ABSTRACT
Roman Britain had by AD300 been part of the Roman empire for two and a half centuries. She was tightly bound into the political, military, economic and social meshes that held the empire together. The actions of the imperial government in any of these spheres might well have their repercussions in Britain, and any innovation might well affect Britain. Moreover, changes affecting the fabric of the whole empire or its institutions would have a knock-on effect in Britain. This being so, we must appreciate the imperial background for late Roman Britain, both for how the island functioned, and as a means of discriminating between the general and the insular in the passing of the Roman order of things.
