Verulamium - Encyclopedia

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES

VERULAMIUM, a Romano-British town situated in the territory of the Catuvellauni, close to the modern St Albans (Hertfordshire). Before the Roman conquest it was probably a native capital: afterwards it received the dignity of a municipium (implying municipal status and Roman citizenship). Tacitus tells us that the town was burnt by Boadicea in A.D. 61, but it again rose to prosperity. Its site is still easily recognizable. Its walls of flint rubble survive in stately fragments, and enclose an area of 200 acres. Of the internal buildings little is known. A theatre was excavated in 1847, and parts of the forum were opened by Mr William Page in 1898; both indicate a civilized and cultivated town. The complete uncovering of the site was planned in 1910. (F. J. H.)