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The Roman Empire spanned hundreds of years. The Romans conquered and controlled most of Europe, bits of Asia and North Africa. At their height they had complete control of the Mediterranean. Evidence for the Romans is dotted all over Europe in the shape of both archaeology and place-names such as Colchester in England. Control of the sea was crucial to the growth of the Roman Empire. There were important naval victories that saw the Romans gain control of Carthage and Alexandria. The Roman Empire also relied heavily on trade of goods such as grain. Transport over land was very slow and so the Mediterranean Sea was the fastest and most effective way to move goods from one bit of the empire to another. For the Romans the sea was something to be exploited and controlled. They did not mystify it or fear it, like the Greeks. Instead they simply wanted to use it to the best of their advantage. The Romans were a pragmatic people and their approach to the sea is good evidence of this. In some ways their approach isn’t too dissimilar to that of the British navy.
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The sea might have been crucial to the Roman Empire but it doesn’t always get much of a look in when the histories are written. The naval battles are well documented, but general trade and seamanship does not normally take up the historian’s interest—maybe historians are more suited to land. In fact most elite Romans did not wish to get involved with matters at sea either because they thought it beneath them. They preferred the land where they could build lavish palaces and live off the produce of their estates. There are exceptions, such as Caligula and Agrippa, but just like the British navy used to press gang their seaman so too it seems the Romans only got involved with the seas if they had no other choice. Most Roman seamen were thus more ordinary folk. Some would be from the lower classes of Roman citizens, but many would be ex-slaves and freedmen who were able to make a living transporting goods round the empire—something that the elite Roman citizens definitely did not want to get their hands dirty with.

This site has information on various aspects of the Roman Seas. There is information on boat building and shipping as well as naval battles and piracy. The author of the site also runs guided tours of the Mediterranean so the site does occasionally get added to when new material shows up. For more information about the site visit the about page. If you are interested in a fantastic cruise with ancient history thrown in as well click the link.