Calleva Atrebatum

Calleva Atrebatum ("Calleva of the Atrebates") was an Iron Age oppidum, the capital of the Atrebates tribe. It then became a walled town in the Roman province of Britannia, at a major crossroads of the roads of southern Britain. The modern village of Silchester in Hampshire, England, is about a mile (1.6 km) to the west of the site. The village's parish church of St Mary the Virgin is just within the ancient walls. Most of the site lies within the modern civil parish of Silchester, although the amphitheatre is in the adjoining civil parish of Mortimer West End. The whole of the site is within the local authority district of Basingstoke and Deane and the county of Hampshire. Unusually for an Iron Age tribal town in Britain, its exact site was reused for the Roman town. The Romans changed the layout and defences. Calleva Atrebatum ("Calleva of the Atrebates") was an Iron Age settlement, as capital of the Atrebates tribe. It became a walled town in the Roman province of Britannia. The Romanised Celtic "Calleva" can be translated to 'woods' or 'woody place'. The settlement was surrounded by dense woodlands that were used for fuel and to build structures. Given its access to east, west and northern domestic markets it was a centre of trade within Britain and with civilisations across the Channel and as far away as the Mediterranean. The Late Iron Age settlement at Silchester has been shown by archaeology and coins of the British Q series to link Silchester with the seat of power of the Atrebates. Coins found stamped with "COMMIOS" show that Commius, king of the Atrebates, established his territory and mint here after moving from Gaul. The inner earthwork, constructed 1 AD, enclosed and at a similar time others were built in the surrounds. Small areas of Late Iron Age occupation were first uncovered on the south side of the inner earthwork and around the south gate. More detailed evidence for this was excavated below the forum/basilica. Several roundhouses, wells and pits were in a northeast–southwest alignment, dated to 25 BC – 15 BC.

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Calleva Atrebatum

Atrebates

The Atrebates (Gaulish: *Atrebatis, 'dwellers, land-owners, possessors of the soil') were a Belgic tribe of the Iron Age and the Roman period, originally dwelling in the Artois region. After the tribes of Gallia Belgica were defeated by Caesar in 57 BC, 4,000 Atrebates participated in the Battle of Alesia in 53, led by their chief Commius. They revolted again in 51 BC, after which they maintained a friendly relationship with Rome, as Commius received sovereignty over the neighbouring Morini.

Berkshire

The Royal County of Berkshire, more commonly known as simply Berkshire (ˈbɑːrkʃɪər,_-ʃər ; abbreviated Berks.), is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the northeast, Greater London to the east, Surrey to the southeast, Hampshire to the south, and Wiltshire to the west. The county town is Reading. The county has an area of and a population of 911,403.