Wroxeter

Coordinates: 52°40′12″N 2°38′53″W / 52.670°N 2.648°W / 52.670; -2.648

Wroxeter /ˈrɒksᵻtər/ is a village in Shropshire, England. It forms part of the civil parish of Wroxeter and Uppington and is located besides the River Severn, about 5 miles (8.0 km) south-east of Shrewsbury. It is at the site of the Roman city of Viroconium Cornoviorum, which was the fourth largest civitas capital in Roman Britain.

History

Wroxeter is on the site of the Roman city of Viroconium Cornoviorum, which was the 4th-largest tribal capital (civitas) in Roman Britain. The name—"Viroconium of the Cornovians"—preserves a native Brittonic name that has been reconstructed as *Uiroconion ("[the city] of *Uirokū"), where *Uiro-ku (lit. "man"-"wolf") is believed to have been a masculine given name meaning "werewolf". The original site of the Cornovian capital (also thought to have been named *Uiroconion) was a hillfort on the Wrekin.

The relocated Viroconium was established about AD 58 as a fortified camp (castra) for the Legio XIV Gemina during their invasion of Wales. The main section of the Watling Street Roman road runs across England between Dubris (Roman Dover) and Wroxeter. The 14th Legion was later replaced by the Legio XX Valeria Victrix, which was subsequently relocated to Chester. Around the year 88, the military abandoned the fortress and it was taken over by the Cornovians' civilian settlement. It prospered over the next century, with many public buildings, including thermae and a colonnaded forum. At its peak, it is thought to have been the 4th-largest settlement in Roman Britain, with a population of more than 15 000. The Roman city was rediscovered in 1859 when workmen began excavating the baths complex. A replica Roman villa was constructed in 2010 for a Channel 4 television program called Rome Wasn't Built in a Day and was opened to the public on 19 February 2011.

Wroxeter (disambiguation)

Wroxeter may refer to: