By the time Julia Velva was probably born after AD 160, York had been a Roman military base for about a century and was becoming a major urban centre. Its position roughly 300 kilometres north of London connected it to the sea by the Ouse and Humber and to other settlements by road. Roman travel still made the city remote: London was at least two or three days away by horse or ship. York could receive ideas and material culture from across the Roman world, while legionary commanders and provincial governors depended on local supplies and knowledge of the surrounding country.
Chapter · 5:31-7:31
York's geography and the legionary fortress
Roads and rivers connected York to the Roman world, while travel times and dependence on local supplies kept the military base relatively isolated.