Eboracum Eboracum was a fort and city in Roman Britain . The settlement evolved into York , located in North Yorkshire , England . Etymology . The first known recorded mention of Eboracum by name is dated " circa " 95 - 104 AD and is an address containing the Latin form of the settlement ' s name , " " Eburaci " " , on a wooden stylus tablet from the Roman fortress of Vindolanda in what is now the modern Northumberland . During the Roman period , the name was also written in the form " Eboracum " and " Eburacum " . The etymology of Eboracum is uncertain as the language of the indigenous population of the area was never recorded . However , the generally accepted view of British history , is that the inhabitants of Britain at this time spoke a Celtic language related to modern Welsh . This language has been reconstructed from Latin place names and modern Celtic languages , and has been called by scholars Common Brythonic . The name " Eboracum " is thought to have derived from the Common Brythonic " Eborakon " which probably means " place of the yew trees " . The word for " yew " was probably something like " * eburos " in Celtic ( cf . Old Irish " ibar " " yew - tree " , , , " alder buckthorn " , " alder buckthorn " ) , combined with the suffix " * - āko ( n ) " " place " ( cf . Welsh " - og " ) meaning " place of the yew trees " ( cf . " efrog " in Welsh , " eabhrac " in Irish Gaelic and " eabhraig " in Scottish Gaelic , by which names the city is known in those languages ) . The name is then thought to have been Latinized by replacing " - acon " with " - acum " , according to a common use noted in Gaul . The different Évry , Ivry , Ivrey , Ivory in France would all come from " * Eboracum / * Eboriacum " f . e . Ivry - la - Bataille ( Eure , " Ebriaco " in 1023 – 1033 ) , Ivry - le - Temple ( " Evriacum " in 1199 ) Évry ( Essonne , " Everiaco " in 1158 ) , etc . Otherwise " * eburos " can be found in ethnic tribal names such as the Celtiberian Eburanci in Spain , the Belgian Eburones and the Gaulish Eburovices ( > Évreux ) in Gaul . Origins . The Roman conquest of Britain began in 43 AD but advance beyond the Humber did not take place until the early 70s AD . This was because the people in the area known as the Brigantes by the Romans became a Roman client state . When their leadership changed becoming more hostile to Rome , Roman General Quintus Petillius Cerialis led the Ninth Legion north from Lincoln across the Humber . Eboracum was founded in 71 AD when Cerialis and the Ninth Legion constructed a military fortress ( castra ) on flat ground above the River Ouse near its junction with the River Foss . In the same year Cerialis was appointed Governor of Britain . A legion at full strength at that time numbered some 5 , 500 men , and provided new trading opportunities for enterprising local people , who doubtless flocked to Eboracum to take advantage of them . As a result permanent civilian settlement grew up around the fortress especially on its south - east side . Civilians also settled on the opposite side of the Ouse , initially along the main road from Eboracum to the south - west . By the later 2nd century , growth was rapid ; streets were laid out , public buildings were erected and private houses spread out over terraces on the steep slopes above the river . Military . From its foundation the Roman fort of Eboracum covered an area of the standard size for a legionary fortress . The layout of the fortress also followed the standard for a legionary fortress with wooden buildings inside a square defensive boundary . These defences originally consisting of turf ramparts on a green wood foundation , were built by the Ninth Legion between 71 and 74 AD . Later these were replaced by a clay mound with a turf front on a new oak foundation , and eventually , wooden battlements were added which were then replaced by limestone walls and towers . The original wooden camp was refurbished by Agricola in 81 , before being completely rebuilt in stone between 107 and 108 . There is evidence that the Emperor Hadrian visited in 122 on his way north to plan his great walled frontier . He certainly brought with him the Sixth Legion to replace the existing garrison . Emperor Septimius Severus visited Eboracum in 211 and made it his base for campaigning in Scotland . The fortress wall was probably reconstructed during his stay and at the east angle it is possible to see this work standing almost to full height . In that same year , Severus became the first of the two Roman Emperors to die in Eboracum and was succeeded by his sons , Caracalla and Geta . In the later 3rd century , the western Empire experienced political and economic turmoil and Britain was for some time ruled by usurpers independent of Rome . It was after crushing the last of these that Emperor Constantius I came to Eboracum and , in 306 , became the second Emperor to die there . His son Constantine was instantly proclaimed as successor by the troops based in the fortress . Although it took Constantine eighteen years to become sole ruler of the Empire , he may have retained an interest in Eboracum and the reconstruction of the south - west front of the fortress with polygonally - fronted interval towers and the two great corner towers , one of which , the ' Multangular Tower ' , still survives , is probably his work . In the colonia , Constantine ' s reign was a time of prosperity and a number of extensive stone town houses of the period have been excavated . Government . For the Romans , Eboracum , was the major military base in the north of Britain and , following the 3rd century division of the province of Britannia , the capital of northern Britain , Britannia Inferior . By 237 Eboracum had been made a colonia , the highest legal status a Roman city could attain , one of only four in Britain and the others were founded for retired soldiers . This mark of Imperial favour was probably a recognition of Eboracum as the largest town in the north and the capital of Britannia Inferior . At around the same time Eboracum became self - governing , with a council made up of rich locals , including merchants , and veteran soldiers . In 296 Britannia Inferior was divided into two provinces of equal status with Eboracum becoming the provincial capital of Britannia Secunda . Culture . As a busy port and a provincial capital Eboracum was a cosmopolitan city with residents from throughout the Roman Empire . Religion . A range of evidence of Roman religious beliefs among the people of Eboracum have been found including altar s to Mars , Hercules , Jupiter and Fortune . In terms of number of reference the most popular deities were the spiritual representation ( " genius " ) of Eboracum and the Mother Goddess . There is also evidence of local or regional deities . Evidence showing the worship of eastern deities has also been found during excavations in York . For example evidence of the Mithras cult , which was popular among the military , has been found including a sculpture showing Mithras slaying a bull and a dedication to Arimanius , the god of evil in the Mithraic tradition . The Mithraic relief located in Mickelgate suggests the location of a temple to Mithras right in the heart of the Colonia . Another example is the dedication of a temple to Serapis a Hellenistic - Egyptian God by the Commander of the Sixth Legion . Other known deities from the city include : Tethys , Veteris , Venus , and Silvanus . There was also a Christian community in Eboracum although it is unknown when this was first formed and in archaeological terms there is virtually no record of it . The first evidence of this community is a document noting the attendance of Bishop Eborius of Eboracum at the Council of Arles in 314 . The Episcopal see at Eboracum was called " Eboracensis " in Latin and Bishops from the See also attended the First Council of Nicaea in 325 , the Council of Sardica , and the Council of Ariminum . Death and Burial . The cemeteries of Roman York follow the major Roman roads out of the settlement ; excavations in the Castle Yard ( next to Clifford ' s Tower ) , beneath the railway station , at Trentholme Drive and the Mount have located significant evident for human remains using both inhumation and cremation burial rites . The cemetery beneath the railway station was subject to excavations in advance of railway works of 1839 - 41 , 1845 , and 1870 - 7 . Several sarcophagi were unearthed during this phase of excavations including those of Flavius Bellator and Julia Fortunata . An excavation in advance of building work underneath the Yorkshire Museum in 2009 located a male skeleton with significant pathology to suggest that he may have died as a gladiator in Eboracum . Economy . The military presence at Eboracum was the driving force behind early developments in its economy . In these early stages Eboracum operated as a command economy with workshops growing up outside the fortress to supply the needs of the 5000 troops garrison ed there . Production included military pottery until the mid - 3rd century , military tile kilns have been found in the Aldwark - Peasholme Green area , glassworking at Coppergate , metalworks and leatherworks producing military equipment in Tanner Row . In the Roman period , Eboracum was the major manufacturing centre for Whitby Jet . Known as " gagates " in Latin , it was used from the early 3rd century as material for jewelry and was exported from here throughout Britain and into Europe . Examples found in York take the form of rings , bracelets , necklaces , and pendants depicting married couples and the Medusa . There are fewer than 25 jet pendants in the Roman world , of which six are known from Eboracum . These are housed in the Yorkshire Museum . Roads . The true paths of all original Roman roads leading out of Eboracum are not known , although eleven have been suggested . The known roads include Dere Street leading North - West from the city through Clifton towards the site of " Cataractonium " ( modern Catterick ) , Cade ' s Road Towards " Petuaria " ( modern Brough ) , and Ermine Street towards " Lindum " ( modern Lincoln ) . A road bypassing the south wall wall of the fortress , between the fortress and the River Ouse has not been formally planned , although its path is conjectured to run beneath the York Museum Gardens . Rivers . The River Ouse and River Foss provided important access points for the importation of heavy goods . The existence of two possible wharves on the east bank of the River Foss support this idea . A large deposit of grain , in a timber - structure beneath modern day Coney Street , on the north - east bank of the River Ouse suggests the existence of storehouses for moving goods via the river . Archaeological remains . Substantial physical remains have been excavated in York in the last two centuries including the city walls , the legionary bath - house and headquarters building , civilian houses , workshops , storehouses and cemeteries . In pop culture . The Roman city is mentioned in Robert Heinlein ' s novel " Have Space Suit - Will Travel . " It is also seen in the game as the base for a fictional group of Roman families who stayed on after the evacuation by Rome from Britannia .