeritus of Archaeology whose work transformed how we see the archaeological past. It also sits within the University of Reading's Centenary programme, marking 100 years since the university was granted its Royal Charter in 1926. It's a free public lecture, running from 18:00 to 19:00 on Wednesday 25 November in G11 at Henley Business School, Whiteknights Campus.