Roman Forts in Britain

The Roman military remains in Britain are of outstanding importance. More than a tenth of the Roman army's total strength was stationed in Britain, out of all proportion to the size of the province. In the last 30 years new techniques of investigation have been developed which, together with the sensational discovery of the Vindolanda tablets, tell us much about daily life in a frontier fort in Britain. Focusing on the auxiliary forts that were occupied from the second century onwards, Paul Bidwell looks at the plans and functions of forts and examines the everyday life of officers and men. The author shows what the study of finds can tell us about supply systems, and how forts were adapted during the decline of the Empire.

The Roman military remains in Britain are of outstanding importance. More than a tenth of the Roman army's total strength was stationed in Britain, out of all proportion to the size of the province. In the last 30 years new techniques of investigation have been developed which, together with the sensational discovery of the Vindolanda tablets, tell us much about daily life in a frontier fort in Britain. Focusing on the auxiliary forts that were occupied from the second century onwards, Paul Bidwell looks at the plans and functions of forts and examines the everyday life of officers and men. The author shows what the study of finds can tell us about supply systems, and how forts were adapted during the decline of the Empire.