What they were like Some Roman churches kept going in Britain after the Romans left. They might be single roomed buildings. They might be 'aisled' buildings with columns down the centre and open corridors on either side, like churches today (but without a tower). There might also be an apse (a room shaped like half a circle) around the altar at the east end (see picture above). They could be built of wood or of stone. The roofs could be covered in thatch, wooden shingles or clay tiles. They often had circular or oval churchyards. Archaeologists have dug up the remains of a Romano-British aisled church at Uley in Gloucestershire (see picture below). It replaced an old pagan temple and was used until sometime in the 6th century. Old pagan temples were often turned into churches; or they were taken down and small churches built nearby: like at Brean Down and Lamyatt Beacon in Somerset. Many Roman churches were in towns. They were not used much and fell down because town life wasn't very popular any more. In cemeteries, there were sometimes big Roman tombs called  'mausolea' (the plural of 'mausoleum'). They were like small stone buildings and the British sometimes turned them into churches. St. Albans Cathedral is a good example. Some churches and chapels were open to everyone. Others belonged to monks or nuns in a monastery or to hermits living on their own. Activity Sheets available.
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