Cornovii (Midlands) - Roman Period

Roman Period

The tribal civitas capital was Viroconium Cornoviorum (or simply "Viroconium"), the fourth largest town in Roman Britain. It started life as a legionary fortress in the mid-1st century, possibly garrisoned by the XIV Legion then the XX Legion. The main section of Watling Street runs from Dubrium (Dover) to Viroconium (Wroxeter). The place-name itself is suggestive of the Wrekin hillfort, overlooking the site from the east. The Cornovii seem to have had many hillforts, the largest and most populous being that at the Wrekin near the site of the Romano-British tribal capital.

The eventual size of Viroconium is inconsistent with the estimated population size, taken from the number of known pre-Roman settlements in the area; the archaeological evidence suggests a sparsely populated region. Perhaps the majority of the population lived in timber hut-dwellings without stone foundations, making it more difficult to find archaeological trace. There are, however, impressive standing Roman ruins from Viroconium just outside the modern day village of Wroxeter.

By the time the city had become fully established as a civitas capital, Viroconium had seen great expansion, with all the usual trappings of a classical Roman settlement including the forum basilica, shops and, of course, the baths. Both the massive structural remains of the baths and exercise yard found during archaeological excavations and subsequent research indicate that Viroconium's most prosperous era was between the 2nd and 3rd centuries, and demonstrate the success of this regional economic centre. Nevertheless it appears that by the 4th century the area was already starting to decline.

Viroconium Cornoviorum and Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester) seem to be the only major Roman settlements in Britain that, subsequently, did not grow into larger towns or cities in the post-Roman period. This may have been due to the foundation of Shrewsbury (probably in the 9th century) nearby, which was more easily defended, although the village of Wroxeter still continued to grow.

Owing to little development in the Wroxeter area, much of the Roman material has survived reasonably intact compared to other parts of Britain. This has led to the town becoming a favourite among archaeologists and students of Roman Britain.