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History of Rome

Cæsars - one

Cæsars - two

Roman Chester

General Caius Julius Caesar's two expeditions, 55 and 54 B.C.

		Caesar sailed on 25th August 55 B.C. with 10,000 men in 80 ships to Dover but diverted to avoid a confrontation with the southern tribes of Britain to a shallow beach, but was forced to retreat. However on July 54 B.C. he returned with 50,000 troops and cavalry this time unopposed, both the Catuvellauni and Trinovantese were subjected, but Cæsar once again returned to Gaul .
		It was not till the time of Claudius 43 A .D, nearly a hundred years after, that the Romans made Britain into a Roman province. The Roman invasion landed at the natural harbour of Richborough, Claudius with four legions and an equal numberof auxiliaries 24,000 men who were under the command of Aulus Plautius, battled on the banks of the Medway for two days . The Romans then took Camulodnum ( Colchester ) where Claudius made a triumphal entry at the head of his troops on an elephant

Some forty years later, under Agricola, the ablest of the Roman generals they extended the limits of the Roman province as far as the line of the Forth and the Clyde. Here the Roman armies came into contact with the Caledonians of the interior, described by Tacitus as large-limbed, red haired men. After defeat the Caledonians under Galgacus at ' Mons Grampius ' Agricola marched victoriously northwards as far as the Moray Firth, establishing stations and camps, remains of which are still to be seen. But the Romans were unable to retain their conquests in the northern part of the island, and were finally forced to abandon their northern wall and forts between the Clyde and the Forth and retire behind their second wall, built in 120 A.D., by Hadrian, between the Solway and the Tyne. It was further strengthened by Severus, and hence is often called the wall of Severus. In 139 Lollius Urbicus built a second wall or northern rampart between the Forth and the Clyde, which occupied the same line as the chain of forts built by Agricola (A.D. 80 - 85). It is known as the wall of Antoninus. These walls formed the northern boundaries of the Roman dominions in Britain, and were built to prevent the incursions of the Picts and Scots.

Thus the southern part of the island alone remained Roman, and became specially known as Britannia, while the northern portion was distinctively called Caledonia . Both London and York ( Eboracum ) were important in early Roman Britain, the Romans quickly established a network of roads traversing the whole country to convey the Roman legions which were completed by the latter half of the first century . The major ones deserve note.

The first road was Watling Street which ran from Richmond to Wroxeter then west to Wales and north to Chester. the Ermine Street ran from London to Lincoln, and then to York, with branches going to Carlisle and Newcastle; the Fosseway went from Lincoln through Leicester, Cirencester, and Bath to Chester, Axminster, and Exeter; another road went from London to Silchester, with branches from Winchester to Salisbury. London ( Londinium ) became the centre through which all roads passed

Under Roman rule people worked hard, art and refinement were encouraged, towns flourished English towns with the names ending in ' chester ' or 'cester ' such as Manchester, and Colchester, were Roman camps from the latin ' castra ' ( camp ). In the time of the occupation. the streets were laid out in a grid pattern our name for street comes from the Roman ' via strata '

Many species of fruit and vegetables were introduced to provide a varied diet, cherries, grapes, figs, mulberries and raisins, radishes, peas, broad beans, and celery.

Britain was also well suited to growing corn for the lazy populace of Rome, its fertility was a source of wonder to writers of that time; one speaks of it as " a land wealthy from its heavy crops, its rich pastures, and its veins of metals " ; another assures us that on one occasion 800 vessels were sent thither to convey the corn.

The Christian church introduced by the Romans, took the place of the heathen religions, it kept the Roman language and literature alive, long after the fall of the empire. The languages of modern Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Romanian derive directly from Latin . It was Constantine the Great who dealt the massive blow to the pagan cults and to the municipalities by distributing the endowments and treasures of the temples to the Christian Church. Christianity became the state religion, universally acknowledged Christian bishoprics were established, there were bishops from Britain at the Council of Rimini in 359. However the rural clergy were relatively poorly educated and socially obscure.

The Fall of the Empire

The end of Roman rule came slowly, week rule by the emperors brought about uprising in 367 the Sots from Ireland the Picts from Scotland and the Saxons and Franks plundered Britain, Theodosius drove them out but Maximus in 383 was to seize power in Britain and fight the imperial throne, he was defeated but the Germans had invaded, Gaul and Britain had become cut off from protection and Roman rule.

Vortigern now summoned a council of the chiefs of the various cities; and, the Roman dominion being at an end, he persuaded them to establish a connection in another quarter.