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I copy the following note from my fellow Roman historian, Colin Wells: The Roman army did use camels, but not in Britain. We find units of dromedarii on the desert frontiers. The exotic animals that the Romans brought to Britain were elephants, whose smell is also said to disturb horses, unless they are trained to get used to it. And it was for Claudius's invasion of Britain in 43 that the elephants were brought across (you will find the reference in Cassius Dio's account, 55.21); there is no mention of the beasts at the time of Boudicca's rebellion in 61. It has moreover been suggested, for instance by Dudley and Webster, The Roman Invasion of Britain, London, 1965, that the elephants may have been "more ... for ceremonial than military purposes" (p. 73): "the elephants -- a thoughtful touch -- were there for the triumphal entry into Camulodunum" (p. 78). Collingwood a generation earlier spoke of an "elephant corps", which I think is surely exaggerated. The Romans understood the ceremonial value of elephants. I have always liked the story of Pompey's deciding to celebrate a spectacular triumph in a chariot drawn by elephants that he had specially brought back for that purpose from his campaigns in North Africa, until he discovered that the elephants would not fit through the city gates. He used horses. Hope this helps solve the problem, Colin Wells This has been a most interesting correspondence. Susan Treggiari