The Romans did not see Wales as a separate county, the term ‘Cambria’ was not known by them and it evolved later during the medieval period after the Anglo-Saxon settlement of much of Britain.
The forested, mountainous countryside and shortage of flat agricultural land made the Roman presence in Wales essen-tially a military occupation and so most of the Roman remains found here are of military nature While on campaign the Roman armies lodged in temporary forts (castella). Once an area was pacified the troops were billeted in permanent forts (castra) from which they patrolled and collected tax.
The headquarters of the legions responsible for keeping the peace in Wales were the fortresses Deva Victrix/Chester, Cheshire on the River Dee to the northeast, and Isca Augusta/ Caerleon, Newport on the River Usk in the southeast. Roads were built linking these bases to auxiliary forts such as Moridunum/Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire; and Segontium/ Caernarfon, Gwynedd. Sarn Helen, a major highway, linked north Wales with south Wales.
These military bases attracted merchants, craftsmen and entertainers. Their settlements were called canabae when outside legionary fortresses, or vici when outside auxiliary forts. Two such settlements that developed into urban centres (civitates) were Venta Silurum/Caerwent, Monmouthshire, for the Silures; and Moridunum/Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire for the Demetae.
Smaller Roman towns are found mainly in the southeast usually at former army sites, e.g. Blestium/Monmouth; Go-bannium/Abergavenny, Burrium/Usk, all in Monmouthshire; Bovium?Tamium?/Cardiff, Cardiff and Bovium?/Cowbridge, in the Vale of Glamorgan.
Wales had none of the materials in the combinations needed to produce goods for trade and export. Its soil was not suitable for making pottery. Glassmaking sites were in the large urban centres of southeast England, and the rich iron ores in Gaul would have made large-scale export from Britain unnecessary.
Wales, however, was a rich source of mineral wealth and the Romans used their engineering technology to extract large amounts of gold, copper and lead, as well as modest amounts of some other metals such as zinc and silver, e.g. the Dolaucothi gold mines in Carmarthenshire, located in the valley of the River Cothi; and a works depot at Holt, Wrexham, that supplied the XX Valeria Victrix at Chester (Cheshire) with pottery, tiles and bricks.
At Llantwit Major, Vale of Glamorgan, excavations of the Roman villa to the northwest at Caermead revealed that the area had been inhabited for over three hundred years during the Roman period, with its bathrooms and mosaic pavements dating from the mid-second century AD.
The weakening of Roman power during the third century AD brought attacks on the Empire. Raiders from Ireland, Scotland and Gaul, encouraged by the depletion of Roman forces, started to attack the English and Welsh coasts. This resulted in the construction of a line of coastal defences known as the ‘Saxon Shore’ forts of which Cardiff was one.
According to the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus (c.330-391/400) a treaty between the Scotti (Irish) and the Roman authorities in Britain was broken by the Scotti (and Picti) in 360 when they raided the frontiers of Britain.
Raiders attacking from Ireland caused fortifications to be improved at Segontium/Caernarfon, Gwynedd and Caergybi/ Holyhead, Isle of Anglesey. Caerwent town walls were built in stone and the Cardiff fort rebuilt in stone. In the late fourth century Irish raiders settled along the western coast.
In spring 383 Flavius (40) Magnus Maximus, assigned to Britain in 380, was proclaimed emperor by his troops and he took them to Gaul to secure his position.
In 407 Flavius (54) Claudius Constantinus (fl.406-409) was proclaimed emperor by the army and took most of it over the English Channel to defend Gaul against Germanic invaders.
In 410 the Romans who ran the British towns asked the western emperor Honorius (38; r.393-423) to send army units to fight off the Irish and Scottish invaders. He wrote back and informed them that he could spare neither the men nor the money. Roman imperial rule in Britain had ended.
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