Venta Belgarum Oram's Arbour and Worthy Down) once the Romans had pacified the area, as was their policy for relocating many other British tribes. The River Itchen was diverted and a street grid laid out. Although in the early years of the Roman province it was of subsidiary importance to Silchester and Chichester, Venta eclipsed them both by the latter half of the second century. A defensive bank and ditch were dug around the town in the 2nd century. At the beginning of the third century, Winchester was given protective stone walls. At around this time the city covered an area of
Fleet, Hampshire Fleet, Hampshire Fleet is a town and civil parish in the Hart district of Hampshire, England, located 36 miles (58 km) southwest of London and 10 miles (16 km) east of Basingstoke. It is part of and is the major town of Hart District, which is one of the richest and least deprived areas in England. The 2011 population (ONS census) for Fleet was 38,726. In 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, and again in 2017 Hart, of which Fleet is the main town, was voted the best place to live in the UK by the Halifax Quality of Life study,