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Roman Roads
Britain had no proper roads before the Romans,
just muddy tracks and trails. Although the road
system helped hold the Roman Empire together,
it also made it easier for its enemies to invade.
Many Roman roads were built so that soldiers
could move quickly to places in the empire where
they were needed. The Romans knew the quickest
way to get from one place to another was in a
straight line, hence why Romans built their roads
in as straight lines possible.
When they built a road across a boggy ground,
Roman engineers put down bundles of sticks and
sheepskins as foundations, to stop the road
sinking.
The Roman road system also increased trade because merchants and traders
could move their goods more easily.
The roads were built on foundations of clay,
chalk and gravel with bigger flat stones on
top. Roman roads bulged in the middle and had
ditches either side, to help the rainwater
drain off.
Bits of Roman road can still be seen. Soldiers
and carts used this cobbled road to travel
between Manchester and Yorkshire.
Blackstone Edge in Lancashire
Roman roads had
stepping stones across them for people to cross on when
it was wet, spaced out so that cart wheels could still
pass between them.
The Romans also made milestones so soldiers knew exactly how far they had
come/had left to travel. This milestone is from around AD120 used to stand
beside a Roman road. It showed the distance to the nearest fort, Kanovium
(the Roman for Caerhun in north Wales).
Information sourced from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/z2dr4wx
http://history.parkfieldict.co.uk/romans/roman-villas