02/05/2024 | Timgad was a Roman city built for retired veterans of the Roman army. It is located on the edge of the Sahara Desert, in modern day Algeria. It is the best preserved Roman colony in the world, with a perfectly preserved grid plan, a forum, a theater, a triumphal arch, temples, bath houses, and even a library. Many Roman colonies had a similar grid like pattern, but Timgad gives us the best idea of how such Roman colonies looked like, simply because it is so well preserved. It had a forum, a theater, a temple to Jupiter, a triumphal arch, bath houses, markets, and even a public library. Timgad had all the trappings of a typical Roman city. It was like a miniature Rome, but far from the city of Rome, on the edge of the empire. The video will show you all the monuments at the site, but also discuss how Rome rewarded its retired veterans and set them up in colonies such as Timgad.