Britain under Roman rule (43 AD ? c. 410 AD)
Roman Britain
was the territory that became the
Roman province
of
Britannia
after the
Roman conquest of Britain
, consisting of a large part of the island of
Great Britain
. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410.
[1]
[2]
Julius Caesar
invaded Britain
in 55 and 54 BC as part of his
Gallic Wars
.
[3]
According to Caesar, the
Britons
had been overrun or culturally assimilated by the
Belgae
during the
British Iron Age
and had been aiding Caesar's enemies. The Belgae were the only
Celtic tribe
to cross the sea into Britain, for to all other Celtic tribes this land was unknown.
[4]
He received tribute, installed the friendly king
Mandubracius
over the
Trinovantes
, and returned to
Gaul
. Planned invasions under
Augustus
were called off in 34, 27, and 25 BC. In 40 AD,
Caligula
assembled 200,000 men at the
Channel
on the continent, only to have them gather seashells (
musculi
) according to
Suetonius
, perhaps as a symbolic gesture to proclaim Caligula's victory over the sea.
[5]
Three years later,
Claudius
directed four legions to invade Britain and restore the exiled king
Verica
over the
Atrebates
.
[6]
The Romans defeated the
Catuvellauni
, and then organized their conquests as the province of Britain. By 47 AD, the Romans held the lands southeast of the
Fosse Way
. Control over Wales was delayed by reverses and the effects of
Boudica's uprising
, but the Romans expanded steadily northwards.
The conquest of Britain continued under command of
Gnaeus Julius Agricola
(77?84), who expanded the Roman Empire as far as
Caledonia
. In mid-84 AD, Agricola faced the armies of the
Caledonians
, led by
Calgacus
, at the
Battle of Mons Graupius
. Battle casualties were estimated by
Tacitus
to be upwards of 10,000 on the Caledonian side and about 360 on the Roman side. The bloodbath at Mons Graupius concluded the forty-year conquest of Britain, a period that possibly saw between 100,000 and 250,000 Britons killed.
[7]
In the context of pre-industrial warfare and of a total population of Britain of
c.
2 million, these are very high figures.
[8]
Under the 2nd-century emperors
Hadrian
and
Antoninus Pius
,
two walls
were built to defend the Roman province from the Caledonians, whose realms in the
Scottish Highlands
were never controlled. Around 197 AD, the
Severan Reforms
divided Britain into two provinces:
Britannia Superior
and
Britannia Inferior
.
[9]
During the
Diocletian Reforms
, at the end of the 3rd century, Britannia was divided into four provinces under the direction of a
vicarius
, who administered the
Diocese of the Britains
.
[10]
A fifth province,
Valentia
, is attested in the later 4th century. For much of the later period of the Roman occupation, Britannia was subject to
barbarian
invasions and often came under the control of imperial
usurpers
and
imperial pretenders
. The
final Roman withdrawal from Britain
occurred around 410; the native kingdoms are considered to have formed
Sub-Roman Britain
after that.
Following the conquest of the Britons, a distinctive
Romano-British culture
emerged as the Romans introduced improved
agriculture
,
urban planning
,
industrial production
, and
architecture
. The Roman goddess
Britannia
became the female personification of Britain. After the initial invasions,
Roman historians
generally only mention Britain in passing. Thus, most present knowledge derives from
archaeological
investigations and occasional
epigraphic
evidence lauding the Britannic achievements of an
emperor
.
[11]
Roman citizens settled in Britain from many parts of the Empire.
[12]
History
[
edit
]
Early contact
[
edit
]
Britain was known to the
Classical world
. The
Greeks
, the
Phoenicians
and the
Carthaginians
traded for
Cornish
tin
in the 4th century BC.
[13]
The Greeks referred to the
Cassiterides
, or "tin islands", and placed them near the west coast of Europe.
[14]
The Carthaginian sailor
Himilco
is said to have visited the island in the 6th or 5th century BC and the Greek explorer
Pytheas
in the 4th. It was regarded as a place of mystery, with some writers refusing to believe it existed.
[15]
The first direct Roman contact was when
Julius Caesar
undertook two expeditions in 55 and 54 BC, as part of his conquest of
Gaul
, believing the Britons were helping the Gallic resistance. The first expedition was more a reconnaissance than a full invasion and gained a foothold on the coast of
Kent
but was unable to advance further because of storm damage to the ships and a lack of cavalry. Despite the military failure, it was a political success, with the
Roman Senate
declaring a 20-day public holiday in Rome to honour the unprecedented achievement of obtaining hostages from Britain and defeating
Belgic
tribes on returning to the continent.
[16]
The second invasion involved a substantially larger force and Caesar coerced or invited many of the native Celtic tribes to pay tribute and give hostages in return for peace. A friendly local king,
Mandubracius
, was installed, and his rival,
Cassivellaunus
, was brought to terms. Hostages were taken, but historians disagree over whether any tribute was paid after Caesar returned to Gaul.
[17]
Caesar conquered no territory and left no troops behind, but he established
clients
and brought Britain into Rome's
sphere of influence
.
Augustus
planned invasions in 34, 27 and 25 BC, but circumstances were never favourable,
[18]
and the relationship between Britain and Rome settled into one of diplomacy and trade.
Strabo
, writing late in Augustus's reign, claimed that taxes on trade brought in more annual revenue than any conquest could.
[19]
Archaeology shows that there was an increase in imported luxury goods in southeastern Britain.
[20]
Strabo also mentions British kings who sent embassies to Augustus, and Augustus's own
Res Gestae
refers to two British kings he received as refugees.
[21]
When some of
Tiberius
's ships were carried to Britain in a storm during his campaigns in
Germany
in 16 AD, they came back with tales of monsters.
[22]
Rome appears to have encouraged a balance of power in southern Britain, supporting two powerful kingdoms: the
Catuvellauni
, ruled by the descendants of
Tasciovanus
, and the
Atrebates
, ruled by the descendants of
Commius
.
[23]
This policy was followed until 39 or 40 AD, when
Caligula
received an exiled member of the Catuvellaunian dynasty and planned an invasion of Britain that collapsed in farcical circumstances before it left Gaul.
[24]
[25]
When
Claudius
successfully invaded in 43 AD, it was in aid of another fugitive British ruler,
Verica
of the Atrebates.
Roman invasion
[
edit
]
The invasion force in 43 AD was led by
Aulus Plautius
,
[26]
but it is unclear how many
legions
were sent. The
Legio II Augusta
, commanded by future emperor
Vespasian
, was the only one directly attested to have taken part.
[27]
The
Legio IX Hispana
,
[28]
the
XIV Gemina
(later styled
Martia Victrix
) and the
XX
(later styled
Valeria Victrix
)
[29]
are known to have served during the
Boudican revolt
of 60/61, and were probably there since the initial invasion. This is not certain because the
Roman army
was flexible, with units being moved around whenever necessary. The
IX Hispana
may have been permanently stationed, with records showing it at
Eboracum
(
York
) in 71 and on a building inscription there dated 108, before being destroyed in the east of the Empire, possibly during the
Bar Kokhba revolt
.
[30]
The invasion was delayed by a troop mutiny until an imperial
freedman
persuaded them to overcome their fear of crossing the
Ocean
and campaigning beyond the limits of the known world. They sailed in three divisions, and probably landed at
Richborough
in
Kent
; at least part of the force may have landed near
Fishbourne, West Sussex
.
[31]
Conquests under Aulus Plautius, focused on the commercially valuable southeast of Britain
The Catuvellauni and their allies were defeated in two battles: the first, assuming a Richborough landing, on the
river Medway
, the second on the
river Thames
. One of their leaders,
Togodumnus
, was killed, but his brother
Caratacus
survived to continue resistance elsewhere. Plautius halted at the Thames and sent for Claudius, who arrived with reinforcements, including artillery and elephants, for the final march to the Catuvellaunian capital,
Camulodunum
(
Colchester
). Vespasian subdued the southwest,
[32]
Cogidubnus
was set up as a friendly king of several territories,
[33]
and treaties were made with tribes outside direct Roman control.
Establishment of Roman rule
[
edit
]
Roman invasion of Britain
-
Roman campaigns 43?60
-
Agricola's campaigns
After capturing the south of the island, the Romans turned their attention to what is now
Wales
. The
Silures
,
Ordovices
and
Deceangli
remained implacably opposed to the invaders and for the first few decades were the focus of Roman military attention, despite occasional minor revolts among Roman allies like the
Brigantes
and the
Iceni
. The Silures were led by
Caratacus
, and he carried out an effective
guerrilla
campaign against Governor
Publius Ostorius Scapula
. Finally, in 51, Ostorius lured Caratacus into a set-piece battle and
defeated him
. The British leader sought refuge among the Brigantes, but their queen,
Cartimandua
, proved her loyalty by surrendering him to the Romans. He was brought as a captive to Rome, where a
dignified speech
he made during Claudius's triumph persuaded the emperor to spare his life. The Silures were still not pacified, and Cartimandua's ex-husband
Venutius
replaced Caratacus as the most prominent leader of British resistance.
[34]
On
Nero
's accession, Roman Britain extended as far north as
Lindum
.
Gaius Suetonius Paulinus
, the conqueror of
Mauretania
(modern day
Algeria
and
Morocco
), then became governor of Britain, and in 60 and 61 he moved against Mona (
Anglesey
) to settle accounts with
Druidism
once and for all. Paulinus led his army across the
Menai Strait
and massacred the Druids and burnt their sacred groves.
While Paulinus was
campaigning in Mona
, the southeast of Britain rose in revolt under the leadership of
Boudica
. She was the widow of the recently deceased king of the Iceni, Prasutagus. The Roman historian Tacitus reports that Prasutagus had left a will leaving half his kingdom to Nero in the hope that the remainder would be left untouched. He was wrong. When his will was enforced, Rome
[
clarification needed
]
responded by violently seizing the tribe's lands in full. Boudica protested. In consequence, Rome
[
clarification needed
]
punished her and her daughters by flogging and rape. In response, the Iceni, joined by the
Trinovantes
, destroyed the Roman colony at Camulodunum (
Colchester
) and
routed
the part of the IXth Legion that was sent to relieve it. Paulinus rode to
London
(then called
Londinium
), the rebels' next target, but concluded it could not be defended. Abandoned, it was destroyed, as was
Verulamium
(St. Albans). Between seventy and eighty thousand people are said to have been killed in the three cities. But Paulinus regrouped with two of the three legions still available to him, chose a battlefield, and, despite being outnumbered by more than twenty to one, defeated the rebels in the
Battle of Watling Street
. Boudica died not long afterwards, by self-administered poison or by illness.
[35]
[36]
During this time, the Emperor Nero considered withdrawing Roman forces from Britain altogether.
[37]
Templeborough Roman fort
in South Yorkshire. The reconstruction was created for Rotherham Museums and Galleries.
There was further turmoil in 69, the "
Year of the Four Emperors
". As civil war raged in Rome, weak governors were unable to control the legions in Britain, and Venutius of the Brigantes seized his chance. The Romans had previously defended Cartimandua against him, but this time were unable to do so. Cartimandua was evacuated, and Venutius was left in control of the north of the country. After Vespasian secured the empire, his first two appointments as governor,
Quintus Petillius Cerialis
and
Sextus Julius Frontinus
, took on the task of subduing the Brigantes and Silures respectively.
[38]
Frontinus extended Roman rule to all of
South Wales
, and initiated exploitation of the mineral resources, such as the
gold mines
at
Dolaucothi
.
In the following years, the Romans conquered more of the island, increasing the size of Roman Britain. Governor
Gnaeus Julius Agricola
, father-in-law to the historian
Tacitus
, conquered the
Ordovices
in 78. With the
XX Valeria Victrix
legion, Agricola defeated the
Caledonians
in 84 at the
Battle of Mons Graupius
, in north-east Scotland.
[39]
This was the high-water mark of Roman territory in Britain: shortly after his victory, Agricola was recalled from Britain back to Rome and awarded the ornaments of a triumph, before returning to continue as governor. By 87 the decision was taken to abandon most of the land north of the
Cheviot Hills
allowing for troops to be moved to other frontiers which were under pressure. Tacitus reports Agricola as feeling bitter about this turn of events.
[40]
For much of the history of Roman Britain, a large number of soldiers were garrisoned on the island. This required that the emperor station a trusted senior man as governor of the province. As a result, many future emperors served as governors or legates in this province, including
Vespasian
,
Pertinax
, and
Gordian I
.
Roman military organisation in the north
Occupation of and retreat from southern Scotland
[
edit
]
There is no historical source describing the decades that followed Agricola's recall. Even the name of his replacement is unknown. Archaeology has shown that some
Roman forts
south of the Forth?Clyde isthmus were rebuilt and enlarged; others appear to have been abandoned. By 87 the frontier had been consolidated on the
Stanegate
. Roman coins and pottery have been found circulating at native settlement sites in the
Scottish Lowlands
in the years before 100, indicating growing
Romanisation
. Some of the most important sources for this era are the writing tablets from the fort at
Vindolanda
in
Northumberland
, mostly dating to 90?110. These tablets provide evidence for the operation of a Roman fort at the edge of the Roman Empire, where officers' wives maintained polite society while merchants, hauliers and military personnel kept the fort operational and supplied.
Around 105 there appears to have been a serious setback at the hands of the tribes of the
Picts
: several Roman forts were destroyed by fire, with human remains and damaged
armour
at
Trimontium
(at modern
Newstead
, in SE Scotland) indicating hostilities at least at that site.
[
citation needed
]
There is also circumstantial evidence that auxiliary reinforcements were sent from Germany, and an unnamed British war of the period is mentioned on the gravestone of a
tribune
of
Cyrene
.
Trajan's Dacian Wars
may have led to troop reductions in the area or even total withdrawal followed by slighting of the forts by the Picts rather than an unrecorded military defeat. The Romans were also in the habit of destroying their own forts during an orderly withdrawal, in order to deny resources to an enemy. In either case, the frontier probably moved south to the line of the
Stanegate
at the
Solway
?
Tyne
isthmus around this time.
Hadrian's Wall
viewed looking east from
Housesteads Roman Fort
(Vercovicium)
Prima Europe tabula
. A 1486
woodcut
copy of
Ptolemy
's 2nd-century map of Roman Britain
A new crisis occurred at the beginning of
Hadrian
's reign (117): a rising in the north which was suppressed by
Quintus Pompeius Falco
. When Hadrian reached Britannia on his famous tour of the Roman provinces around 120, he directed an extensive defensive wall, known to posterity as
Hadrian's Wall
, to be built close to the line of the Stanegate frontier. Hadrian appointed
Aulus Platorius Nepos
as governor to undertake this work who brought the
Legio VI Victrix
legion with him from
Germania Inferior
. This replaced the famous
Legio IX Hispana
, whose disappearance has been much discussed. Archaeology indicates considerable political instability in Scotland during the first half of the 2nd century, and the shifting frontier at this time should be seen in this context.
In the reign of
Antoninus Pius
(138?161) the Hadrianic border was briefly extended north to the Forth?Clyde isthmus, where the
Antonine Wall
was built around 142 following the military reoccupation of the Scottish lowlands by a new governor,
Quintus Lollius Urbicus
.
The first Antonine occupation of Scotland ended as a result of a further crisis in 155?157, when the
Brigantes
revolted. With limited options to despatch reinforcements, the Romans moved their troops south, and this rising was suppressed by Governor
Gnaeus Julius Verus
. Within a year the Antonine Wall was recaptured, but by 163 or 164 it was abandoned. The second occupation was probably connected with Antoninus's undertakings to protect the
Votadini
or his pride in enlarging the empire, since the retreat to the Hadrianic frontier occurred not long after his death when a more objective strategic assessment of the benefits of the Antonine Wall could be made. The Romans did not entirely withdraw from Scotland at this time: the large fort at Newstead was maintained along with seven smaller outposts until at least 180.
During the twenty-year period following the reversion of the frontier to Hadrian's Wall in 163/4, Rome was concerned with continental issues, primarily
problems in the Danubian provinces
. Increasing numbers of
hoards
of buried coins in Britain at this time indicate that peace was not entirely achieved. Sufficient Roman silver has been found in Scotland to suggest more than ordinary trade, and it is likely that the Romans were reinforcing treaty agreements by paying tribute to their implacable enemies, the
Picts
.
In 175, a large force of
Sarmatian
cavalry, consisting of 5,500 men, arrived in Britannia, probably to reinforce troops fighting unrecorded uprisings. In 180, Hadrian's Wall was breached by the Picts and the commanding officer or governor was killed there in what
Cassius Dio
described as the most serious war of the reign of
Commodus
.
Ulpius Marcellus
was sent as replacement governor and by 184 he had won a new peace, only to be faced with a mutiny from his own troops. Unhappy with Marcellus's strictness, they tried to elect a legate named
Priscus
as usurper governor; he refused, but Marcellus was lucky to leave the province alive. The Roman army in Britannia continued its insubordination: they sent a delegation of 1,500 to Rome to demand the execution of
Tigidius Perennis
, a
Praetorian prefect
who they felt had earlier wronged them by posting lowly
equites
to legate ranks in Britannia. Commodus met the party outside Rome and agreed to have Perennis killed, but this only made them feel more secure in their mutiny.
The future emperor
Pertinax
(lived 126?193) was sent to Britannia to quell the mutiny and was initially successful in regaining control, but a riot broke out among the troops. Pertinax was attacked and left for dead, and asked to be recalled to Rome, where he briefly succeeded
Commodus
as emperor in 192.
3rd century
[
edit
]
The death of Commodus put into motion a series of events which eventually led to civil war. Following the short reign of Pertinax, several rivals for the emperorship emerged, including
Septimius Severus
and
Clodius Albinus
. The latter was the new governor of Britannia, and had seemingly won the natives over after their earlier rebellions; he also controlled three legions, making him a potentially significant claimant. His sometime rival Severus promised him the title of
Caesar
in return for Albinus's support against
Pescennius Niger
in the east. Once Niger was neutralised, Severus turned on his ally in Britannia; it is likely that Albinus saw he would be the next target and was already preparing for war.
Albinus crossed to
Gaul
in 195, where the provinces were also sympathetic to him, and set up at
Lugdunum
. Severus arrived in February 196, and the ensuing battle was decisive. Albinus came close to victory, but Severus's reinforcements won the day, and the British governor committed suicide. Severus soon purged Albinus's sympathisers and perhaps confiscated large tracts of land in Britain as punishment. Albinus had demonstrated the major problem posed by Roman Britain. In order to maintain security, the province required the presence of three legions, but command of these forces provided an ideal power base for ambitious rivals. Deploying those legions elsewhere would strip the island of its garrison, leaving the province defenceless against uprisings by the native Celtic tribes and against invasion by the
Picts
and
Scots
.
The traditional view is that northern Britain descended into anarchy during Albinus's absence. Cassius Dio records that the new Governor,
Virius Lupus
, was obliged to buy peace from a fractious northern tribe known as the
Maeatae
. The succession of militarily distinguished governors who were subsequently appointed suggests that enemies of Rome were posing a difficult challenge, and
Lucius Alfenus Senecio
's report to Rome in 207 describes barbarians "rebelling, over-running the land, taking loot and creating destruction". In order to rebel, of course, one must be a subject ? the Maeatae clearly did not consider themselves such. Senecio requested either reinforcements or an Imperial expedition, and Severus chose the latter, despite being 62 years old. Archaeological evidence shows that Senecio had been rebuilding the defences of Hadrian's Wall and the forts beyond it, and Severus's arrival in Britain prompted the enemy tribes to sue for peace immediately. The emperor had not come all that way to leave without a victory, and it is likely that he wished to provide his teenage sons
Caracalla
and
Geta
with first-hand experience of controlling a hostile barbarian land.
Northern campaigns, 208?211
An
invasion of Caledonia
led by Severus and probably numbering around 20,000 troops moved north in 208 or 209, crossing the Wall and passing through eastern Scotland on a route similar to that used by Agricola. Harried by punishing guerrilla raids by the northern tribes and slowed by an unforgiving terrain, Severus was unable to meet the Caledonians on a battlefield. The emperor's forces pushed north as far as the
River Tay
, but little appears to have been achieved by the invasion, as peace treaties were signed with the Caledonians. By 210 Severus had returned to York, and the frontier had once again become Hadrian's Wall. He assumed the title
Britannicus
but the title meant little with regard to the unconquered north, which clearly remained outside the authority of the Empire. Almost immediately, another northern tribe, the Maeatae, went to war. Caracalla left with a
punitive expedition
, but by the following year his ailing father had died and he and his brother left the province to press their claim to the throne.
As one of his last acts, Severus tried to solve the problem of powerful and rebellious governors in Britain by dividing the province into
Britannia Superior
and
Britannia Inferior
. This kept the potential for rebellion in check for almost a century. Historical sources provide little information on the following decades, a period known as the Long Peace. Even so, the number of buried hoards found from this period rises, suggesting continuing unrest. A string of forts were built along the coast of southern Britain to control piracy; and over the following hundred years they increased in number, becoming the
Saxon Shore Forts
.
During the middle of the 3rd century, the Roman Empire was convulsed by barbarian invasions, rebellions and new imperial pretenders. Britannia apparently avoided these troubles, but increasing
inflation
had its economic effect. In 259 a so-called
Gallic Empire
was established when
Postumus
rebelled against
Gallienus
. Britannia was part of this until 274 when
Aurelian
reunited the empire.
Around the year 280, a half-
British
officer named
Bonosus
was in command of the Roman's
Rhenish fleet
when the
Germans
managed to burn it at anchor. To avoid punishment, he
proclaimed himself emperor
at
Colonia Agrippina
(
Cologne
) but was crushed by
Marcus Aurelius Probus
. Soon afterwards, an unnamed
governor
of one of the British provinces also attempted an uprising. Probus put it down by sending irregular troops of
Vandals
and
Burgundians
across the Channel.
The
Carausian Revolt
led to a short-lived
Britannic Empire
from 286 to 296.
Carausius
was a
Menapian
naval
commander of the
Britannic fleet
; he revolted upon learning of a death sentence ordered by the emperor
Maximian
on charges of having abetted
Frankish
and
Saxon
pirates
and having embezzled recovered treasure. He consolidated control over all the provinces of Britain and some of northern Gaul while Maximian dealt with other uprisings. An invasion in 288 failed to unseat him and an uneasy peace ensued, with Carausius issuing coins and inviting official recognition. In 293, the
junior emperor
Constantius Chlorus
launched a second offensive, besieging the rebel port of
Gesoriacum
(
Boulogne-sur-Mer
) by land and sea. After it fell, Constantius attacked Carausius's other Gallic holdings and Frankish allies and Carausius was usurped by his treasurer,
Allectus
.
Julius Asclepiodotus
landed an invasion fleet near
Southampton
and defeated Allectus in a land battle.
[41]
Diocletian's reforms
[
edit
]
One possible arrangement of the late Roman provinces, with
Valentia
between the walls
Another possible arrangement, with other possible placements of
Valentia
noted
As part of
Diocletian's reforms
, the provinces of Roman Britain were organized as a
diocese
governed by a
vicarius
under a
praetorian prefect
who, from 318 to 331, was
Junius Bassus
who was based at
Augusta Treverorum
(
Trier
).
The
vicarius
was based at Londinium as the principal city of the diocese.
[42]
Londinium and Eboracum continued as provincial capitals and the territory was divided up into smaller provinces for administrative efficiency.
Civilian and military authority of a province was no longer exercised by one official and the governor was stripped of military command which was handed over to the
Dux Britanniarum
by 314. The governor of a province assumed more financial duties (the procurators of the Treasury ministry were slowly phased out in the first three decades of the 4th century). The Dux was commander of the troops of the Northern Region, primarily along Hadrian's Wall and his responsibilities included protection of the frontier. He had significant autonomy due in part to the distance from his superiors.
[43]
The tasks of the
vicarius
were to control and coordinate the activities of governors; monitor but not interfere with the daily functioning of the Treasury and Crown Estates, which had their own administrative infrastructure; and act as the regional quartermaster-general of the armed forces. In short, as the sole civilian official with superior authority, he had general oversight of the administration, as well as direct control, while not absolute, over governors who were part of the prefecture; the other two fiscal departments were not.
The early-4th-century
Verona List
, the late-4th-century work of
Sextus Rufus
, and the early-5th-century
List of Offices
and work of
Polemius Silvius
all list four provinces by some variation of the names
Britannia I
,
Britannia II
,
Maxima Caesariensis
, and
Flavia Caesariensis
; all of these seem to have initially been directed by a
governor
(
praeses
) of
equestrian
rank. The 5th-century sources list a fifth province named
Valentia
and give its governor and Maxima's a
consular
rank.
[a]
Ammianus
mentions Valentia as well, describing its creation by
Count Theodosius
in 369 after the quelling of the
Great Conspiracy
. Ammianus considered it a re-creation of a formerly lost province,
[44]
leading some to think there had been an earlier fifth province under another name (may be the enigmatic "Vespasiana"?
[45]
), and leading others to place Valentia beyond
Hadrian's Wall
, in the territory abandoned south of the
Antonine Wall
.
Reconstructions of the provinces and provincial capitals during this period partially rely on
ecclesiastical
records. On the assumption that the early bishoprics mimicked the imperial hierarchy, scholars use the list of bishops for the
314 Council of Arles
. The list is patently corrupt: the British delegation is given as including a
Bishop "Eborius"
of
Eboracum
and two bishops "from
Londinium
" (one
de civitate Londinensi
and the other
de civitate colonia Londinensium
).
[b]
The error is variously emended:
Bishop Ussher
proposed
Colonia
,
[48]
Selden
Col.
or
Colon. Camalodun.
,
[49]
and
Spelman
Colonia Cameloduni
[50]
(all various names of
Colchester
);
[c]
Gale
[52]
and
Bingham
[53]
offered
colonia Lindi
and
Henry
[54]
Colonia Lindum
(both
Lincoln
); and
Bishop Stillingfleet
[55]
and
Francis Thackeray
read it as a
scribal error
of
Civ. Col. Londin.
for an original
Civ. Col. Leg. II
(
Caerleon
).
[47]
On the basis of the Verona List, the priest and deacon who accompanied the bishops in some manuscripts are ascribed to the fourth province.
In the 12th century,
Gerald of Wales
described the supposedly
metropolitan sees
of the
early British church
established by the legendary
SS
Fagan
and "
Duvian
". He placed
Britannia Prima
in
Wales
and western England with its capital at "
Urbs Legionum
" (
Caerleon
);
Britannia Secunda
in
Kent
and southern England with its capital at "
Dorobernia
" (
Canterbury
);
Flavia
in
Mercia
and central England with its capital at "
Lundonia
" (
London
); "
Maximia
" in northern England with its capital at
Eboracum
(
York
); and
Valentia
in "
Albania
which is now
Scotland
" with its capital at
St Andrews
.
[56]
Modern scholars generally dispute the last: some place Valentia at or beyond
Hadrian's Wall
but St Andrews is beyond even the
Antonine Wall
and Gerald seems to have simply been supporting the antiquity of its church for political reasons.
A common modern reconstruction places the consular province of Maxima at Londinium, on the basis of its status as the seat of the diocesan
vicarius
; places Prima in the west according to Gerald's traditional account but moves its capital to
Corinium
of the
Dobunni
(
Cirencester
) on the basis of an artifact recovered there referring to Lucius Septimius, a provincial
rector
; places Flavia north of Maxima, with its capital placed at
Lindum Colonia
(
Lincoln
) to match one emendation of the bishops list from Arles;
[d]
and places Secunda in the north with its capital at Eboracum (York). Valentia is placed variously in northern Wales around
Deva
(
Chester
); beside
Hadrian's Wall
around
Luguvalium
(
Carlisle
); and between the walls along
Dere Street
.
4th century
[
edit
]
4th century Roman towns and villas
4th century: Degree of Romanisation
Emperor Constantius returned to Britain in 306, despite his poor health, with an army aiming to invade northern Britain, the provincial defences having been rebuilt in the preceding years. Little is known of his campaigns with scant archaeological evidence, but fragmentary historical sources suggest he reached the far north of Britain and won a major battle in early summer before returning south. His son Constantine (later
Constantine the Great
) spent a year in northern Britain at his father's side, campaigning against the
Picts
beyond
Hadrian's Wall
in the summer and autumn.
[58]
Constantius died in
York
in July 306 with his son at his side. Constantine then successfully used Britain as the starting point of his march to the imperial throne, unlike the earlier usurper, Albinus.
In the middle of the century, the province was loyal for a few years to the usurper
Magnentius
, who succeeded
Constans
following the latter's death. After the defeat and death of Magnentius in the
Battle of Mons Seleucus
in 353,
Constantius II
dispatched his chief imperial notary
Paulus Catena
to Britain to hunt down Magnentius's supporters. The investigation deteriorated into a
witch-hunt
, which forced the
vicarius
Flavius Martinus
to intervene. When Paulus retaliated by accusing Martinus of treason, the
vicarius
attacked Paulus with a sword, with the aim of assassinating him, but in the end he committed suicide.
As the 4th century progressed, there were increasing attacks from the
Saxons
in the east and the
Scoti
(Irish) in the west. A series of forts had been built, starting around 280, to defend the coasts, but these preparations were not enough when, in 367, a general assault of Saxons,
Picts
, Scoti and
Attacotti
, combined with apparent dissension in the garrison on Hadrian's Wall, left Roman Britain prostrate. The invaders overwhelmed the entire western and northern regions of Britannia and the cities were sacked.
[59]
This crisis, sometimes called the Barbarian Conspiracy or the
Great Conspiracy
, was settled by
Count Theodosius
from 368 with a string of military and civil reforms. Theodosius crossed from Bononia (
Boulogne-sur-Mer
) and marched on Londinium where he began to deal with the invaders and made his base.
[60]
An amnesty was promised to deserters which enabled Theodosius to regarrison abandoned forts. By the end of the year Hadrian's Wall was retaken and order returned. Considerable reorganization was undertaken in Britain, including the creation of a new province named Valentia, probably to better address the state of the far north. A new
Dux Britanniarum
was appointed, Dulcitius, with Civilis to head a new civilian administration.
Another imperial usurper,
Magnus Maximus
, raised the standard of revolt at
Segontium
(
Caernarfon
) in north Wales in 383, and crossed the
English Channel
. Maximus held much of the western empire, and fought a successful campaign against the
Picts
and
Scots
around 384. His continental exploits required troops from Britain, and it appears that forts at Chester and elsewhere were abandoned in this period, triggering raids and settlement in north Wales by the Irish. His rule was ended in 388, but not all the British troops may have returned: the Empire's military resources were stretched to the limit along the Rhine and Danube.
Around 396 there were more barbarian incursions into Britain.
Stilicho
led a punitive expedition.
It seems peace was restored by 399, and it is likely that no further garrisoning was ordered; by 401 more troops were withdrawn, to assist in the war against
Alaric I
.
End of Roman rule
[
edit
]
Roman Britain in 410
The traditional view of historians, informed by the work of
Michael Rostovtzeff
, was of a widespread economic decline at the beginning of the 5th century. Consistent archaeological evidence has told another story, and the accepted view is undergoing re-evaluation. Some features are agreed: more opulent but fewer urban houses, an end to new public building and some abandonment of existing ones, with the exception of defensive structures, and the widespread formation of "
dark earth
" deposits indicating increased horticulture within urban precincts.
[61]
Turning over the
basilica
at
Silchester
to industrial uses in the late 3rd century, doubtless officially condoned, marks an early stage in the de-urbanisation of Roman Britain.
[62]
The abandonment of some sites is now believed to be later than had been thought. Many buildings changed use but were not destroyed. There was a growing number of barbarian attacks, but these targeted vulnerable rural settlements rather than towns. Some villas such as
Chedworth
,
Great Casterton
in
Rutland
and
Hucclecote
in
Gloucestershire
had new mosaic floors laid around this time, suggesting that economic problems may have been limited and patchy. Many suffered some decay before being abandoned in the 5th century; the story of
Saint Patrick
indicates that villas were still occupied until at least 430. Exceptionally, new buildings were still going up in this period in
Verulamium
and
Cirencester
. Some urban centres, for example
Canterbury
,
Cirencester
,
Wroxeter
,
Winchester
and
Gloucester
, remained active during the 5th and 6th centuries, surrounded by large farming estates.
Urban life had generally grown less intense by the fourth quarter of the 4th century, and coins minted between 378 and 388 are very rare, indicating a likely combination of economic decline, diminishing numbers of troops, problems with the payment of soldiers and officials or with unstable conditions during the usurpation of Magnus Maximus 383?87. Coinage circulation increased during the 390s, but never attained the levels of earlier decades. Copper coins are very rare after 402, though minted silver and gold coins from hoards indicate they were still present in the province even if they were not being spent. By 407 there were very few new Roman coins going into circulation, and by 430 it is likely that coinage as a medium of exchange had been abandoned. Mass-produced wheel thrown pottery ended at approximately the same time; the rich continued to use metal and glass vessels, while the poor made do with humble "grey ware" or resorted to leather or wooden containers.
Sub-Roman Britain
[
edit
]
End of Roman rule in Britain
, 383?410
Towards the end of the 4th century Roman rule in Britain came under increasing pressure from
barbarian
attacks. Apparently, there were not enough troops to mount an effective defence. After elevating two disappointing
usurpers
, the army chose a soldier,
Constantine III
, to become emperor in 407. He crossed to Gaul but was defeated by
Honorius
; it is unclear how many troops remained or ever returned, or whether a commander-in-chief in Britain was ever reappointed. A
Saxon
incursion in 408 was apparently repelled by the
Britons
, and in 409
Zosimus
records that the natives expelled the Roman civilian administration. Zosimus may be referring to the
Bacaudic
rebellion of the
Breton
inhabitants of
Armorica
since he describes how, in the aftermath of the revolt, all of Armorica and the rest of Gaul followed the example of the Brettaniai. A letter from Emperor Honorius in 410 has traditionally been seen as rejecting a British appeal for help, but it may have been addressed to
Bruttium
or
Bologna
.
[63]
With the imperial layers of the military and civil government gone, administration and justice fell to municipal authorities, and local warlords gradually emerged all over Britain, still utilizing
Romano-British
ideals and conventions. Historian
Stuart Laycock
has investigated this process and emphasised elements of continuity from the British tribes in the pre-Roman and Roman periods, through to the native post-Roman kingdoms.
[64]
In British tradition, pagan Saxons were invited by
Vortigern
to assist in fighting the
Picts
,
Scoti
, and
Deisi
. (Germanic migration into Roman Britannia may have begun much earlier. There is recorded evidence, for example, of Germanic
auxiliaries
supporting the legions in Britain in the 1st and 2nd centuries.) The new arrivals rebelled, plunging the country into a series of wars that eventually led to the Saxon occupation of Lowland Britain by 600. Around this time, many Britons fled to
Brittany
(hence its name),
Galicia
and probably
Ireland
. A significant date in sub-Roman Britain is the
Groans of the Britons
, an unanswered appeal to
Aetius
, leading general of the western Empire, for assistance against Saxon invasion in 446. Another is the
Battle of Deorham
in 577, after which the significant cities of
Bath
,
Cirencester
and
Gloucester
fell and the Saxons reached the western sea.
Historians generally reject the
historicity of King Arthur
, who is supposed to have resisted the Anglo-Saxon conquest according to later medieval legends.
[65]
Trade
[
edit
]
During the Roman period Britain's continental trade was principally directed across the Southern
North Sea
and Eastern
Channel
, focusing on the narrow
Strait of Dover
, with more limited links via the Atlantic seaways.
[66]
[67]
[68]
The most important British ports were London and
Richborough
, whilst the continental ports most heavily engaged in trade with Britain were
Boulogne
and the sites of
Domburg
and
Colijnsplaat
at the mouth of the river
Scheldt
.
[66]
[67]
During the Late Roman period it is likely that the
shore forts
played some role in continental trade alongside their defensive functions.
[66]
[69]
Exports to Britain included:
coin
;
pottery
, particularly red-gloss
terra sigillata
(samian ware) from southern, central and eastern
Gaul
, as well as various other wares from Gaul and the
Rhine
provinces; olive oil from southern
Spain
in
amphorae
; wine from Gaul in
amphorae
and barrels; salted fish products from the western Mediterranean and
Brittany
in barrels and amphorae; preserved olives from southern Spain in
amphorae
; lava
quern-stones
from
Mayen
on the middle Rhine; glass; and some agricultural products.
[66]
[67]
[70]
[71]
[72]
[8]
Britain's exports are harder to detect archaeologically, but will have included metals, such as silver and gold and some lead, iron and copper. Other exports probably included agricultural products, oysters and salt, whilst large quantities of coin would have been re-exported back to the continent as well.
[66]
[71]
[72]
[73]
These products moved as a result of private trade and also through payments and contracts established by the Roman state to support its military forces and officials on the island, as well as through state taxation and extraction of resources.
[66]
[73]
Up until the mid-3rd century, the Roman state's payments appear to have been unbalanced, with far more products sent to Britain, to support its large military force (which had reached
c.
53,000 by the mid-2nd century), than were extracted from the island.
[66]
[73]
It has been argued that Roman Britain's continental trade peaked in the late 1st century AD and thereafter declined as a result of an increasing reliance on local products by the population of Britain, caused by economic development on the island and by the Roman state's desire to save money by shifting away from expensive long-distance imports.
[71]
[8]
[73]
[74]
Evidence has been outlined that suggests that the principal decline in Roman Britain's continental trade may have occurred in the late 2nd century AD, from
c.
165 AD onwards.
[66]
This has been linked to the economic impact of contemporary Empire-wide crises: the
Antonine Plague
and the
Marcomannic Wars
.
[66]
From the mid-3rd century onwards, Britain no longer received such a wide range and extensive quantity of foreign imports as it did during the earlier part of the Roman period; vast quantities of coin from continental mints reached the island, whilst there is historical evidence for the export of large amounts of British grain to the continent during the mid-4th century.
[66]
[72]
[75]
[76]
During the latter part of the Roman period British agricultural products, paid for by both the Roman state and by private consumers, clearly played an important role in supporting the military garrisons and urban centres of the northwestern continental Empire.
[66]
[72]
[75]
This came about as a result of the rapid decline in the size of the British garrison from the mid-3rd century onwards (thus freeing up more goods for export), and because of 'Germanic' incursions across the Rhine, which appear to have reduced rural settlement and agricultural output in northern Gaul.
[66]
[75]
Economy
[
edit
]
Industrial production in Roman Britain
Development of
Dolaucothi Gold Mines
in
Wales
Mineral extraction sites such as the
Dolaucothi gold mine
were probably first worked by the Roman army from c. 75, and at some later stage passed to civilian operators. The mine developed as a series of opencast workings, mainly by the use of
hydraulic mining
methods. They are described by
Pliny the Elder
in his
Natural History
in great detail. Essentially, water supplied by
aqueducts
was used to prospect for ore veins by stripping away soil to reveal the
bedrock
. If veins were present, they were attacked using
fire-setting
and the ore removed for
comminution
. The dust was washed in a small stream of water and the heavy gold dust and
gold nuggets
collected in
riffles
. The diagram at right shows how Dolaucothi developed from
c.
75 through to the 1st century. When opencast work was no longer feasible, tunnels were driven to follow the veins. The evidence from the site shows advanced technology probably under the control of army engineers.
[77]
The
Wealden
ironworking zone, the lead and silver mines of the
Mendip Hills
and the tin mines of Cornwall seem to have been private enterprises leased from the government for a fee. Mining had long been practised in Britain (see
Grimes Graves
), but the Romans introduced new technical knowledge and large-scale industrial production to revolutionise the industry. It included
hydraulic mining
to prospect for ore by removing overburden as well as work alluvial deposits. The water needed for such large-scale operations was supplied by one or more
aqueducts
, those surviving at Dolaucothi being especially impressive. Many prospecting areas were in dangerous,
upland
country, and, although mineral exploitation was presumably one of the main reasons for the Roman invasion, it had to wait until these areas were subdued.
[78]
By the 3rd and 4th centuries, small towns could often be found near villas. In these towns, villa owners and small-scale farmers could obtain specialist tools. Lowland Britain in the 4th century was agriculturally prosperous enough to export grain to the continent. This prosperity lay behind the blossoming of villa building and decoration that occurred between AD 300 and 350.
Britain's cities also consumed Roman-style pottery and other goods, and were centres through which goods could be distributed elsewhere. At
Wroxeter
in Shropshire, stock smashed into a gutter during a 2nd-century fire reveals that Gaulish samian ware was being sold alongside mixing bowls from the Mancetter-Hartshill industry of the West Midlands. Roman designs were most popular, but rural craftsmen still produced items derived from the
Iron Age
La Tene
artistic traditions. Britain was home to much gold, which attracted Roman invaders. By the 3rd century, Britain's economy was diverse and well established, with commerce extending into the non-Romanised north.
[79]
Government
[
edit
]
Under the Roman Empire, administration of peaceful provinces was ultimately the remit of the
Senate
, but those, like Britain, that required permanent garrisons, were placed under the Emperor's control. In practice imperial provinces were run by resident
governors
who were members of the Senate and had held the
consulship
. These men were carefully selected, often having strong records of military success and administrative ability. In Britain, a
governor
's role was primarily military, but numerous other tasks were also his responsibility, such as maintaining diplomatic relations with local client kings, building roads, ensuring the public courier system functioned, supervising the
civitates
and acting as a judge in important legal cases. When not campaigning, he would travel the province hearing complaints and recruiting new troops.
To assist him in legal matters he had an adviser, the
legatus juridicus
, and those in Britain appear to have been distinguished lawyers perhaps because of the challenge of incorporating tribes into the imperial system and devising a workable method of taxing them. Financial administration was dealt with by a
procurator
with junior posts for each tax-raising power. Each legion in Britain had a commander who answered to the governor and, in time of war, probably directly ruled troublesome districts. Each of these commands carried a tour of duty of two to three years in different provinces. Below these posts was a network of administrative managers covering intelligence gathering, sending reports to Rome, organising military supplies and dealing with prisoners. A staff of seconded soldiers provided clerical services.
Colchester was probably the earliest capital of Roman Britain, but it was soon eclipsed by London with its strong mercantile connections. The different forms of municipal organisation in Britannia were known as
civitas
(which were subdivided, amongst other forms, into
colonies
such as York, Colchester, Gloucester and Lincoln and
municipalities
such as Verulamium), and were each governed by a senate of local landowners, whether Brythonic or Roman, who elected magistrates concerning judicial and civic affairs.
[80]
The various
civitates
sent representatives to a yearly provincial council in order to profess loyalty to the Roman state, to send direct petitions to the Emperor in times of extraordinary need, and to worship the imperial cult.
[80]
Demographics
[
edit
]
Roman Britain had an estimated population between 2.8 million and 3 million people at the end of the second century. At the end of the fourth century, it had an estimated population of 3.6 million people, of whom 125,000 consisted of the
Roman army
and their families and dependents.
[81]
The urban population of Roman Britain was about 240,000 people at the end of the fourth century.
[81]
The capital city of
Londinium
is estimated to have had a population of about 60,000 people.
[82]
Londinium was an ethnically diverse city with inhabitants from the Roman Empire, including natives of Britannia,
continental Europe
, the
Middle East
, and
North Africa
.
[83]
There was also cultural diversity in other Roman-British towns, which were sustained by considerable migration, from Britannia and other Roman territories, including continental Europe,
Roman Syria
, the
Eastern Mediterranean
and North Africa.
[84]
[85]
In a study conducted in 2012, around 45 percent of sites investigated dating from the Roman period had at least one individual of North African origin.
[86]
[87]
Town and country
[
edit
]
Britannia as shown on the
Tabula Peutingeriana
(modern copy from 1897)
During their occupation of Britain the Romans founded a number of important settlements, many of which survive. The towns suffered attrition in the later 4th century, when public building ceased and some were abandoned to private use. Place names survived the deurbanised Sub-Roman and early Anglo-Saxon periods, and historiography has been at pains to signal the expected survivals, but archaeology shows that a bare handful of Roman towns were continuously occupied. According to S.T. Loseby, the very idea of a town as a centre of power and administration was reintroduced to England by the Roman Christianising mission to Canterbury, and its urban revival was delayed to the 10th century.
[88]
Roman towns can be broadly grouped in two categories.
Civitates
, "public towns" were formally laid out on a grid plan, and their role in imperial administration occasioned the construction of public buildings.
[89]
The much more numerous category of
vici
, "small towns" grew on informal plans, often round a camp or at a ford or crossroads; some were not small, others were scarcely urban, some not even defended by a wall, the characteristic feature of a place of any importance.
[90]
Cities and towns which have Roman origins, or were extensively developed by them are listed with their Latin names in brackets;
civitates
are marked
C
Religion
[
edit
]
Pagan
[
edit
]
Artist's reconstruction of
Pagans Hill Roman Temple
, Somerset
The
druids
, the Celtic priestly caste who were believed to originate in Britain,
[92]
were outlawed by
Claudius
,
[93]
and in 61 they vainly defended their
sacred groves
from destruction by the Romans on the island of Mona (
Anglesey
).
[94]
Under Roman rule the Britons continued to worship native Celtic deities, such as
Ancasta
, but often conflated with their Roman equivalents, like
Mars
Rigonemetos at
Nettleham
.
The degree to which earlier native beliefs survived is difficult to gauge precisely. Certain European ritual traits such as the significance of the number 3, the importance of the head and of water sources such as
springs
remain in the archaeological record, but the differences in the
votive offerings
made at the
baths
at
Bath, Somerset
, before and after the Roman conquest suggest that continuity was only partial. Worship of the
Roman emperor
is widely recorded, especially at military sites. The founding of a
Roman temple
to
Claudius
at
Camulodunum
was one of the impositions that led to the revolt of
Boudica
. By the 3rd century,
Pagans Hill Roman Temple
in Somerset was able to exist peaceably and it did so into the 5th century.
Pagan religious practices were supported by priests, represented in Britain by votive deposits of priestly regalia such as chain crowns from
West Stow
and
Willingham Fen
.
[95]
Eastern cults such as
Mithraism
also grew in popularity towards the end of the occupation. The
London Mithraeum
is one example of the popularity of
mystery religions
among the soldiery. Temples to
Mithras
also exist in military contexts at
Vindobala
on
Hadrian's Wall
(the
Rudchester Mithraeum
) and at
Segontium
in
Roman Wales
(the
Caernarfon Mithraeum
).
Christianity
[
edit
]
Fourth-century
Chi-Rho
fresco from
Lullingstone Roman Villa
,
Kent
, which contains the only known Christian paintings from the Roman era in Britain.
[96]
It is not clear when or how Christianity came to Britain. A 2nd-century
"word square"
has been discovered in
Mamucium
, the Roman settlement of
Manchester
.
[97]
It consists of an anagram of
PATER NOSTER
carved on a piece of
amphora
. There has been discussion by academics whether the "word square" is a Christian artefact, but if it is, it is one of the earliest examples of
early Christianity
in Britain.
[98]
The earliest confirmed written evidence for Christianity in Britain is a statement by
Tertullian
,
c.
200 AD, in which he described "all the limits of the Spains, and the diverse nations of the Gauls, and the haunts of the Britons, inaccessible to the Romans, but subjugated to Christ".
[99]
Archaeological evidence for Christian communities begins to appear in the 3rd and 4th centuries. Small timber churches are suggested at
Lincoln
and
Silchester
and
baptismal fonts
have been found at
Icklingham
and the
Saxon Shore Fort
at
Richborough
. The Icklingham font is made of lead, and visible in the British Museum. A Roman Christian graveyard exists at the same site in Icklingham. A possible Roman 4th-century church and associated burial ground was also discovered at Butt Road on the south-west outskirts of
Colchester
during the construction of the new police station there, overlying an earlier pagan cemetery. The
Water Newton Treasure
is a hoard of Christian silver church plate from the early 4th century and the
Roman villas
at
Lullingstone
and
Hinton St Mary
contained Christian wall paintings and mosaics respectively. A large 4th-century cemetery at
Poundbury
with its east?west oriented burials and lack of
grave goods
has been interpreted as an early Christian burial ground, although such burial rites were also becoming increasingly common in pagan contexts during the period.
The Church in Britain seems to have developed the customary diocesan system, as evidenced from the records of the
Council of Arles
in Gaul in 314: represented at the council were
bishops
from thirty-five
sees
from Europe and North Africa, including three bishops from Britain, Eborius of York,
Restitutus
of London, and Adelphius, possibly a
bishop of Lincoln
. No other early sees are documented, and the material remains of early church structures are far to seek.
[100]
The existence of a church in the forum courtyard of
Lincoln
and the
martyrium
of
Saint Alban
on the outskirts of Roman
Verulamium
are exceptional.
[88]
Alban, the first British Christian martyr and by far the most prominent, is believed to have died in the early 4th century (some date him in the middle 3rd century), followed by Saints
Julius and Aaron
of
Isca Augusta
. Christianity was legalised in the Roman Empire by Constantine I in 313.
Theodosius I
made Christianity the state religion of the empire in 391, and by the 5th century it was well established. One belief labelled a
heresy
by the church authorities ?
Pelagianism
? was originated by a British monk teaching in Rome:
Pelagius
lived
c.
354 to
c.
420/440.
A letter found on a lead tablet in
Bath, Somerset
, datable to c. 363, had been widely publicised as documentary evidence regarding the state of Christianity in Britain during Roman times. According to its first translator, it was written in
Wroxeter
by a Christian man called Vinisius to a Christian woman called Nigra, and was claimed as the first epigraphic record of Christianity in Britain. This translation of the letter was apparently based on grave paleographical errors, and the text has nothing to do with Christianity, and in fact relates to pagan rituals.
[101]
Environmental changes
[
edit
]
The Romans introduced a number of species to Britain, including possibly the now-rare Roman nettle (
Urtica pilulifera
),
[102]
said to have been used by soldiers to warm their arms and legs,
[103]
and the edible
snail
Helix pomatia
.
[104]
There is also some evidence they may have introduced rabbits, but of the smaller southern mediterranean type. The
European rabbit
(
Oryctolagus cuniculus
) prevalent in modern Britain is assumed to have been introduced from the continent after the
Norman invasion of 1066
.
[105]
Box (
Buxus sempervirens
) is rarely recorded before the Roman period, but becomes a common find in towns and villas.
[106]
Roman roads around 150 AD
Legacy
[
edit
]
During their occupation of Britain the Romans built an
extensive network of roads
which continued to be used in later centuries and many are still followed today. The Romans also built water supply,
sanitation
and
wastewater
systems. Many of Britain's major cities, such as
London
(
Londinium
),
Manchester
(
Mamucium
) and
York
(
Eboracum
), were founded by the Romans, but the original Roman settlements were abandoned not long after the Romans left.
Unlike many other areas of the
Western Roman Empire
, the current majority language is not a
Romance language
, or a language descended from the pre-Roman inhabitants. The British language at the time of the invasion was
Common Brittonic
, and remained so after the Romans withdrew. It later split into regional languages, notably
Cumbric
,
Cornish
,
Breton
and
Welsh
. Examination of these languages suggests some 800 Latin words were incorporated into Common Brittonic (see
Brittonic languages
). The current majority language,
English
, is based on the languages of the Germanic tribes who migrated to the island from continental Europe from the 5th century onwards.
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
The
Verona List
actually includes a note that the Diocese of the Britains had
six
provinces, but then lists four.
Sextus Rufus
listed six provinces, including the highly dubious "province of Orcades" (
Orkney Islands
). Some scholars
[
who?
]
argue that the initial reforms established three provinces: Britannia I, Britannia II, and Britannia Caesariensis, which was subsequently divided into Flavia and Maxima.
- ^
"Nomina Episcoporum, cum Clericis Suis, Quinam, et ex Quibus Provinciis, ad Arelatensem Synodum Convenerint" ["The Names of the Bishops with Their Clerics who Came Together at the Synod of Arles and from which Province They Came"] from the
Consilia
[46]
in
Thackery
[47]
(in Latin)
- ^
Although Ussher refers the reader to his earlier discussion of the
28 Cities of Britain
, which notes that "Cair Colun" may refer to either Colchester in Essex or to a settlement in
Merionethshire
.
[51]
- ^
Bede
also references a
Provincia Lindisi
or
prouinciae Lindissi
, which was a later Saxon territory at the time of the
Gregorian mission
.
[57]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Hornblower & Spawforth (1998)
, pp. 129?131
- ^
Parker & Palmer (1992)
, pp. 20?22.
- ^
Julius Caesar
,
Commentarii de Bello Gallico
[
Commentaries on the Gallic War
] (in Latin),
IV 20?38
, abridged by
Cassius Dio
,
Historia Romana
(in Latin),
39.51?53
; cf.
Tacitus
,
Agricola
(in Latin), 13
;
Julius Caesar,
Commentarii de bello Gallico
(in Latin),
V 1?23
, abridged by
Dio, Cassius,
Historia Romana
(in Latin),
40.1?4
.
- ^
"C. Julius Caesar, De bello Gallico, COMMENTARIUS QUINTUS, chapter 12, section 1"
.
The Perseus Project
. Retrieved
24 February
2018
.
- ^
Bowman, Alan K.
; Champlin, Edward; Lintott, Andrew (1996).
Cambridge Ancient History
. Vol. 10. Cambridge University Press. p. 228.
ISBN
978-0-5212-6430-3
.
- ^
Suetonius
,
Claudius
, 17
; cf.
Dio, Cassius,
Historia Romana
(in Latin),
40.19,1
.
- ^
Nicholas, Crane (2016).
The Making Of The British Landscape: From the Ice Age to the Present
. Orion.
ISBN
978-0-2978-5735-8
.
- ^
a
b
c
Mattingly (2006)
.
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Herodian
,
Τ?? μετ? Μ?ρκον βασιλε?α? ?στορ?α
[
History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus
] (in Ancient Greek),
III, 8, 2
. The precise dating is uncertain; the province does not appear to have been divided until the reign of
Caracalla
.
- ^
The reorganisation is usually attributed to
Constantine the Great
; it first appears in the
Verona List
, of
c.
314
.
- ^
Hornblower & Spawforth (1998)
, pp. 46, 323
- ^
"An Overview of Roman Britain"
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- ^
Patrick Welsh, George (1963).
Britannia: the Roman Conquest and Occupation of Britain
. pp. 27?31.
- ^
Herodotus
,
Histories
,
3.115
- ^
Plutarch
,
Life of Caesar
,
23.2
- ^
Caesar, Julius,
Commentarii de Bello Gallico
(in Latin),
IV 20?36
- ^
Caesar, Julius,
Commentarii de Bello Gallico
(in Latin),
V 8?23
- ^
Dio, Cassius,
Historia Romana
[
Roman History
] (in Latin),
49.38
,
53.22
,
53.25
- ^
Strabo
,
Geographica
,
4.5
- ^
Branigan, Keith (1985).
Peoples of Roman Britain: The Catuvellauni
. Sutton Publishing.
ISBN
978-0-8629-9255-2
.
- ^
Augustus
,
Res Gestae Divi Augusti
[
The Deeds of the Divine Augustus
] (in Latin),
32
- ^
Tacitus
,
Annals
,
2.24
- ^
Creighton (2000)
.
- ^
Suetonius
,
Caligula
,
44?46
- ^
Dio, Cassius,
Historia Romana
(in Latin),
59.25
- ^
Dio, Cassius,
Historia Romana
(in Latin),
60.19?22
- ^
Tacitus,
Histories
,
3.44
- ^
Tacitus,
Annals
,
14.32
- ^
Tacitus,
Annals
,
14.34
- ^
Webster, Graham (1998).
The Roman Imperial Army of the first and second centuries AD
(New ed of 3rd revised ed.). University of Oklahoma Press. p. 66.
ISBN
978-0-8061-3000-2
.
- ^
Manley (2002)
.
- ^
Suetonius,
Vespasian
,
4
- ^
Tacitus,
Agricola
,
14
- ^
Tacitus,
Annals
,
12:31?38
- ^
Tacitus,
Agricola
,
14.17
,
14.29?39
- ^
Cassius Dio,
Historia Romana
(in Latin),
62.1?12
- ^
Suetonius,
Nero
,
18
- ^
Tacitus,
Agricola
(in Latin),
16?17
;
Tacitus,
Histories
,
1.60
,
3.45
- ^
Tacitus,
Agricola
(in Latin),
18.38
- ^
Todd, Malcolm (2004). "Julius Agricola, Gnaeus [known as Agricola]".
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
(online ed.). Oxford University Press.
doi
:
10.1093/ref:odnb/48290
.
(Subscription or
UK public library membership
required.)
- ^
Anonymous,
Panegyrici Latini
, VIII.10
;
Aurelius Victor
.
Liber de Caesaribus
[
Book of Caesars
] (in Latin).
39
.
;
Eutropius
.
Breviarium historiae Romanae
[
Abridgement of Roman History
] (in Latin).
21?22
.
;
Orosius
,
Historiae Adversus Paganos
[
Seven Books of History Against the Pagans
] (in Latin),
7.25
- ^
Stillwell, Richard; MacDonald, William L.; McAllister, Marian Holland.
"The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites"
.
perseus.tufts.edu
. Retrieved
18 July
2023
.
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Collins, Rob. Hadrian's Wall and the End of Empire, Routledge, 2012 ISBN 9780415884112
- ^
Ammianus Marcellinus
.
Rerum gestarum Libri XXXI
[
31 Books of Deeds
].
a.
391 AD.
(in Latin)
Translated by
Charles Yonge
.
Roman History
, Vol. XXVIII, Ch. III
. Bohn (London), 1862. Hosted at
Wikisource
.
- ^
"A R O S: VESPASIANA: A PROVINCE OF ROMAN BRITANNIA?"
. 9 December 2019.
- ^
Labbe, Philippe
&
Gabriel Cossart
(eds.)
Sacrosancta Concilia ad Regiam Editionem Exacta: quae Nunc Quarta Parte Prodit Actior
[
The Sancrosanct Councils Exacted for the Royal Edition: which the Editors Now Produce in Four Parts
], Vol. I: "Ab Initiis Æræ Christianæ ad Annum CCCXXIV" ["From the Beginning of the Christian Era to the Year 324"], col. 1429.
The Typographical Society for Ecclesiastical Books (Paris), 1671.
- ^
a
b
Thackery, Francis.
Researches into the Ecclesiastical and Political State of Ancient Britain under the Roman Emperors: with Observations upon the Principal Events and Characters Connected with the Christian Religion, during the First Five Centuries
, pp. 272 ff.
T. Cadell (London), 1843.
- ^
Usserius, Jacobus [
James Ussher
].
Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates, Quibus Inserta Est Pestiferæ adversus Dei Gratiam a Pelagio Britanno in Ecclesiam Inductæ Hæreseos Historia
[
Antiquities of the Britannic Churches, into Which Is Inserted a History of the Pestilent Heretics Introduced against the Grace of God by Pelagius the Briton into the Church
], Vol. I., Ch. VIII, (Dublin), 1639. Reprinted as
The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, D. D. Lord Archbishop of Armagh, and Primate of All Ireland
, Vol. V, Ch. VIII, p. 236
. Hodges, Smith, & Co. (Dublin), 1864.
(in Latin)
- ^
Eutychius Ægyptius [
Eutychius the Egyptian
]. Edited, translated, & with commentary by Ioannes Seldenus [
John Selden
].
Ecclesiæ suæ Origines
[
Origins of His Church
], p. 118.
R. & T. Whitaker for Richard Bishop (London), 1642.
(in Latin)
- ^
Henricus Spelman [
Henry Spelman
]
Concilia, Decreta, Leges, Constitutiones, in Re Ecclesiarum Orbis Britannici.
Viz.
Pambritannica, Pananglica, Scotica, Hibernica, Cambrica, Mannica, Provincialia, Dioecesana. Ab initio Christianæ ibidem Religionis, ad nostram usque ætatem
[
Councils, Decrees, Laws, Constitutions, Regarding the Churches of the Britannic Sphere. To wit, Great Britain, England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Man, Provincial, Diocesan. From the start of the Christian Religion there to our very age
], Vol. I, Index, p. 639.
Richard Badger (London), 1639.
(in Latin)
- ^
Usserius, Vol. I, Ch. V, reprinted as Ussher, Vol. V,
p. 82.
(in Latin)
- ^
Gale, Thomæ [
Thomas Gale
].
Antonini Iter Britanniarum
[
Antoninus's Route of the Britains
], "Iter V. A Londinio Lugvvallium Ad Vallum" [Route 5: From Londinium to Luguvalium at the Wall], p. 96.
Published posthumously & edited by
R. Gale
. M. Atkins (London), 1709.
(in Latin)
- ^
Bingham, Joseph
.
Origines Ecclesiasticæ: The Antiquities of the Christian Church. With Two Sermons and Two Letters on the Nature and Necessity of Absolution. Reprinted from the Original Edition,
MDCCVIII.?MDCCXXII.
With an Enlarged Analytical Index.
Vol. I, Book IX, Ch. VI, §20: "Of the British church in England and Wales", p. 396.
Henry G. Bohn (London), 1856.
- ^
Henry, Robert.
The History of Great Britain, from the First Invasion of It by the Romans under Julius Cæsar. Written on a New Plan
, 2nd ed., Vol. I, Ch. 2, s2, p. 143.
1st ed. published by T. Cadell (London), 1771. Reprinted by P. Byrne & J. Jones (Dublin), 1789.
- ^
Stillingfleet, Edward
.
Origines Britannicæ: or, the Antiquities of the British Churches with a Preface, concerning Some Pretended Antiquities Relating to Britain, in Vindication of the Bishop of St. Asaph
, New Ed., pp. 77 ff.
Wm. Straker (London), 1840.
- ^
Giraldus Cambriensis [Gerald of Wales].
"
De Inuectionibus
[On Invectives], Vol. II, Ch. I, in
Y Cymmrodor: The Magazine of the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion
, Vol. XXX, pp. 130?1"
. 1877.
George Simpson & Co. (Devizes), 1920.
(in Latin)
;
Gerald of Wales
. Translated by
W.S. Davies
as
The Book of Invectives of Giraldus Cambrensis
in
Y Cymmrodor: The Magazine of the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion
, Vol. XXX, p. 16.
George Simpson & Co. (Devizes), 1920.
- ^
Beda Venerabilis
[The Venerable Bede].
Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum
[The Ecclesiastical History of the English People], Vol. II, Ch. XVI
. 731. Hosted at
Latin Wikisource
.
(in Latin)
; Bede. Translated by
Lionel Cecil Jane
as
The Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation
, Vol. 2, Ch. 16
. J.M. Dent & Co. (London), 1903. Hosted at
Wikisource
.
- ^
Barnes,
Constantine and Eusebius
, 27, 298; Elliott,
Christianity of Constantine
, 39; Odahl, 77?78, 309; Pohlsander,
Emperor Constantine
, 15?16.; Mattingly, 233?234;
Southern (2012)
, pp. 170, 341.
- ^
Hughes, Ian (2013).
Imperial Brothers: Valentinian, Valens and the Disaster at Adrianople
. Pen & Sword Military. p. 59.
ISBN
978-1-8488-4417-9
.
- ^
Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 27.8.6
- ^
Archaeological evidence of late 4th-century urban collapse is analysed by
Cleary, Simon Esmonde (2000).
The Ending of Roman Britain
.
; the "de-romanisation" of Britain is the subject of several accounts by
Richard Reece
, including "Town and country: the end of Roman Britain",
World Archaeology
12
(1980:77?92) and "The end of the city in Roman Britain", in
Rich, J., ed. (1992).
The City in Antiquity
. pp. 136?144.
;
Loseby (2000)
, p. 326f makes a strong case for discontinuity of urban life.
- ^
Fulford, Michael
(1985). "Excavations...".
Antiquaries
.
65
: 39?81.
doi
:
10.1017/S0003581500024690
.
S2CID
164170447
.
, noted in
Loseby (2000)
.
- ^
Moorhead & Stuttard (2012)
, p.
238
.
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Laycock (2008)
.
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Higham, Nicholas J. (2018).
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. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press.
ISBN
978-0-3002-1092-7
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
Morris (2010)
.
- ^
a
b
c
Fulford (2007)
, pp. 54?74.
- ^
Cunliffe, Barry (2002).
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. Oxford University Press.
ISBN
978-0-1928-5354-7
.
- ^
Pearson (2002)
.
- ^
Tyers (1996a)
;
Tyers (1996b)
;
Peacock & Williams (1986)
;
Monfort & Funari (1998)
.
- ^
a
b
c
Fulford (1991)
, pp. 35?47.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Fulford (2004)
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Fulford (1984)
, pp. 129?142.
- ^
Fulford (1989)
, pp. 175?201.
- ^
a
b
c
Fulford, Michael (1996), "Economic hotspots and provincial backwaters: modelling the late Roman economy", in King, Cathy E.; Wigg, David G. (eds.),
Coin Finds and Coin Use in the Roman World
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ISBN
978-3-7861-1628-8
- ^
Fulford (1977)
, pp. 35?84;
Fulford, Michael (1978),
The interpretation of Britain's late Roman trade: the scope of medieval historical and archaeological analogy
, pp. 59?69
in
du Plat Taylor & Cleere (1978)
;
Birley (2005)
, pp. 423?424;
Julian
,
Epistula ad senatum populumque Atheniorum
[
Letter to the senate of Athens
] (in Latin), 279D, 280A, B, C
;
Libanius
,
Orations
,
18.82?83
,
87
;
Ammianus Marcellinus
,
Res Gestae
(in Latin),
18.2.3?4
;
Eunapius
,
Fragmenta Hist. Graecorum
[
Fragments of Greek History
] (in Latin), 12
;
Zosimus
,
Historia Nova
[
New History
] (in Latin),
3.5.2
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"History ? Overview: Roman Britain, 43 ? 410 AD"
.
BBC
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21 May
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.
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"Economy and Power in Late Roman Britain"
.
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. Retrieved
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.
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"Romans: Commerce"
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English Heritage
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.
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a
b
Jones, Michael E. (1998).
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Alcock (2011)
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Durant, Will (7 June 2011).
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Shotter, David
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Laurence, Ray
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"The Evidence for Diversity in Roman Britain"
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.
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Green, Caitlin R. (26 May 2016).
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Millet (1992)
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Gildas
,
De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae
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On the ruin and conquest of Britain
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3.2
lists 28; discussion is mooted whether Gildas possessed a written or conventional list (
Higham, Nicholas
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de Excidio Britanniae
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Noviomagus Reginorum
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Caesar, Julius
.
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6.13
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. Vol. II. Fascs. 2?8
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.
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Die Personennamen im romischen Britannien
[
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]. Hildesheim: Olms-Weidmann.
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{{
cite book
}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
link
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The Roman Pottery Industry of the Oxford Region
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.
Further reading
[
edit
]
General survey
[
edit
]
Iron Age background
[
edit
]
Historical sources and inscriptions
[
edit
]
Trade
[
edit
]
Economy
[
edit
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Provincial government
[
edit
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Provincial development
[
edit
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The Roman military in Britain
[
edit
]
Urban life
[
edit
]
Rural life
[
edit
]
Religion
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
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Italy was never constituted as a province, instead retaining a special juridical status until
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