Londinium

Londinium, also called Roman London, was the probable capital of Roman Britain for most of the Roman occupation, founded shortly after the Claudian invasion of Britain around AD 47 to 50 on a strategic ford across the River Thames in what is now the City of London, England. It grew from a small early settlement of about 1.4 square kilometers into a major port and road hub, and by the 2nd century AD had between 30,000 and 60,000 inhabitants and had replaced Camulodunum (Colchester) as the provincial capital, with a forum basilica ranked among the largest structures north of the Alps when Emperor Hadrian visited in AD 122. The city declined after the mid-2nd century and was abandoned during the 5th century as Roman rule in Britain ended.