The Romano-British culture arose in Britain under the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

following the Roman conquest in AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported

Roman culture The culture of ancient Rome existed throughout the almost 1,200-year history of the civilization of Ancient Rome. The term refers to the culture of the Roman Republic, later the Roman Empire, which at its peak covered an area from present-day L ...

with that of the indigenous

Britons British people or Britons, also known colloquially as Brits, are the citizens of the United Kingdom, the British Overseas Territories, and the Crown dependencies.: British nationality law governs modern British citizenship and nationality, w ...

, a people of

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

language and custom. Scholars such as

Christopher Snyder Christopher Snyder may refer to: * Christopher Snyder (historian), American historian * Christopher Snyder (economist), American economist * Chris Snyder, American baseball catcher {{hndis, Snyder, Christopher ...

believe that during the 5th and 6th centuries – approximately from 410 when the Roman legions withdrew, to 597 when

St Augustine of Canterbury Augustine of Canterbury (early 6th century – most likely 26 May 604) was a Christian monk who became the first archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597. He is considered the "Apostle to the English". Augustine was the prior of a mon ...

arrived – southern Britain preserved an active

sub-Roman The fall of the Western Roman Empire, also called the fall of the Roman Empire or the fall of Rome, was the loss of central political control in the Western Roman Empire, a process in which the Empire failed to enforce its rule, and its vast ...

culture that survived the attacks from the

Anglo-Saxons The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

and even used a vernacular Latin when writing.

Arrival of the Romans

Roman troops, mainly from nearby provinces, invaded in AD 43, in what is now part of England, during the reign of Emperor

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; ; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54), or Claudius, was a Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusus and Ant ...

. Over the next few years the province of

Britannia The image of Britannia () is the national personification of United Kingdom, Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used by the Romans in classical antiquity, the Latin was the name variously appli ...

was formed, eventually including the whole of what later became England and Wales and parts of Scotland.Kinder, H. & Hilgemann W. ''The Penguin Atlas of World History'', Penguin Books, London 1978, The Claudian army took over

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''. Colchester occupies the ...

and eleven tribal kings of Britain also surrendered to the Roman army. By AD 47, the Romans had invaded southern Britain and claimed territory that held many natural resources. This led to an increase in imperial wealth. The Romans developed the city of Colchester through urbanisation and new clusters of public buildings. The

Roman army The Roman army () served ancient Rome and the Roman people, enduring through the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC), the Roman Republic (509–27 BC), and the Roman Empire (27 BC–AD 1453), including the Western Roman Empire (collapsed Fall of the W ...

and their families and dependents amounted to 125,000 people, out of Britannia's total population of 3.6 million at the end of the fourth century. Joan P. Alcock
''A Brief History of Roman Britain'', page 260

Hachette UK Hachette Livre S.A. (; simply known as Hachette) is a French publishing group that was based in Paris. It was founded in 1826 by Louis Hachette as Brédif which later became successively L. Hachette et Compagnie, Librairie Hachette, Hachette ...

There were also many migrants of other professions, such as sculptors (Barates) from

Roman Syria Roman Syria was an early Roman province annexed to the Roman Republic in 64 BC by Pompey in the Third Mithridatic War following the defeat of King of Armenia Tigranes the Great, who had become the protector of the Hellenistic kingdom of Syria. ...

and doctors from the

Eastern Mediterranean The Eastern Mediterranean is a loosely delimited region comprising the easternmost portion of the Mediterranean Sea, and well as the adjoining land—often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It includes the southern half of Turkey ...

region. David Shotter (2012)
''Roman Britain'', page 37

Routledge Routledge ( ) is a British multinational corporation, multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, academic journals, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanit ...

Romano-British cultures and religions continued to diversify; while the populace remained mainly Celtic, there was an increase in

Romanisation In linguistics, romanization is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and transcription, ...

. The bulk of the population was rural and engaged in agriculture; from a total population of 3.6 million at the end of the fourth century, the urban population was about 240,000 people, with the capital city of

Londinium Londinium, also known as Roman London, was the capital of Roman Britain during most of the period of Roman rule. Most twenty-first century historians think that it was originally a settlement established shortly after the Roman conquest of Brit ...

having about 60,000 people. Londinium was an ethnically diverse city with inhabitants from across the Roman Empire, including natives of Britannia, and immigrants from

continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous mainland of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by som ...

, the Middle East, and

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

. There was also cultural diversity in other Roman-British towns, which were sustained by considerable migration, both within Britannia and from other Roman territories, including North Africa, Syria, the Eastern Mediterranean, and continental Europe. Christianity came to Britain in the 3rd century. One early figure was

Saint Alban Saint Alban (; ) is venerated as the first-recorded British Christian martyr, for which reason he is considered to be the British protomartyr. Along with fellow Saints Julius and Aaron, Alban is one of three named martyrs recorded at an ea ...

, who (according to tradition) was martyred near the Roman town of

Verulamium Verulamium was a town in Roman Britain. It was sited southwest of the modern city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, England. The major ancient Roman route Watling Street passed through the city, but was realigned in medieval times to bring trad ...

, on the site of the modern St Albans, during the reign of Emperor

Decius Gaius Messius Quintus Trajanus Decius ( 201June 251), known as Trajan Decius or simply Decius (), was Roman emperor from 249 to 251. A distinguished politician during the reign of Philip the Arab, Decius was proclaimed emperor by his troops a ...

Roman citizenship

One aspect of Roman influence seen in British life was the grant of

Roman citizenship Citizenship in ancient Rome () was a privileged political and legal status afforded to free individuals with respect to laws, property, and governance. Citizenship in ancient Rome was complex and based upon many different laws, traditions, and cu ...

. At first this was granted very selectively: to the council members of certain classes of towns, whom Roman practice made citizens; to veterans, either

legionaries The ancient Rome, Roman legionary (in Latin ''legionarius''; : ''legionarii'') was a citizen soldier of the Roman army. These soldiers would conquer and defend the territories of ancient Rome during the Crisis of the Roman Republic, Republic and ...

or soldiers in

auxiliary units The Auxiliary Units, Home Guard Shock Squads or GHQ Auxiliary Units were specially trained, highly secret quasi military units created by the British government during the Second World War with the aim of using irregular warfare in response to ...

; and to a number of natives whose

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

s obtained citizenship for them. The granting of Roman citizenship was gradually expanded and more people from provinces became citizens. One way for a provincial inhabitant to become a citizen was to serve in the Roman army or a city council. The number of citizens steadily increased, as people inherited citizenship and more grants were made by the emperors. Eventually in 212 or early 213 AD, everybody living in the provinces except slaves and

freed slaves A freedman or freedwoman is a person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, slaves were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their owners), emancipation (granted freedom as part of a larger group), or self- ...

were granted citizenship by the ''

Constitutio Antoniniana The (Latin for "Constitution r Edictof Antoninus"), also called the Edict of Caracalla or the Antonine Constitution, was an edict issued in AD 212 by the Roman emperor Caracalla. It declared that all free men in the Roman Empire were to be ...

''. Roman citizenship held many benefits; for example, citizens could make their own decisions, could request protection, and could share possessions/responsibilities within the community under the protection of Roman law. The other inhabitants of Britain, who did not enjoy citizenship, the ''

Peregrini In the early Roman Empire, from 30 BC to AD 212, a ''peregrinus'' () was a free provincial subject of the Empire who was not a Roman citizen. ''Peregrini'' constituted the vast majority of the Empire's inhabitants in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. ...

'', continued to live under the laws of their ancestors. Principal handicaps were that they could not own land with a Latin title, serve as a

legionary The Roman legionary (in Latin ''legionarius''; : ''legionarii'') was a citizen soldier of the Roman army. These soldiers would conquer and defend the territories of ancient Rome during the Republic and Principate eras, alongside auxiliary and c ...

in the army, or, in general, inherit from a Roman citizen. In the Republic, foreign ''peregrini'' were further named as ''peregrini dediticii'' which meant they were "surrendered foreigners" and forbidden to gain Roman citizenship. These surrendered foreigners were not provided with any of the benefits, duties, status or sense of identity of citizens. Romans continued to stigmatize ''peregrini dediticii'' as freedmen or foreigners who were tortured and excluded from citizenship forever.

Roman departure from Britain

Eventually Emperor

Honorius Honorius (; 9 September 384 – 15 August 423) was Roman emperor from 393 to 423. He was the younger son of emperor Theodosius I and his first wife Aelia Flaccilla. After the death of Theodosius in 395, Honorius, under the regency of Stilicho ...

ordered Roman troops back home to help defend Italy against invasion.

Constantine III Constantine III may refer to: * Constantine III (Western Roman emperor), self-proclaimed western Roman Emperor 407–411 * Heraclius Constantine, Byzantine Emperor in 641 * Constans II, Byzantine emperor 641–668, sometimes referred to under this ...

initially rebelled against Honorius and took further troops to

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

, but was later recognised as a joint emperor. After the Roman departure from Britain, the Romano-British were advised by Honorius to "look to their own defences". A written plea with General

Flavius Aetius Flavius Aetius (also spelled Aëtius; ; 390 – 21 September 454) was a Roman Empire, Roman general and statesman of the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, closing period of the Western Roman Empire. He was a military commander and the most inf ...

as one of its believed recipients, known as the ''

Groans of the Britons The Groans of the Britons () is the final appeal made between 446 and 454In Michael Lapidge and David Dumville, eds. ''Gildas: New Approaches'' (Studies in Celtic History 5) 1984, page 20. by the Britons to the Roman military for assistance ag ...

'', may have brought some brief naval assistance from the fading

Western Roman Empire In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...

, but otherwise they were on their own.

Post-Roman period

In the early stages the lowlands and cities may have had some organisation or "council" and the

Bishop of London The bishop of London is the Ordinary (church officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury. By custom the Bishop is also Dean of the Chapel Royal since 1723. The diocese covers of 17 boroughs o ...

appears to have played a key role, but they were divided politically as former soldiers, mercenaries, nobles, officials and farmers declared themselves kings, fighting amongst each other and leaving Britain open to invasion. Two factions may have emerged: a pro-Roman faction and an independence faction. The one leader at this time known by name is

Vortigern Vortigern (; , ; ; ; Old Breton: ''Gurdiern'', ''Gurthiern''; ; , , , etc.), also spelled Vortiger, Vortigan, Voertigern and Vortigen, was a 5th-century warlord in Sub-Roman Britain, Britain, known perhaps as a king of the Britons or at least ...

, which may have been a title meaning "High King". The depredations of the

Picts The Picts were a group of peoples in what is now Scotland north of the Firth of Forth, in the Scotland in the early Middle Ages, Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and details of their culture can be gleaned from early medieval texts and Pic ...

from the north and

Scotti Scotti may refer to: *Scotti (surname), an Italian surname *Scotti family, aristocratic family centered around Piacenza in Northern Italy *Scotti Brothers Records, California-based record label See also * Scoti ''Scoti'' or ''Scotti'' is a Lat ...

(Scots) from Ireland forced the Britons to seek help from pagan

Germanic tribes The Germanic peoples were tribal groups who lived in Northern Europe in Classical antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. In modern scholarship, they typically include not only the Roman-era ''Germani'' who lived in both ''Germania'' and parts ...

of Angles, Saxons and Jutes, who then decided to settle in Britain. Some of the Romano-British people migrated to

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

, the Suebi Kingdom of Galicia and possibly Ireland. The Anglo-Saxons obtained control of eastern England in the 5th century. In the mid-6th century, they started expanding into the

Midlands The Midlands is the central region of England, to the south of Northern England, to the north of southern England, to the east of Wales, and to the west of the North Sea. The Midlands comprises the ceremonial counties of Derbyshire, Herefor ...

, then in the 7th century they expanded again into the southwest and the north of England. The unconquered parts of southern Britain, notably Wales, retained their Romano-British culture, in particular retaining Christianity. Members of groups who spoke Germanic also migrated to the southern section of Great Britain. Cultural exchange is seen in the post-Roman period with these Germanic settlements. Some Anglo-Saxon histories (in context) refer to the Romano-British people by the blanket term "Welsh". The term Welsh is derived from an

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

word meaning 'foreigner', referring to the old inhabitants of southern Britain. Historically, Wales and the south-western peninsula were known respectively as North Wales and West Wales.h2g2 – Maps of Cornwall (Kernow) showing a Celtic or Distinct Identity
Bbc.co.uk. The Celtic north of England and southern Scotland was referred to in Welsh as

Hen Ogledd Hen Ogledd (), meaning the Old North, is the historical region that was inhabited by the Celtic Britons, Brittonic people of sub-Roman Britain in the Early Middle Ages, now Northern England and the southern Scottish Lowlands, alongside the fello ...

("old north"). The struggles of this period have given rise to the legends of

Uther Pendragon Uther Pendragon ( ; the Brittonic languages, Brittonic name; , or ), also known as King Uther (or Uter), was a List of legendary kings of Britain, legendary King of the Britons and father of King Arthur. A few minor references to Uther appe ...

and

King Arthur According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...

. There are many theories, but it is sometimes said that

Ambrosius Aurelianus Ambrosius Aurelianus (; Anglicised as Ambrose Aurelian and called Aurelius Ambrosius in the ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' and elsewhere) was a war leader of the Romano-British who won an important battle against the Anglo-Saxons in the 5th c ...

, a resistance leader of the Romano-British forces, was the model for the former, and that Arthur's court of

Camelot Camelot is a legendary castle and Royal court, court associated with King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described ...

is an idealised Welsh and Cornish memory of pre-Saxon Romano-British civilisation.

References

Bibliography

* Jones, Michael (1996) ''The End of Roman Britain''. Ithaca: Cornell University Press * Myres, John (1960) ''Pelagius and the End of Roman Rule in Britain''. In: Journal of Roman Studies, 50, 21–36. * Pryor, Francis (2004) ''Britain AD: a Quest for Arthur, England and the Anglo-Saxons''. London: HarperCollins {{ISBN, 0-00-718186-8 * Radford, C. A. Ralegh (1939) ''Tintagel Castle''. London: H.M.S.O. (Reprinted by English Heritage 1985) * Thomas, Charles (1993) ''Tintagel: Arthur and Archaeology''. London: English Heritage

External links

The Romans in Britain

The Plague that made England

Google Books: ''The making of England'' of Richard Green (1881)

Culture of ancient Rome Foreign relations of ancient Rome Roman Britain Roman assimilation