Boadicea is a Super Hero

The final installment of the Harry Potter series comes out 4 months from today. There are rumors that 2 characters will meet their demise. Bookstores in the UK are planning on setting up counseling services to deal with the grief-stricken readers. I think Harry's a goner, but we will have to wait and see. Here is a fun fact that will interest the Harry fans out there...

In case you don't know the story of Boadicea, here it is in a nutshell. In AD 61 she was a queen of the Celtic people of Norfolk in Eastern Britain. Upon the death of her husband Prasutagus, the Romans annexed his kingdom and brutally humiliated Boadicea and her daughters. Lets just say "momma wasn't happy".

Boadicea gathered an army and then burned to the ground the twenty-year-old settlement of Londinium (London) and destroyed Verulamium (St Albans), killing an estimated 70,000-80,000 people. "I am fighting for my lost freedom, my bruised body and my outraged daughters" was her battle cry. Roman emperor Nero briefly considered withdrawing Roman forces from the island, but ultimately Boadicea was defeated. In true warrior-queen fashion, Boadicea and her daughters took poison rather than fall into the hands of the Romans.

In 1902 a statue in her honor was put in front of the Houses of Parliament. There on the banks of the Thames, you can see Boadicea and her daughters in their chariot ready to rumble.

What does this have to do with Harry Potter? Well, legend has it that Boadicea's grave lies somewhere between platform 9 and 10 at King's Cross train station in London. This is the reason why Harry Potter's Hogwarts Express leaves, magically from Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Today you can see a luggage cart embedded into the wall and Harry fans young and old go and get their picture taken there.

There is a song on my Mom-pod called Boadicea...can you tell me who it is by?