You can still freely wander through a place where thousands once cheered for brutal battles, with ancient ruins nestled between homes and pubs.
In this small but fascinating town, Roman baths sit alongside houses and pubs, and the local rugby field lies next to the most complete Roman amphitheatre of its kind in Britain.
Despite this incredible blend of history, Caerleon is relatively unknown outside of Wales and doesn’t have the global fame of a city like Bath.
Caerleon is a quiet town of about 8,000 people, located just north of Newport in south-east Wales.
But although it’s small and lesser-known, Caerleon is incredibly important in British history.
In Roman times, it was known as Isca and was one of only three permanent legionary fortresses in Britain.
The town was home to Roman villas, baths, an outdoor swimming pool, and an amphitheatre where 6,000 people gathered to watch gladiators fight.
Amazingly, the amphitheatre sits right in the middle of town, and you can walk through it, with kids playing hide and seek where gladiators once entered for battle.
While the amphitheatre is open-air, you can explore the ruins of the massive natatio, or open-air pool, in a nearby building, which once held over 80,000 gallons of water.
You can also see the cramped rooms where Roman soldiers slept and stored their weapons—Caerleon has the only visible Roman legionary barracks left in Europe.
Caerleon’s history actually goes back even further, as it was home to the powerful Silures tribe and an Iron Age fort before becoming a Roman base around 75 AD, after the Romans worked hard to subdue the Silures.
Remember - LeaveNoTrace!
As with anywhere outdoors, kindly keep these areas pristine and wild by taking all trash with you. The amount of complaints we have seen since the pandemic is crazy. It's really not that hard to take your rubbish with you!
Litter tends to spread, so if you see any and are able to pick it up and dispose of it outside the hidden gem, it will help keep the area tidy.
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