Roman conquest of Britain Claudius returned to Rome to celebrate his victory. Caratacus escaped and would continue the resistance further west. Vespasian took a force westwards subduing tribes and capturing "oppida" as he went, going at least as far as Exeter, which would appear to have become an early base for Leg. II Augusta. Legio IX Hispana was sent north towards Lincoln () and within four years of the invasion it is likely that an area south of a line from the Humber to the Severn Estuary was under Roman control. That this line is followed by the Roman road of the Fosse Way
Exeter to Plymouth railway of the LSWR broad gauge 'associated companies' formed a powerful group dominating rail services to Devon and Cornwall. The London and South Western Railway (LSWR) had started out as the London and Southampton Railway, but the Company soon expanded and changed its name to reflect greater ambitions. Extensions and branch lines were soon built around the core route, but westward extension into Devon and Cornwall was a strategic objective that took much longer to achieve. The LSWR finally opened to Exeter on 19 July 1860 after considerable difficulty in gaining parliamentary approval and financial support. Its Exeter station was at Queen Street (now