View source for Roman Britain

{{Short description|Britain under Roman rule (43 AD – c. 410 AD)}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2010}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
{{Infobox former subdivision
|native_name            = {{Native name|la|Provincia Britannia}}
|conventional_long_name = Province of Britain
|common_name            = Roman Britain
|image_map              = Roman Empire - Britannia (125 AD).svg
|image_map_caption      = [[Province of Britain]] in the [[Roman Empire]] in 125 AD
|subdivision            = [[Roman province|Province]]
|nation                 = the [[Roman Empire]]
|era                    = [[Classical antiquity]]
|capital                = [[Camulodunum]]<br />[[Londinium]]
|title_leader           = [[Governors of Roman Britain|Governor]]
|year_start             = 43&nbsp;AD
|event_start            = Annexed by [[Claudius]]
|event1                 = [[Septimius Severus|Severan]] Division
|date_event1            = {{Circa|197}}
|event2                 = Early fourth century Division
|date_event2            = {{Circa|lk=no|312}}
|year_end               = {{Circa|lk=no|410}}
|event_end              = [[End of Roman rule in Britain|End of Roman rule]]
|today                  = {{Plainlist|style=white-space:nowrap;|
* [[United Kingdom]]
* &nbsp;'''∟'''[[England]]
* &nbsp;'''∟'''[[Wales]]
* &nbsp;'''∟'''[[Scotland]]}}
|p1                     = British Iron Age
|s1                     = Sub-Roman Britain
|border_s1              = no
|demonym                =
}}
{{Periods in English history}}

'''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&nbsp;43 to AD&nbsp;410.<ref>{{Harvp|Hornblower|Spawforth|1998|pages=129–131}}</ref><ref>{{Harvp|Parker|Palmer|1992|pages=20–22}}.</ref>

[[Julius Caesar]] [[Caesar's invasions of Britain|invaded Britain]] in 55 and 54&nbsp;BC as part of the [[Gallic Wars]].<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Julius Caesar]] |title=[[Commentarii de Bello Gallico]] |trans-title=Commentaries on the Gallic War |at=[[s:Commentaries on the Gallic War/Book 4#20|IV 20–38]] |language=la}}, abridged by {{Citation |author=[[Cassius Dio]] |title=[[Historia Romana]] |language=la|at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/39*.html#25 39.51–53] }}; cf. {{Citation |author=[[Tacitus]] |title=[[Agricola (book)|Agricola]] |language=la|at=13 }}; {{Citation |last=Julius Caesar |title=Commentarii de bello Gallico |at=[[s:Commentaries on the Gallic War/Book 5#1|V 1–23]] |language=la}}, abridged by {{Citation |first=Cassius |last=Dio |title=Historia Romana |language=la|at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/40*.html#25 40.1–4] }}.</ref> According to Caesar, the [[Insular Celts|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.<ref>{{Cite web |title=C. Julius Caesar, De bello Gallico, COMMENTARIUS QUINTUS, chapter 12, section 1 |url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0002%3Abook%3D5%3Achapter%3D12%3Asection%3D1 |access-date=24 February 2018 |website=The Perseus Project}}</ref> He received tribute, installed the Celtic king [[Mandubracius]] over the [[Trinovantes]], and returned to [[Gaul]]. Planned invasions under [[Augustus]] were called off in 34, 27, and 25&nbsp;BC. In 40&nbsp;AD, [[Caligula]] assembled 200,000 men at the [[English Channel|Channel]] on the continent, only to have them gather seashells ({{lang|la|[[mussel|musculi]]}}) according to [[Suetonius]], perhaps as a symbolic gesture to proclaim Caligula's victory over the sea.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bowman |first1=Alan K. |title=Cambridge Ancient History |last2=Champlin |first2=Edward |last3=Lintott |first3=Andrew |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-5212-6430-3 |volume=10 |page=228 |author-link=Alan Bowman (classicist)}}</ref> Three years later, [[Claudius]] directed four legions to invade Britain and restore the exiled king [[Verica]] over the [[Atrebates]].<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Suetonius]] |title=[[The Twelve Caesars#Claudius|Claudius]] |at=17}}; cf. {{Citation |first=Cassius |last=Dio |title=Historia Romana |language=la|at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/40*.html#25 40.19,1] }}.</ref> 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#Boudica's uprising|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.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nicholas |first=Crane |title=The Making Of The British Landscape: From the Ice Age to the Present |date=2016 |publisher=Orion |isbn=978-0-2978-5735-8}}</ref> In the context of pre-industrial warfare and of a total population of Britain of {{Circa|2 million}}, these are very high figures.<ref name="Mattingly 2006"/>

Under the 2nd-century emperors [[Hadrian]] and [[Antoninus Pius]], two walls were built to defend the Roman province from the Caledonians, [[Hadrian’s Wall]] and the [[Antonine Wall]], the first of stone and the second largely of turf. Unsurprisingly the first is the better preserved. Around 197 AD, the [[Severan Reforms]] divided Britain into two provinces: [[Britannia Superior]] and [[Britannia Inferior]].<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Herodian]] |script-title=grc:Τῆς μετὰ Μάρκον βασιλείας ἱστορία |trans-title=History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus |at=[http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/herodian_03_book3.htm#C8 III, 8, 2] |language=grc}}. The precise dating is uncertain; the province does not appear to have been divided until the reign of [[Caracalla]].</ref> In the early fourth century, Britannia was divided into four provinces under the direction of a [[vicarius]], who administered the {{Nowrap|Diocese of the Britains}}, and who was himself under the overall authority of the praetorian prefecture of the Gallic region, based at [[Trier]]. A fifth province, [[Valentia (Roman Britain)|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 [[Roman usurper|usurpers]] and [[Roman emperor|imperial pretenders]]. The [[end of Roman rule in Britain|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 [[Roman agriculture|agriculture]], [[History of urban planning#Classical and Medieval Europe|urban planning]], [[Roman economy|industrial production]], and [[ancient Roman architecture|architecture]]. The Roman goddess [[Britannia]] became the female personification of Britain. After the initial invasions, [[Roman historiography|Roman historians]] generally only mention Britain in passing. Thus, most present knowledge derives from [[archaeology|archaeological]] investigations and occasional [[epigraphy|epigraphic]] evidence lauding the Britannic achievements of an [[Roman emperor|emperor]].<ref>{{Harvp|Hornblower|Spawforth|1998|pages=46, 323}}</ref> Roman citizens settled in Britain from many parts of the Empire.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/questions_01.shtml "An Overview of Roman Britain"]. BBC. Retrieved 26 August 2017.</ref>

== History ==
=== Early contact ===
{{Main|Julius Caesar's invasions of Britain}}

Britain was known to the [[Classical world]]. The [[Ancient Greece|Greeks]], the [[Phoenicia]]ns and the [[Carthage|Carthaginians]] traded for [[Cornwall|Cornish]] [[tin mining in Britain|tin]] in the 4th century BC.<ref name="Welsh">{{Cite book |last=Patrick Welsh |first=George |title=Britannia: the Roman Conquest and Occupation of Britain |year=1963 |pages=27–31}}</ref> The Greeks referred to the ''{{Lang|grc-Latn|[[Cassiterides]]}}'', or "tin islands", and placed them near the west coast of Europe.<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Herodotus]] |title=[[Histories (Herodotus)|Histories]] |at=[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Hdt.+3.115.1 3.115]}}</ref> 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.<ref name="Plutarch">{{Citation |author=[[Plutarch]] |title=Life of Caesar |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Caesar*.html#23.2 23.2]}}</ref>

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 [[Belgae|Belgic]] tribes on returning to the continent.<ref>{{Citation |last=Caesar |first=Julius |title=''Commentarii de Bello Gallico'' |at=[[s:Commentaries on the Gallic War/Book 4#20|IV 20–36]] |language=la}}</ref>

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.<ref>{{Citation |last=Caesar |first=Julius |title=''Commentarii de Bello Gallico'' |at=[[s:Commentaries on the Gallic War/Book 5#8|V 8–23]] |language=la}}</ref>

Caesar conquered no territory and left no troops behind, but he established [[patronage in ancient Rome|clients]] and brought Britain into Rome's [[sphere of influence]]. [[Augustus]] planned invasions in 34, 27 and 25 BC, but circumstances were never favourable,<ref>{{Citation |last=Dio |first=Cassius |title=Historia Romana |trans-title=Roman History |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/49*.html#38 49.38], [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/53*.html#22 53.22], [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/53*.html#25 53.25] |language=la}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Strabo]] |title=[[Geographica]] |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Strabo/4E*.html 4.5]}}</ref> Archaeology shows that there was an increase in imported luxury goods in southeastern Britain.<ref name="Branigan">{{Cite book |last=Branigan |first=Keith |title=Peoples of Roman Britain: The Catuvellauni |publisher=Sutton Publishing |year=1985 |isbn=978-0-8629-9255-2}}</ref> Strabo also mentions British kings who sent embassies to Augustus, and Augustus's own ''{{Lang|la|[[Res Gestae Divi Augusti|Res Gestae]]}}'' refers to two British kings he received as refugees.<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Augustus]] |title=[[Res Gestae Divi Augusti]] |trans-title=The Deeds of the Divine Augustus |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Augustus/Res_Gestae/6*.html#32 32] |language=la}}</ref> When some of [[Tiberius]]'s ships were carried to Britain in a storm during his campaigns in [[Germania|Germany]] in 16 AD, they came back with tales of monsters.<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Tacitus]] |title=[[Annals (Tacitus)|Annals]] |at=[[s:The Annals (Tacitus)/Book 2#24|2.24]]}}</ref>

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]].<ref>{{Harvp|Creighton|2000}}.</ref> 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.<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Suetonius]] |title=[[The Twelve Caesars#Caligula|Caligula]] |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Suetonius/12Caesars/Caligula*.html#44 44–46]}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Dio |first=Cassius |title=Historia Romana |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/59*.html#25 59.25] |language=la}}</ref> When [[Claudius]] successfully invaded in 43 AD, it was in aid of another fugitive British ruler, [[Verica]] of the Atrebates.

=== Roman invasion ===
{{Main|Roman conquest of Britain}}

[[File:British.coinage.Roman.invasion.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Conquests under [[Aulus Plautius]], focused on the commercially valuable southeast of Britain]]
The invasion force in 43 AD was led by [[Aulus Plautius]],<ref>{{Citation |last=Dio |first=Cassius |title=Historia Romana |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/60*.html#19 60.19–22] |language=la}}</ref> but it is unclear how many [[Roman legion|legions]] were sent. The ''{{Lang|la|[[Legio II Augusta]]}}'', commanded by future emperor [[Vespasian]], was the only one directly attested to have taken part.<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=[[Histories (Tacitus)|Histories]] |at=[[s:The Histories (Tacitus)/Book 3#44|3.44]]}}</ref> The ''{{Lang|la|[[Legio IX Hispana]]}}'',<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Annals |at=[[s:The Annals (Tacitus)/Book 14#32|14.32]]}}</ref> the ''{{Lang|la|[[Legio XIV Gemina|XIV Gemina]]}}'' (later styled ''{{Lang|la|Martia Victrix}}'') and the ''{{Lang|la|[[Legio XX Valeria Victrix|XX]]}}'' (later styled ''{{Lang|la|Valeria Victrix}}'')<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Annals |at=[[s:The Annals (Tacitus)/Book 14#34|14.34]]}}</ref> 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 ''{{Lang|la|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]].<ref name="Webster">{{Cite book |last=Webster |first=Graham |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v0f4SEf7rosC&pg=PA66 |title=The Roman Imperial Army of the first and second centuries AD |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-8061-3000-2 |edition=New ed of 3rd revised |page=66}}</ref>

The invasion was delayed by a troop mutiny until an imperial [[freedman]] persuaded them to overcome their fear of crossing the [[Oceanus|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]].<ref>{{Harvp|Manley|2002}}.</ref>

The Catuvellauni and their allies were defeated in two battles: the first, assuming a Richborough landing, on the [[battle of the Medway|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,<ref>{{Citation |last=Suetonius |title=[[The Twelve Caesars#Vespasian|Vespasian]] |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Suetonius/12Caesars/Vespasian*.html#4 4]}}</ref> [[Tiberius Claudius Cogidubnus|Cogidubnus]] was set up as a friendly king of several territories,<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=[[Agricola (book)|Agricola]] |at=[[:s:Agricola#14|14]]}}</ref> and treaties were made with tribes outside direct Roman control.

=== Establishment of Roman rule ===

{{Further|Romano-British culture}}
{{Gallery
|title  = Roman invasion of Britain
|align  = right
|width  = 180
|height = 180
|File:Roman.Britain.campaigns.43.to.60.jpg|Roman campaigns 43–60
|File:Agricola.Campaigns.80.84.jpg|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 warfare|guerrilla]] campaign against Governor [[Publius Ostorius Scapula]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Annals |at=[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+12.31 12:31–38]}}</ref>

In 51, Ostorius lured Caratacus into a set-piece battle and [[Caratacus' last battle|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 [[Caratacus#Captive in Rome|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.<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Annals |at=[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+12.31 12:31–38]}}</ref>

On [[Nero]]'s accession, Roman Britain extended as far north as [[Lindum Colonia|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 [[Druid]]ism once and for all. Paulinus led his army across the [[Menai Strait]] and massacred the Druids and burnt their sacred groves.

While Paulinus was [[Roman conquest of Anglesey|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{{Clarify|date=September 2023}}  responded by violently seizing the tribe's lands in full. Boudica protested. In consequence, Rome{{Clarify|date=September 2023}}  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 [[Battle of Camulodunum|routed]] the part of the IXth Legion that was sent to relieve it.<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Agricola |at=[[:s:Agricola#14|14.17]], [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+14.29 14.29–39]}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Cassius Dio |title=Historia Romana |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/62*.html#1 62.1–12] |language=la}}</ref> 

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.<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Agricola |at=[[:s:Agricola#14|14.17]], [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+14.29 14.29–39]}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Cassius Dio |title=Historia Romana |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/62*.html#1 62.1–12] |language=la}}</ref> During this time, the Emperor Nero considered withdrawing Roman forces from Britain altogether.<ref>{{Citation |last=Suetonius |title=[[The Twelve Caesars#Nero|Nero]] |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Suetonius/12Caesars/Nero*.html#18 18]}}</ref>

[[File:Templeborough Roman Fort visualised 3D flythrough - Rotherham.webm|thumb|[[Templeborough|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 [[Frontinus|Sextus Julius Frontinus]], took on the task of subduing the Brigantes and Silures respectively.<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Agricola |at=[[:s:Agricola#16|16–17]] |language=la}}; {{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=[[Histories (Tacitus)|Histories]] |at=[[:s:The Histories (Tacitus)/Book 1#60|1.60]], [[:s:The Histories (Tacitus)/Book 3#45|3.45]]}}</ref> Frontinus extended Roman rule to all of [[South Wales]], and initiated exploitation of the mineral resources, such as the [[gold mining|gold mines]] at [[Dolaucothi Gold Mines|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 ''{{Lang|la|XX Valeria Victrix}}'' legion, Agricola defeated the [[Caledonians]] in 84 at the [[Battle of Mons Graupius]], in north-east Scotland.<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Agricola |at=[[:s:Agricola#18|18.38]] |language=la}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite odnb|id=48290|title=Julius Agricola, Gnaeus [known as Agricola] |last=Todd|first=Malcolm |year=2004 |ref=none}}</ref>

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]].
{{Gallery
|title  = Roman military organisation in the north
|align  = right
|width  = 180
|height = 180
|File:Roman.Scotland.north.84.jpg|In 84 AD
|File:Roman.Scotland.north.155.jpg|In 155 AD
}}

=== Occupation of and retreat from southern Scotland ===
{{Anchor|Occupation and retreat from southern Scotland|reason=Old section name; may have incoming links.}}
{{Further|Scotland during the Roman Empire|Hadrian's Wall|Antonine Wall}}

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 [[Castra|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 [[Romanization (cultural)|Romanisation]]. Some of the most important sources for this era are the [[Vindolanda tablets|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 (Newstead)|Trimontium]]'' (at modern [[Newstead, Scottish Borders|Newstead]], in SE Scotland) indicating hostilities at least at that site.{{Citation needed|date=March 2022}} 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 (mythology)|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 Firth|Solway]]–[[River Tyne|Tyne]] isthmus around this time.

[[File:Hadrians Wall from Housesteads1.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|left|[[Hadrian's Wall]] viewed looking east from [[Housesteads Roman Fort]] (Vercovicium). The wall in the background has been consolidated.]]
[[File:Prima Europe tabula.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|left|''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 ''{{Lang|la|[[Legio VI Victrix]]}}'' legion with him from ''{{Lang|la|[[Germania Inferior]]}}''. This replaced the famous ''{{Lang|la|[[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 [[Marcomannic Wars|problems in the Danubian provinces]]. Increasing numbers of [[hoard]]s 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]].

Under [[Marcus Aurelius]], in 175, an army of [[Sarmatians|Sarmatian]] cavalry, consisting of 5,500 men, arrived in Britannia.<ref> {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yCRiEQAAQBAJ&pg=PP4&dq=sarmatians+roman+britain+175&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj2xI3V8reQAxVCnCYFHT_HEnwQ6AF6BAgGEAM#v=onepage&q=sarmatians%20roman%20britain%20175&f=|first=Anthony|last=Birley|title=The People of Roman Britain|page=98|publisher=University of California Press|year=1980}}</ref> 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 [[Caerellius Priscus|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.

=== Third century ===
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 (title)|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 [[Gaels|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 [[Publius Septimius Geta|Geta]] with first-hand experience of controlling a hostile barbarian land.
[[File:Roman.Britain.Severan.Campaigns.jpg|thumb|Northern campaigns, 208–211]]
An [[Roman invasion of Caledonia 208–210|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 ''{{Lang|la|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 ''{{Lang|la|[[Britannia Superior]]}}'' and ''{{Lang|la|[[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|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-[[Romano-Britons|British]] officer named [[Bonosus (usurper)|Bonosus]] was in command of the Romans' [[Classis Germanica|Rhenish fleet]] when the [[Germania|Germans]] managed to burn it at anchor. To avoid punishment, he [[Roman usurper|proclaimed himself emperor]] at [[Colonia Agrippina]] ([[Cologne]]) but was crushed by [[Marcus Aurelius Probus]]. Soon afterwards, an unnamed [[governors of Roman Britain|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 [[Menapii|Menapian]] [[Roman navy|naval]] commander of the [[Classis Britannica|Britannic fleet]]; he revolted upon learning of a death sentence ordered by the emperor [[Maximian]] on charges of having abetted [[Franks|Frankish]] and [[Saxon people|Saxon]] [[Roman piracy|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 [[caesar (title)|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.<ref>{{Citation |last=Anonymous |title=[[Panegyrici Latini]] |at=VIII.10}}; {{Cite book |author=[[Aurelius Victor]] |title=Liber de Caesaribus |at=[http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/victor.caes.html#39 39] |language=la |trans-title=Book of Caesars}}; {{Cite book |author=[[Eutropius (historian)|Eutropius]] |title=Breviarium historiae Romanae |at={{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20031222152525/http://www.forumromanum.org/literature/eutropius/trans9.html#21 21–22]}} |language=la |trans-title=Abridgement of Roman History}}; {{Citation |author=[[Orosius]] |title=Historiae Adversus Paganos |trans-title=Seven Books of History Against the Pagans |at=[http://www.attalus.org/latin/orosius7A.html#25 7.25] |language=la}}</ref>

=== Fourth century government ===
{{Main|Britannia I|Britannia II|Flavia Caesariensis|Maxima Caesariensis|Valentia (Roman province)}}
[[File:Roman Britain 410.jpg|right|upright=0.9|thumb|One possible arrangement of the late Roman provinces, with [[Valentia (Roman Britain)|Valentia]] between the walls]]
[[File:Roman Britain - AD 400.png|right|upright=0.9|thumb|Another possible arrangement, with other possible placements of [[Valentia (Roman province)|Valentia]] noted]]

In a reform carried out by 312, the Diocese of Britain was divided into four provinces, ''Maxima Caesariensis'', ''Flavia Caesariensis'', ''Britannia Prima'' and ''Britannia Secunda''. The [[Roman diocese|diocese]] was governed by a ''[[vicarius]]'', and Britain was part of the Gallic region under the overall authority of a [[praetorian prefect]], based at [[Trier]].{{sfn|Mattingly|2006|p=227}}

The ''vicarius'' was based at Londinium as the principal city of the diocese.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Stillwell |first1=Richard |last2=MacDonald |first2= William L. |last3=McAllister |first3=Marian Holland |title=The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites |url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0006:entry=londinium |website=perseus.tufts.edu |access-date=18 July 2023}}</ref> 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.<ref>Collins, Rob. Hadrian's Wall and the End of Empire, Routledge, 2012 ISBN 9780415884112</ref>

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 [[Notitia Dignitatum|List of Offices]] and work of [[Polemius Silvius]] all list four provinces by some variation of the names [[Britannia Prima|Britannia I]], [[Britannia Secunda|Britannia II]], [[Maxima Caesariensis]], and [[Flavia Caesariensis]]; all of these seem to have initially been directed by a [[governors of Roman Britain|governor]] (''[[praeses]]'') of [[equestrian (Roman)|equestrian]] rank. The 5th-century sources list a fifth province named [[Valentia (Roman Britain)|Valentia]] and give its governor and Maxima's a [[Roman consul|consular]] rank.{{Efn|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|date=February 2015}} argue that the initial reforms established three provinces: Britannia&nbsp;I, Britannia&nbsp;II, and Britannia Caesariensis, which was subsequently divided into Flavia and Maxima.}} [[Ammianus Marcellinus|Ammianus]] mentions Valentia as well, describing its creation by [[Theodosius the Elder]] in 369 after the quelling of the [[Great Conspiracy]]. Ammianus considered it a re-creation of a formerly lost province,<ref>[[Ammianus Marcellinus]]. ''Rerum gestarum Libri XXXI'' [''31 Books of Deeds'']. {{Abbr|a.|Before}}&nbsp;391&nbsp;AD. {{In lang|la}} Translated by [[Charles Duke Yonge|Charles Yonge]]. [[s:Roman History/Book XXVIII#III|''Roman History'', Vol.&nbsp;XXVIII, Ch.&nbsp;III]]. Bohn (London), 1862. Hosted at [[s:Main Page|Wikisource]].</ref> leading some to think there had been an earlier fifth province under another name (may be the enigmatic "Vespasiana"?<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 December 2019 |title=A R O S: VESPASIANA: A PROVINCE OF ROMAN BRITANNIA? |url=https://adviceandresearch.blogspot.com/2019/12/vespasiana-province-of-roman-britannia.html}}</ref>), 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 [[Celtic Christianity|ecclesiastical]] records. On the assumption that the early bishoprics mimicked the imperial hierarchy, scholars use the list of bishops for the [[Council of Arles (314)|314 Council of Arles]]. The list is patently corrupt: the British delegation is given as including a [[Eborius|Bishop "Eborius"]] of [[Eboracum]] and two bishops "from [[Londinium]]" (one ''{{Lang|la|de civitate Londinensi}}'' and the other ''{{Lang|la|de civitate colonia Londinensium}}'').{{Efn |"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''<ref>[[Labbé, Philippe]] & [[Gabriel Cossart]] (eds.) [https://download.digitale-sammlungen.de/BOOKS/pdf_download.pl?id=bsb10321964 ''Sacrosancta Concilia ad Regiam Editionem Exacta: quae Nunc Quarta Parte Prodit Actior'' &#91;''The Sancrosanct Councils Exacted for the Royal Edition: which the Editors Now Produce in Four Parts''&#93;, Vol.&nbsp;I: "Ab Initiis Æræ Christianæ ad Annum CCCXXIV" &#91;"From the Beginning of the Christian Era to the Year 324"&#93;, col.&nbsp;1429.] The Typographical Society for Ecclesiastical Books (Paris), 1671.</ref> in [[Francis Thackery|Thackery]]<ref name=thacky/> {{In lang|la}}}} The error is variously emended: [[Bishop Ussher]] proposed ''[[Colonia Victricensis|Colonia]]'',<ref>Usserius, Jacobus &#91;[[James Ussher]]&#93;. ''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.&nbsp;I., Ch.&nbsp;VIII, (Dublin), 1639. Reprinted as [https://archive.org/stream/wholeworkswithli05usshuoft#page/236/mode/2up ''The Whole Works of the Most Rev.&nbsp;James Ussher, D.&nbsp;D. Lord Archbishop of Armagh, and Primate of All Ireland'', Vol.&nbsp;V, Ch.&nbsp;VIII, p.&nbsp;236]. Hodges, Smith, &&nbsp;Co. (Dublin), 1864. {{In lang|la}}</ref> [[John Selden|Selden]] ''Col.'' or ''[[Colonia Camaloduni|Colon. Camalodun.]]'',<ref>Eutychius Ægyptius &#91;[[Eutychius the Egyptian]]&#93;. Edited, translated, & with commentary by Ioannes Seldenus &#91;[[John Selden]]&#93;. [https://books.google.com/books?id=u4xaAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA118 ''Ecclesiæ suæ Origines'' &#91;''Origins of His Church''&#93;, p.&nbsp;118.] R.&nbsp;& T.&nbsp;Whitaker for Richard Bishop (London), 1642. {{In lang|la}}</ref> and [[Henry Spelman|Spelman]] ''[[Colonia Cameloduni]]''<ref>Henricus Spelman &#91;[[Henry Spelman]]&#93; [https://books.google.com/books?id=SGlNAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA639 ''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'' &#91;''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''&#93;, Vol.&nbsp;I, Index, p.&nbsp;639.] Richard Badger (London), 1639. {{In lang|la}}</ref> (all various names of [[Colchester]]);{{Efn |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]].<ref>Usserius, Vol.&nbsp;I, Ch. V, reprinted as Ussher, Vol.&nbsp;V, [https://archive.org/stream/wholeworkswithli05usshuoft#page/82/mode/2up p.&nbsp;82.] {{In lang|la}}</ref>}} [[Thomas Gale (classical scholar)|Gale]]<ref name="giter">Gale, Thomæ &#91;[[Thomas Gale (classical scholar)|Thomas Gale]]&#93;. [https://archive.org/stream/antoniniiterbri00galegoog#page/n124/mode/2up ''Antonini Iter Britanniarum'' &#91;''Antoninus's Route of the Britains''&#93;, "Iter V. A Londinio Lugvvallium Ad Vallum" &#91;Route 5: From Londinium to Luguvalium at the Wall&#93;, p.&nbsp;96.] Published posthumously & edited by [[Roger Gale (antiquary)|R.&nbsp;Gale]]. M.&nbsp;Atkins (London), 1709. {{In lang|la}}</ref> and [[Joseph Bingham|Bingham]]<ref>[[Bingham, Joseph]]. ''[https://archive.org/stream/bub_gb_4rL7herLUK8C#page/n453/mode/2up 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.&nbsp;I, Book&nbsp;IX, Ch.&nbsp;VI, §20: "Of the British church in England and Wales", p.&nbsp;396. Henry G. Bohn (London), 1856.</ref> offered ''{{Lang|la|[[colonia Lindi]]}}''<!--sic--> and [[Robert Henry (minister)|Henry]]<ref>Henry, Robert. [https://archive.org/stream/historyofgreat01henr#page/142/mode/2up ''The History of Great Britain, from the First Invasion of It by the Romans under Julius Cæsar. Written on a New Plan'', 2nd&nbsp;ed., Vol.&nbsp;I, Ch.&nbsp;2, s2, p.&nbsp;143.] 1st&nbsp;ed. published by T.&nbsp;Cadell (London), 1771. Reprinted by P.&nbsp;Byrne & J.&nbsp;Jones (Dublin), 1789.</ref> ''{{Lang|la|[[Colonia Lindum]]}}'' (both [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]]); and [[Edward Stillingfleet|Bishop Stillingfleet]]<ref>[[Stillingfleet, Edward]]. [https://books.google.com/books?id=aRw1AQAAIAAJ&pg=PA77 ''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.&nbsp;Asaph'', New Ed., pp.&nbsp;77&nbsp;ff.] Wm.&nbsp;Straker (London), 1840.</ref> and [[Francis Thackeray]] read it as a [[scribal error]] of ''Civ. Col. Londin.'' for an original ''[[Colonia Legionis II|Civ. Col. Leg. II]]'' ([[Caerleon]]).<ref name="thacky">Thackery, Francis. [https://books.google.com/books?id=ZtgDAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA272 ''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.&nbsp;272&nbsp;ff.] T.&nbsp;Cadell (London), 1843.</ref> 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 bishop|metropolitan sees]] of the [[Celtic Christianity|early British church]] established by the legendary [[list of Welsh saints|SS]]&nbsp;[[Saint Fagan|Fagan]] and "[[Saint Duvian|Duvian]]". He placed [[Britannia Prima]] in [[Wales]] and western England with its capital at "[[Isca Augusta|Urbs Legionum]]" ([[Caerleon]]); [[Britannia Secunda]] in [[Kent]] and southern England with its capital at "[[Dorobernia]]" ([[Canterbury]]); [[Flavia Caesariensis|Flavia]] in [[Mercia]] and central England with its capital at "[[Londinium|Lundonia]]" ([[City of London|London]]); "[[Maxima Caesariensis|Maximia]]" in northern England with its capital at [[Eboracum]] ([[York]]); and [[Valentia (Roman Britain)|Valentia]] in "[[Alba]]nia which is now [[Scotland]]" with its capital at [[St Andrews|St&nbsp;Andrews]].<ref name="letter">Giraldus Cambriensis [Gerald of Wales]. {{Cite web |year=1877 |title=''De Inuectionibus'' [On Invectives], Vol.&nbsp;II, Ch.&nbsp;I, in ''Y Cymmrodor: The Magazine of the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion'', Vol.&nbsp;XXX, pp.&nbsp;130–1. |url=https://archive.org/stream/ycymmrodor30cymmuoft#page/130/mode/2up}} George Simpson &&nbsp;Co. (Devizes), 1920. {{In lang|la}}; [[Gerald of Wales]]. Translated by [[W.S. Davies]] as [https://archive.org/stream/ycymmrodor30cymmuoft#page/16/mode/2up ''The Book of Invectives of Giraldus Cambrensis'' in ''Y Cymmrodor: The Magazine of the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion'', Vol.&nbsp;XXX, p.&nbsp;16.] George Simpson &&nbsp;Co. (Devizes), 1920.</ref> Modern scholars generally dispute the last: some place Valentia at or beyond [[Hadrian's Wall]] but St&nbsp;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 Dobunnorum|Corinium]] of the [[Dobunni]] ([[Cirencester]]) on the basis of an artifact recovered there referring to Lucius Septimius, a provincial [[rector (politics)|rector]]; places Flavia north of Maxima, with its capital placed at [[Lindum Colonia]] ([[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]]) to match one emendation of the bishops list from Arles;{{Efn |[[Bede]] also references a ''{{Lang|la|Provincia Lindisi}}'' or ''{{Lang|la|prouinciae Lindissi}}'', which was a later Saxon territory at the time of the [[Gregorian mission]].<ref>[[Beda Venerabilis]] [The Venerable Bede]. [[s:la:Historia Ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum - Liber Secundus#16|''Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum'' &#91;The Ecclesiastical History of the English People&#93;, Vol.&nbsp;II, Ch.&nbsp;XVI]]. 731. Hosted at [[:s:la:Main Page|Latin Wikisource]]. {{In lang|la}}; Bede. Translated by [[Lionel Cecil Jane]] as [[s:Ecclesiastical History of the English People/Book 2#16|''The Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation'', Vol.&nbsp;2, Ch.&nbsp;16]]. J.M.&nbsp;Dent &&nbsp;Co. (London), 1903. Hosted at [[s:Main Page|Wikisource]].</ref>}} and places Secunda in the north with its capital at Eboracum (York). Valentia is placed variously in northern Wales around [[Deva Victrix|Deva]] ([[Chester]]); beside [[Hadrian's Wall]] around [[Luguvalium]] ([[Carlisle, England|Carlisle]]); and between the walls along [[Dere Street]].

=== Fourth century history ===
{{See also|Great Conspiracy}}
[[File:Roman.Britain.towns.villas.jpg|thumb|300px|4th century Roman towns and villas]]
[[File:Britain.4th.century.Roman.infrastructure.jpg|thumb|300px|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.<ref>Barnes, ''Constantine and Eusebius'', 27, 298; Elliott, ''Christianity of Constantine'', 39; Odahl, 77–78, 309; Pohlsander, ''Emperor Constantine'', 15–16.; Mattingly, 233–234; {{Harvp|Southern|2012|pages=170, 341}}.</ref> 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 ''{{Lang|la|vicarius}}'' [[Flavius Martinus]] to intervene. When Paulus retaliated by accusing Martinus of treason, the ''{{Lang|la|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.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hughes |first=Ian |title=Imperial Brothers: Valentinian, Valens and the Disaster at Adrianople |date=2013 |publisher=Pen & Sword Military |isbn=978-1-8488-4417-9 |page=59}}</ref> This crisis, sometimes called the Barbarian Conspiracy or the [[Great Conspiracy]], was settled by Theodosius the Elder 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.<ref>Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 27.8.6</ref> 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 [[Scoti|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 ===

{{Main|End of Roman rule in Britain}}
[[File:Brittain 410.jpg|thumb|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.<ref>Archaeological evidence of late 4th-century urban collapse is analysed by {{Cite book |last=Cleary |first=Simon Esmonde |title=The Ending of Roman Britain |date=2000}}; 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 {{Cite book |editor-first=J. |editor-last=Rich |title=The City in Antiquity |date=1992 |pages=136–144}}; {{Harvp|Loseby|2000|page=326f}} makes a strong case for discontinuity of urban life.</ref> 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.<ref name="Fulford">{{Cite journal |last=Fulford |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Fulford |date=1985 |title=Excavations... |journal=Antiquaries |volume=65 |pages=39–81 |doi=10.1017/S0003581500024690 |s2cid=164170447}}, noted in {{Harvp|Loseby|2000}}.</ref>

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 Roman Villa|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 ===
{{Main|Sub-Roman Britain}}
[[File:End.of.Roman.rule.in.Britain.383.410.jpg|thumb|[[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 [[Roman usurper|usurpers]], the army chose a soldier, [[Constantine III (Western Roman Emperor)|Constantine III]], to become emperor in 407. He crossed to Gaul but was defeated by [[Honorius (emperor)|Honorius]]; it is unclear how many troops remained or ever returned, or whether a commander-in-chief in Britain was ever reappointed. A [[Saxons|Saxon]] incursion in 408 was apparently repelled by the [[Britons (Celtic people)|Britons]], and in 409 [[Zosimus (historian)|Zosimus]] records that the natives expelled the Roman civilian administration. Zosimus may be referring to the [[Bagaudae]] rebellion of the [[Bretons|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 [[Calabria|Bruttium]] or [[Bologna]].<ref name="Moorhead">{{Harvp|Moorhead|Stuttard|2012|page=[https://archive.org/details/romanswhoshapedb0000moor/page/238 238]}}.</ref> 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.<ref>{{Harvp|Laycock|2008}}.</ref>

In British tradition, pagan Saxons were invited by [[Vortigern]] to assist in fighting the [[Picts]], [[Scoti]], and [[Déisi]]. (Germanic migration into Roman Britannia may have begun much earlier. There is recorded evidence, for example, of Germanic [[auxilia]]ries 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), [[Britonia|Galicia]] and probably [[Ireland]]. A significant date in sub-Roman Britain is the [[Groans of the Britons]], an unanswered appeal to [[Flavius Aetius|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, Somerset|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.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Higham |first=Nicholas J. |title=King Arthur: The Making of the Legend |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2018 |isbn=978-0-3002-1092-7 |location=New Haven, Connecticut}}</ref>

== Trade ==
{{See also|British Iron Age#Trade between Iron Age Britain and the Roman world|l1=Trade between Iron Age Britain and the Roman world}}

During the Roman period Britain's continental trade was principally directed across the Southern [[North Sea]] and Eastern [[English Channel|Channel]], focusing on the narrow [[Strait of Dover]], with more limited links via the Atlantic seaways.<ref name="Morris 2010">{{Harvp|Morris|2010}}.</ref><ref name="Fulford 2007">{{Harvp|Fulford|2007|pages=54–74}}.</ref><ref name="Cunliffe">{{Cite book |last=Cunliffe |first=Barry |title=Facing the Ocean: the Atlantic and its Peoples 8000 BC&nbsp;– 1500&nbsp;AD |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-1928-5354-7}}</ref> The most important British ports were London and [[Richborough Castle|Richborough]], whilst the continental ports most heavily engaged in trade with Britain were [[Boulogne-sur-Mer|Boulogne]] and the sites of [[Domburg]] and [[Colijnsplaat]] at the mouth of the river [[Scheldt]].<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref name="Fulford 2007"/> During the Late Roman period it is likely that the [[saxon Shore|shore forts]] played some role in continental trade alongside their defensive functions.<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref>{{Harvp|Pearson|2002}}.</ref>

Exports to Britain included: [[roman currency|coin]]; [[ancient Roman pottery|pottery]], particularly red-gloss ''{{Lang|la|[[terra sigillata]]}}'' (samian ware) from southern, central and eastern [[Roman Gaul|Gaul]], as well as various other wares from Gaul and the [[Rhine]] provinces; olive oil from southern [[Hispania|Spain]] in ''{{Lang|la|[[amphora]]e}}''; wine from Gaul in ''{{Lang|la|amphorae}}'' and barrels; salted fish products from the western Mediterranean and [[Brittany]] in barrels and amphorae; preserved olives from southern Spain in ''{{Lang|la|amphorae}}''; lava [[quern-stone]]s from [[Mayen]] on the middle Rhine; glass; and some agricultural products.<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref name="Fulford 2007"/><ref>{{Harvp|Tyers|1996a}}; {{Harvp|Tyers|1996b}}; {{Harvp|Peacock|Williams|1986}}; {{Harvp|Monfort|Funari|1998}}.</ref><ref name="Fulford 1991">{{Harvp|Fulford|1991|pages=35–47}}.</ref><ref name="Fulford 2004">{{Harvp|Fulford|2004}}.</ref><ref name="Mattingly 2006">{{Harvp|Mattingly|2006}}.</ref> 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.<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref name="Fulford 1991"/><ref name="Fulford 2004"/><ref name="Fulford 1984">{{Harvp|Fulford|1984|pages=129–142}}.</ref>

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.<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref name="Fulford 1984"/> 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 {{Circa}} 53,000 by the mid-2nd century), than were extracted from the island.<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref name="Fulford 1984"/>

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.<ref name="Fulford 1991"/><ref name="Mattingly 2006"/><ref name="Fulford 1984"/><ref name="Fulford 1989">{{Harvp|Fulford|1989|pages=175–201}}.</ref> 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 {{Circa|lk=no}} 165 AD onwards.<ref name="Morris 2010"/> This has been linked to the economic impact of contemporary Empire-wide crises: the [[Antonine Plague]] and the [[Marcomannic Wars]].<ref name="Morris 2010"/>

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.<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref name="Fulford 2004"/><ref name="Fulford 1996">{{Citation |last=Fulford |first=Michael |title=Coin Finds and Coin Use in the Roman World |pages=153–177 |year=1996 |editor-last=King |editor-first=Cathy E. |series=Studien zu Fundmünzen der Antike |chapter=Economic hotspots and provincial backwaters: modelling the late Roman economy |place=Berlin |publisher=Mann Verlag |isbn=978-3-7861-1628-8 |editor-first2=David G. |editor-last2=Wigg}}</ref><ref>{{Harvp|Fulford|1977|pages=35–84}}; {{Citation |last=Fulford |first=Michael |title=The interpretation of Britain's late Roman trade: the scope of medieval historical and archaeological analogy |pages=59–69 |year=1978}} in {{Harvp|du Plat Taylor|Cleere|1978}}; {{Harvp|Birley|2005|pages=423–424}}; {{Citation |author=[[Julian (emperor)|Julian]] |title=Epistula ad senatum populumque Atheniorum |language=la|trans-title=Letter to the senate of Athens |at=279D, 280A, B, C}}; {{Citation |author=[[Libanius]] |title=Orations |at=[http://www.loebclassics.com/view/libanius-oration_18_funeral_oration_julian/1969/pb_LCL451.331.xml 18.82–83], [http://www.loebclassics.com/view/libanius-oration_18_funeral_oration_julian/1969/pb_LCL451.335.xml 87]}}; {{Citation |author=[[Ammianus Marcellinus]] |title=Res Gestae |language=la|at=[[:s:Roman History/Book XVIII#II|18.2.3–4]]}}; {{Citation |author=[[Eunapius]] |title=Fragmenta Hist. Graecorum |language=la|trans-title=Fragments of Greek History |at=12}}; {{Citation |author=[[Zosimus (historian)|Zosimus]] |title=Historia Nova |language=la|trans-title=New History |at=[[:s:New History/Book the Third|3.5.2]]}}</ref> 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.<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref name="Fulford 2004"/><ref name="Fulford 1996"/> 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.<ref name="Morris 2010"/><ref name="Fulford 1996"/>

== Economy ==
{{See also|Roman economy|Mining in Roman Britain}}
[[File:Roman.Britain.Production.jpg|thumb|Industrial production in Roman Britain]]
[[File:Dolaucothimap4.jpg|thumb|Development of [[Dolaucothi Gold Mines]] in [[Wales]]]]
Mineral extraction sites such as the [[Dolaucothi Gold Mines|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 (Pliny)|''Natural History'']] in great detail. Essentially, water supplied by [[aqueduct (water supply)|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 nugget]]s collected in [[riffle#Gold mining|riffles]]. The diagram at right shows how Dolaucothi developed from {{Circa|lk=no}} 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.<ref>{{Cite web |title= History – Overview: Roman Britain, 43 – 410 AD |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/overview_roman_01.shtml |access-date=2023-05-21 |website=BBC  |language=en-GB}}</ref>

The [[Weald]]en 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 [[aqueduct (water supply)|aqueducts]], those surviving at Dolaucothi being especially impressive. Many prospecting areas were in dangerous, [[highland|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.<ref>{{Cite web | last1=Gerrard | first1=James | editor-first1=Martin | editor-first2=Louise | editor-first3=Alison | editor-last1=Millett | editor-last2=Revell | editor-last3=Moore |title=Economy and Power in Late Roman Britain |url=https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/40223/chapter-abstract/345921164?redirectedFrom=fulltext |access-date=2023-05-21 |journal=Oxford Handbooks Online | date=2015 | doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199697731.013.048 }}</ref>

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.<ref name=":0" />

Britain's cities also consumed Roman-style pottery and other goods, and were centres through which goods could be distributed elsewhere. During the first two centuries of Roman rule, Britain is said to have been hugely reliant on imported pottery, but by the fourth century, it was self-sufficient. This has been cited as an example of economic development, and at least one town, [[Durobrivae (Water Newton)|Durobrivae]], primarily manufactured pottery.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Anglo-Saxons |publisher=Penguin |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-140-14395-9 |editor-last=Campbell |editor-first=James |pages=9-10}}</ref> 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 Tène culture|La Tène]] 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.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Romans: Commerce |url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/romans/commerce/ |access-date=2023-05-21 |website=English Heritage}}</ref>

== Government ==<!--linked-->
{{Further|Governors of Roman Britain|Roman client kingdoms in Britain|Roman auxiliaries in Britain}}

Under the Roman Empire, administration of peaceful provinces was ultimately the remit of the [[Roman Senate|Senate]], but those, like Britain, that required permanent garrisons, were placed under the Emperor's control. In practice imperial provinces were run by resident [[List of governors of Roman Britain|governors]] who were members of the Senate and had held the [[Roman consul|consulship]]. These men were carefully selected, often having strong records of military success and administrative ability. In Britain, a [[Roman governor|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 ''{{Lang|la|[[civitas|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 ''{{Lang|la|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 (ancient Rome)|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 ''{{Lang|la|civitas}}'' (which were subdivided, amongst other forms, into ''{{Lang|la|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.<ref name="Jones 1998">{{Cite book |last=Jones |first=Michael E. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hBNr765THaIC&pg=PA147 |title=The End of Roman Britain |publisher=Cornell University Press |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-8014-8530-5 |page=147}}</ref> The various ''{{Lang|la|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.<ref name="Jones 1998"/>

== Demographics ==
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.<ref name="alcock">{{Harvp|Alcock|2011|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=t7KeBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT260 260]}}.</ref> The urban population of Roman Britain was about 240,000 people at the end of the fourth century.<ref name="alcock"/> The capital city of [[Londinium]] is estimated to have had a population of about 60,000 people.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Durant |first=Will |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JztghD__8ksC&pg=PT468 |title=Caesar and Christ: The Story of Civilization |date=7 June 2011 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-4516-4760-0 |page=468}}; {{Cite book |first=Anne |last=Lancashire |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QajvxgbH59QC&pg=PA19 |title=London Civic Theatre: City Drama and Pageantry from Roman Times to 1558 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-5216-3278-2 |page=19}}</ref> 

Londinium was an ethnically diverse city with inhabitants from the Roman Empire, including natives of Britannia, [[continental Europe]], the [[Middle East]], and [[North Africa]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ghosh |first=Pallab |date=23 November 2015 |title=DNA study finds London was ethnically diverse from start |publisher=[[BBC]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-34809804}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Shotter |first=David |title=Roman Britain |date=2012 |publisher=Routledge |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=Hw98CvXwRoUC&pg=PT37 37] |author-link=David Shotter}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Laurence |first=Ray |title=Roman Archaeology for Historians |date=2012 |publisher=Routledge |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=dlq6pZaTS_UC&pg=PA121 121] |author-link=Ray Laurence}}</ref> In a 2012 study, around 45 percent of sites investigated dating from the Roman period had at least one individual of North African origin.<ref>{{cite web | page=''Scientific Evidence for Black Romans in Britain?'' <!---no current variable for referencing a specific section of a web article, thus using this for easier navigation--->| title=The Evidence for Diversity in Roman Britain | author=<!---none cited---> | publisher=University of Warwick | department=Department of Classics and Ancient History | url=https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/classics/warwickclassicsnetwork/romancoventry/resources/diversity/evidence/ | date=n.d. | access-date=September 15, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Green | first=Caitlin R. | title=A note on the evidence for African migrants in Britain from the Bronze Age to the medieval period | date=26 May 2016 | website=Dr. Caitlin R. Green | url=https://www.caitlingreen.org/2016/05/a-note-on-evidence-for-african-migrants.html}}</ref>

=== Town and country ===
{{Further|Roman sites in Great Britain|Roman cities in Britain|List of Roman villas in England|List of Roman place names in Britain}}

[[File:Part of Tabula Peutingeriana showing Britannia.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Britannia as shown on the ''{{Lang|la|[[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.<ref name="Loseby326">{{Harvp|Loseby|2000|page=326f}}</ref>

Roman towns can be broadly grouped in two categories. ''{{Lang|la|Civitates}}'', "public towns" were formally laid out on a grid plan, and their role in imperial administration occasioned the construction of public buildings.<ref>{{Harvp|Millet|1992|page=102f}}, lists 22 "public towns"; {{Citation |author=[[Gildas]] |title=[[De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae]] |trans-title=On the ruin and conquest of Britain |at=[[:s:The Ruin of Britain#3|3.2]] |language=la}} lists 28; discussion is mooted whether Gildas possessed a written or conventional list ({{Cite journal |first=Nicholas |last=Higham |author-link=N. J. Higham |year=1991 |title=Old light on the Dark Age landscape: the description of Britain in the ''de Excidio Britanniae'' of Gildas |language=la|journal=Journal of Historical Geography |volume=17 |issue=4 |pages=363–372 |doi=10.1016/0305-7488(91)90022-N }}).</ref> The much more numerous category of ''{{Lang|la|[[vicus|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.<ref>{{Harvp|Burnham|Wacher|1990}}.</ref>

Cities and towns which have Roman origins, or were extensively developed by them are listed with their Latin names in brackets; ''{{Lang|la|civitates}}'' are marked '''C'''
<!--public towns in Millet 1990 should be checked against this listing's Cs-->
{{Columns-list|colwidth=20em|* [[Alcester]] (''[[Alcester|Alauna]]'')
* [[Alchester]]
* [[Aldborough, North Yorkshire]] (''[[Isurium Brigantum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Bath, Somerset|Bath]] (''[[Aquae Sulis]]'') '''C'''
* [[Brough, East Riding of Yorkshire|Brough]] (''[[Petuaria]]'') '''C'''
* [[Buxton]] (''[[Aquae Arnemetiae]]'')
* [[Caerleon]] (''[[Isca Augusta]]'') '''C'''
* [[Caernarfon]] (''[[Segontium]]'') '''C'''
* [[Caerwent]] (''[[Venta Silurum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Caister Roman Site|Caister-on-Sea]] '''C'''
* [[Canterbury]] (''[[Durovernum Cantiacorum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Carlisle, Cumbria|Carlisle]] (''[[Luguvalium]]'') '''C'''
* [[Carmarthen]] (''[[Moridunum (Carmarthen)|Moridunum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Chelmsford]] (''[[Chelmsford|Caesaromagus]]'')
* [[Chester]] (''[[Deva Victrix]]'') '''C'''
* [[Chester-le-Street]] (''[[Concangis]]'')
* [[Chichester]] (''[[Noviomagus Reginorum]]'')<ref>''{{Lang|la|Noviomagus Reginorum}}'': meaning "new field" or "new clearing" of the Regni ({{Harvp|Wacher|1995|page=262}}).</ref> '''C'''
* [[Cirencester]] (''[[Corinium Dobunnorum|Corinium]]'') '''C'''
* [[Colchester]] (''[[Camulodunum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Corbridge]] (''[[Coria (Corbridge)|Coria]]'') '''C'''
* [[Dorchester, Dorset|Dorchester]] (''[[Durnovaria]]'') '''C'''
* [[Dover]] (''[[Dubris|Portus Dubris]]'')
* [[Exeter]] (''[[Isca Dumnoniorum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Gloucester]] (''[[Glevum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Great Chesterford]] (the name of this ''{{Lang|la|vicus}}'' is unknown)
* [[Ilchester]] (''[[Lindinis]]'') '''C'''
* [[Leicester]] (''[[Ratae Corieltauvorum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]] (''[[Lindum Colonia]]'') '''C'''
* [[London]] (''[[Londinium]]'') '''C'''
* [[Manchester]] (''[[Mamucium]]'') '''C'''
* [[Newcastle upon Tyne]] (''[[Pons Aelius]]'')
* [[Northwich]] (''[[Northwich|Condate]]'')
* [[St Albans]] (''[[Verulamium]]'') '''C'''
* [[Silchester]] (''[[Calleva Atrebatum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Towcester]] (''[[Lactodurum]]'')
* [[Whitchurch, Shropshire|Whitchurch]] (''[[Mediolanum (Whitchurch)|Mediolanum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Winchester]] (''[[Venta Belgarum]]'') '''C'''
* [[Wroxeter]] (''[[Viroconium Cornoviorum]]'') '''C'''
* [[York]] (''[[Eboracum]]'') '''C'''}}

== Religion ==
{{Further|Romano-Celtic temple}}

=== Pagan ===
{{Main|Ancient Celtic religion|Religion in ancient Rome}}
[[File:Paganreconstruction (2).gif|thumb|An artist's reconstruction of [[Pagans Hill Roman Temple]], Somerset]]
The [[druid]]s, the Celtic priestly caste who were believed to originate in Britain,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Caesar |first=Julius |title=Commentarii de Bello Gallico |at=[[s:Commentaries on the Gallic War/Book 6#13|6.13]] |author-link=Julius Caesar}}</ref> were outlawed by [[Claudius]],<ref>{{Citation |last=Suetonius |title=[[The Twelve Caesars#Claudius|Claudius]] |at=[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Suetonius/12Caesars/Claudius*.html#25.5 25.5]}}</ref> and in 61 they vainly defended their [[sacred grove]]s from destruction by the Romans on the island of Mona ([[Anglesey]]).<ref>{{Citation |last=Tacitus |title=Annals |at=[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+14.30 14.30]}}</ref> Under Roman rule the Britons continued to worship native Celtic deities, such as [[Ancasta]], but often conflated with their Roman equivalents, like [[Mars (mythology)|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 [[spring (hydrology)|springs]] remain in the archaeological record, but the differences in the [[votive offering]]s made at the [[Roman Baths (Bath)|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 [[Temple of Claudius, Colchester|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]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Esposito |first=Alessandra |title=Theoretical Roman Archaeology Journal: Proceedings of the Twenty-Fifth Annual Theoretical Roman Archaeology Conference |date=2016 |publisher=[[Theoretical Roman Archaeology Conference]] |editor-last=Mandichs |editor-first=M. J. |pages=92–110 |chapter=A Context for Roman Priestly Regalia: Depositional Practices and Spatial Distribution of Assemblages from Roman Britain |doi=10.16995/TRAC2015_92_110 |editor-last2=Derrick |editor-first2=T. J. |editor-last3=Sanchez Gonzalez |editor-first3=S. |editor-last4=Savani |editor-first4=G. |editor-last5=Zampieri |editor-first5=E. |issue=2015 |doi-access=free }}{{Open access}}</ref>

Eastern cults such as [[Mithraic mysteries|Mithraism]] grew in popularity towards the end of the occupation. The [[London Mithraeum]] is one example of the popularity of [[Greco-Roman mysteries|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 [[Wales in the Roman era|Roman Wales]] (the [[Caernarfon Mithraeum]]).

=== Christianity ===
{{Main|Christianity in Roman Britain}}

[[File:Lullingstone paintings2.jpg|thumb|The fourth-century [[Chi Rho|Chi-Rho]] fresco from [[Lullingstone Roman Villa]], [[Kent]], contains the only known Christian paintings from the Roman era in Britain.<ref>{{Cite web |title=From Paganism to Christianity |url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/lullingstone-roman-villa/history-and-research/history/4-from-paganism-to-christianity |access-date=15 June 2012 |publisher=[[Lullingstone Roman Villa]], [[English Heritage]]}}</ref>]]
It is not clear when or how Christianity came to Britain. A 2nd-century [[Sator Square|"word square"]] has been discovered in [[Mamucium]], the Roman settlement of [[Manchester]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Horsley |first=G. H. R. |title=New Documents Illustrating Early Christianity: a Review of the Greek Inscriptions and Papyri Published in 1979 |date=1987 |publisher=[[William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company]] |isbn=978-0-8583-7599-4 |page=138}}</ref> It consists of an anagram of [[Lord's Prayer|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.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Shotter |first=David |title=Romans and Britons in North-West England |date=2004 |publisher=Centre for North-West Regional Studies |isbn=1-8622-0152-8 |location=Lancaster |pages=129–130 |author-link=David Shotter |orig-date=1993}}</ref> The earliest confirmed written evidence for Christianity in Britain is a statement by [[Tertullian]], {{Circa|lk=no}} 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".<ref>{{Citation |author=[[Tertullian]] |title=[[s:Ante-Nicene Fathers/Volume III/Apologetic/An Answer to the Jews|De Adversus Judaeos]] |trans-title=An Answer to the Jews |at=[http://www.tertullian.org/anf/anf03/anf03-19.htm#P2141_725966 7.4]}}</ref> 

Archaeological evidence for Christian communities begins to appear in the 3rd and 4th centuries. Small timber churches are suggested at [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]] and [[Silchester]] and [[baptismal font]]s have been found at [[Icklingham]] and the [[Saxon Shore|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 villa]]s 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 [[Synod of Arles (314)|Council of Arles]] in Gaul in 314: represented at the council were [[bishop]]s from thirty-five [[Holy See|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.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Thomas |first=Charles |title=Christianity in Roman Britain to 500&nbsp;AD |date=1981 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-4151-6634-8}}</ref> 

The existence of a church in the forum courtyard of [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]] and the ''{{Lang|la|martyrium}}'' of [[Saint Alban]] on the outskirts of Roman [[Verulamium]] are exceptional.<ref name=Loseby326/> 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 in Christianity|heresy]] by the church authorities&nbsp;— [[Pelagianism]]&nbsp;— was originated by a British monk teaching in Rome: [[Pelagius]] lived {{Circa|lk=no}} 354 to {{Circa|lk=no}} 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.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Tomlin |first=R. S. O. |date=1994 |title=Vinisius to Nigra: Evidence from Oxford of Christianity in Roman Britain |url=http://www.uni-koeln.de/phil-fak/ifa/zpe/downloads/1994/100pdf/100093.pdf |journal=Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik |volume=100 |pages=93–108 |access-date=13 December 2006}}</ref>

== Environmental changes ==
The Romans introduced a number of species to Britain, including possibly the now-rare Roman nettle (''[[Urtica pilulifera]]''),<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kavalali |first=Gulsel M. |title=Urtica: therapeutic and nutritional aspects of stinging nettles |date=2003 |publisher=CRC Press |isbn=978-0-4153-0833-5 |page=15}}</ref> said to have been used by soldiers to warm their arms and legs,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nearing |first=Homer Jr. |date=1949 |title=Local Caesar Traditions in Britain |journal=[[Speculum (journal)|Speculum]] |publisher=Medieval Academy of America |volume=24 |issue=2 |pages=218–227 |doi=10.2307/2848562 |jstor=2848562 |s2cid=162955707}}</ref> and the edible [[snail]] ''[[Helix pomatia]]''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=New |first=Tim R. |url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontoin0000newt/page/136 |title=Introduction to invertebrate conservation biology |date=1995 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1985-4051-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/introductiontoin0000newt/page/136 136]}}</ref> There is some evidence they may have introduced rabbits, 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 conquest of England|Norman invasion of 1066]].<ref>{{Citation |title=Unearthing the ancestral rabbit |date=2006 |url=http://www.britarch.ac.uk/ba/ba86/news.shtml |work=British Archaeology |issue=86}}</ref> Box (''[[Buxus sempervirens]]'') is rarely recorded before the Roman period, but becomes a common find in towns and villas.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lodwick |first=Lisa A. |author-link=Lisa Lodwick |date=2017 |title=Evergreen Plants in Roman Britain and Beyond: Movement, Meaning and Materiality |url=http://centaur.reading.ac.uk/68336 |journal=Britannia |language=en |volume=48 |pages=135–173 |doi=10.1017/S0068113X17000101 |issn=0068-113X |s2cid=59323545}}</ref>

== Legacy ==
[[File:Roman Roads in Britannia.svg|thumb|Roman roads around 150 AD]]

During their occupation of Britain the Romans built an [[Roman roads in Britannia|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 languages|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 Language|Cumbric]], [[Cornish language|Cornish]], [[Breton language|Breton]] and [[Welsh language|Welsh]]. Examination of these languages suggests some 800 Latin words were incorporated into Common Brittonic (see [[Brittonic languages]]). The current majority language, [[English 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 ==
* {{Portal inline|Ancient Rome}}
* {{Portal inline|United Kingdom}}
* [[Albion]]
* [[History of the British Isles]]
* [[Prehistoric Britain]]
* [[Wales in the Roman era]]

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Sources ==
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* {{Cite book |last1=Maxfield |first1=V. A. |url=http://www.lactor.kcl.ac.uk/blogs/publication-list/lactor-4-inscriptions-of-roman-britain-2 |title=Inscriptions of Roman Britain |last2=Dobson |first2=B. |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-9036-2532-6 |edition=4th |series=[[LACTOR]] 4 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141007130305/http://www.lactor.kcl.ac.uk/blogs/publication-list/lactor-4-inscriptions-of-roman-britain-2 |archive-date=7 October 2014 |url-status=dead |orig-year=1969}}
* {{Cite book |last=Millet |first=Martin |title=The Romanization of Britain: an essay in archaeological interpretation |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1992 |isbn=978-0-5214-2864-4 |orig-date=1990}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Monfort |first1=César Carreras |title=Britannia y el Mediterráneo: Estudios Sobre el Abastecimiento de Aceite Bético y africano en Britannia |last2=Funari |first2=P. P. A. |date=1998 |publisher=Publicacions Universitat de Barcelona |isbn=978-8-4475-1950-7 |location=Barcelona |language=es |trans-title=Britain and the Mediterranean: Studies on the Betic and African oil supply in ''Britannia''}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Moorhead |first1=Sam |url=https://archive.org/details/romanswhoshapedb0000moor |title=The Romans who Shaped Britain |last2=Stuttard |first2=David |publisher=Thames & Hudson |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-5002-5189-8 |location=London |author-link2=David Stuttard}}
* {{Cite book |last=Morris |first=Francis |title=North Sea and Channel Connectivity during the Late Iron Age and Roman Period (175/150 BC&nbsp;– 409&nbsp;AD) |date=2010 |publisher=Archaeopress |series=British Archaeological Reports International Series |location=Oxford |issue=2157}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Parker |first1=Alan |title=The Chronology of British History |last2=Palmer |first2=Veronica |date=1992 |publisher=Century |isbn=0-7126-5616-2}}
* {{Cite book |title=Pottery and Early Commerce. Characterization and Trade in Roman and Later Ceramics |date=1977 |publisher=Academic Press |isbn=978-0-1254-7850-2 |editor-last=Peacock |editor-first=D. P. S. |location=London}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Peacock |first1=D. P. S. |title=Amphorae in the Roman Economy |last2=Williams |first2=D. F. |date=1986 |publisher=Longman |isbn=978-0-5820-6555-0 |location=London}}
* {{Cite book |last=Pearson |first=Andrew |title=The Roman Shore Forts: Coastal Defences of Southern Britain |publisher=The History Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-7524-1949-7}}
* {{Cite book |last=Percival |first=John |title=The Roman Villa: A Historical Introduction |publisher=Batsford |year=1976 |isbn=978-0-7134-3238-1 |series=Batsford Studies in Archaeology |location=London}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Rathbone |first1=Yvette |url=http://www.lactor.kcl.ac.uk/blogs/publication-list/lactor-11-literary-sources-for-roman-britain |title=Literary Sources for Roman Britain |last2=Rathbone |first2=D. W. |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-9036-2535-7 |edition=4th |series=[[LACTOR]] 11 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141007130304/http://www.lactor.kcl.ac.uk/blogs/publication-list/lactor-11-literary-sources-for-roman-britain |archive-date=7 October 2014 |url-status=dead}}
* {{Cite book |last=Reece |first=Richard |title=The Coinage of Roman Britain |date=2002 |publisher=The History Press |isbn=978-0-7524-2523-8 |location=Stroud |author-link=Richard Reece}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Rivet |first1=A. L. F. |title=The Place-names of Roman Britain |last2=Smith |first2=C. |date=1979 |publisher=Batsford |isbn=978-0-7134-2077-7 |location=London |author-link=A. L. F. Rivet}}
* {{Cite book |last=Salway |first=Peter |title=A History of Roman Britain |date=1993 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1928-0138-8 |location=Oxford |author-link=Peter Salway}}
* {{Cite book |last=Southern |first=Patricia |title=Roman Britain: A New History 55 BC&nbsp;– 450&nbsp;AD |publisher=Amberley Publishing |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-4456-0146-5 |location=Stroud |author-link=Pat Southern}}
* {{Cite book |title=Research on Roman Britain 1960–89 |date=1989 |publisher=Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies |isbn=978-0-9077-6413-7 |editor-last=Todd |editor-first=Malcolm |editor-link=Malcolm Todd (archaeologist) |location=London}}
* {{Cite book |title=A Companion to Roman Britain |date=2004 |publisher=Blackwell |isbn=978-0-6312-1823-4 |editor-last=Todd |editor-first=Malcolm |editor-link=Malcolm Todd (archaeologist) |location=Oxford}}
* {{Cite book |last=Tyers |first=Paul |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1JFlQgAACAAJ |title=Roman Pottery in Britain |date=1996a |publisher=Batsford |isbn=978-0-7134-7412-1 |location=London}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Tyers |first=Paul |date=1996b |title=Roman amphoras in Britain |journal=Internet Archaeology |publisher=Council for British Archaeology |volume=1 |doi=10.11141/ia.1.6}}
* {{Cite book |last=Wacher |first=John |title=The Towns of Roman Britain |publisher=Routledge |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-7134-7319-3 |edition=2nd revised}}
* {{Cite book |title=Aspects of Industry in Roman Yorkshire and the North |date=2002 |publisher=Oxbow |isbn=978-1-8421-7078-6 |editor-last=Wilson |editor-first=Peter R. |location=Oxford |ol=8924936M |editor-last2=Price |editor-first2=Jennifer}}
* {{Cite book |last=Young |first=Christopher J. |title=The Roman Pottery Industry of the Oxford Region |date=1977 |publisher=Archaeopress |isbn=978-0-8605-4001-4 |series=British Archaeological Reports |location=Oxford |issue=43}}
{{Refend}}

== Further reading ==
{{Refbegin|25em}}

=== General survey ===
* {{Harvp|Alcock|2011}}.
* {{Harvp|de la Bédoyère|2006}}.
* {{Harvp|Esmonde-Cleary|1989}}.
* {{Harvp|Frere|1987}}.
* {{Harvp|Jones|Mattingly|2002}}.
* {{Harvp|Laycock|2008}}.
* {{Harvp|Mattingly|2006}}.
* {{Harvp|Millet|1992}}.
* {{Harvp|Moorhead|Stuttard|2012}}.
* {{Harvp|Southern|2012}}.
* {{Harvp|Salway|1993}}.
* {{Harvp|Todd|2004}}.
* {{Harvp|Higgins|2014}}.
* {{Harvp|Fleming|2021}}.

=== Iron Age background ===
* {{Harvp|Creighton|2000}}.
* {{Harvp|Cunliffe|2005}}.

=== Historical sources and inscriptions ===
* {{Harvp|Maxfield|Dobson|2006}}.
* {{Harvp|Birley|2005}}.
* {{Harvp|Collingwood|Wright|1990}}.
* {{Harvp|Collingwood|Wright|Tomlin|1995}}.
* {{Harvp|Frere|Tomlin|1991–1995}}.
* {{Harvp|Ireland|2008}}.
* {{Harvp|Kakoschke|2011}}.
* {{Harvp|Rivet|Smith|1979}}.

=== Trade ===
* {{Harvp|Monfort|Funari|1998}}.
* {{Harvp|du Plat Taylor|Cleere|1978}}.
* {{Harvp|Fulford|1977|pages=35–84}}.
* {{Harvp|Fulford|1984|pages=129–142}}.
* {{Harvp|Fulford|1991|pages=35–47}}.
* {{Harvp|Fulford|2007|pages=54–74}}.
* {{Harvp|Morris|2010}}.
* {{Harvp|Peacock|Williams|1986}}.
* {{Harvp|Tyers|1996a}}.
* {{Harvp|Tyers|1996b}}.

=== Economy ===
* {{Harvp|Allason-Jones|2002|pages=125–132}}.
* {{Harvp|Allen|Fulford|1996|pages=223–281}}.
* {{Harvp|Allen|Fulford|Todd|2007|pages=167–191}}.
* {{Harvp|Cleere|Crossley|1995}}.
* {{Harvp|Fulford|1989|pages=175–201}}.
* {{Harvp|Fulford|2004}}.
* {{Harvp|Going|1992|pages=93–117}}
* {{Harvp|Jones|Mattingly|2002|pp=179–232}}.
* {{Harvp|Mattingly|2006|pages=491–528}}.
* {{Harvp|Reece|2002}}.
* {{Harvp|Tyers|1996a}}.
* {{Harvp|Young|1977}}.

=== Provincial government ===
* {{Harvp|Birley|2005}}.

=== Provincial development ===
* {{Harvp|Burgers|2001}}.
* {{Harvp|Jones|Mattingly|2002|pp=141–178}}.
* {{Harvp|Margary|1973}}.
* {{Harvp|Mattingly|2006}}.
* {{Harvp|Millet|1992}}.

=== The Roman military in Britain ===
* {{Harvp|Rathbone|Rathbone|2012}}.
* [[File:Wikisource-logo.svg|16x16px|link=|alt=]] {{Cite book |last=Caesar |first=Julius |author-link=Julius Caesar |title=[[:s:Commentaries on the Gallic War|Commentaries on the Gallic War]] 58–54 BC}}
* {{Harvp|Bowman|2004}}.
* {{Harvp|Jones|Mattingly|2002|pp=64–140}}.
* {{Harvp|Manley|2002}}.
* {{Harvp|Mason|2009}}.
* {{Harvp|Mattingly|2006|pages=85–252}}.
* {{Harvp|Pearson|2002}}.

=== Urban life ===
* {{Harvp|Mattingly|2006|pages=253–350}}.
* {{Harvp|Millet|1992}}.
* {{Harvp|Wacher|1995}}.

=== Rural life ===
* {{Harvp|Jones|Mattingly|2002|pp=233–263}}.
* {{Harvp|Mattingly|2006|pages=351–427}}.
* {{Harvp|Millet|1992}}.
* {{Harvp|Percival|1976}}.

=== Religion ===
* [[Miranda Aldhouse-Green|Aldhouse-Green, Miranda J.]] (2018). ''Sacred Britannia: the gods and rituals of Roman Britain''. London: Thames & Hudson.
* Henig, Martin (1984). ''Religion in Roman Britain''. London: B. T. Batsford.
* {{Harvp|Jones|Mattingly|2002|pp=264–305}}.
* Watts, Dorothy (1998). ''Religion in late Roman Britain: forces of change''. London: Routledge.

=== Art ===
* {{Harvp|Henig|1995}}.
{{Refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Roman Britain}}
* {{In Our Time|Roman Britain|p00548xn|Roman_Britain}}
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/timeline/romanbritain_timeline_noflash.shtml Timeline of Roman Britain] at ''[[BBC History]]''
* [https://www.romanobritain.org The Romans in Britain] – Information on the Romans in Britain, including everyday life
* [https://roman-britain.co.uk Roman Britain] – Everything to do with Roman Britain, especially geographic, military, and administrative
* [https://www.castra.org.uk The Roman Army and Navy in Britain], by Peter Green
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060117083523/http://www.romanbritain.freeserve.co.uk Roman Britain], by [[Guy de la Bédoyère]]
* [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Europe/Great_Britain/_Periods/Roman/home.html Roman Britain at LacusCurtius]
* {{Cite web |title=Roman London: "In their own words" |date=20 March 2024 |url=https://chr.org.uk/anddidthosefeet.pdf}} by Kevin Flude
* [https://romans.etrusia.co.uk Roman Britain&nbsp;– History]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120331110632/http://www.romancolchester.com Roman Colchester]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120218161142/http://www.rcahmw.gov.uk/HI/ENG/Heritage+of+Wales/Across+Time/Roman+Wales Roman Wales RCAHMW]
* [https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archives/view/romangl/index.cfm The Rural Settlement of Roman Britain] – database of excavated evidence for rural settlements

{{Provinces of Britain}}
{{Major towns of Roman Britain}}
{{Roman provinces AD 117}}
{{Late Roman and Byzantine provinces}}
{{Roman history by territory}}
{{Classical antiquity}}
{{History of the British Isles|bar=yes}}
{{Celts}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Roman Britain| ]]
[[Category:1st century in England]]
[[Category:1st-century establishments in Roman Britain|*]]
[[Category:2nd century in England]]
[[Category:3rd century in England]]
[[Category:40s establishments in the Roman Empire|*]]
[[Category:410 disestablishments]]
[[Category:410s disestablishments in the Roman Empire|Britain]]
[[Category:4th century in England]]
[[Category:4th century in Wales]]
[[Category:5th century in England]]
[[Category:5th century in Wales]]
[[Category:5th-century disestablishments in Roman Britain| ]]
[[Category:Former countries in the British Isles]]
[[Category:History of England by period]]
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in the 5th century]]
[[Category:States and territories established in the 40s]]