Venta Silurum was a town in Roman Britain (Britannia). The name Venta Silurum means "the town of the Silurēs", with the Silurēs being a powerful and warlike tribe. Today, it consists of remains in the village of Caerwent in Monmouthshire, southeast Wales. Much of it has been archaeologically excavated and the nearby Newport Museum has many of the finds on display.
Venta was established by the Romans in around AD 75 as an administrative centre for the defeated Silures tribe in Roman Wales. Venta Silurum seems to mean "Market town of the Silures" (cf. Venta Belgarum and Venta Icenorum). This is confirmed by inscriptions on the "Civitas Silurum" stone, now on display in the parish church. The town, which was located on the Roman road between Isca Augusta (Caerleon) and Glevum (Gloucester) and close to the Severn Estuary, was (in contrast with nearby "Isca") essentially established for civilian administration rather than for military purposes.
Initially Venta had a forum and basilica. By the early 2nd century during the reign of Hadrian, the civitas had begun construction work on a market place and developing centre of local government. Public baths and shops, including a blacksmiths, were built about the same time. Remains of farms and dwellings, some with courtyards, have also been excavated.
A Roman temple, perhaps dedicated to Mars and the Celtic god Ocelus, has been identified on the site. A bowl with a chi-rho symbol shows that early Christian worship had begun in the late 3rd century.
The town lacked substantial defences until the mid 4th century when stone town walls were built. A small garrison may have been based in the town during this period. Large sections of the defensive walls are still in place, rising up to 5 metres (16 ft) in height in places. The walls have been described as "easily the most impressive town defence to survive from Roman Britain, and in its freedom from later rebuilding one of the most perfectly preserved in Northern Europe."
Following the withdrawal of the Roman legions from Britain, the town remained occupied until at least the mid-5th century. Early Christian worship was still established. The town might have had a bishop. According to traditional accounts in the Vitae Sanctorum Britanniae, a monastery was founded by Saint Tatheus in about the 6th century. The site of the present church occupies part of an early Christian cemetery.
The name Venta gave its name to the emerging Kingdom of Gwent (called initially "Kingdom of Guenta"), and the town itself became known as Caer-went or "the castra/fort of Venta/Gwent". Tradition holds that Caradog Freichfras of Gwent moved his court from Caerwent to Portskewett around the 6th century.
Source: Pleiades — A Community-Built Gazetteer and Graph of Ancient Places. View the Pleiades record →
Venta Silurum was a town in Roman Britain (Britannia). It is recorded in the Pleiades gazetteer of ancient places as a settlement site from the Roman period in Britain.
Venta is classified as a Roman settlement — a civilian site in the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer. Roman Britain's archaeology encompasses thousands of sites ranging from legionary fortresses and marching camps to villas, temples and towns.
Several Roman sites lie within a short distance, including Walls of Caerwent (Venta Silurum) (0 km), Carrow Hill Roman fort (3.9 km), Great Bulmore (11 km). Aubrey Research maps over 2,200 Roman sites across Britain, drawn from the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer.
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