Hadrian's Wall (Latin Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. With the Roman conquest, Latin was spread to countries around the Mediterranean, including a large part of Europe. Romance languages such as Aragonese, Corsican, Catalan, French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Sardinian, Spanish and others, are descended from Latin, while: Vallum Aelium - as inferred by text on the Staffordshire Moorlands Patera) is a stone In geology, rock is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids and timber fortification Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs. The term is derived from the Latin fortis and facere ("to make") built by the Roman Empire The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor, Augustus across the width of what is now northern England Northern England, also known as the North of England, or as the North, is a cultural region of England. It is not a government administrative region, but rather an informal amalgamation of counties. The southern extent of the region is roughly the River Trent, while the north is bordered by Scotland. At times in history the Isle of Man, today a. Begun in AD 122, during the rule of emperor Hadrian Publius Aelius Hadrianus , commonly known as Hadrian (24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman Emperor from AD 117 to 138. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian is also a notable Stoic and Epicurean philosopher. A member of the gens Aelia, Hadrian was the third of the so-called Five Good Emperors, it was the first of two fortifications built across Great Britain, the second being the Antonine Wall The Antonine Wall is a stone and turf fortification built by the Romans across what is now the Central Belt of Scotland, between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde. The northernmost frontier barrier of the Roman Empire, it ran approximately 39 miles and was about ten feet (3 m) high and fifteen feet (5 m) wide. Security was bolstered by a in what is now Scotland. Hadrian's Wall is the better known of the two because its physical remains are more evident today.

Opinions differ, but the growing consensus is that the Wall was built as a readily defended fortification which clearly defined the northern frontier (lat. limes A limes was a border defense or delimiting system of Ancient Rome. It marked the boundaries of the Roman Empire) of the Roman Empire in Britain (Britannia Britannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the 1st century BC Britannia came to be used for Great). It would also improve economic stability and provide peaceful conditions in the frontier zone.[1]

The wall was the most heavily fortified border in the Empire. In addition to its role as a military fortification, it is thought that many of the gates through the wall would have served as customs Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country. Depending on local legislation and regulations, the import or export of some goods may be restricted or forbidden, and the posts to allow trade and levy taxation To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law.

A significant portion of the wall still exists, particularly the mid-section, and for much of its length the wall can be followed on foot by Hadrian's Wall Path or by cycle on National Cycle Route 72. It is the most popular tourist Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who "travel to and stay in places outside their usual environment for more than twenty-four hours and not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes not related to the exercise of an activity attraction in Northern England, where it is often known simply as the Roman Wall, or the Wall. It was made a UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945. Its stated purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through education, science, and culture in order to further universal respect for justice, the rule of World Heritage Site A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance. The list is maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 state parties which are elected by their General Assembly for a four-year term in 1987. English Heritage English Heritage . is a non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom government with a broad remit of managing the historic built environment of England. It is currently sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Simon Thurley has been chief executive since 2002, a government organisation in charge of managing the historic environment of England, describes it as "the most important monument built by the Romans in Britain".[2]

Contents

Dimensions

Sections of Hadrian's Wall remain along the route, though much has been dismantled over the years to use the stones for various nearby construction projects.

Hadrian's Wall was 80 Roman miles A mile is a unit of length in a number of different systems. In contemporary English, mile most commonly refers to the statute mile of 5,280 feet or the nautical mile of 1,852 meters (about 6,076.1 ft). There are many other historical miles, and similar units in other systems translated as miles in English, varying between one and fifteen (73.5 statute miles or 117 kilometres) long,[3] its width and height dependent on the construction materials which were available nearby. East of River Irthing the wall was made from squared stone and measured 3 metres (9.7 ft) wide and five to six metres (16–20 ft) high, while west of the river the wall was made from turf Sod or turf is grass and the part of the soil beneath it held together by the roots, or a piece of this material and measured 6 metres (20 ft) wide and 3.5 metres (11.5 ft) high. This does not include the wall's ditches, berms A berm is a level space, shelf, or raised barrier separating two areas. Berm is a loanword from Dutch and forts. The central section measured eight Roman feet wide (7.8 ft or 2.4 m) on a 10-foot (3.0 m) base. Some parts of this section of the wall survive to a height of 10 feet (3.0 m).

Route

Map showing the location of Hadrian's Wall Hadrian's Wall facing East towards Crag Lough

Hadrian's Wall extended west from Segedunum at Wallsend Wallsend is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. Wallsend derives its name as the location of the end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 42,842 on the River Tyne The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters' to the shore of the Solway Firth The Solway Firth is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in Cumbria, to the Mull of Galloway, on the western end of Dumfries and Galloway. The Isle of Man is also very near to the firth. The firth comprises part of the, ending a short but unknown distance West of the village of Bowness-on-Solway[4].

Although the curtain wall ends near Bowness-on-Solway, this does not mark the end of the line of defensive structures. The system of Milecastles and Turrets is known to have continued along the Cumbria Cumbria, the third largest ceremonial county in England, by area, is bounded to the west by the Irish Sea, to the south by Lancashire, to the southeast by North Yorkshire, and to the east by County Durham and Northumberland. Scotland lies directly to the north coast as far as Maryport. For classification purposes, the Milecastles west of Bowness-on-Solway are referred to as Milefortlets.

The A69 and B6318 roads The Great Britain road numbering scheme is a numbering system used to classify and identify all roads in Great Britain. Each road is given a single letter, which represents the road's category, and a subsequent number, with a length of between 1 and 4 digits. Originally introduced to arrange funding allocations, the numbers soon become used on follow the course of the wall as it starts in Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne (locally pronounced /njuːˈkæsəl/ ) (often shortened to Newcastle) is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Situated on the north bank of the River Tyne, the city developed in the area that was the location of the Roman settlement called Pons Aelius, though it owes its name to the castle to Carlisle, then along the northern coast of Cumbria (south shore of the Solway Firth The Solway Firth is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in Cumbria, to the Mull of Galloway, on the western end of Dumfries and Galloway. The Isle of Man is also very near to the firth. The firth comprises part of the). The wall is entirely in England and south of the border The Anglo-Scottish border is the official border and mark of entry between Scotland and England. It runs for 154 km (96 miles) between the River Tweed on the east coast and the Solway Firth in the west. It is Scotland's only land border; England shares a longer border with Wales with Scotland Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the southwest. In addition to the mainland, Scotland by less than one kilometre in the west at Bowness-on-Solway, and 110 kilometres (68 miles) in the east.

Purpose of construction

Hadrian's Wall was built following a visit by Roman Emperor The title of Roman Emperor, although in some ways a modern concept, effectively summarises the position held by those individuals who wielded power in the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire developed from the Roman Republic after its ascent to the dominant power in Europe, and is characterised by the concentration of power in one individual, rather Hadrian Publius Aelius Hadrianus , commonly known as Hadrian (24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman Emperor from AD 117 to 138. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian is also a notable Stoic and Epicurean philosopher. A member of the gens Aelia, Hadrian was the third of the so-called Five Good Emperors (AD 117–138) in AD 122. Hadrian was experiencing military difficulties in Roman Britain Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between AD 43 and about 410 and from the peoples of various conquered lands across the Empire, including Egypt Egypt (pronounced /ˈiːdʒɪpt/ ; Arabic: مصر‎ Miṣr, pronounced [misˤɾ] ( listen); Arabic: مِصْر Miṣr [ˈmisˤɾ]; Egyptian Arabic: مَصْر Maṣr [ˈmɑsˤɾ]; Coptic: Ⲭⲏⲙⲓ, kīmi; Egyptian: 𓆎𓅓𓏏𓊖 Kemet), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula, Judea Judea or Judæa is the name given to the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel (Hebrew: ארץ ישראל‎ Eretz Yisrael) during the period of Classical Antiquity, from roughly the 8th century BCE (Assyrian rule) to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed to Syria Palaestina following Bar Kokhba's revolt, Libya Libya (Arabic: ليبيا ‎ Lībiyā pronunciation ; Libyan vernacular: Lībya pronunciation (help·info); Amazigh: ), officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya ( Arabic: الجماهيرية العربية الليبية الشعبية الإشتراكية العظمى ‎ Al-Jamāhīriyyah al-ʿArabiyyah al-Lībiyyah aš-Š, Mauretania In antiquity Mauretania was originally an independent Berber kingdom on the Mediterranean coast of north Africa , corresponding to western Algeria, northern Morocco and Spanish Plazas de soberanía. The Mauri people were named for the Greek word mavros, black. Some of the earliest recorded history relates to Phoenician and Carthaginian settlements, and many of the peoples conquered by his predecessor Trajan Marcus Ulpius Nerva Traianus, commonly known as Trajan , was Roman Emperor from AD 98 to 117. Born Marcus Ulpius Traianus into a non-patrician family in the Hispania Baetica province (modern day Spain), Trajan rose to prominence during the reign of emperor Domitian, serving as a general in the Roman army along the German frontier, and successfully, so he was keen to impose order. The construction of such an impressive wall was, however, probably also a symbol of Roman power, both in occupied Britain and in Rome.[citation needed]

Frontiers in the early empire were largely based on natural features or fortified zones with a heavy military presence. Military roads often marked the border, with forts and signal towers spread along them, and it was not until the reign of Domitian Titus Flavius Domitianus , known as Domitian, was the eleventh Roman Emperor, who reigned from 14 September 81 until his death. Domitian was the third and last emperor of the Flavian dynasty, the house which ruled the Roman Empire between 69 and 96 and encompassed the reigns of Domitian's father Vespasian (69–79), his older brother Titus (79–81 that the first solid frontier was constructed, in Germania Superior Germania Superior , so called for the reason that it lay upstream of Germania Inferior, was a province of the Roman Empire. It comprised the area of western Switzerland, the French Jura and Alsace regions and south-western Germany. Important cities were Besançon (Besontio), Strasbourg (Argentoratum), Wiesbaden (Aquae Mattiacae) and Germania, using a simple fence. Hadrian expanded this idea, redesigning the German border by ordering a continuous timber palisade Typical construction consisted of small or mid sized trunks of trees aligned vertically, with no spacing in between. The trunks would be sharpened or pointed at the top end, and be driven into the ground on the other end. They would sometimes be reinforced with additional construction. The height of a palisade can range from a few feet or more to supported by forts behind it. Although such defences would not have held back any concerted invasion effort, they did physically mark the edge of Roman territory and went some way to providing a degree of control over who crossed the border and where. The wall was constructed primarily to prevent entrance by small bands of raiders or unwanted immigration Immigration is the introduction of new people into a habitat or population. It is a biological concept and is important in population ecology, differentiated from emigration and migration from the north, not as a fighting line for a major invasion An invasion is a military offensive consisting of all, or large parts of the armed forces of one geopolitical entity aggressively entering territory controlled by another such entity, generally with the objective of either conquering, liberating or re-establishing control or authority over a territory, forcing the partition of a country, altering.[1] The wall would have made cattle-raiding Cattle rustling or cattle raiding is the act of stealing livestock. In Australia, such stealing is often referred to as duffing, and the person as a duffer across the frontier extremely difficult.[5]

Hadrian reduced Roman military presence in the territory of the Brigantes The Brigantes were a Celtic tribe who in pre-Roman times controlled the largest section of Northern England and a significant part of the Midlands. Their kingdom is sometimes called Brigantia, and it was centred in what was later known as Yorkshire. Ptolemy lists the Brigantes also as a tribe in Ireland, where they could be found around Wexford,, who lived between the rivers Tyne and Humber The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal River Ouse and the tidal River Trent. From here to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between the East Riding of Yorkshire on the north bank and North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire on, and concentrated on building a more solid linear fortification to the north of them. This was intended to replace the Stanegate The Stanegate, or "stone road" , was an important Roman road in northern England. It linked two forts that guarded important river crossings; Corstopitum (Corbridge) in the east, situated on Dere Street, and Luguvalium (Carlisle) in the west. The Stanegate ran through the natural gap formed by the valleys of the Tyne and Irthing road which is generally thought to have served as the limes (the boundary of the Roman Empire) until then.

Construction

Construction probably started sometime in AD 122[6] and was largely completed within six years.[7] Construction started in the east, between milecastles four and seven, and proceeded westwards, with soldiers from all three of the occupying Roman legions The Roman legion is a term that can apply both as a translation of legio ("conscription" or "army") to the entire Roman army and also, more narrowly (and more commonly), to the heavy infantry that was the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. In this latter participating in the work. The route chosen largely paralleled the nearby Stanegate The Stanegate, or "stone road" , was an important Roman road in northern England. It linked two forts that guarded important river crossings; Corstopitum (Corbridge) in the east, situated on Dere Street, and Luguvalium (Carlisle) in the west. The Stanegate ran through the natural gap formed by the valleys of the Tyne and Irthing road from Luguvalium (Carlisle) to Coria (Corbridge), upon which were situated a series of forts, including Vindolanda Vindolanda was a Roman auxiliary fort located at Chesterholm, just south of Hadrian's Wall in northern England, near the modern border with Scotland; it guarded the Stanegate, the Roman road from the River Tyne to the Solway Firth. It is noted for the Vindolanda tablets, among the most important finds of military and private correspondence (. The wall in the east follows a hard, resistant igneous diabase Diabase or Dolerite is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. In North American usage, the term diabase refers to the fresh rock, whilst elsewhere the term dolerite is used for the fresh rock and diabase refers to altered material. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies rock escarpment, known as the Whin Sill.

The initial plan called for a ditch and wall with 80 small gated milecastle fortlets, one placed every Roman mile, holding a few dozen troops each, and pairs of evenly spaced intermediate turrets used for observation Observation is either an activity of a living being , consisting of receiving knowledge of the outside world through the senses, or the recording of data using scientific instruments. The term may also refer to any data collected during this activity and signalling. However, very few milecastles are actually situated at exact Roman mile divisions; they can be up to 200 yards east or west because of landscape features or to improve signalling to the Stanegate forts to the south.[8] Local limestone Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . Like most other sedimentary rocks, limestones are composed of grains; however, most grains in limestone grains are skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera. Other carbonate grains comprising limestones are ooids, peloids, intraclasts, and was used in the construction, except for the section to the west of Irthing where turf was used instead, since there were no useful outcrops nearby. Milecastles in this area were also built from timber and earth rather than stone, but turrets were always made from stone. The Broad Wall was initially built with a clay-bonded rubble core and mortared dressed rubble facing stones, but this seems to have made it vulnerable to collapse, and repair with a mortared core was sometimes necessary.

Roman fort and town at Corstopitum viewed along the Stanegate.

The milecastles and turrets were of three different designs, depending on which Roman legion built them — inscriptions of the Second, Sixth, and Twentieth Legions, tell us that all were involved in the construction. All were about 493 metres (539 yards) apart and measured 4.27 square metres (46.0 square feet) internally.

Construction was divided into lengths of about 5 miles (8 km). One group of each legion would excavate the foundations and build the milecastles and turrets and then other cohorts would follow with the wall construction. it was finished in 128 AD

Early in its construction, just after reaching the North Tyne, the width of the wall was narrowed to 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) or even less (sometimes 1.8 metres) (the "Narrow Wall"). However, Broad Wall foundations had already been laid as far as the River Irthing, where the Turf Wall began, demonstrating that construction worked from east to west. Many turrets and milecastles were optimistically provided with stub 'wing walls' in preparation for joining to the Broad Wall, offering a handy reference for archaeologists trying to piece together the construction chronology.

Within a few years it was decided to add a total of 14 to 17 (sources disagree) full-sized forts along the length of the wall, including Vercovicium (Housesteads) and Banna (Birdoswald), each holding between 500 and 1,000 auxiliary troops (no legions were posted to the wall). The eastern end of the wall was extended further east from Pons Aelius (Newcastle) to Segedunum (Wallsend) on the Tyne estuary. Some of the larger forts along the wall, such as Cilurnum (Chesters) and Vercovicium (Housesteads), were built on top of the footings of milecastles or turrets, showing the change of plan. An inscription mentioning early governor Aulus Platorius Nepos indicates that the change of plans took place early on. Also some time still during Hadrian's reign (before AD 138) the wall west of the Irthing was rebuilt in sandstone to basically the same dimensions as the limestone section to the east.

Vallum at Hadrian's Wall near Milecastle 42 (Cawfields).

After most of the forts had been added, the Vallum was built on the southern side. The wall was thus part of a defensive system which, from north to south included:

Garrison

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be and removed. (February 2009)

The wall was garrisoned by auxiliary (non-legionary) units of the army (non-citizens). Their numbers fluctuated throughout the occupation but may have been around 9,000 strong in general, including infantry and cavalry. The new forts could hold garrisons of 500 men, while cavalry units of 1,000 troops were stationed at either end. The total number of soldiers manning the early wall was probably greater than 10,000.

They suffered serious attacks in 180, and especially between 190 and 197 when the garrison had been seriously weakened, following which major reconstruction had to be carried out under Septimius Severus. The region near the wall remained peaceful for most of the rest of the third century. It is thought that some in the garrison may have married and integrated into the local community throughout the years.

Part of Hadrian's Wall from Housesteads showing the Knag Burn Gateway in the valley.

After Hadrian

Leahill 51B is a typical example of the many turrets built into the wall between the mile castles.

In the years after Hadrian's death in 138, the new emperor, Antoninus Pius essentially abandoned the wall, leaving it occupied in a support role, and began building a new wall called the Antonine Wall, about 160 kilometres (100 mi) north, in what later became known as the Scottish Lowlands through the short strip running West South West to East North East from coast to coast sometimes referred to as the Central Belt or Central Lowlands. This turf wall ran 40 Roman miles (about 37.8 mi (60.8 km)) and had significantly more forts than Hadrian's Wall. Antoninus was unable to conquer the northern tribes, so when Marcus Aurelius became emperor he abandoned the Antonine Wall and reoccupied Hadrian's Wall as the main defensive barrier in 164. The wall remained occupied by Roman troops until their withdrawal from Britain.

In the late fourth century, barbarian invasions, economic decline, and military coups loosened the Empire's hold on Britain. By 410, the Roman administration and its legions were gone, and Britain was left to look to its own defences and government. The garrisons, by now probably made up mostly of local Britons who had nowhere else to go, probably lingered on in some form for generations. Archaeology is beginning to reveal that some parts of the wall remained occupied well into the fifth century. Enough also survived in the eighth century for spolia from it to find its way into the construction of Jarrow Priory, and for Bede to see and describe the wall thus in Historia Ecclesiastica 1.5, although he misidentified it as being built by Septimius Severus:

“ After many great and dangerous battles, he thought fit to divide that part of the island, which he had recovered from the other unconquered nations, not with a wall, as some imagine, but with a rampart. For a wall is made of stones, but a rampart, with which camps are fortified to repel the assaults of enemies, is made of sods, cut out of the earth, and raised above the ground all round like a wall, having in front of it the ditch whence the sods were taken, and strong stakes of wood fixed upon its top. ”

But in time the wall was abandoned and fell into ruin. Over the centuries and even into the twentieth century a large proportion of the stone was reused in other local buildings.

The wall fascinated John Speed, who published a set of maps of England and Wales by county at the turn of the seventeenth century. He described it as 'the Picts Wall' (or 'Pictes'; he uses both spellings). A map of Newecastle (sic), drawn in 1610 by William Matthew, described it as 'Severus' Wall', thus giving it the name ascribed by Bede. The maps for Cumberland and Northumberland not only show the wall as a major feature, but are ornamented with drawings of Roman finds, together with, in the case of the Cumberland map, a cartouche in which he sets out a description of the wall itself.

John Clayton

Painting by William Bell Scott

Much of the wall has disappeared. The preservation of what remains can be credited to John Clayton. He trained as a lawyer and became town clerk of Newcastle in the 1830s. He became enthusiastic about preserving the wall after a visit to Chesters. To prevent farmers taking stones from the wall, he began buying some of the land on which the wall stood. In 1834 he started purchasing property around Steel Rigg. Eventually he had control of land from Brunton to Cawfields. This stretch included the sites of Chesters, Carrawburgh, Housesteads and Vindolanda. Clayton carried out excavation work at the fort at Cilurnum and at Housesteads, and he excavated some milecastles.

Clayton managed the farms he had acquired and succeeded in improving both the land and the livestock. His successful management produced a cash flow which could be invested in future restoration work.

Workmen were employed to restore sections of the wall, generally up to a height of seven courses. The best example of the Clayton Wall is at Housesteads. After Clayton’s death, the estate passed to relatives and was soon lost at gambling. Eventually the National Trust began the process of acquiring the land on which the wall stands.

At Wallington Hall, near Morpeth, there is a painting by William Bell Scott, which shows a centurion supervising the building of the wall. The centurion has been given the face of John Clayton.

World Heritage Site

Hadrian's Wall near Birdoswald Fort, with man spraying weed-killer to reduce biological weathering to the stones

Hadrian's Wall was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987, and in 2005 it became part of the larger "Frontiers of the Roman Empire" World Heritage Site which also includes sites in Germany.[9]

Tourism to the Wall

Although Hadrian's Wall was declared a World Heritage Site in 1977, it remains unguarded, allowing those interested in the site full advantage of going up to, and standing upon, the wall.

Hadrian's Wall Path

Main article: Hadrian's Wall Path

In 2003, a National Trail footpath was opened which follows the line of the wall from Wallsend to Bowness-on-Solway.[10] Because of the fragile landscape, walkers are asked only to follow the path in summer months.[11]

Rudyard Kipling

English Nobel Prize-winning author Rudyard Kipling contributed to popular image of the "Great Pict Wall" in his short stories about Parnesius, a Roman legioner who defended the Wall against the picts and vikings. These stories are part of Puck of Pook's Hill cycle.

Roman-period names

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be and removed. (June 2008)
The remains of Castle Nick, Milecastle 39, near Steel Rigg, between Housesteads and the Once Brewed Visitor Centre for the Northumberland National Park. The remains of the fort at Housesteads.

The only ancient source for its provenance is the Augustan History. No sources survive to confirm what the wall was called in antiquity, and no historical literary source gives it a name. However, the discovery of a small enamelled bronze Roman cup in Staffordshire in 2003 has provided a clue. The cup is inscribed with a series of names of Roman forts along the western sector of the wall, together with a personal name and the phrase MAIS COGGABATA VXELODVNVM CAMBOGLANNA RIGORE VALI AELI DRACONIS.

Bowness (MAIS) is followed by Drumburgh-by-Sands (COGGABATA) until now known only as CONGAVATA from the late Roman document, the Notitia Dignitatum. Next comes Stanwix (VXELODVNVM), then Castlesteads (CAMBOGLANNA).

RIGORE is the ablative form of the Latin word rigor. This can mean several things, but one of its less-known meanings is ‘straight line’, ‘course’ or ‘direction’. This sense was used by Roman surveyors and appears on several inscriptions to indicate a line between places. So the meaning could be 'according to the course'.

The Staffordshire Moorlands cup, which may provide the ancient name of Hadrian's Wall.

There is no known word as vali, but vallum was the Latin word for an earthen wall, rampart, or fortification;[12] today vallum is applied to the ditch and berm dug by the Roman army just south of the wall. The genitive form of vallum is valli, so one of the most likely meanings is VAL[L]I, ‘of the vallum’. Omitting one of a pair of double consonants is common on Roman inscriptions; moreover, an error in the transcription of a written note could be the reason: another similar bronze vessel, known as the Rudge Cup (found in Wiltshire in the 18th century) has VN missing from the name VXELODVNVM, for example, although the letters appear on the Staffordshire Moorlands cup. The Rudge Cup only bears fort names.

The name AELI was Hadrian's nomen, his main family name, the gens Aelia. The Roman bridge at Newcastle-upon-Tyne was called Pons Aelius.

DRACONIS can be translated as ‘[by the hand – or property] of Draco’. It was normal for Roman manufacturers to give their names in the genitive (‘of’), and ‘by the hand’ would be understood. The form is common, for example, on Samian ware.

The translation, therefore, could be:

"Mais, Coggabata, Uxelodunum, Camboglanna, according to the line of the Aelian wall. [By the hand or The property] of Draco." Another possibility is that the individual's name was Aelius Draco, which would only leave us with an unspecified vallum, 'wall'.

Forts

The Latin and Romano-Celtic names of some of the Hadrian's Wall forts are known, from the Notitia Dignitatum and other evidence:

Poltross Burn, Milecastle 48

Turrets on the wall include:

Outpost forts beyond the wall include:

Supply forts behind the wall include:

Illuminating Hadrian's Wall

A volunteer stationed at Leahill Turret 51B, one of Cell 27 of the event volunteer 'legions'.

On 13 March 2010, Hadrian's Wall was illuminated from Tyneside to Cumbria[14]. This 84 mile route was lit by 500 gas beacons, flares and torches at 250m intervals, with the assistance of more than 1000 volunteers. Over 120 landowners allowed access onto their lands for this historic event to take place. This event created an iconic celebration of the landscape, and showed the wall in its former glory. 2010 is also the 1600th anniversary of the end of Roman rule in Britain in AD410 – one of the turning points in British history.[15]

'Illuminating Hadrian’s Wall' was an ambitious project led by Hadrian’s Wall Heritage Ltd, supported by several other groups, which forms part of North East England’s world-class programme of festivals and events.[16] This event marked the beginning of British Tourism week as supported by the Carlisle Tourism Partnership[17][18] and the 500 points of light were filmed by a helicopter at dusk.

See also

Sycamore Gap (the "Robin Hood Tree")[19]
Military of ancient Rome portal
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hadrian's Wall

References

  1. ^ a b Stephen Johnson (2004) Hadrian's Wall, Sterling Publishing Company, Inc, 128 pages, ISBN 0713488409
  2. ^ English Heritage
  3. ^ BBC - History - Hadrian's Wall Gallery
  4. ^ Breeze, David J (1934), Handbook to the Roman Wall (14th Revised edition - Nov 2006), Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne, ISBN 0901082651
  5. ^ School of the Moon. The Highland cattle-raiding tradition. Stuart McHardy. Birlinn Press, Edinburgh 2004.
  6. ^ Breeze, D.J., and Dobson, B., 2000, Hadrian's Wall (fourth edition), London: Penguin Books, pp86
  7. ^ Wilson, 271.
  8. ^ Woolliscroft, D., 1989, "Signalling and the design of Hadrian's Wall", Archaeologia Aeliana 5th Series, Vol. XVII, pp5-20
  9. ^ UNESCO World Heritage Centre. "Frontiers of the Roman Empire". http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/430/. Retrieved 2007-11-26.
  10. ^ National Trails. "Hadrian's Wall Path". http://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/HadriansWall/. Retrieved 2007-11-26.
  11. ^ Hadrians Wall Path National Trail. "Every Footstep Counts - The Trail's Country Code". http://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/HadriansWall/text.asp?PageId=27. Retrieved 2007-11-26.
  12. ^ Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary
  13. ^ a b c d e f g Note the suffix "chester", reflecting the presence of a Roman castra.
  14. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/8565759.stm
  15. ^ http://www.illuminatinghadrianswall.com/site/
  16. ^ http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.17532
  17. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/tyne/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_8550000/8550446.stm
  18. ^ England's Roman Frontier, Page 6
  19. ^ Sycamore Gap, a section of the wall between two crests just east of Milecastle 39, is locally known as the "Robin Hood Tree" for its use in the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991).

Further reading

External links

World Heritage Sites in the United Kingdom
England

Bath · Blenheim Palace · Canterbury Cathedral, St. Augustine's Abbey and St. Martin's Church · Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape · Derwent Valley Mills · Durham Castle and Cathedral · Frontiers of the Roman Empire (Hadrian's Wall) · Ironbridge Gorge · Jurassic Coast · Kew Gardens · Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City · Maritime Greenwich · Saltaire · Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites · Studley Royal Park and Fountains Abbey · Tower of London · Westminster Palace, Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret's Church
Scotland

Edinburgh Old Town and New Town · Frontiers of the Roman Empire (Antonine Wall) · Heart of Neolithic Orkney · New Lanark · St. Kilda
Wales

Blaenavon Industrial Landscape · Castles and Town Walls of King Edward I in Gwynedd · Pontcysyllte Aqueduct
Northern Ireland

Giant's Causeway
British overseas territories

Gough Island and Inaccessible Island, Tristan da Cunha · Henderson Island, Pitcairn Islands · Town of St George and Related Fortifications
English Heritage sites in Cumbria
Dating from Neolithic/ Bronze Age Castlerigg Stone Circle · King Arthur's Round Table · Mayburgh Henge
Dating from Roman Britain Ambleside Roman Fort · Hadrian's Wall (including Banks East Turret, Birdoswald Roman Fort, Hare Hill, Harrows Scar Milecastle and Wall, King's Stables (Milecastle 48), Leahill Turret and Piper Sike Turret, Pike Hill Signal Tower, Willowford Wall Turrets and Bridge) · Hardknott Roman Fort · Ravenglass Roman Bath House
Dating from the Middle Ages Bow Bridge · Brough Castle · Brougham Castle · Carlisle Castle · Clifton Hall · Furness Abbey · Lanercost Priory · Penrith Castle · Piel Castle · Shap Abbey · Wetheral Priory Gatehouse
Dating from the 17th Century onwards

Countess Pillar · Stott Park Bobbin Mill

Coordinates: 55°01′27″N 2°17′33″W / 55.02417°N 2.2925°W

Categories: Ancient Roman architecture | Hadrian's Wall | 2nd-century architecture | Buildings and structures in Cumbria | Buildings and structures in Northumberland | Buildings and structures in Tyne and Wear | English Heritage sites in Cumbria | English Heritage sites in Northumberland | English Heritage sites in Tyne and Wear | Archaeological sites in Cumbria | Archaeological sites in Northumberland | Archaeological sites in Tyne and Wear | Fortification | History of Cumbria | History of Northumberland | History of Tyne and Wear | Military history of Cumbria | Military history of Northumberland | Military history of Tyne and Wear | Nerva-Antonine Dynasty | Roman frontiers | Roman military architecture | Roman sites in Northumberland | Ruins in Cumbria | Ruins in Northumberland | Separation barriers | Visitor attractions in Cumbria | Visitor attractions in Northumberland | Visitor attractions in Tyne and Wear | Walls | Walls in England | World Heritage Sites in England

 

The above information uses material from Wikipedia and is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Some facts may not have been fully verified for accuracy. [Disclaimers]
This page was last archived by our server on Mon Jul 26 19:58:18 2010. [ refresh local cache ]
Displaying this page or its contents does not use any Wikimedia Foundation's resources.
The owners of this site proudly support the Wikimedia Foundation.

[Hide]▼
'Hadrian's Wall' News
Getting Parkinson's disease inspired me to stat running for charity - Scottish Daily Record
news.google.com
Getting Parkinson's disease inspired me to stat running for charity

Scottish Daily Record

In 2008, we did the West Highland Way, last year we did the Causeway Coast in Northern Ireland and this year we'll be doing Hadrian's Wall . ...
Google News Search: Hadrian's wall,
Mon Jul 26 19:58:21 2010
'Hadrian's Wall' Images
Hadrian s Wall Path
ahevents.co.uk
Hadrian s Wall Path
411px x 770px | 80.50kB

[source page]

Hadrian s Wall Path

Yahoo Images Search: Hadrian's wall,
Mon Jul 26 19:58:21 2010
'Hadrian's Wall' Blogs
Hadrian's Wall - Google Sightseeing
googlesightseeing.com
Hadrian's Wall - Google Sightseeing

RobK

ue, 26 May 2009 13:33:29 GM

When the Romans invaded Britain in the 1st century AD, they never quite managed to conquer Caledonia the area now kn.

Google Blogs Search: Hadrian's wall,
Mon Jul 26 19:58:21 2010
[Hide]▲