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Roman Britain (43 AD – c.410 AD)

The Roman invasion under Claudius, Hadrian's Wall, and the legacy that lasted long after the legions left.

Julius Caesar led two short expeditions to Britain in 55 and 54 BC but did not stay. The serious Roman conquest came in 43 AD under the Emperor Claudius and the province of Britannia became part of the Roman Empire for nearly four hundred years. The Romans built straight roads, towns, baths and forts; they introduced coinage, written records and Christianity.

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In 60 AD Boudicca, queen of the Iceni tribe, led a famous revolt and burned Colchester, London and St Albans before being defeated. Hadrian's Wall, completed around 128 AD, marked the northern frontier of the empire from Wallsend in the east to the Solway Firth in the west. Roman authority crumbled in the early fifth century when the legions were withdrawn to defend Italy.

You may be asked which year the Romans invaded (43 AD), who built the wall in northern England (Hadrian), or who led the Iceni revolt (Boudicca).

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