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Moridunum (Carmarthen)
Encyclopedia
Moridunum was a Roman fort and town
in the Roman province
of Britannia
. Today it is known as Carmarthen
, located in the Welsh
county of Carmarthenshire
(formerly in the county of Dyfed
).
capital of the Demetae
tribe in Roman Wales and was recorded by Ptolemy
and in the Antonine Itinerary
. The initial fort
is believed to date from about AD 75, possibly replacing the hillfort on Merlin's Hill. The fort lasted until about 120, when the associated civilian vicus
took over and the place became a town.
was laid out in the town and a public bath house
built, and possibly a mansio
. The forum
and basilica
were probably under the most built-up area of the present town on the Cardo
or main street. There were narrow shops fronting the streets, as well as evidence of metalworking. Large domestic homes of timber were rebuilt in stone in the late 3rd or early 4th century. A 1st/2nd century Romano-Celtic
style temple
has also been excavated. A turf bank and ditch was erected around the town in the mid-2nd century and a stone wall added some time later.
s in the United Kingdom
(51.8621°N 4.2964°W). It was excavated in 1968. The arena itself is 46 by 27 meters. The circumference of the cavea
seating area is 92 by 67 meters http://icarus.umkc.edu/sandbox/perseus/pecs/page.3065.a.php. It had stone walls and wooden seating and was much larger than would be expected for the size of the town.
of Myrddin', hence the town's association with Merlin the Magician.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in the Roman province
Roman province
In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and, until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of Italy...
of Britannia
Britannia
Britannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
. Today it is known as Carmarthen
Carmarthen
Carmarthen is a community in, and the county town of, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is sited on the River Towy north of its mouth at Carmarthen Bay. In 2001, the population was 14,648....
, located in the Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
county of Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. It is the 3rd largest in Wales. Its three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford...
(formerly in the county of Dyfed
Dyfed
Dyfed is a preserved county of Wales. It was created on 1 April 1974 under the terms of the Local Government Act 1972, and covered approximately the same geographic extent as the ancient Principality of Deheubarth, although excluding the Gower Peninsula and the area west of the River Tawe...
).
Fort
Moridunum (meaning sea fort) was the civitasCivitas
In the history of Rome, the Latin term civitas , according to Cicero in the time of the late Roman Republic, was the social body of the cives, or citizens, united by law . It is the law that binds them together, giving them responsibilities on the one hand and rights of citizenship on the other...
capital of the Demetae
Demetae
The Demetae were a Celtic people of Iron Age Britain who inhabited modern Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire in south-west Wales, and gave their name to the county of Dyfed.-Classical mention:...
tribe in Roman Wales and was recorded by Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
and in the Antonine Itinerary
Antonine Itinerary
The Antonine Itinerary is a register of the stations and distances along the various roads of the Roman empire, containing directions how to get from one Roman settlement to another...
. The initial fort
Castra
The Latin word castra, with its singular castrum, was used by the ancient Romans to mean buildings or plots of land reserved to or constructed for use as a military defensive position. The word appears in both Oscan and Umbrian as well as in Latin. It may have descended from Indo-European to Italic...
is believed to date from about AD 75, possibly replacing the hillfort on Merlin's Hill. The fort lasted until about 120, when the associated civilian vicus
Vicus (Rome)
In ancient Rome, the vicus was a neighborhood. During the Republican era, the four regiones of the city of Rome were subdivided into vici. In the 1st century BC, Augustus reorganized the city for administrative purposes into 14 regions, comprising 265 vici. Each vicus had its own board of...
took over and the place became a town.
Town
A street-gridGrid plan
The grid plan, grid street plan or gridiron plan is a type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid...
was laid out in the town and a public bath house
Thermae
In ancient Rome, thermae and balnea were facilities for bathing...
built, and possibly a mansio
Mansio
In the Roman Empire, a mansio was an official stopping place on a Roman road, or via, maintained by the central government for the use of officials and those on official business whilst travelling.-Background:The roads which traversed the Ancient World, were later surveyed,...
. The forum
Forum (Roman)
A forum was a public square in a Roman municipium, or any civitas, reserved primarily for the vending of goods; i.e., a marketplace, along with the buildings used for shops and the stoas used for open stalls...
and basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
were probably under the most built-up area of the present town on the Cardo
Cardo
The cardo was a north-south oriented street in Roman cities, military camps, and coloniae. The cardo, an integral component of city planning, was lined with shops and vendors, and served as a hub of economic life. The main cardo was called cardo maximus.Most Roman cities also had a Decumanus...
or main street. There were narrow shops fronting the streets, as well as evidence of metalworking. Large domestic homes of timber were rebuilt in stone in the late 3rd or early 4th century. A 1st/2nd century Romano-Celtic
Romano-British
Romano-British culture describes the culture that arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest of AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, a people of Celtic language and...
style temple
Roman temple
Ancient Roman temples are among the most visible archaeological remains of Roman culture, and are a significant source for Roman architecture. Their construction and maintenance was a major part of ancient Roman religion. The main room housed the cult image of the deity to whom the temple was...
has also been excavated. A turf bank and ditch was erected around the town in the mid-2nd century and a stone wall added some time later.
Amphitheatre
East of the old town is one of only seven surviving Roman amphitheatreAmphitheatre
An amphitheatre is an open-air venue used for entertainment and performances.There are two similar, but distinct, types of structure for which the word "amphitheatre" is used: Ancient Roman amphitheatres were large central performance spaces surrounded by ascending seating, and were commonly used...
s in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
(51.8621°N 4.2964°W). It was excavated in 1968. The arena itself is 46 by 27 meters. The circumference of the cavea
Cavea
In Roman times the cavea were the subterranean cells in which wild animals were confined before the combats in the Roman arena or amphitheatre....
seating area is 92 by 67 meters http://icarus.umkc.edu/sandbox/perseus/pecs/page.3065.a.php. It had stone walls and wooden seating and was much larger than would be expected for the size of the town.
Post-Roman times
The name became Caerfyrddin and was later anglicized to Carmarthen. Caerfyrddin may have been misinterpreted as 'FortCaer
In the Welsh language, caer means "fortress", "fort" or "citadel"/"castle".Caer is the Welsh name for the city of Chester, situated in northwest England. It also forms, as a prefix, the Welsh equivalent of -caster, -cester and -chester in place names...
of Myrddin', hence the town's association with Merlin the Magician.