Roman conquest of Britain

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The Roman Empire conquered most of the island of Britain, which was inhabited by the Celtic Britons. It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, and was largely completed in the southern half of Britain (most of what is now called England and Wales) by AD 87, when the Stanegate was established. The conquered territory became the Roman province of Britannia. Following Julius Caesar's invasions of Britain in 54 BC, some southern British chiefdoms had become allies of the Romans. The exile of their ally Verica gave the Romans a pretext for invasion. The Roman army was recruited in Italia, Hispania, and Gaul and used the newly-formed fleet Classis Britannica. Under their general Aulus Plautius, the Romans pushed inland from the southeast, defeating the Britons in the Battle of the Medway. By AD 47, the Romans held the lands southeast of the Fosse Way. British resistance was led by the chieftain Caratacus until his defeat in AD 50. The isle of Mona, a stronghold of the druids, was...

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