National Roman Legion Museum facts for kids
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| Location | Caerleon, Newport, Wales |
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| Type | Archaeological museum |
The National Roman Legion Museum (which is in Wales) is a super interesting museum in Caerleon. This town is near Newport, in south-east Wales. It's one of three important Roman places you can visit in Caerleon. The others are the Baths museum and the outdoor ruins of the amphitheatre and old army barracks. This museum is part of Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales, which takes care of many museums across Wales.
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Discovering Roman History in Wales
Roman Wales was the furthest west the mighty Roman Empire reached in Roman Britain. To protect this area, the Romans built a strong fortress called Isca Augusta in Caerleon. This happened in 75 AD. It was one of only three permanent Roman army fortresses in all of Roman Britain. The fortress was used and active for more than 200 years!
What You'll Find at the Museum
The National Roman Legion Museum is built right inside what's left of this ancient fortress. Inside, you can see many amazing objects from the time of Isca Augusta. These items belonged to the Legio II Augusta, a famous Roman army group. You can see everything from Roman coins to parts of their uniforms.
Just a short walk from the museum, you can explore the actual remains of Isca Augusta. It's like stepping back in time! Here are some of the cool things you can see:
- Part of the military bath house at the Roman Baths Museum.
- The most complete Roman amphitheatre you'll find in Britain.
- Sections of the strong fortress walls that once stood tall.
- The only remains of a Roman army barracks that you can see anywhere in Europe at Prysg Field.
Exploring the Museum Building
The museum is located right in the middle of where Roman Isca used to be. It sits on what was once the via principalis, a main road that led to the amphitheatre.
The very first museum building here was called the Antiquarian Museum. It was built in 1850. A designer named Henry Francis Lockwood created it. It was a simple, box-shaped building made of Bath stone. Its most special part was a front porch with pillars, built in the old Greek Doric style.
Not much is known about the first building today. But we do know that its roof used old ship timbers. It also used stone pieces from Caerleon's Old Market House, which had been taken down just before.
The original museum building was listed as a special historical building in 1951. However, most of it was taken down when the museum was rebuilt and made bigger in 1987. Only the pillared front porch remains today. The new building looks modern, but it's also quite plain and doesn't have many windows, just like the first one.
See also
