Fen Causeway or the Fen Road is the modern name for a
Roman road
Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...
of England that runs between
Denver, Norfolk in the east and
Peterborough
Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...
in the west.
[Phillips, C.W. ''The Fenland in Roman Times''. ]Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
(1970). Its path covers , passing
March
March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 2 ...
and
Eldernell (near
Whittlesey
Whittlesey (also Whittlesea) is a market town and civil parish in the Fenland District, Fenland district of Cambridgeshire, England. Whittlesey is east of Peterborough. The population of the parish was 17,667 at the 2021 Census.
Toponymy
W ...
) before joining the major Roman north–south route
Ermine Street
Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London (''Londinium'') to Lincoln ('' Lindum Colonia'') and York ('' Eboracum''). The Old English name was ''Earninga Strǣt'' (1012), named after a tribe called the ''Earninga ...
west of modern-day
Peterborough
Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...
. It provided a link from the north and west of England to
East Anglia
East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included.
The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...
.
It is possible that the route continued east of Denver to meet
Peddars Way
The Peddars Way is a long distance footpath that passes through Suffolk and Norfolk, England.
Route
The Peddars Way is 46 miles (74 km) long and follows the route of a Roman road. It has been suggested by more than one writer that it was ...
at
Castle Acre, but the evidence for this is less certain.
The road is thought to have been
raised above the marshy fens using gravel, with a width of up to . Towards its western end it is close to the Bronze Age route across
Flag Fen. At that archaeological site, which is open to visitors, a section through the Roman Road can be seen.
References
Roads in Cambridgeshire
History of Cambridgeshire
Roman roads in England
Archaeological sites in Cambridgeshire
Archaeological sites in Norfolk
{{England-road-stub