Glevum
51°52′01″N2°14′56″W/ 51.867°N 2.249°W
Glevum(or, more formally,Colonia Nervia Glevensium,or occasionallyGlouvia) was originally aRoman fortinRoman Britainthat became a "colonia"of retired legionaries in AD 97. Today, it is known asGloucester,in theEnglishcounty ofGloucestershire.The name Glevum is taken by many present-day businesses in the area and also by the 26-mileGlevum Way,[1]along-distance footpathor recreational walk encircling modern Gloucester. [1]
Fortress
[edit]Glevum was established around AD 48, at an important crossing of theRiver Severn,and near to theFosse Way,the earlyfront lineafter the Roman invasion of Britain. Initially, aRoman fortwas established at present-dayKingsholmin c. 65–70 AD.[2]
TheRoman Legionsbased here were probably theLegio XX Valeria Victrixuntil 66 and thenLegio II Augusta[3]for their invasion ofRoman Walesbetween 66 and 74 AD.[4]
Between AD 81 and 98, larger replacement walls were built on slightly higher ground nearby, centred on present-day Gloucester Cross which was probably part of the change from a military fort to a walledcoloniaafter the Legio II Augusta had been transferred toCaerleon.The civilian settlement also grew outside the walls.[5]
Colonia
[edit]In AD 97, the city was designated acoloniaby the EmperorNerva.A colonia was the residence of retiredlegionariesand enjoyed the highest status of city in theEmpire.The legionaries were given farmland in the surrounding district, and could be called upon as aRoman auxiliaryarmed force.
The city was built within the legionary fortress and used the same rectilinear street plan and ramparts.[6]A large and impressive administrativebasilicaandforummarket-place were built in the town, as well as many fine homes withmosaicfloors.
Roman Britain was divided into four provinces in the early 4th century. It is most likely that Glevum, as a colony, became the provincial capital of Britannia Secunda, in the same way that colonies at York and Lincoln became capitals of their respective provinces. There is some evidence that at this time Glevum possessed a mint.[7]
The Roman wharf where goods were shipped via an inlet from the River Severn has been excavated at Upper Quay Street and which dendrochronological dating has shown was built from 74 AD.[8]
At its height, Glevum may have had a population of as many as 10,000 people.
The entire area around Glevum was intensely Romanised in the second and third centuries, with a higher than normal distribution of villas, as a result of its suitability for the traditional intensiveRoman farmingmethods. Today, some of the best examples ofRoman villasin Britain, includingChedworth villaandWoodchester villa,both famous for their Roman mosaics, are not far from Glevum.
Decline
[edit]Excavations at Gloucester's New Market Hall in the 1960s[9][10]showed thatRomano-Britishoccupation of the town may have continued in some form into thesub-Roman period,even if the town's population may have been greatly reduced. A new portal in the town's wall was built at the beginning of the sixth century, showing a modest growth of the town after theBattle of Mons Badonicusin 497.
TheAnglo-Saxon Chroniclerecords a King Coinmail (according to the original A-text), who may have come from Gloucester, taking part in theBattle of Dyrhamin 577, when the city was conquered by the Anglo-Saxons.
Remains
[edit]
- Manyarchaeologicalartifactsand some in situ walls from Roman Glevum may be seen in theGloucester City Museum & Art Gallery
- The remains of the Roman and medieval East Gate are on display in the East Gate Chamber on Eastgate Street.
- There was a small display in the former Royal Bank of Scotland premises on the Roman finds found from the site, but the branch has now closed and the building is currently empty.
- Northgate, Southgate, Eastgate and Westgate Streets all follow the line of their original Roman counterparts, although Westgate Street has moved slightly north and Southgate Street now extends through the site of the Roman basilica.
- An equestrian statue of theEmperor Nervawas erected at the entrance to Southgate Street in 2002. It was created by Anthony Stone and paid for by public subscription, following a campaign that started in 1997, the 1900th anniversary of the colonia's foundation.[11]
References
[edit]- ^Glevum Way Summary- the Long Distance Walkers Association
- ^New discoveries along the line of Gloucester’s Roman defenceshttps://cotswoldarchaeology.co.uk/all-along-the-watchtower-new-discoveries-along-the-line-of-gloucesters-roman-defences/
- ^G Webster, Rome against Caractacus, p 45,ISBN978-07-13436-27-3
- ^"GADARG - Essay 1".Archived fromthe originalon 27 September 2011.Retrieved9 June2013.The colonia of Glevum
- ^New discoveries along the line of Gloucester’s Roman defenceshttps://cotswoldarchaeology.co.uk/all-along-the-watchtower-new-discoveries-along-the-line-of-gloucesters-roman-defences/
- ^J. Wacher, The Towns of Roman Britain,ISBN9780415170413p 137-
- ^"GADARG - Essay 1".Archived fromthe originalon 27 September 2011.Retrieved9 June2013.The colonia of Glevum
- ^Two thousand years of development in Gloucester’s Greater Blackfriars areahttps://cotswoldarchaeology.co.uk/two-thousand-years-of-development-in-gloucesters-greater-blackfriars-area/
- ^Hassall, M; Rhodes, J (1974). "Excavations at the new Market Hall, Gloucester 1966-7".Trans Bristol Gloucestershire Archaeol Soc.93:15–100.
- ^Wallace, Collin."Makers' Stamps on Mortaria from Gloucester"(PDF).Study Group for Roman Pottery.Retrieved25 February2019.
- ^"The Nerva Statue".gloucester.gov.uk. 9 September 2010. Archived fromthe originalon 29 November 2014.Retrieved18 November2014.
External links
[edit]- History of Gloucestershire
- Roman sites in Gloucestershire
- Roman towns and cities in England
- Populated places established in the 1st century
- History of Gloucester
- 40s establishments in the Roman Empire
- 1st-century establishments in Roman Britain
- Roman legionary fortresses in England
- Roman fortifications in England
- Coloniae (Roman)