Under the Romans, many towns (_coloniae_ and _municipia_) were founded. In several cases their position had been occupied, as winter or summer quarters, by the aboriginal inhabitants; the choice of the site being determined by the contour of the hills, the convergence of trackways, or the proximity to the sea or rivers. Fifty-six Roman towns are enumerated by Claudius Ptolemy (_fl._ A.D. 139-162). They formed centres of Roman authority, law, commerce, and civilization; the conquerors, to a very limited extent, were able to introduce their own literature. Amongst others, the free inhabitants of Eboracum and Verulamium enjoyed the coveted rights of Roman citizenship. The Ravenna Geographer gives a list of towns--the names of some of which being difficult to identify. Principally to ensure military dominance, the conquerors made many main roads, mostly centering in London. They also developed the land into a corn-growing country. The history of the towns that became Roman is known to us very imperfectly and unevenly, in respect of elements earlier than the conquest of A.D. 43; of the beginnings, whether official or personal; of their size, original planning, character and composition of the buildings, of the language, degree of civilization, and comparative wealth of the inhabitants; of the relation of the town-life to the life of the adjacent country-side. Further, great mystery shrouds the particulars of their overthrow when the aegis of the Roman authority was withdrawn. There are but few survivals of towns to the present day, and parallels must be sought rather in Pannonia[3] and North Africa than in the Western European Empire. [Footnote 3: Now Illyria, a part of Hungary; finally subdued by Tiberius, A.D. 8.] REMAINS. The site of a Roman town always occupied a commanding position as to elevation, the confluence of roads, or the proximity of rivers. It was surrounded with walls, which were pierced with gates defended by towers and bastions. The houses of the well-off were unpretentious outside, but were fitted inside with comfort and even elegance. The rooms were built around a courtyard. In the villas at Brading and Chedworth tesselated pavements have been found, and traces of baths. Each city was furnished with a Forum, a Basilica, a Temple, and a series of Public Baths. Outside the walls were a Theatre, an Amphitheatre, and a Cemetery.