ABSTRACT
To many Romans civilized life was focused on the town. It was at once the centre for administration, education, trade, amusement, amenity and protection. Towns then were used to further the acceptance of the Roman conquest. In a province such as Britain, which was not too familiar with urbanizahon, this could only be done by the creation of models to serve as examples for the native population, and the first to be planned was the colonia at Camulodunum. Apart from language, it is probable that the people who came to Britain from other provinces of the Empire made a considerable contribution to the process of Romanization and transmitted ideas for the new way of life. Another, much smaller building, stands between the forum and bath-house at Wroxeter, but these four macella are unlikely to be the only British examples of a type of structure that is comparatively common in the larger towns of other provinces.
