The site of Villa at Gadebridge Park the may have began as a pre Roman farm but after the Roman invasion (AD 43) its proximity to the Roman city of Verulamium seems to have precipitated its development into a sort of spa and resort. From the Antonine Period, c. 138 AD, stone buildings were added, and around 300 AD a large swimming pool, the biggest in Roman Britain after the one at Bath were built.
The site may have been leveled around AD 350 possibly because of its owner's support for the usurper emperor Magnentius. It returned to agricultural use and was used for cattle pens. Since the excavations the site has been scheduled and is under grassland.1