The Iron Age in Britain covers the period from 800BC to 43AD and starts with the new iron-working technology.  This is also the first period where there are historical records, with written accounts from Julius Caesar.

The transition from working with Bronze, during the Bronze Age, and the transition to Iron working was not instantaneous and there was some over-lap with the latter period of the Bronze Age and the start of the Iron Age.  Early use of Iron was often limited to prestigious or ritualistic purposes, and only in the later periods did iron become fairly commonplace and in everyday use.

The introduction of new technologies accelerated during the Iron Age.  Some examples are the introduction of the potter’s wheel, lathe and rotary querns.

The introduction of new crops and improved farming techniques increased the abundance of food and the population of Britain increased substantially during this period.  There was a wide range of settlement types during this period, ranging from isolated farmsteads to large nucleated settlements.  Some settlements had large banks and ditches built to enclose them, whilst others show no sign of boundaries.  Towards the end of the Iron Age the first sign of towns start to appear.

The Iron Age ends with the invasion of an empire from the continent.  These were the Romans and this signals the end of the prehistory eras and the start of the historical era classification.