Before discussing the evidence for the origines of the men recruited into Roman army units in Britain, and the evidence for Britons being recruited into units in Britain or elsewhere, it will be convenient to summarize the evidence for recruitment-patterns for legions and auxilia for the empire as a whole. It will then be possible to see if the evidence suggests a significantly different situation from that in other provinces, or alternatively if there are similarities which justify the equation of the situation in Britain with that obtaining elsewhere.