What is the York Roman Festival?

 Introduction to the Festival

The York Roman Festival is an annual extravaganza of York’s Roman history. A celebration of the cultural and military customs the Romans brought to York and the history of Britain.

We would like to thank our sponsors, the people of York and the many re-enactors who support us.

Last year the Festival was enjoyed by thousand of residents and brought thousands of people into the City, many of which return to the area again and again.

The events and activities we are endeavouring to bring to this years festival include:

• March around the City by approx 100 re-enactors
• Children’s creative activities
• Spirit of the Lost Legion ghost event
• Roman talks
• Living History Camp
• Romans versus Barbarians battles
• Gladiator competitions
• Chariot Race
• Music
• Crafts and stalls

See the Festival Guide section for details.

 Background

There are only a handful of sites that exhibit Roman remains in the city and although the archaeological remains of the Multangular Tower in the Museum Gardens and Aldwark Tower near Monk Bar are modest compared with those that can be seen elsewhere in Europe, they are significant evidence of York’s historic urban heritage. Together, with the extensive collection of roman artefacts in the Yorkshire Museum these sites serve to represent what was a major fortress and later, one of the most important Roman cities in Britain – one which for a period at the end of the 3rd century was the capital of the Roman Empire, complete with an Imperial palace.

It was in York that the famous IX Legion disappeared from, where Emperors Septimius Severus and Constantius Chlorus died and where the first Christian Emperor, Constantine The Great, was proclaimed Emperor on the 25th July 306.

In 2006, to commemorate the 1700th anniversary of that mementos occasion York Museums Trust will be holding ‘Constantine The Great’, an exhibition of pan-European importance from 31st March to 30th October and York will again be the centre of international Roman interest.

York’s Roman history and heritage is fantastic, and the collections of Roman objects from the city are superb. York’s Roman history and significance ought to better understood and appreciated and the York Roman Festival’s imaginative event will be an important contribution to that end.

See the history of Roman York in the Eboracum section.