Roman strategy reconstructed from forts and roads

The featured passage sets Tacitus alongside archaeological evidence from forts and roads around Snowdonia and Anglesey. It reconstructs a Frontinus-era control network of forts and connecting roads that was still under construction when the Ordovices revolted in 77. Agricola's rapid intervention and crossing to Anglesey then fit a campaign already framed by that infrastructure rather than appearing as an isolated episode known only from the literary account. The maps show a rough quadrilateral of forts around Snowdonia, while the absence of clear early Flavian sites on Anglesey remains part of the interpretive problem. Roman forts followed recognisable standard forms while still adapting to terrain and local purpose. The chapter is a worked example of material remains refining a narrative built from texts alone.