Before & After Roman Britain

I am aware that these maps are never 100% accurate and, given the time period, we have no way of knowing for certain what exactly Great Britain looked like in ancient times, so please remember that before commenting.

What Do the Maps Show?

The first map shows how the island of Great Britain looked prior to the Roman Invasion of Britain by Emperor Claudius (1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) in AD 43.

These were the days when the ancient Britons ruled the lands and minded their own business (for the most part). The glory days! It was all to come to a crushing end, though.

Fast-forward a few hundred years and we arrive in post-Roman Britain. This second map dates to between AD 409-425 and shows the transformation of Great Britain.

You can also see the beginnings of independent Welsh kingdoms in Gwent, Glywyssing and Brycheiniog – all three of which would be important Welsh kingdoms in the early stages of the medieval era.

Kernow (Cornwall), along with Alba (Scotland) and, to some extent, Cymru, survived the Roman years relatively unscathed (and likely because of the rough terrain putting them off).

That being said, Cymru was most definitely occupied by Rome and its influences can be seen in part, particularly in the Roman founded town of Caerwent. The eventual rulers of the kingdom of Gwent are believed to be descended from the Roman rulers, too.

All was well in Cymru once again. The incoming medieval era, though, would prove to be more bloody.

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