Temple of Claudius

The Temple of Claudius or Temple of the Deified Claudius was a large octastyle temple built in Camulodunum, the modern Colchester in Essex. The main building was constructed between 49 and 60 CE, although additions were built throughout the Roman-era. Today it forms the base of the Norman Colchester Castle. It is one of at least eight Roman-era pagan temples in Colchester, and was the largest temple of its kind in Roman Britain; its current remains potentially represent the earliest existing Roman stonework in the country.
After the Roman conquest of Britain led in person by the Emperor Claudius in 43 CE, a legionary fortress was established at Camulodunon, the Iron Age capital of the Trinovantes and Catuvellauni tribes. This fortress was later converted into a town for retired soldiers in 49 CE, and was renamed Camulodunum, a Latin rendition of the Celtic name of the site. The town was the capital of the new province of Britannia, and had several public building befitting its status. These included a theatre, a curia , forum and a large classical-style temple. The temple's construction began during Claudius' reign, and it was dedicated to him after his death in 54 CE, with the official name of the town becoming Colonia Claudia Victricensis and the temple becoming the Templum Divi Claudii . The temple was the centre for the imperial cult in the province, as is mentioned in Seneca's 1st-century book the Apocolocyntosis, which mocks both the deceased Claudius and the Britons for their supposed piety towards him.

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