THE ROMANS

The History of the Romans in Britain- 100BC to 450AD

Along with insights into Roman life, the military and how the Romans changed Britain

Before the Romans came to Britain, the country was divided 

                                                       into a mess of tribes. The Romans brought civilization.

• The Romans built effective roads, grand and impressive buildings and established strategic centres, both civil and military in the form of the Roman town.

• The Romans built many temples, shrines, coastal forts, the palace at Fishbourne and the baths at Bath.
• The Romans had several major towns in place connected by the famous Roman roads within 17 years of the invasion. The three largest we now know as London, Colchester and St. Albans.

• Roman towns were neatly laid out. Streets criss-crossed. There were shops, workshops, houses and yards for animals. People gathered in the market and meeting area, the forum. The basilica was both a law court and town hall. Many Roman towns had public baths, open to everyone, and an amphitheatre.
• The Romans founded Londinium. If you imagine an area the size of the current City of London, then that was the placement and size of Londinium.
• If a place-name has 'chester' or 'cester' in it (from castrum, the Roman word for a fort), it's almost certainly Roman (Chester, Gloucester, and Manchester).

Fishbourne Palace was the biggest single building ever found in Britain, covering an area the size of Buckingham Palace in London. The house had about 100 rooms, an underfloor heating system, and lots of mosaics.

• The Romans decorated their houses with the mosaic. It was usually placed in the main room in the house, where guests were most likely to see and comment on it.

•    Hadrian's Wall has been estimated that abut 3,700,000 tons (30,138,000,000 kgs) of stone was used.