Early contact Britain was known to the
Classical world. The
Greeks, the
Phoenicians and the
Carthaginians traded for
Cornish tin in the 4th century BC. The Greeks referred to the '''', or "tin islands", and placed them near the west coast of Europe. 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. 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
Belgic tribes on returning to the continent. 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. Caesar conquered no territory and left no troops behind, but he established
clients and brought Britain into Rome's
sphere of influence.
Augustus planned invasions in 34, 27 and 25 BC, but circumstances were never favourable, 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. Archaeology shows that there was an increase in imported luxury goods in southeastern Britain. Strabo also mentions British kings who sent embassies to Augustus, and Augustus's own '''' refers to two British kings he received as refugees. When some of
Tiberius's ships were carried to Britain in a storm during his campaigns in
Germany in 16 AD, they came back with tales of monsters. 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. This policy was followed until AD 39 or 40, 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. When
Claudius successfully invaded in AD 43, it was in aid of another fugitive British ruler,
Verica of the Atrebates.
Roman invasion , focused on the commercially valuable southeast of Britain The invasion force in AD 43 was led by
Aulus Plautius, but it is unclear how many
legions were sent. The '
, commanded by future emperor Vespasian, was the only one directly attested to have taken part. The ', the '
(later styled ') and the '
(later styled ') 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 '''' 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. The invasion was delayed by a troop mutiny until an imperial
freedman persuaded them to overcome their fear of crossing the
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. The Catuvellauni and their allies were defeated in two battles: the first, assuming a Richborough landing, on the
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,
Cogidubnus was set up as a friendly king of several territories, and treaties were made with tribes outside direct Roman control.
Establishment of Roman rule 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 campaign against Governor
Publius Ostorius Scapula. In 51, Ostorius lured Caratacus into a set-piece battle and
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
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. 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. 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
Sextus Julius Frontinus, took on the task of subduing the Brigantes and Silures respectively. Frontinus extended Roman rule to all of
South Wales, and initiated exploitation of the mineral resources, such as the
gold mines at
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 '''' legion, Agricola defeated the
Caledonians in 84 at the
Battle of Mons Graupius, in north-east Scotland. 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. 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.
Occupation of and retreat from southern Scotland 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
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
Romanisation. Some of the most important sources for this era are the
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 (at modern
Newstead, in SE Scotland) indicating hostilities at least at that site. 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.
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–
Tyne isthmus around this time. viewed looking east from
Housesteads Roman Fort (Vercovicium). The wall in the background has been consolidated. 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 '
legion with him from '. This replaced the famous '''', 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
problems in the Danubian provinces. Increasing numbers of
hoards 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
Sarmatian cavalry, consisting of 5,500 men, arrived in Britannia. 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
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 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
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
Geta with first-hand experience of controlling a hostile barbarian land. An
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 '''' 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 '
and '. 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 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-
British officer named
Bonosus was in command of the Romans'
Rhenish fleet when the
Germans managed to burn it at anchor. To avoid punishment, he
proclaimed himself emperor at
Colonia Agrippina (
Cologne) but was crushed by
Marcus Aurelius Probus. Soon afterwards, an unnamed
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
Menapian naval commander of the
Britannic fleet; he revolted upon learning of a death sentence ordered by the emperor
Maximian on charges of having abetted
Frankish and
Saxon 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
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.
Fourth century government between the walls 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
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. The
vicarius was based at Londinium as the principal city of the diocese. 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. 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
List of Offices and work of
Polemius Silvius all list four provinces by some variation of the names
Britannia I,
Britannia II,
Maxima Caesariensis, and
Flavia Caesariensis; all of these seem to have initially been directed by a
governor (
praeses) of
equestrian rank. The 5th-century sources list a fifth province named
Valentia and give its governor and Maxima's a
consular rank.
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, leading some to think there had been an earlier fifth province under another name (may be the enigmatic "Vespasiana"?), 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
ecclesiastical records. On the assumption that the early bishoprics mimicked the imperial hierarchy, scholars use the list of bishops for the
314 Council of Arles. The list is patently corrupt: the British delegation is given as including a
Bishop "Eborius" of
Eboracum and two bishops "from
Londinium" (one '
and the other '). The error is variously emended:
Bishop Ussher proposed
Colonia,
Selden Col. or
Colon. Camalodun., and
Spelman Colonia Cameloduni (all various names of
Colchester);
Gale and
Bingham offered '
and Henry ' (both
Lincoln); and
Bishop Stillingfleet and
Francis Thackeray read it as a
scribal error of
Civ. Col. Londin. for an original
Civ. Col. Leg. II (
Caerleon). 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 sees of the
early British church established by the legendary
Saints Fagan and "
Duvian". He placed
Britannia Prima in
Wales and western England with its capital at "
Urbs Legionum" (
Caerleon);
Britannia Secunda in
Kent and southern England with its capital at "
Dorobernia" (
Canterbury);
Flavia in
Mercia and central England with its capital at "
Lundonia" (
London); "
Maximia" in northern England with its capital at
Eboracum (
York); and
Valentia in "
Albania which is now
Scotland" with its capital at
St Andrews. Modern scholars generally dispute the last: some place Valentia at or beyond
Hadrian's Wall but St 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 of the
Dobunni (
Cirencester) on the basis of an artifact recovered there referring to Lucius Septimius, a provincial
rector; places Flavia north of Maxima, with its capital placed at
Lindum Colonia (
Lincoln) to match one emendation of the bishops list from Arles; and places Secunda in the north with its capital at Eboracum (York). Valentia is placed variously in northern Wales around
Deva (
Chester); beside
Hadrian's Wall around
Luguvalium (
Carlisle); and between the walls along
Dere Street.
Fourth century history 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. 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 '
Flavius Martinus to intervene. When Paulus retaliated by accusing Martinus of treason, the ' 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. 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. 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
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 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). 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,
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 , 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
usurpers, the army chose a soldier,
Constantine III, to become emperor in 407. He crossed to Gaul but was defeated by
Honorius; it is unclear how many troops remained or ever returned, or whether a commander-in-chief in Britain was ever reappointed. A
Saxon incursion in 408 was apparently repelled by the
Britons, and in 409
Zosimus records that the natives expelled the Roman civilian administration. Zosimus may be referring to the
Bagaudae rebellion of the
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
Bruttium or
Bologna. 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. 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
auxiliaries 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),
Galicia and probably
Ireland. A significant date in sub-Roman Britain is the
Groans of the Britons, an unanswered appeal to
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,
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. == Trade ==