Life Along the Thames in Roman Times
London was founded by the Romans after their conquest of the land in AD 43. The rule of the Romans lasted for nearly 400 years, which significantly established how the city looks today. Through the ongoing excavation of the Londinium relics, archaeologists were able to poke into the life of people in the Roman period. This essay will elaborate on the population of Roman London — the social structure of the city was once complex but organized with strict divisions for the elite class, military, working class, and underclass.
Before the Roman invasion in AD 43, there were only a small number of inhabitants across southern Britain. Prior to the destruction of the settlement caused by the Boudican revolt of AD 60, the population reached almost 10,000, which is large enough to be considered cosmopolitan. There exists divergence in the origin of the Londinium population. One theory states that as the establishment of the Roman army in London was completed, people from the European continent found that the newly explored land could be a safe home to live in, and some began their immigration to London. Thus, the population was mixed: people of diverse races and occupations gathered there, forming a thriving community. In early Londinium, rigid social division dominated the life of Londoners, segregating the rich from the poor, men from women, and citizens from non-citizens. Many of those who lived in Roman London were not recognized as citizens of the city. Citizenship was typically a status inherited from ancestors by male descendants or bestowed by a citizen to someone who was not. Those who were not legal citizens were identified as aliens who certainly shared an inferior social status. Not until the early 3rd century all free men were authorised citizenship. However, such grants were only limited to male residents as they “proudly demonstrated their status with three Latinized names often shortened to three initials.” Their female counterparts and other freedmen had two names; enslaved people who had no personal freedom only had one word.
The elite class of Roman London held most control of the city, maintaining the administrative significance of the settlement. The provisional governor and his staff would have been based in London by the end of the first century. A third-century temple altar was excavated in the riverside wall at Blackfriars in 1976 (Fig. 1). The inscription indicates that the temple was restored by Marcus Martiannius Pulcher, who was probably the head of the provincial authority in AD 251-9. Usually, the governor was escorted by guards chosen from the auxiliary cavalry and infantry cohorts, maybe numbering around 1200 men. One of the multiple tablets found at the Bloomberg site, dated no later than AD 80, made reference to Rusticus, a member of the governor’s guard. It consolidates the assumption that the governor was based in London on this date. Besides, evidence shows that the procurator, who was responsible for imperial property and most fiscal matters, had been based in Londinium as well since the rebellion of AD 60. A tombstone discovered in 1852 and 1935 was once created to commemorate the Procurator of the day, Julius Alpinus Classicianus. Since it is possible that he passed away in Londinium, he may have been living and working there in AD 61.
It is believed that the Roman army played a crucial role in the development of Londinium. Only the military, under the orders of the government, was capable of the construction of large-scale drainage, landscape, roads, and other public buildings in the city. Military metalwork was uncovered in pre-Boudican layers to further defend the indispensability of military personnel. The archeological site at 1 Poultry and Borough High Street has provided fragmentary armor, studs, and a couple of spears from dumped deposits, which might serve recycling purposes. The finding implies that the military had either travelled to or resided in Londinium, leaving their equipment on the way. A large number of tablets and tombstones further displayed traces of the Roman army. A marble inscription was discovered on the Winchester Palace site, Southbank, in 1988. It records the names of seven soldiers who once served the governor in Londinium (Fig. 2). In 1978, remains of a bronze military diploma awarding citizenship and marriage rights to the recipient were found in a second-century Flavian building at the Watling Court site. It demonstrates that in addition to soldiers in service, a group of veterans also lived in London.
The majority of Roman Londoners were indeed from the working class — craftsmen, merchants, etc. The founding of the new community demanded the work of many local craftsmen. Most of them remained aliens of the city (also known as incolae). People who engaged in business transactions between London and the continent, such as merchants, shippers, and money-lenders, held citizenships of other cities. Some occupants were recognised as moneyers who were part of the short-lived coin-making industry. They left mint marks on the coins, which helped archeologists today study the alteration of the mint. For instance, in 1777, a silver ingot found in the Tower of London was stamped with the mark EX OFFE JONORINI translating to “from the workshop of Honorinus” (Fig. 3). Moreover, Londinium had been an important economic centre for trade and commerce since its establishment. Industry operations and trading were conducted by people with fewer resources in Roman society, and some were lucky enough to gain wealth through the course. A few wooden writing tablets preserved in the mud of the Walbrook could give some insights into the merchant community of London (Fig. 4). These documents dated to the last first and early second centuries are possibly business contracts and declarations. Among them, one records the “sales from a shop and the building of a boat;” another mentions a boy who ran away with some goods entrusted to him. Evidence of overseas trading also adds weight to the presence of business people in the city. A Koan amphora found on a London Wall site has the Greek name Theourou on it, marking that it is an imported pottery from the Greece world. A wine amphora in West Smithfield is evidence of British trade: the stamp of the name Senecionus revealed its origin, a native vineyard in Brockley Hill, north London.
The bottom of Roman London society consisted of slaves and freedmen. As a matter of fact, slavery ensured the running of the empire by implementing most of the labour force. The manumission of slaves was rare, and freed slaves tended to continue to work for their masters. Both slaves and freedmen were actively involved in trades for their patrons who lived in or around London. A writing tablet from the final months of AD 64 disclosing that Florentinus, the slave of Sextus Cassius, was writing on the order of his master to say that he had received two payments in respect of a farm. An additional example is a tablet of AD 57 from the freedman of Venustus, Tibullus, which formally acknowledged that he owed a trader called Gratus, the freedman of Spurius, a debt of 105 denarii. They were likely negotiating for their patrons who freed them from slavery but we could also think that they were doing business under their own streams. Nevertheless, the life of the majority of slaves was miserable. From the perspective of their masters, they were objects and possessions that could be disposed of at will. Another writing tablet from Walbrook admits this idea, given that it contains a business letter instructing the recipient to turn a female slave into cash.
Through the numerous tablets, tombstones, and relics excavated so far, we can verify the identities of some figures who once lived in Roman London. Since occupants from the higher social class were more likely to afford to leave their personal inscriptions, the archeological evidence we have collected at this point is reasonably biassed towards specific clusters of individuals such as military personnel, imperial officials, and wealthy merchants. Nonetheless, these shreds of evidence are sufficient to shed light on the life of people under the rule of the Roman empire. The diversity of the population and the well-organized social structure together characterized Roman London and made it the largest city in Britannia.
Bibliography
Hingley, Richard, and Christina Unwin. Londinium: A Biography: Roman London from Its Origins to the Fifth Century / Richard Hingley; Illustrations by Christina Unwin. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2018.
Milne, Gustav. English Heritage Book of Roman London : Urban Archaeology in the Nation’s Capital / Gustav Milne. London: Batsford, 1995.
Perring, Dominic. London in the Roman World / Dominic Perring. First edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021.
Perring, Dominic. Roman London / Dominic Perring. London: Seaby, 1991.
Ross, Catherine, and John Clark. London: the Illustrated History / Cathy Ross & John Clark. London: Allen Lane, 2008.
