ABSTRACT
The territory of present-day Hungary entered documented history in 9 BC, when its predominantly Celtic inhabitants were subjugated by the Romans. The low-lying Hungarian plain was still marshy and sparsely populated, but the hilly western region (Transdanubia, including Lake Balaton and present-day Pecs and Budapest) became the Roman province of Pannonia. The principal Roman town was Aquincum, whose substantial remains (including two amphitheatres and several public baths) have latterly been excavated and are to be found in District III of modern Budapest. Additional Roman remains have been unearthed in Pecs, Sopron and Szombathely. Archaeologists have established that Roman Pannonia had an economy based upon grain cultivation, stockbreeding (especially horses), viticulture, fruit growing and crafts such as stone-cutting, carriage building and pottery.
