Overview
The Roman legions first started to colonise Britain in earnest during the reign of the Emperor Claudius in AD 43. Nearly 100 years before, Julius Caesar had scouted around to determine whether the island was worth holding, as a means of consolidating the conquest of Gaul (France). At the time he decided against it, and withdrew in 54 BC In spite of the violent rebellion of the Icenae tribe, led by their fearsome warrior queen Boudicca in 63 AD, the Romans had advanced right up to Caledonia (Scotland) by 82 AD. After this the Emperor Trajan called away most of his troops to lead an expansion campaign on the eastern frontiers of the Empire, and this gave heart to the wild Pictish and Scottish tribesmen, who began a rebellion in 118 AD.
It was becoming clear that a new strategy was required to defend the frontiers of the civilised Roman world from further invasion. Augustus, founder of the Empire had warned his successors against enlarging their dominions; they were to remain within natural boundaries such as the Danube, Rhine and Euphrates rivers and the Sahara desert. By invading Britain Claudius acted against the spirit of this advice, and it fell to Hadrian to secure this northernmost frontier when he became Emperor in 117 AD.
The main Roman presence in the north of England was represented by the 9th legion at York and the 20th at Chester. Together they had established a more or less permanent line of defence that ran from Solway Firth to the Tyne (cutting off Northumberland from the rest of England), making maximum use of natural defences. When Hadrian himself came to Britain in 122 he ordered that the legions (with the help of forced local labour and reinforcements from the “Victorious” 6th legion) be put to work fortifying this barrier, which was already serviced by a good military road, known as the Stanegate. From Newcastle to Birdoswald (about 2/3 of the length) it was to be of stone 10 ft thick and 15 ft high; from Birdoswald to Bowness, turf was used at first, owing to the scarcity of lime for making mortar, but this was eventually rebuilt in stone towards the end of the C2.
In front of the wall on the Scottish side was a ditch, whilst behind it stretched a Vallum or sloping rampart. In between the wall and the vallum ran the Military Way, used for moving troops from one fortification to another. Every mile (1 Roman mile = 1,620 yards) was a small tort for 50 soldiers, known as a ‘chester’, a word derived from the Latin castrum meaning ‘fort’; between each of these were 2 smaller turrets or look-out posts; and finally the whole enterprise was reinforced with 17 major forts, each capable of housing up to 1,000 troops, e.g. Stanwix near Carlisle. These were garrisoned mainly by auxilaries, rather than legionaries, many of whom came from far-away places in the Mediterranean. This explains the existence along the wall of temples to gods such as Mithras and Isis. The wall took about 12 years to complete and is 80 miles long. The main frontier force consisted of between 3,000 and 4,000 men.
In 140 A.D., during the reign of Antoninus, Hadrian’s successor, another turf wall was built between the Clyde and Forth rivers. The Romans decided that the best way to defend their position was by making forays northwards and intimidating the Scots into submission. But this simpler fortification was later overrun by the Scots and the frontier reverted to Hadrian’s Wall. In 400 AD the legions withdrew from Britain and the whole island was plunged once again into savagery – a period generally known as the Dark Ages. Successive generations pillaged stones from the Wall to use as building blocks, and as recently as 1746 stones were taken from the ruins to build a road which has since become the B6318. All in all, despite the ravages of time and weather, Hadrian’s Wall retains the feel of the intentions of its creator, and thanks to the efforts of modern archaeologists, constitutes one of the finest reminders of the Roman occupation in Britain.
Chesters
In the park of Chesters, near Chollerford, are the excavated remains of the fort of Cilurnum, one of the most notable sites along the wall (even though the fortification itself at this point has long since disappeared from view). This is widely considered to be the best example of a cavalry fort visible anywhere within the territory of the Roman Empire. The standard shape for such forts has often been compared with a playing card – rectangular with rounded corners; inside the ramparts two streets run at right angles to the long axis, dividing the interior into three approximately equal parts, the front and back sections for barracks and stables, ‑ the central third being reserved for the headquarters’ building (principia), commandant’s house (praetorium) and bath-house, granaries (horrea), together with one or two storehouses or work shops. Four gateways, one on each side, offered scope for swift exit in any direction.
This was the plan of most Roman forts, even those temporary structures built overnight, when the legions were on the move in new territory. Soldiers carried with him a shovel to dig an earthen rampart, and a pointed stake to form a barricade, which kept them safe from attack through the night. When the legion moved on the next morning, the whole structure was levelled to prevent it being used by the enemy. Having established the extent of the Empire in any given direction, however, the Roman authorities soon realised they must take steps to make the prospect of military service in a remote area sufficiently attractive to the right kind of citizen; so, salaries were good and permanent forts such as Chesters were made rather more comfortable than the accommodation provided on a campaign.
When building a camp, strategic location was always sacrificed for convenience. The Romans were used to fighting in the field, rather than from static defensive forts, as was the case in the Middle Ages. Engineers preferred to build near a good water supply, on a well-drained site, rather than atop a hill. In the case of Chesters, the camp was equipped with an impressive bath-house (for further details of Roman bathing habits see Bath notes) located near the river. The garrison was also supplied with water by an aqueduct. A museum within the fort contains a fine collection of statues, inscriptions and small archaeological finds which tell us much about life on the frontier.
Housesteads
The other major site of interest along the Wall is the infantry fort at Housesteads. It seems clear that one aim of Hadrian’s frontier policy was to encourage the growth of a civilian population in the frontier districts. Here a small town of 2,500 inhabitants grew up in the shadow of the fort. Some of the inhabitants were no doubt traders, attracted by the assured market of 500-1000 soldiers all drawing regular income; others were retired soldiers who preferred to settle down where most of their service had been performed, rather than return to distant homes in the Mediterranean. Hadrian realised that this would give him a ready supply of reinforcements in case of a surprise attack. As the years went by and the garrison became well established, the sons of former soldiers, themselves born in Britain began to take the place of troops brought in at considerable expense from abroad. These were mainly auxiliary troops, who served perhaps on a part time basis, and were generally paid less than the crack cavalry divisions at Chesters. In consequence the houses to be found here are perhaps less impressive.
You will approach Housesteads via the B6318 from Chollerford, and the Museum is a 10 minute walk from the main car park along a well beaten but quite steep path. On the way you pass terraces on which the original Roman town was built, and a strong spring to the left, once a shrine to a local water nymph. There is a small admission charge for the Museum, which contains a model of what the fort originally looked like, and a variety of stone inscriptions mainly of interest to Latin scholars.
Where Housesteads scores over Chesters is in its location. It can claim probably the most evocative stretch of the Wall, windswept and remote, and the short walk along the crags from the northwest angle of the fort to milestone 37 provides spectacular views of the Forest of Lowes and the Kielder Woods (Northumberland National Park). The milecastle is only 450 yards from the fort, and was originally designed to house 20 men with their weapons and provisions. Its walls are nine feet thick and the great gateways probably formed the foundation for towers like the turrets.