Which Roman road in Britain linked Exeter and Lincoln?

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The Roman road in Britain that linked Exeter and Lincoln was the Fosse Way.

Built mainly in the first and second centuries AD, the Fosse Way ran from Isca Dumnoniorum, Roman Exeter, northeast to Lindum Colonia, Roman Lincoln. Its route passed important settlements including Ilchester, Bath, Cirencester and Leicester, making it one of Roman Britain's major long-distance roads.

The name comes from the Latin fossa, meaning “ditch.” Early in the Roman conquest, the road may have followed or replaced a defensive ditch marking the western frontier of Roman control. Much of its alignment survives today as modern roads, lanes, tracks and parish boundaries.

It is often confused with other famous Roman roads. Ermine Street also reached Lincoln, but ran broadly between London and northern Britain; Watling Street followed a different route through the Midlands and Wales. The Fosse Way is the Exeter–Lincoln route.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

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