Today, the settlement of Roman Silchester is a ruin - what remains are just fields, a small medieval church and stone walls in various states of height and structure. But once, this was a bustling, busy town with shops, places of worship, defensive walls and an amphitheatre.
Although Silchester, in Hampshire, has been a place of fascination for centuries it was first seriously excavated in the nineteenth century, and is still giving up its secrets to archaeologists in modern times. Named by its Roman inhabitants Calleva Atrebatum, it is believed to have been established as a Roman settlement in around the first century AD. It was therefore in operation at the same time Boudicca unleashed her rebellion on London, in around 60-61 AD, as her Iceni tribe fought bitterly against Roman influence and control. Archaeology has revealed that its history may be even older, with skeletons found that date to the Iron Age, suggesting that the Roman community was founded on an existing name 'Atrebatum' certainly refers to the Atrebates tribe, who dominated this area during the Iron Age.
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| The gateway ruin at Silchester (Calleva Atrebatum) |
The town's stone gateway - or its remains - still survive today, large and looming in the silent, rural landscape. As the point of entry to the town, it would have been guarded by military personnel to help maintain the security of its residents and officials. The road to Silchester led through Tadley and Aldermaston, built by Roman builders to make travel easier and safer. The new and spacious aspect of Roman roads built in straight lines reduced the potential of ambushes around corners or in leafy woodland, and encouraged economic movements between the other Roman towns in the area. Additionally, there was a settlement at the Vyne in Hampshire nearby called Vindomis, and another in Winchester named Venta Belgarum.
As you were waved through the large wooden gates fixed to the large stone gateway, you would have found huddles of buildings, a mixture of large and small, with smaller Iron Age style huts as well as grander, stone houses. Historians as early as the nineteenth century noted the presence of around 25 larger dwellings and 25 smaller ones, positioned around a main street that included homes, shops and workshops. Residents also had access to pagan temples, a Christian church, and a market place, as well as administrative buildings where town officials ran town business. Three mosaics from Silchester can be seen today at Reading Museum in the Town Hall, two of the larger ones from a grand town house, having once paved two separate rooms. The museum also has fragments of plaster on display, decorated with coloured paint, showing that walls would also have been brightly decorated.
The community also had access to a public bath, similar to that at Bath in Somerset, where residents could go to soak in the warm waters provided by Roman central heating. Delivered by hypocausts, layers of brick or stone under the bathing sites that conveyed heat upwards to heat the bathing waters. There, townsfolk could scrub and moisturise with olive oil, catching up on the daily gossip of the town. The residents, archaeologists discovered, had access to piped water throughout the town, with timber pipes discovered, fitted with iron collars.
One of the most famous and exciting sites in the now ruined town is the amphitheatre. Today, you can stand in its centre and look up at the many seats which circle the area, where residents and guests would have once looked down on the action. Was it used for gladiatorial combat? It is possible, although to my knowledge no definitive evidence for this has yet come forward. The town was established when gladiatorial entertainments elsewhere in the Roman Empire was popular, and the two alcoves either side of the centre have been suggested as somewhere for combatants to pause and catch their breath. However it is also possible that the amphitheatre staged plays or masques involving actors playing the parts of Roman gods for the entertainment of the crowds. It would also have been a perfect place to broadcast important business or news to residents quickly and efficiently.
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| Entrance to the amphitheatre at Silchester |
Estimates of Calleva's population hover at around 1,000-2,500 people, but it may have been an even larger settlement. The population was likely made up of those with Iron Age and Roman descent, perhaps travelling to live at the town from other parts of the Roman Empire. Reading Museum reported on their website on the analysis of a male Iron Age skeleton on the site with Spanish parentage, although he had been born in England. Silchester would have been linked through trading routes to areas all over Europe, and so the population was probably quite diverse. Paw prints pressed into pre-baked tiles (visible at Reading Museum) confirm that cats and dogs also roamed around the streets, and surviving artefacts document a number of different trades carried out in the town.
A bronze statue of Tutela, a Roman goddess relied on for protection, was also found on site. The people of Calleva Atrebatum, whether Iron Age or not, had therefore adopted Roman deities and prayed to them to help ensure their safety. The historian J.E. Morpurgo noted that gods such as Mars and Hercules were also found at Silchester, along with older, Celtic gods. Perhaps, though, with Tutela's own emphasis on protection and security, its residents had heard about the rebellions of Boudicca and her tribe, and feared a similar outcome.
Liked this? You might also like: The Lost Village of Wharram Percy and Visiting the Historic Church of Lewknor, Oxfordshire.
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https://www.readingmuseum.org.uk/your-visit/what-see/silchester-gallery
Visit to Reading Museum, August 2026
https://www.readingmuseum.org.uk/blog/people-silchester
A History of the Vyne in Hampshire, Chaloner W. Chute, Winchester, 1888.
Roman Britain, J.E. Morpurgo ed., Penguin Books, 1915.
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