Five things you (probably) didn't know about...Roman Britain
BBC History UK|July 2024
Rob Collins shares five surprising facts about life in Britain during the Roman occupation
By Rob Collins
Five things you (probably) didn't know about...Roman Britain

1 Roman Britain was more than just one province

After the Roman invasion of Britain in AD 43, Britain was named a province and given its first governor, Aulus Plautius. However, Septimius Severus, or possibly his son Caracalla, split the province of Britannia into two by AD 213: Britannia Superior and Britannia Inferior. Later, under Diocletian (reigned 284-305) or Constantine (reigned 306-337), Britannia was made a diocese consisting of four provinces: Maxima Caesariensis (south-east England); Flavia Caesariensis (eastern England and the Midlands); Britannia Prima (Wales and south-west England); and Britannia Secunda (northern England). Each time a new province was named, it was given a governor and staff to manage its affairs on behalf of the emperor.

A map from 1878 showing the four provinces of fourth-century Britain. Modern scholars debate the locations and borders of these provinces

2 It's only thanks to the Romans that we know the names of native gods

Denne historien er fra July 2024-utgaven av BBC History UK.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra July 2024-utgaven av BBC History UK.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA BBC HISTORY UKSe alt
Succession 1603 - From Tudors to Stuarts - The passing of the English crown from Elizabeth I to James VI & I was welcomed by a nation hungry for change
BBC History UK

Succession 1603 - From Tudors to Stuarts - The passing of the English crown from Elizabeth I to James VI & I was welcomed by a nation hungry for change

The passing of the English crown from Elizabeth I to James VI & I was welcomed by a nation hungry for change. But, writes Susan Doran, it wasn't long before tensions began to rise between the incoming king and his new subjects

time-read
10 mins  |
July 2024
Five things you (probably) didn't know about...Roman Britain
BBC History UK

Five things you (probably) didn't know about...Roman Britain

Rob Collins shares five surprising facts about life in Britain during the Roman occupation

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2024
"It had been a tiny triumph, but it had been a British triumph"
BBC History UK

"It had been a tiny triumph, but it had been a British triumph"

MAX HASTINGS talks to Rob Attar about a daring airborne raid that provided a much-needed boost to Britain's morale in the darkest days of the Second World War

time-read
10+ mins  |
July 2024
Dancing with the Devil
BBC History UK

Dancing with the Devil

ROGER MOORHOUSE is impressed by a book that traces the fortunes of the diplomats charged with managing the west's wartime alliance with Josef Stalin

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2024
Victorian cucumber ice cream
BBC History UK

Victorian cucumber ice cream

ELEANOR BARNETT samples the delights of an unusual and refreshing version of one of the world's favourite summer treats

time-read
2 mins  |
July 2024
Anne Boleyn, ‘princess' of France
BBC History UK

Anne Boleyn, ‘princess' of France

JOANNE PAUL is impressed by an account of how the Tudor queen's continental connections shaped her meteoric rise and dramatic fall

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2024
War and pieces
BBC History UK

War and pieces

Far from idle pursuits, games have transformed the way societies have made sense of life and death, order and conflict for centuries. Kelly Clancy picks five examples that reveal how playtime has often been a serious business

time-read
7 mins  |
July 2024
Gulbadan Begum The Mughal Jane Austen
BBC History UK

Gulbadan Begum The Mughal Jane Austen

Gulbadan Begum was meant to live a quiet life in the confines of a Mughal harem. Instead she made her mark on history twice: first, embarking on a pioneering pilgrimage to Islam’s holy cities; second, writing a remarkable history of her dynasty. RUBY LAL tells her story

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2024
Horror in France
BBC History UK

Horror in France

On the morning of 10 June 1944, the residents of Oradour-sur-Glane were going about their lives as normally as was possible in occupied France: cooking, washing, shopping, playing. Little did they know that they were about to become the victims of one of the most infamous massacres of the Second World War.

time-read
10 mins  |
July 2024
"IT'S TIME TO WRITE WOMEN BACK INTO THESE WORLD-CHANGING ANCIENT EVENTS"
BBC History UK

"IT'S TIME TO WRITE WOMEN BACK INTO THESE WORLD-CHANGING ANCIENT EVENTS"

Daisy Dunn tells the story of the Greco-Persian Wars through the deeds of the extraordinary female figures who shaped them

time-read
10 mins  |
July 2024