The city continued to grow in size and splendour over the next century, reflecting the increasing importance of trade in Britain.īy the middle of the second century AD, Londinium possessed the largest basilica (town hall) west of the Alps, a governor's palace, a temple, bathhouses, and a large fort for the city garrison. The city was quickly rebuilt, with a cluster of timber-framed wooden buildings surrounding the imposing Roman civic buildings. The new trading centre of London was one of her primary targets, and her warriors levelled the burgeoning city to the ground and killed thousands of the traders who had begun to settle there. Just 18 years after the arrival of the Romans, Boudicca, queen of the Iceni tribe of present-day East Anglia, launched her rebellion against the new rulers of Britain. The Roman settlement on the north side of the bridge, called Londinium, quickly became important as a trading centre for goods brought up the Thames River by boat and unloaded at wooden docks by the bridge. The Roman bridge proved a convenient central point for the new network of roads which soon spread out like a fan from the crossing place and allowed the speedy movement of troops. This first "London Bridge" has been excavated recently, and found to be only yards from the modern London Bridge! The Roman advance was halted by the Thames, and Plautius was forced to build a bridge to get his men across. He pushed his men up from their landing place in Kent towards Colchester, then the most important town in Britain. The commander of the Roman troops was one Aulus Plautius.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |