Roman Baths

From the time of the Ancient Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43 and the construction of the Roman Baths in the old town of Aquae Sulis in the AD 60s, moving into the 17th and 18th Centuries with pioneers such as Dr William Oliver and finally settling into the 20th Century with the convalescence of soldiers during the Great War and the development of the Royal Mineral Water Hospital and the Royal United Hospital as foundations of the NHS in the late 1940s the City of Bath has developed as an important aspect of our heritage in relation to health. This short chronological guide will aim to ensure that visitors to Bath explore the history of health in the city and what it means to our heritage.

The construction of the Roman Baths began in the

Bath houses were symbols of Roman civilisation and were found in all parts of their vast Empire. The baths were the social heart of the town, often acting as an informal community centre. Public baths were often busy places employing a large number of staff and slaves. People did not just bathe there, but also exercised, socialised and conducted business. However, the Thermo – Mineral bath, like the ones at Aquae Sulis were not ordinary bath houses. The Roman Baths are fed by natural hot springs, which in the times of Ancient Rome meant they were considered to be sacred places. People would often come to bathe in the waters, often seeking a cure for an ailment. Furthermore those who were desperately ill might stay the night in either the baths or a nearby temple, they would pray to the Roman god of healing – Aesculapius and then sleep. Upon waking up, they would discuss their dreams with a priest in the hope of divine intervention. In 1138, the Gesta Stephani (the deeds of King Stephen) described how “from all over England sick people come to wash away their infirmities in the healing waters, and the healthy gaze at the remarkable bubbling up of the hot springs.” The Roman idea of health lasted well into the Medical Renaissance, in which ancient