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
Venta de Baños the same sort of iconic status as other great railway junctions of the world, such as Crewe in the UK. Before the advent of dedicated high-speed rail routes and cheaper air travel, it was the principal transfer point for travellers between the north-east and north-west regions of Spain and the south. Generations of railway passengers have memories of the waiting rooms and cafeteria at Venta de Baños. The town hosts an annual international cross country running competition, the Cross Internacional de Venta de Baños, which has featured some of the world's foremost cross country athletes including Kenenisa Bekele and Palencian-born