Timeline of Roman Britain

Roman general Julius Caesar makes two expeditions (visits) to Britain in 55 and 54 BC following his conquest of Gaul (present-day France). During these expeditions, the Romans do not conquer (take over) any territory in Britain, instead they make friends with local kings and invite British rulers to pay taxes in return for peace and bring Britain into Rome's circle.

The Roman army lands in southern England in AD 43. The present-day regions of England and Wales are now occupied (taken over) by the Romans and become the Roman province of Britannia.

After the conquest of AD 43, the Romans spend the next 20–30 years making Britain part of the Roman empire. The army moves north and west from the south coast, building forts as they advance. They also build roads. Roman amphitheatres (large stadiums) are built, with  the earliest in Silchester (Berkshire), Carmarthen (Carmarthenshire) and Chester (Cheshire).

While the Roman army is in Wales, Boudica (ruler of the Iceni people in East Anglia) is angered by the Romans seizing her land and the brutal treatment of her family, so she raises an army to fight them. The Iceni are joined by their neighbours, the Trinovantes. Together they destroy Roman towns at Camulodunum (Colchester), Verulamium (St Albans) and Londinium (London). However, the Roman army then defeats them in battle.

Access to metals is one of the reasons that the Romans wanted to conquer Britain. By AD 49 the Romans are already mining lead in Wales, Yorkshire, Shropshire and Derbyshire. They mine tin in Cornwall and copper in North Wales. Around AD 70–80 the Romans begin mining gold at Dolaucothi in South Wales.

By AD 100 Londinium (London) is a thriving city with a population of about 60,000 people. It has replaced Camulodunum (Colchester) as the capital of the province of Britannia.

The emperor Hadrian visits Britain in AD 122 as part of a tour of the empire. He orders the construction of a new border defence in northern England (known today as Hadrian's Wall). Hadrian's Wall is a long wall and runs for 73 miles from Segedunum (Wallsend) on the River Tyne to Maia (Bowness-on-Solway).

Work starts on a new border wall, known as the Antonine Wall. It is built from earth and wood with forts along its length. It takes 12 years to complete. It moves the border of Roman Britain further north into present-day Scotland. In AD 162 the Antonine Wall is abandoned and the army moves back to Hadrian's Wall.

The emperor Septimius Severus travels to Britain in AD 208. Originally from North Africa, he probably brings troops from the Roman province of North Africa as part of his campaign to conquer territory north of Hadrian's Wall. He gets ill and dies in York in AD 211.

In AD 287 Carausius, admiral of the Roman Channel fleet, declares himself emperor of Britain and Northern Gaul. He is killed in AD 293 by one of his ministers and three years later Britain becomes part of the wider Roman empire again.

In AD 296 Britain is split up into four provinces: Maxima Caesariensis (northern England), Britannia Prima (southern England), Flavia Caesariensis (the Midlands and East Anglia) and Britannia Secunda (Wales).

Villas in the countryside sit at the centre of large farming estates. The wealth built in Roman Britain, particularly growing grain, leads to a boom in villa construction around AD 300–350.

During the reign of the emperor Tiberius (reigned AD 14–37), the Christian faith starts to spread across the empire. Early Christians often get into trouble for their beliefs because they refuse to worship the emperor as a god. In AD 313, the emperor Constantine (reigned AD 306–337) orders freedom of worship for all religions, including Christianity. Then in AD 392 the emperor Theodosius (reigned AD 379–395) makes Christianity the official religion of the Roman empire and all the temples to Roman gods and goddesses are closed.

In AD 369 the Roman military commander Theodosius arrives in Britain from Rome with a large army. He is sent to support Roman Britain which is being attacked by raiders from around the edges of the province. Peace is restored, but attacks soon start again as Roman leadership and the size of the army in Britain declines.

In AD 383 Magnus Maximus, a military commander in Britain, is declared emperor by his soldiers. He takes a large part of the army to mainland Europe where he overthrows the emperor Gratian, before being killed himself in AD 388. Uncertainty in Britain prompts wealthy families to bury their valuable belongings.

By around AD 411 the Roman army and administration have left the province of Britannia and British towns must now organise their own administration and defences.