Expert: Maria - 9/15/2007

Question
Even though the Roman Empire didn't conquer Ireland was there any Roman Empire culture influence?

Answer
Hello,

as far as we know, ancient Ireland, i.e. Hibernia as it was named by the Romans, was relatively isolated during the Roman era, even after the Romans conquered  Britain in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius and ruled the region until 410 AD, when they were withdrawn from Britain to assist in the war against  king Alaric and his Visigoths who were at the gates of Rome.

So, early Ireland remained prevalently a corner of Celtic culture, though we know that  trade between the Roman and Celts (or ‘Gaels’  as they called themselves ) certainly occurred, as evidenced by the  existence of some  Roman artefacts and coins  on Ireland, especially at Drumanagh, on a promontory near Dublin, where archaeologists discovered Roman coins dating to the reigns of Titus (79-81 AD), Trajan (98-117 AD), and Hadrian (117-138 AD), as well as Roman brooches and copper ingots.

Anyway, despite these trade exchanges, little is known of real Roman contact and influence directly with Ireland, although some scholars have formulated the  hypothesis   that the Romans had established a fort at Drumanagh  in the 1st century AD, from which they may have launched military operations against the Celts.

This is nothing but a hypothesis for the moment, of course!

In short we can say that Ireland may have absorbed Roman culture influence through trade exchanges since it’s probable that Romanized Britons went to trading stations linking Ireland and Roman Britain very often during the Roman era, i.e. until 410 AD and maybe later till the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 AD.

Best regards,
Maria