Early Neolithic Period settlements are difficult to delineate due to the fact that latter stages appear to be an "amalgam of influences drawn from widely separated areas of continental Europe" (Bradley 1996:98). The transition from the Megalithic Period to the Neolithic Period is conventionally marked by the domestication of plants and animals. Primary food resources from this era include wheat, barley, sheep, and cattle. "It is accepted that Neolithic agriculturists were more or less sedentary—more so than people of later ages" (Davies 1994:11). Significant is the appearance of public monuments such as "henges, stone circles, and burial mounds" (Scarre 1996:97). In Wales and Ireland, these monuments coincide with a ritualistic mortuary practice that is evident in the archaeological record today. Trade is evidenced by the presence of polished stone axes, quarried in the northern regions of Britain and Ireland, recovered from sites across the British isles (Scarre 1996:97).

The Bronze Age in Wales coincides with the appearance of materials goods of a European continental origin. Bronze Age graves include the first appearance of Beaker pottery and metal grave goods. Much like the Neolithic, hard evidence for a sedentary lifestyle is limited, with burial mounds dominating the cultural record from this era (Bradley 1996:98).

Major changes took place around 1500 to 1200 BC. This era coincides with the appearance of a systematic agricultural landscape which included "field systems, land boundaries, domestic enclosures, and archaeologically detectable houses" (Bradley 1996:98). The large ceremonial structures seen earlier were abandoned as lifeways shifted to focus more on the production of food. Bronze Age occupation sites typically contain evidence of pond construction and grain storage pits. A diversified settlement pattern is indicated by the appearance of hill forts, constructed of "elaborate stone and timber ramparts" (Bradley 1996:98). "These sites are sometimes associated with evidence of the production of metals, but they also contain concentrations of circular houses and raised stone buildings, probably granaries" (Bradley 1996:98). Evidence of bronze working, particularly the manufacture of weapons, has also been recovered from these Bronze Age settlements.

Celtic people first appeared in Wales in approximately 500 BC. Descended from peoples who occupied portions of Germany and Switzerland, their culture is long associated with La Tene, an area found within the Lake Neuchatel district of Switzerland (Gregory 1989:20). Three major waves of migrants are said to have moved into the region. Over time, the Celts came to dominate the region, placing a distinctive social, political, and religious stamp upon Welsh culture.

In Wales, this time period is generally looked upon as the highpoint of Celtic cultural advancements prior to the Roman invasion in 43 AD. To this region, the Celtic invaders introduced iron-working and farming methods that persist to this day. Over time, the Celts of Wales developed into four clans, including the Demetae to the southwest, the Silures to the southeast, the Decangli to the far north, and the Ordovices to the central north (Gregory 1989:20-21).

In Britain, the Iron Age coincides with the introduction of iron and its attendant manufacturing methods. Yet, it was only through the curtailment of bronze imports, in approximately 800 BC, that the use of iron-based tools had any impact in Wales (Bradley 1996:98). The Celtic settlement of Wales became increasingly sedentary throughout the Iron Age. "There was an increase in the number of occupation sites and in the scale of food production. Field systems were created over large areas, and a new range of agricultural tools came into use," primarily, the iron plow (Bradley 1996:99). Archaeological data suggests that the advent of planned field agriculture affected both the political and social aspects of the period. This is reflected by an increase in enclosed settlements and the construction of hill forts (Bradley 1996:99).

Archaeological evidence from recovered sites suggests that these settlements contained a large number of domestic structures. Yet, the vast majority of features recovered from these sites are areas of food storage. Some see the presence of food storage facilities as an example of high-status settlements, whereas view them as "agricultural villages, centers for craft production and redistribution, communal grain stores, or even ritual sites" (Bradley 1996:99). The construction of hill forts suggests that warfare was part of the social and political fabric of the age. Yet, there is little evidence that these forts were actually used during periods of potential and normally constant internecine warfare from 250 BC to 43 AD (Bradley 1996:99).

Roman Period in Wales (43 AD – 476 AD)

After almost a century of diplomatic contacts (Bradley 1996:99), Julius Caesar attempted to invade the island of Britain in 55 and 54 BC. Both attempts failed. It was not until 43 AD when Rome, under the leadership of Emperor Claudius, was able to acquire a foothold and subdue the southeastern portion of the island. Although it only took approximately five years to subdue this region, it would take much longer to conquer the surrounding area, especially Wales (Jones 1998:6; James 1993 130-132).

The Roman army adopted a "divide and conquer" strategy of conquest after their initial success in southeastern Britain. Through a series of military maneuvers, the Roman army split the unconquered tribes into three areas: the north, the backcountry, and Wales (James 1993:132). Resistance to Roman rule remained fierce throughout Wales. To the north lay the formidable Ordovices, while in the southeast the fiercely independent Silures dominated Wales. The Silures effectively used guerilla tactics against the Roman soldiers. Between 48 and 79 AD, there were at least 13 native resistance campaigns in Wales and the borderlands (Davies 1994:30). In 52 AD, the Silures defeated an entire Roman legion.

In 57 AD, the Emperor Nero launched an intensive campaign to subdue the anti-Roman activity in Wales. To establish order in this region torn by civil chaos, the Romans constructed major garrisons at Deva (Chester) and Iska (Caerleon). Only as a result of these efforts were the Silures eventually contained in 75 AD (Jones 1998:6). As part of the pacification of the Welsh, the Romans constructed a series of military-based garrison towns throughout the country. These towns were connected by an extensive road network, with intersections approximately twenty km (12.43 m) in distance from one another (Jones 1998:6; Davies 1994:33).

The failure of the Roman army to dominate the Silures led to a reassessment of their methods. Frontinus established a program of pacification through enculturation in the 70s. This led to the construction of a Roman fortress at Caerwent, formerly the market of the Silures. This traditional method of pacification had been successfully employed in Gaul and other parts of Britain. Although a military fortification, Caerwent was constructed without the normal battlements found on Roman frontier fortifications. Instead, earthen defenses were constructed in 130 AD (Howell 1988:29-30) suggesting that pacification was slow to take place.

Although the Romans eventually assimilated the Silures, their problems in Wales proved costly, as the region was not easily subdued. According to Davies (1994):

Wales remained a frontier zone and required a heavy Roman military presence to repress various groups of rebellious Celts. For centuries, one tenth of the Empire’s legions were stationed in Britain, although the area comprised less than one thirtieth of the Roman Empire territories. Three of the four Roman legions stationed in Britain were headquartered in the borderlands of Wales. (Davies 1994:29).

The withdrawal of the Romans around 400 AD left the islands open to conquest by neighboring societies. Attacks from northern Germany and Scandinavia caused the development of many small, warring territories across the island of Britain. By 600 AD, larger kingdoms began to emerge and Christianity came to the Anglo-Saxons.

From the end of the eighth century, Viking raids brought instability again until Alfred of Wessex (849-899) and his successors created a new, consolidated English kingdom. From 1016-1042, England was part of a Danish empire, and in 1066, Anglo-Saxon rule was ended by the conquest of Duke William of Normandy (Hills 1996:101).

It has long been thought that the Anglo-Saxon invasion of Britannia virtually replaced the indigenous populations. Recent data suggests that many Roman institutions and their physical remains, such as "masonry buildings, mosaics, coins and wheel thrown pottery, roads, and systems for water supply", disappeared during the fifth century (Hills 1996:101). In addition, towns were abandoned and/or lost their urban functions. At the same time, an influx of continentally inspired institutions and cultural traits appeared. Certain social notions, related to cemeteries, burial, artifacts, and the construction of timber buildings, tend to parallel those found in Germany and suggest a strong continental influence.

Demographic evidence, accumulated from field and aerial survey, show large population centers, similar to that found during the Medieval Period.

Environmental evidence shows that farmland did not revert to woods, crop and animal species did not change, and in some areas field boundaries and even settlement patterns survived from Roman or earlier periods into recent centuries. Incoming Saxons did not find an empty forest, but a settled landscape (Hills 1996:101).

Yet, in the western portions of the island, few remains are found from this era, which would suggest a lesser influence upon these people. Indeed, the construction of an earthen wall (a linear earthwork between present-day England and Wales running from Chepstow in the south to Prestatyn in the north) by Offa, the Saxon king of the Mercis, suggests that the Saxons, like their Roman predecessors, had a difficult time in subduing the Welsh tribes.

With the removal of the Romans in approximately 400 AD, the Welsh people returned to internecine warfare in an effort to consolidate land and power. The process of inheritance, or gavelkind, where property was equally divided between the male heirs, would insure that this would continue for centuries (Gregory 1993:10).

The few Saxon buildings that exist today were rarely built of stone. The extant structures that have been recovered tend to be of elaborate construction that contained distinctive "long and short" work (Pearce nd:3). This signature Saxon style consisted of composite rubble walls of alternating flat stones, with upright stones situated as corner stones. These upright corner stones were designed to strengthen composite rubble walls.

Prior to their invasion of Britain, the Normans ruled an empire that stretched from Sicily to France. Norman rule overwhelmed Britain’s existing culture; and English was replaced as the common language, and previously aristocratic families were dispossessed of their lands. (Davies 1994:102). As for Wales, within six months of the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William the Conqueror established a buffer zone in the borderlands of Wales. This border region consisted of three earldoms under the control of William FitzOsbern at Hereford, Roger of Montgomery at Shrewsbury, and Hugh of Avranches (Jones1998:17). William FitzOsbern immediately sought to expand his territory further into Wales. To that end, large castles were constructed in the present cities of Monmouth and Chepstow, strategically situated for control of the local terrain (Howell 1988:50). Chepstow would serve as the primary base for the future conquest of Wales by FitzOsbern.

In the beginning, the Welsh fared better than the English under Norman control. The Normans treated the Welsh as equals, and the ascendancy of the Welsh language was at its strongest (Davis 1994:103). Although Gwent Iscoed was brought under Norman control fairly quickly, it soon stalled to the point where William took the field in 1081 in an effort to assert authority over the Welsh. The concurrent infighting among the Welsh was the Normans' greatest ally. Between 1070 and 1093, a series of battles between Welsh kings and noblemen depleted Wales of many warriors who could have resisted the Norman advance. The downfall of Gruffudd ap Llywelyn, a warlord of the Monmouthshire area, led to a series of skirmishes and battles. As best described by Davies (1994):

The power of Bleddyn and Rhiwallon was challenged by the sons of Gruffudd ap Llywelyn; they, along with Rhiwallon, were killed in a skirmish in 1070. In 1072, Maredudd ab Owain of Deheubarth was killed by Caradog ap Gruffudd of Gwynllwg, and in 1074 Caradog drove Cadwgan ap Meurig from Glamorgan and seized his kingdom. In 1075, Bleddyn was killed by Rhys, the brother of Maredudd ab Owain, and Rhys in turn was killed in 1078 by Caradog ap Gruffudd. Bleddyn’s kingdom passed to his cousin, Trahaearn ap Caradog, but Trahaearn was killed along with Caradog ap Gruffudd, in the Battle of Mynydd Carn in 1081 (Davies 1994:103-104)

Bradley, Richard

1996 Prehistory of the British Isles. In The Oxford Companion to

Dark, Ken

1996 Medieval England. In The Oxford Companion to Archaeology,

Gregory, Donald

1989 Wales before 1066 – A Guide. Gwasg Carreg Gwalch, Wales.

1993 Wales before 1536 – A Guide. Gwasg Carreg Gwalch, Wales.

Hills, Catherine

1996 The Anglo-Saxons. In The Oxford Companion to Archaeology,

Howell, Raymond

1988  A History of Gwent. Gomer Press, Llandysul, Dyfed.

Raynor, Robert M.

Scarre, Chris

1997 Overview. In The Oxford Companion to Archaeology, B. Fagan,

Wood, Eric S.

1968  Collins Field Guide to Archaeology. Collins Clear-Type
         Press, London.