Roman London

Peter Marsden's book on Roman London covers the historical time period of the permanent presence of Romans in Britain (circa 50 AD/CE) to the departure of the Roman officials in the early fifth century. This text is not arranged as a hbistory or narrative, but rather as an outline from which to explore the archaeological remains that are continually found below the surface of London streets and structures. To this end, Marsden is pleased that, in his words, 'London has always had a problem disposing of its rubbish.' This means that much of the old is still there, just under the newer. When speaking of London in Roman times (and, indeed, in most pre-Victorian times), London consists of the one-square mile area known today at The City; places that are now boroughs of modern London, such as Westminster and Hampstead, were in fact separate towns.London began as an outpost for the invasion forces brought over by Claudius and reinforced successively by future emperors and Roman military commanders. It became one of the permanent settlements for the Roman hierarchy, eventually reaching a status of such importance that major structures such as a defensive wall would be constructed.Marsden covers a great deal of recent archaeological excavation around London, looking for traces of the old Roman city. A complicating factor is that under modern London is not only Roman London, but also Saxon London, Norman London, Tudor London, etc. One of the earliest archaeological excavations actually dates back considerably in history itself -- 1385, when the mayor and aldermen ordered some older structures to be unburied to determine an ancient right-of-way claim. The real development of knowledge about Roman London, according to Marsden, comes in the post-World War II period, when building and reconstruction flourished. Much of this work was still unpublished at the time of Marsden's book's printing; sadly, much of it remains unpublished some 20 years later. However, as Marsden points out, the excavation, cataloguing and analysis of archaeological data about Roman London is an continuing programme, so no definitive final statement can yet be made. Marsden's text is rich with photographs, maps, line-art drawings, charts and graphs. Marsden leaves nothing to chance -- soil substrata structures, modern versus ancient building techniques and materials, maps, coins, household/business items, even linguistic and written fragments are used to piece together a history of the place. From the earliest times of the invasion camp come artifacts such as a soldier's bronze helmet, swords and sheaths, and remnants of some of the earliest Roman roads in Britain. These show that the site of the current London Bridge has been a crossing site since the earliest Romans (circa 50 AD/CE), but that a crossing closer to the current Westminster Bridge probably predated that by half a decade. The earliest city structures included a palace, a forum, a fort, and several public bat