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150-460: The Vacomagi were a people of ancient Scotland , known only from a single mention of them by the geographer Claudius Ptolemy (AD c.100–c.170). Their principal places are known from Ptolemy's map c.150 of Albion island of Britannia – from the First Map of Europe . The Vacomagi were a confederacy of smaller tribes, each one a separate polity with its own hierarchy of leaders. According to

300-463: A hoard of four gold torcs that date to between 300 and 100 BCE and which were buried deliberately at some point in antiquity. They were found by a metal detectorist in a field near Blair Drummond in 2009. The ceremonial Deskford Carnyx was found near Deskford in 1816. Constructed almost entirely of brass, only the boar's head survives. Based in part on the metallurgy, the Museum of Scotland give

450-459: A broad section of the wall and conversely a narrow section. He argues that plans changed during construction of the wall, and its overall width was reduced. Broad sections of the wall are around nine and a half feet (2.9 metres) wide with the narrow sections two feet (61 centimetres) thinner, around seven and a half feet (2.3 metres) wide. Some of the narrow sections were found to be built upon broad foundations, which had presumably been built before

600-538: A date of 80-250 CE for its construction, noting that it was a locally produced piece, "a specifically Scottish variant" distinct in design from known continental carnyces. The Pictish symbol stones are an enigma of Iron Age art. There are regularly occurring symbols such as the double disc and images of animals such as the Burghead Bulls and the Pictish Beast on these monumental stones but their original purpose

750-507: A defensive structure made to keep people out, the wall also kept people within the Roman province . Movement would be channeled through the gates in the wall, where it could be monitored for information , prevented or permitted as appropriate, and taxed. The wall would also have had a psychological impact: For nearly three centuries, until the end of Roman rule in Britain in 410 AD, Hadrian's Wall

900-662: A diminution in the Antonine period when the garrison moved north to the Antonine Wall, and recovery in the later 2nd and early 3rd centuries. After Hadrian's death in 138, Emperor Antoninus Pius left the wall occupied in a support role, essentially abandoning it. He began building the Antonine Wall about 160 kilometres (100 mi) north, across the isthmus running west-southwest to east-northeast. This turf wall ran 40 Roman miles, or about 60.8 km (37.8 mi), and had more forts than Hadrian's Wall. This area later became known as

1050-546: A few feet higher at its formation. Along the length of the wall there was a watch-tower turret every third of a mile, also providing shelter and living accommodation for Roman troops. Hadrian's Wall extended west from Segedunum at Wallsend on the River Tyne , via Carlisle and Kirkandrews-on-Eden , to the shore of the Solway Firth , ending a short but unknown distance west of the village of Bowness-on-Solway . The route

1200-464: A few specific crossing points (and possibly at specific times of year). One such traditional point may be indicated by the concentration of Roman-period metal objects near Great Whittington , about 2 kilometres north along a Roman road from the Portgate on the wall. The coins, mostly silver rather than bronze and suggesting high-value transactions, indicate activity in the late 1st and early 2nd centuries,

1350-457: A few years, the fort was surrounded by Roman camps and bombarded by Roman missiles. It was finally abandoned by about 140. Other sites may have been managed by native groups, probably for the management of livestock and possibly to supply Roman requirements. Pollen evidence suggests that the landscape immediately north of the wall remained generally open, without forest regeneration until the end of Roman rule. At Castle O'er an Iron Age hillfort

1500-536: 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 to gambling. Eventually, the National Trust began 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

1650-766: A new vice learned with alacrity from the Vikings." The Torrs Pony-cap and Horns , dating from c. 200 BCE and in the La Tène style, are amongst a relatively small surviving group of elite metal objects from the Scottish Iron Age. Found near Castle Douglas , the motifs bear some similarity to scabbards found in County Antrim across the Irish Sea and those of the Arras culture centred in northern England. The Stirling torcs make up

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1800-470: A numerous and widespread nobility; the lower orders lived in groups of round houses that left much less archaeological trace. The wall probably cut across a coherent cultural area, and it was planned and built at a time of serious warfare in Britain, which required major Roman reinforcements from outside Britannia. A tablet from Vindolanda describes a centurio regionarius who exercised direct military rule from Carlisle , some 30 years after Roman conquest of

1950-541: A period of five centuries, suggesting the invasions had a very negative impact on the native population in that area. The situation outside the Roman-held areas is harder to assess, but the long-term influence of Rome may not have been substantial. Overall, it is hard to detect any direct connections between native architecture and settlement patterns and Roman influence. Elsewhere in Europe, new kingdoms and languages emerged from

2100-585: A posisbility. The purpose of crannogs may have been apparently defensive but the sites would have been vulnerable to waterborne attacks. Findings from the site of the broch at Dun Vulan in South Uist , whch was occupied for c. 150 to 50 BCE, have generated some debate about the nature of life in the Atlantic coast during the Iron Age. A study of the site in the 1990s posited that the evidence of animal bones suggested

2250-480: A propaganda statement as a functional facility". There is some evidence that Hadrian's Wall was originally covered in plaster and then whitewashed: its shining surface would have reflected the sunlight and been visible for miles around. Hadrian ended his predecessor Trajan 's policy of expanding the empire and instead focused on defending the current borders, namely at the time Britain. Like Augustus, Hadrian believed in exploiting natural boundaries such as rivers for

2400-545: A rampart. Bede obviously identifies Gildas's stone wall as Hadrian's Wall, and he appears to have believed that the Vallum was the rampart constructed by Severus. Many centuries would pass before just who built what became apparent. In the same passage, Bede describes Hadrian's Wall as follows: "It is eight feet in breadth, and twelve in height; and, as can be clearly seen to this day, ran straight from east to west." Bede by his own account lived his whole life at Jarrow , just across

2550-517: A set of maps of England and Wales by county at the start of the 17th century. He describes it as "the Picts Wall" (or "Pictes"; he uses both spellings). A map of Newecastle (sic), drawn in 1610 by William Matthew, describes it as "Severus' Wall", mistakenly giving it the name ascribed by Bede to the Vallum. Matthew's maps for Cumberland and Northumberland show the wall as a major feature and are ornamented with drawings of Roman finds together with (in

2700-573: A shout for help: The Battersea Shield is possibly one of the most important examples of Iron Age art and craftsmanship ever found in Britain. It was found at an ancient crossing point of the Thames, and is believed to have been a votive offering. The Gundestrup cauldron , found in Denmark, is another outstanding example of Iron Age art and craftsmanship. The internal plates depict imagery possibly associated with gods and deities: The horned god Cernunnos

2850-402: A significant difference between those who lived in and around the broch and those in the surrounding area. They concluded that there was a settlement hierarchy similar to the distinction between Medieval English aristocrats and commoners. A second paper two years later refuted this. It does seem clear that in some parts of Iron Age Scotland, quite unlike almost all of recorded history right up to

3000-421: A solution to their problems that remained relevant for centuries. The primary purpose of the wall was as a physical barrier to slow the crossing of raiders, people intent on crossing its line for animals, treasure, or slaves, and then returning with their loot. The Latin text Historia Augusta states: (Hadrianus) murumque per octoginta milia passuum primus duxit, qui barbaros Romanosque divideret. (Hadrian)

3150-537: A sword. Hillforts and enclosures around settlements suggest troubled times, but the evidence for actual violence is "limited and open to interpretation". The wealthiest Highland community excavated so far is Culduthel in Inverness and it was unenclosed. Likewise, a similar site at Birnie in Moray. The vitrification of hillforts has been interpreted as the deliberate action of victors in some conflict but accidental fires are

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3300-563: A western route through Annandale in an attempt to encircle and isolate the Selgovae who occupied the central Southern Uplands . In CE 78 Agricola arrived in Britain to take up his appointment as the new governor. He moved his troops north and began constructing a line of Glenblocker forts to the north and west of the Gask Ridge which marked a frontier between the Venicones to the south and

3450-527: A wheel) form the basis for lintel arches supporting corbelled roofing with a hearth at the hub. About a third are double-walled. They range in diameter from 4 to 11.5 metres (13 to 38 feet). Those sites that have been dated tend to fall within the period 25 BC to 380 AD. In the Northern Isles they are of a later date than the towered structures in all cases. The majority are dug into the landscape and only their thatched roofs would have been visible above

3600-526: A wooden palisade), with seventeen forts. It was constructed after 139 CE and extended for 60 km (37 mi). Then Urbicus turned his attention upon the Novantae who inhabited the Dumfries and Galloway peninsula. The main lowland tribes, sandwiched as they were between Hadrian's Wall of stone to the south and the new turf wall to the north, later formed a confederation against Roman rule, collectively known as

3750-505: A zone of its population, as they are known to have done on the Rhine and for ten Roman miles beyond the Danube frontier. Some sites were still occupied; the fort of Burnswark Hill , previously in ruins, was re-occupied about the time that the wall was built. Possibly this represents a short-lived Roman attempt to establish a cooperative authority on this main route further north to Caledonia . Within

3900-540: Is a life-sized female figure in alder with quartz pebbles for eyes found under a wicker structure beneath peat at Ballachulish . The high standard of preservation suggests it was deliberately submerged and may indicate the "decommissioning of some form of shrine". Roman influence assisted the spread of Christianity throughout Europe , but there is little evidence of a direct link between the Roman Empire and Christian missions north of Hadrian's Wall. Traditionally, Ninian

4050-453: Is also obscure. They are usually found close to settlements (whose timber frames are much less well-preserved) and may have been for storing perishable agricultural products. Scotland also has numerous vitrified forts but an accurate chronology has again proven to be evasive. Extensive studies of such a fort at Finavon Hill near Forfar in Angus , using a variety of techniques, suggest dates for

4200-431: Is also possible that their construction had little to do with Roman frontier policy and was simply the importation of a new style by southern elites, or it may have been a response by such elites to the growing threat of Rome prior to the invasion and an attempt to ally themselves, actually or symbolically, with the north that was largely free of Roman hegemony. There is widespread eveidence of hunting, fishing, fowling and

4350-538: Is credited as the first bishop active in Scotland. He is briefly mentioned by Bede who states that in the fifth century he set up his base at Whithorn in the south-west of Scotland building a stone church there known as Candida Casa . In the mid sixth century Columba founded the monastery at Iona in the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata and composed his "Rule of Monks" and "Rules of Communal Life". The influence of Iona

4500-691: Is known primarily from Pillar of the Boatmen , which also includes a dedication to the Gaulish deity Esus – god of the river. Taranis and Esus were famously associated with the deity Toutatis in the poem Pharsalia by the Roman poet Lucan . Graham Robb has calculated that Bannatia might have been Camelon Roman fort at Falkirk , south of the River Carron . The name Bannatia may derive from Welsh ( Welsh-Brittonic ) < bannau > ..."peaks". This might relate to

4650-425: Is not clear. The remains of the bridge of a lyre found at High Pasture Cave on Skye is the earliest find of a stringed instrument in western Europe. Just as for artistic works, the influences of other parts of northwest Europe can be seen in the development of technology. For example rotary querns were introduced to Scotland at much the same time as they are found elsewhere. On the other hand, no evidence for

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4800-458: Is not well recorded, but archaeological evidence shows for example that precious metal working was widespread and that timber halls were in use over a wide area by the seventh century. Although constructed in earlier times, brochs, roundhouses and crannogs remained in use into and beyond the Pictish period. Hadrian%27s Wall Hadrian's Wall ( Latin : Vallum Hadriani , also known as

4950-464: Is now Scotland and none at all until the early Christian era. There are however a few records made by made by classical authors in Latin and Ancient Greek . Pytheas of Massilia visited Britain – probably sometime between 322 and 285 BCE – and described it as triangular in shape, with a northern tip called Orcas . Writing in the 1st century CE, the Roman geographer Pomponius Mela called

5100-430: Is possible the significant increase in domestic cat remains found at these sites was due to their deliberate introduction to protect bulk storage from rodents. Flax growing also appears in the record during the late Iron Age. The relative importance of cereal growing to pastoralism is hard to gauge but the picture appears to be one of increasing intensification of agriculture as the Iron Age progressed and particularly in

5250-562: Is possibly the Lochmaben Stone near modern Gretna which continued to be used as a muster point well into the historic period. Two of the others indicate meeting places of the Damnonii and Selgovae, and the fourth, Manavi may be Clackmannan . The peoples of early Iron Age Scotland, particularly in the north and west, lived in substantial stone buildings called Atlantic roundhouses . The remains of hundreds of these houses exist throughout

5400-642: Is unknown, and the boundaries are unlikely to have been fixed. The name itself is a Roman one, as used by Tacitus, Ptolemy, Pliny the Elder and Lucan , but the name by which the Caledonians referred to themselves is also unknown. It is likely that prior to the Roman invasions, political control in the region was highly decentralised and no evidence has emerged of any specific Caledonian military or political leadership. For example, Calgacus "is never referred to... as king or general" by Tacitus. Similarly, we know nothing of

5550-460: The Clyde – Forth isthmus . The Battle of Mons Graupius took place in 83 or 84 AD between the Roman army and a coalition of Vacomagi, Caledonii and other native tribes. The combined might of the Roman army resulted in a decisive victory for the Roman general Agricola . The location of the battle (" Graupius mountain ") has never been convincingly identified, however most historians agree that it

5700-475: The Anglo-Scottish border , though it is sometimes loosely or colloquially described as such. The length of the wall was 80 Roman miles, equivalent to 73 modern miles; or 117 kilometres (1 Roman mile is equivalent to 1,620 yards; or 1,480 metres). This traversed the entire width of the island, from Wallsend on the River Tyne in the east to Bowness-on-Solway in the west. Not long after construction began,

5850-560: The Bertha Roman fort near the River Almond – Tay confluence was originally called Tamia , derived from a native name for the River Tay. Inchtuthil and Carpow were both Roman legionary fortresses – based on the River Tay – the only legionary fortresses north of Hadrian's Wall , and therefore of strategic importance. However Inchtuthil was only occupied for a short while, and Carpow

6000-459: The Maeatae . Urbicus achieved an impressive series of military successes, but like Agricola's they were short-lived. Having taken twelve years to build, the Antonine Wall was overrun and abandoned soon after 160 CE. The Roman frontier became Hadrian's Wall again, and subsequently the most notable invasion was in 209 when the emperor Septimius Severus , claiming to be provoked by the belligerence of

6150-612: The Roman Wall , Picts' Wall , or Vallum Aelium in Latin) is a former defensive fortification of the Roman province of Britannia , begun in AD ;122 in the reign of the Emperor Hadrian . Running from Wallsend on the River Tyne in the east to Bowness-on-Solway in the west of what is now northern England , it was a stone wall with large ditches in front and behind, stretching across

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6300-558: The Scottish Lowlands , sometimes referred to as the Central Belt or Central Lowlands . 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. In 208–211, Emperor Septimius Severus again tried to conquer Caledonia and temporarily reoccupied the Antonine Wall. The campaign ended inconclusively, and

6450-527: The Solway Firth ). Part of the central section of the wall follows natural cliffs on an escarpment of the Whin Sill rock formation. 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 coast as far as Risehow, south of Maryport . For classification purposes,

6600-505: The Vacomagi are known only from Ptolemy's map of Albion island of Britannia – from the First Map of Europe . The historian Graham Robb has used scaling factors to compensate for the anomaly whereby Scotland appears to tip wildly into the North Sea, in order to determine the possible locations: Robb has calculated that Tamia and Bannatia were further south than previously thought, probably on

6750-714: The Vacomagi centred near Strathmore . It is likely that all of these cultures spoke a form of Celtic language known as Common Brittonic although there are no written records to corroborate this. The occupants of southern Scotland were the Damnonii in the Clyde valley, the Novantae in Galloway, the Selgovae on the south coast and the Votadini to the east. Little is known about the alliances of Iron Age tribes. The exact location of Caledonia

6900-506: The Vallum . The Vallum and the wall run more or less in parallel for almost the entire length of the wall, except between the forts of Newcastle and Wallsend at the east end, where the Vallum may have been considered superfluous as a barrier on account of the close proximity of the River Tyne . The twin track of the wall and Vallum led many 19th-century thinkers to note and ponder their relation to one another. Some evidence appears to show that

7050-475: The original Latin : triginta milia ...30,000 armatorum ..." armed men " aspiciebantur ..." to be seen " The Roman historian Tacitus gave us this account: ..."Having sent on a fleet, which by its ravages at various points might cause a vague and wide-spread alarm, he advanced with a lightly equipped force, including in its ranks some Britons of remarkable bravery , whose fidelity had been tried through years of peace, as far as Mons Graupius , which

7200-510: The "Long Iron Age" which lasts until the late first millennium invasions by the Norse , rather than those of the Roman army. This term is particularly useful in the context of the Hebrides and Northern Isles but elsewhere there is potential overlap with the early historic period . The approach taken here is to include the whole of modern Scotland up to the temporary occupation by Roman forces, cover

7350-498: The "paucity of papers on the Iron Age of mainland Scotland", the research concentrating on the islands to the west and north where scattered modern rural populations and limited agriculture meant that Iron Age buildings were relatively easy to find and excavate (and in many cases are vulnerable to coastal erosion). As a result, analysis of societal structures on the mainland south of the Highland Line are limited in scope. There are

7500-490: The 3rd and possibly 4th centuries), and it may similarly have been mainly concerned with livestock management and delivery. In general, and as with other Roman frontier lines, Roman coins and pottery did not move across the wall, and the wall seems to have been an effective barrier to trade. A few elite centres continued to import Roman goods, such as the post-160 samian found at Traprain Law . Ongoing exchange may have been managed at

7650-535: The 6th century Tiree was raided by Pictish forces, Tory Island off the coast of Donegal was attacked in the early 7th century by a "marine fleet" and Donnán of Eigg and 52 companions were murdered by Picts on Eigg in 617. Ó Corráin writes of an incident of Viking activity in Ireland that "This was a perfectly normal military campaign in Irish circumstances and the plundering of churches was an integral part of warfare and not

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7800-490: The Caledonians to the north. In the summer of CE 84 his legions faced the combined forces of the Caledonians at the Battle of Mons Graupius , the site of which is unknown. According to Tacitus, Agricola brought between 17,000 and 30,000 troops and faced a foe with a similar complement. After winning the battle decisively Agricola ordered the prefect of this fleet to sail around the north of Scotland to confirm that Britain

7950-492: The Hebrides, recorded that these islands were largely uninhabited, often named after spirits or heroes, and that those who did live on them were all holy men. Writing about 70 years later, in 140-150 CE, Ptolemy , drawing on the naval expeditions of Agricola and most likely the earlier explorers, created a map and identified numerous tribal territories throughout Britain (see details below). However, Ptolemy's information about

8100-676: The Maeatae, campaigned against the Caledonian Confederacy. Severus invaded Caledonia with an army perhaps over 40,000 strong. By 210, Severus' campaigning had made significant gains, but his campaign was cut short when he fell ill, dying at Eboracum in 211. The Romans never campaigned deep into Caledonia again and they soon withdrew south permanently to Hadrian's Wall. The military presence of Rome lasted for little more than 40 years for most of Scotland and only as much as 80 years in total anywhere. It's now generally considered that at no time

8250-491: The River Tyne from the eastern end of the wall at Wallsend, so as he indicates, he would have been very familiar with the wall. Bede does not mention a walkway along the top of the wall. It might be thought likely that there was, but if so it no longer exists. In the late 4th century, barbarian invasions, economic decline and military coups loosened the empire's hold on Britain. By 410, the estimated end of Roman rule in Britain ,

8400-404: The Roman administration and its legions were gone, and Britain was left to look to its own defences and government. Archaeologists have revealed that some parts of the wall remained occupied well into the 5th century. It has been suggested that some forts continued to be garrisoned by local Britons under the control of a Coel Hen figure and former dux . Hadrian's Wall fell into ruin, and over

8550-419: The Roman equivalent of barbed wire , a measure to delay an enemy attack and hold the attackers within range of the missiles of the defenders. The curtain wall was not mainly a continuously-embattled defensive line, rather it would deter casual crossing and be an observation point that could alert Romans of an incoming attack and slow down enemy forces so that additional troops could arrive for support. Besides

8700-406: The Roman invaders, yet, like the nearby site of Fairy Knowe at Buchlyvie , a substantial amount of both Roman and native artefacts has been recovered there. Both structures were built in the late first century and were evidently high-status buildings. The inhabitants raised sheep, cattle and pigs, and benefited from a range of wild game, including red deer and wild boar . The destruction of some of

8850-485: The Roman poet Lucan . The cult of Esus was possibly introduced into North Britain by the movement of legions and auxiliaries from Roman Gaul (France) and Hispania Tarraconensis (Spain). A bronze bowl (known as the Amiens Skillet ) found at Amiens , France, has the inscription: MAIS ABALLAVA VXELODVNVM CAMBOG...S BANNA ESICA The inscription is a list of the Roman fort's on Hadrian's Wall . The last fort on

9000-467: The Romans eventually withdrew to Hadrian's Wall. The early historian Bede , following Gildas , wrote ( c.  730 ): [the departing Romans] thinking that it might be some help to the allies [Britons], whom they were forced to abandon, constructed a strong stone wall from sea to sea, in a straight line between the towns that had been there built for fear of the enemy, where Severus also had formerly built

9150-449: The Romans' definition of their territory. In 1936, further research suggested that the Vallum could not have been built before the wall because the Vallum avoided one of the wall's milecastles. This new discovery was continually supported by more evidence, strengthening the idea that there was a simultaneous construction of the Vallum and the wall. Other evidence still pointed in other, slightly different directions. Evidence shows that

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9300-613: The Tay and Forth respectively. It might be expected that those settlements were near maritime navigation routes, since most of Ptolemy's data originated from seafarer's travel records. ? Mouth of the River Spey . ? Bertha Roman fort – River Almond . ? Bannock Burn – Forth confluence. It has in the past been conjectured that Tuesis was the Romano-British name for the River Spey , however historian Graham Robb has calculated that Tuesis

9450-529: The Vallum preceded sections of the Narrow Wall specifically; to account for this discrepancy, Couse suggests that either construction of the Vallum began with the Broad Wall, or it began when the Narrow Wall succeeded the Broad Wall but proceeded more quickly than that of the Narrow Wall. From Milecastle 49 to the western terminus at Bowness-on-Solway, the wall was originally constructed from turf, possibly due to

9600-524: The absence of limestone. Subsequently, the turf wall was demolished and replaced with a stone wall. This took place in two phases; the first (from the River Irthing to a point west of Milecastle 54 ) during the reign of Hadrian, and the second following the reoccupation of Hadrian's Wall after the abandonment of the Antonine Wall (though it has also been suggested that this second phase took place during

9750-462: The antiquarian John Clayton . He trained as a lawyer and became town clerk of Newcastle in the 1830s. He became enthusiastic about preserving the wall after inheriting Chesters from his father. 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 near Crag Lough . Eventually, he controlled land from Brunton to Cawfields. This stretch included

9900-457: The area. In 150, a discharge certificate was issued to Velvotigernus, son of Maglotigernus, after 26 year's service in the classis Germanica . It was found near (not in) the Roman fort of Longovicium . Presumably Velvotigernus was from the upper echelons of British society (his father's name means 'Great master'); he chose to settle near Lanchester some 27km south of the wall. This suggests the rapid development of elements of Roman culture both by

10050-601: The borders of the empire, for example the Euphrates , Rhine and Danube . Britain, however, did not have any natural boundaries that could serve the purpose to divide the province controlled by the Romans from the Celtic tribes in the north. With construction starting in 122, the entire length of the wall was built with an alternating series of forts, each housing 600 men, and manned milecastles, operated by "between 12 and 20 men". It took six years to build most of Hadrian's Wall with

10200-568: The breathtaking views of the Munro peaks, to the north of Stirling , for example Stùc a' Chroin and Ben Vorlich . The etymology suggests that Bannatia was between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay , and validates Graham Robb's methodology for re-evaluating Ptolemy's co-ordinates. The area around Stirling was historically known as Manau (or Manaw Gododdin ). This area has always been strategically important because of its location just north of

10350-545: The case of the Cumberland map) a cartouche in which he sets out a description of the wall. Much of the wall has now disappeared. Long sections of it were used for roadbuilding in the 18th century, especially by General Wade to build a military road (most of which lies beneath the present day B6318 " Military Road ") to move troops to crush the Jacobite rising of 1745 . The preservation of much of what remains can be credited to

10500-452: The centuries the stone was reused in other local buildings. Enough survived in the 7th century for spolia from Hadrian's Wall (illustrated at right) to find its way into the construction of St Paul's Church in Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Abbey , where Bede was a monk. It was presumably incorporated before the setting of the church's dedication stone, still to be seen in the church, dated 23 April 685. The wall fascinated John Speed , who published

10650-588: The country, some merely piles of rubble, others with impressive towers and outbuildings. They date from about 800 BCE to CE 300, with the most imposing structures having been created around the second century BCE. The most massive constructions that date from this time are the circular brochs . On average, the ruins only survive up to a few metres above ground level, but there are five extant examples of towers whose walls still exceed 6.5 m (21 ft) in height. There are at least 100 broch sites in Scotland. Despite extensive research, their purpose and

10800-548: The data collected by Ptolemy, the Vacomagi were spread over a wide area between the Moray Firth and the Firth of Forth ; to the east of the Cairngorms and north of the Clyde – Forth isthmus . ..."Warriors from Northern Briton fought naked and used narrow shields, a spear and a sword... — Herodian (c.170–c.240). The term Vacomagi was used by the Romans to distinguish between those Caledonians whose territory

10950-458: The departure of the legions the Celtic Iron Age way of life, often troubled but never extinguished by Rome, re-asserted itself for several centuries more. There is no accepted chronology for the Scottish Iron Age. There is some consensus that it begins circa 800 BCE and clearly extends into early Roman times, but the terminus is a subject of debate. Some archaeologists use a scheme known as

11100-533: The destruction of the site in either the last two centuries BCE or the mid-first millennium. The lack of Roman artefacts (common in sites close to souterrains) suggests that many sites were abandoned before the arrival of the legions. The site at Jarlshof in Shetland is part of a tentative list of proposed World Heritage Sites called the " Zenith of Iron Age Shetland ". Writing in 2002 Ballin Smith and Banks noted

11250-459: The eastern half's width was therefore reduced from the original ten Roman feet to eight, with the remaining stones from the eastern half used for around 5 miles (8.0 kilometres) of the turf wall in the west. This reduction from the original ten Roman feet to eight created the so-called "Narrow Wall". Just south of the wall there is a ten-foot (three-metre) deep, ditch-like construction with two parallel mounds running north and south of it, known as

11400-424: The economy throughout this period, subsequent excavations in the Northern Isles and Hebrides challenged Piggot's supposition. There is evidence from Orkney and elsewhere of cattle being used for milk production in the vicinity of broch settlements and pigs were evidently being kept at numerous sites. These include Old Scatness broch where a hearthstone with an incised drawing of a boar was found in 1998. Deer are

11550-711: The emergence of the Picts , a confederation of tribes who lived to the north of the Forth and Clyde from Roman times until the tenth century. They are often assumed to have been the descendants of the Caledonians though the evidence for this connection is circumstantial and the name by which the Picts called themselves is unknown. The Gaels of Dál Riata called the Picts Cruithne and Irish poets portrayed their Pictish counterparts as very much like themselves. The technology of everyday life

11700-477: The enemy had already occupied. ..."For the Britons , indeed, in no way cowed by the result of the late engagement, had made up their minds to be either avenged or enslaved, and convinced at length that a common danger must be averted by union, had, by embassies and treaties, summoned forth the whole strength of all their states. ..."More than 30,000 armed men... ..."Meanwhile, among the many leaders, one superior to

11850-453: The enemy of the Roman army: The Picts (descendants of the Vacomagi ) are reported to have believed in the magi – people with supernatural powers; for example the magus Broichan , who was alleged to have the ability to influence the weather. ..."below Caledonia are the Vacomagi, among whom are the following settlements: — Claudius Ptolemy (AD c.100–c.170) The principal places of

12000-433: The established narrative over how much of a threat the inhabitants of northern Britain presented to the Romans, and whether there was any economic advantage in defending and garrisoning a fixed line of defences like the wall, rather than conquering and annexing what has become Northumberland and the Scottish Lowlands and then defending the territory with a looser arrangement of forts. Hadrian and his advisers however produced

12150-401: The face of John Clayton (above right). In 2021 workers for Northumbrian Water found a previously undiscovered 3-metre section of the wall while repairing a water main in central Newcastle upon Tyne . The company announced that the pipe would be "angled to leave a buffer around the excavated trench". Hadrian's Wall was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987, and in 2005 it became part of

12300-425: The footings, and some segments display a few courses of modern masonry reconstruction. Many of the excavated forts on or near the wall are open to the public, and various nearby museums present its history. The largest Roman archaeological feature in Britain, it runs a total of 73 miles (117.5 kilometres). Regarded as a British cultural icon , Hadrian's Wall is one of Britain's major ancient tourist attractions . It

12450-472: The foreign policies of the senior leaders in mainland Scotland in the first century. The Geographia identifies 19 "towns" from intelligence gathered during the Agricolan campaigns of the first century. No archaeological evidence of any truly urban places has been found from this time and the names may have indicated hill forts or temporary market and meeting places. Most of the names are obscure: Devana may be

12600-416: The foundation, quickly becoming much shallower. Above the stone curtain wall's foundations, one or more footing courses were laid. Offsets were introduced above these footing courses (on both the north and south faces), which reduced the wall's width. Where the width of the curtain wall is stated, it is in reference to the width above the offset. Two standards of offset have been identified: Standard A, where

12750-522: The full quota of 756 Belgae troops were present, the rest being sick or otherwise absent. By about 200 BC, long before the Romans arrived in Britannia, the zone on both sides of what would become the wall, from Lothian to the north and the River Wear to the south, had become dominated by rectilinear enclosures. These were the nuclei of extensive farming settlements at a high level of the social hierarchy,

12900-484: The gathering of foods such as hazelnuts throughout the period. Writing in the late 1950s C. M Piggott wrote that during the late Iron Age northern Britain was populated by "celtic cowboys and shepherds, footloose and unpredictable, moving with their animals over rough pasture and moorland [who] could never adopt the Roman way of life in the manner of the settled farmers of the South". Although sheep and cattle were important to

13050-493: The ground — although these would have been 6 metres or more in height. A total of 62 sites have now been identified in the Northern and Western Isles, and on the north coast of Caithness and Sutherland . The highly restricted nature of their geographical locations suggests that they may have been contained within a political or cultural frontier of some kind. The co-incidence of their arrival and departure being associated with

13200-521: The interior north of the Great Glen is sparse. The later Pictish period is similarly devoid of contemporary, local written material. Evidence has however been gleaned from annals preserved in Wales and Ireland and from sources written down much later. This was an age of forts and farmsteads, which tends to support the image of quarrelsome tribes and petty kingdoms recorded by the Romans. However, at times

13350-870: The interludes of Roman occupation rather than a broader scope. Ptolemy's Geographia lists tribes located north of the Forth-Clyde isthmus including the Cornovii in Caithness , the Caereni , Smertae , Carnonacae , Decantae , Lugi , and Creones also north of the Great Glen , the Taexali in the north-east, the Epidii in Argyll , the Venicones in Fife , the Caledonians in the central Highlands and

13500-597: The islands of Orkney Orcades , as did Tacitus in 98 CE, claiming that his father-in-law Agricola had "discovered and subjugated the Orcades hitherto unknown", (although both Mela and Pliny the Elder had previously referred to the islands, the latter mentioning the Caledonian Forest ). Demetrius of Tarsus was commissioned by Rome to sail to the islands closely surrounding Britain, possibly as part of Agricola's campaign. His report, which may have been primarily about

13650-423: The kind of accommodation enjoyed by the middle classes. Brythonic (or " Pritennic ") Celtic culture and language spread into southern Scotland at some time after the 8th century BC, possibly through cultural contact rather than mass invasion, and systems of petty kingdoms developed. However, the written records about Iron Age life in Scotland are principally from Roman sources and as a result tend to focus on

13800-463: The latter". However, soldiers from the three British legions outnumbered the auxiliaries, which goes against the assertion that legionaries would not be used on such detached duties. Further information on the garrisoning of the wall has been provided by the discovery of the Vindolanda tablets just to the south of Hadrian's Wall, such as the record of an inspection on 18 May 92 or 97, when only 456 of

13950-570: The legionary fortress at Inchtuthil on the River Tay 82–86 AD. A Roman altar found in Chester may provide evidence that the Legio XX worshipped the Gaulish deity Taranis , but using the variant name Tanarus . The Romano-British name for the Tay – Taus – may derive from Tanarus (Ta---us) – god of thunder. The name variant Tanarus (for the Gaulish deity Taranis ) shows an interesting reversal of

14100-663: The letters 'R' and 'N' – a reconstruction that is possibly mirrored in several river names: The name element Tam is possibly a contraction of Gaulish taram ("thunder"). There is a natural association between thunder – rain – rivers. Watery places – including rivers, lakes and wetlands – had a special significance for Celtic people in Western Europe during the Iron Age . Many precious objects, found in watery places, are believed to have been votive offerings – to gods and goddesses. Votive offerings may have been symbolic; possibly

14250-456: The list is Æsica ( Great Chesters ); the name derives from Esus (or Æsus ). A pottery mould that is believed to depict the Gaulish deity Taranis was found at the Coria Roman fort near Hexham . Similar moulds were used to create relief decoration for fine pottery. The historian Graham Robb has calculated that Tamia was possibly near the city of Perth . It has been conjectured that

14400-506: The local upper classes and by immigrants either attracted by commercial possibilities or officially encouraged to settle. Northwards a very different picture emerges. A large area of what is now southern Scotland as far as Lothian, and the Northumbrian coastal plain, lost its monumental building tradition of substantial timber roundhouses and earthwork enclosures. Very little late Roman pottery has been found there. The Romans may have cleared

14550-462: The milecastles west of Bowness-on-Solway are referred to as Milefortlets . Hadrian's Wall was probably planned before Hadrian 's visit to Britain in 122. According to restored sandstone fragments found in Jarrow which date from 118 or 119, it was Hadrian's wish to keep "intact the empire", which had been imposed on him via "divine instruction". On Hadrian's accession to the imperial throne in 117, there

14700-400: The modern Banchory ; Alauna ("the rock") in the west is probably Dumbarton Rock and the place of the same name in the east Lowlands may be the site of Edinburgh Castle . Lindon may be Balloch on Loch Lomond side. The Ravenna Cosmography utilises a third- or fourth-century Roman map and identifies four loci (meeting places, possibly markets) in southern Scotland. Locus Maponi

14850-618: The name element Tam may derive from a Sanskrit word meaning "dark water". Another possibility is that Tam is the nickname of a Celtic god, goddess or deity. It is known that the Celts worshipped rivers, and gave votive offerings . In addition to the Celtic Britons , there was also a migration of Celts from Roman Gaul (France) and Hispania (Spain), during the Roman occupation , who brought with them their own pantheon of deities with them. The Legio XX Valeria Victrix built and occupied

15000-461: The nature of the societies that created them are still a matter of debate. Quanterness chambered cairn in Orkney is a Neolithic structure constructed two millennia or more prior to the Iron Age. Excavations their uncovered a roundhouse built into the cairn dated to circa 700 BCE. Wheelhouses have an outer stone wall within which a circle of stone piers (bearing a resemblance to the spokes of

15150-521: The northeast, such as Hill O'Christ's Kirk in Aberdeenshire . Soon after his announcement of victory, Agricola was recalled to Rome by Domitian and his post passed to an unknown successor. The fortress Agricola had caused to be built fortress at Inchtuthil was dismantled before its completion and the other fortifications on the Gask Ridge were abandoned within the space of a few years. By CE 87

15300-645: The occupants neglected the defences, which might suggest that symbolic power was as significant as warfare. Evidence from the Tyne - Forth area indicates that a dense pattern of unfortified farmsteads existed over a long span of time. Evidence of violence and conflict is "difficult to demonstrate conclusively" although on balance inter-community warfare is likely to have taken place. In the middle to late Iron Age some fortified settlements expanded significantly. The Votadini stronghold of Traprain Law , East Lothian for example was, at its maximum 40 hectares (99 acres) in extent,

15450-594: The occupation was limited to the Southern Uplands and by the end of the first century the northern limit of Roman expansion was the Stanegate road between the River Tyne and the Solway Firth . The construction of 118 kilometres (73 mi) long Hadrian's Wall in the early 120s on the orders of the Emperor Hadrian consolidated the Roman line of defence on the Tyne-Solway line, where it remained until c.139 CE. It

15600-433: The offset occurs above the first footing course, and Standard B, where the offset occurs after the third (or sometimes fourth) footing course. It is thought that following construction and when fully manned, almost 10,000 soldiers were stationed on Hadrian's Wall, made up not of the legions who built it but by regiments of auxiliary infantry and cavalry drawn from the provinces. Following from this, David Breeze lays out

15750-419: The only animals found on decorated pottery in the Hebrides and deer bones made up a high proportion of finds at the site at Dun Mor Vaul on Tiree. This is not an island that could have supported large herds of deer and suggests that exploitation of local resources did not always follow an obvious pattern. Several sites show evidence of large scale drying and storing of grains such as barley and oats and it

15900-469: The period of Roman Empire 's occupation briefly and then concentrate on Pictland in the north and west that remained largely Iron Age in nature beyond that period. The period is essentially prehistoric with archaeology playing the predominant role in its study. However, radiocarbon dating for this period is problematic and chronological sequences are poorly understood as a result. There are few contemporary written sources made by those who lived in what

16050-468: The period of Roman influence in Scotland is a matter of ongoing debate. It is not known whether the culture that constructed them was "Pictish" as such although they would certainly have been known to the Picts. Over 400 souterrains have been discovered in Scotland, many of them in the south-east, and, although few have been dated, those that have suggest a construction date in the second or third centuries. The purpose of these small underground structures

16200-478: The period. Excavations at Keil cave on the Mull of Kintyre found indications of burials, iron working and Roman pottery with activity taking place over an extended period. A 2008 find of a grave with weaponry at Dunbar also provides some insight into the culture of this period. A similar site at Alloa , adjacent to a Bronze Age burial, has been provisionally dated to between 200 BCE to 200 CE. The Ballachulish figure

16350-453: The plans changed. Based on this evidence, Collingwood concludes that the wall was originally to be built between present-day Newcastle and Bowness-on-Solway, with a uniform width of 10 Roman feet, all in stone. On completion, only three-fifths of the wall was built from stone; the remaining western section was a turf wall, later rebuilt in stone. Plans possibly changed due to a lack of resources. In an effort to preserve resources further,

16500-596: The post-broch period. The existence of "cord-rig" field systems in upland areas also suggests extensive arable farming in lower-lying well drained areas although there is very little evidence for field boundaries anywhere in Scotland. Unlike the earlier Neolithic and Bronze Ages , which have provided massive monuments to the dead, Iron Age burial sites in Scotland are rare prior to the Roman and post-Roman eras. The reasons for these changes are not at all clear. Several sites in Argyll indicate cave burials took place throughout

16650-485: The present day, there does not seem to have been a hierarchical elite . Studies have shown that stone roundhouses with massively thick walls, must have contained virtually the entire population of islands such as Barra and North Uist and throughout Argyll . Iron Age settlement patterns in Scotland are not homogeneous, but, in these places, there is no sign of a privileged class living in large castles or forts, nor of an elite priestly caste or of peasants with no access to

16800-595: The region. Nevertheless, the settlement pattern in the area did not change immediately after the wall was built, and the groups who fought the Romans may have been from previously pacified tribes to the south, or from far north of the wall. The Roman soldiers of the garrison, with their families and other immigrants, may have amounted to some 22-30% of the population of the region. They could not have been supplied entirely from local resources, although any local surpluses would have been taxed or requisitioned. Military conscripts may also have been levied from nearby groups. To

16950-470: The reign of Septimius Severus ). The line of the stone wall follows the line of the turf wall, apart from the stretch between Milecastle 49 and Milecastle 51 , where the line of the stone wall is slightly further to the north. In the stretch around Milecastle 50TW , it was built on a flat base with three to four courses of turf blocks. A basal layer of cobbles was used westwards from Milecastle 72 (at Burgh-by-Sands) and possibly at Milecastle 53 . Where

17100-410: The remains of fifteen broch towers in southern Scotland that appear to date from the period immediately prior to or following Agricola's invasion. They are found in four locations: the Forth valley, close to the Firth of Tay , the far south-west and the eastern Borders . Their existence so far from the main centres of broch-building is something of a mystery. The Leckie Broch may have been destroyed by

17250-405: The remnants of the once-mighty Roman world. In Scotland, the Roman presence may have destabilised some of the pre-existing power structures, and perhaps "helped to catalyse the transformation from tribal organizations to Kingdoms" but the Celtic Iron Age way of life, often troubled but never extinguished by Rome, simply re-asserted itself. The intermittent Roman presence in Scotland coincided with

17400-447: The rest in valour and in birth, Calgacus by name, is said to have thus harangued the multitude gathered around him and clamouring for battle... — Tacitus (AD c.56–c.120) Scottish Iron Age#Ptolemy's Albion Some authorities consider the Iron Age to have ended with the first century invasions by the Romans . However much of Scotland remained outside of the Roman world and after

17550-401: The route of the wall was shifted to avoid the Vallum, possibly pointing to the Vallum being an older construction. R. G. Collingwood therefore asserted in 1930 that the Vallum was built before the wall in its final form. Collingwood also questioned whether the Vallum was an original border built before the wall. Based on this, the wall could be viewed as a replacement border built to strengthen

17700-412: The scale and design of the wall was novel for Roman military construction, "there was a long tradition of wall-building in the ancient (Mediterranean) world upon which he could have drawn for inspiration without the inconvenience of traversing whole continents in search of a prototype." In recent years, despite the overwhelming evidence over its 400 year manned presence, some scholars have disagreed with

17850-498: The seventh or beginning of the eighth century. It may have existed within a larger ritual landscape as indicated by the monumental Pictish cross-slabs at Nigg , Cadboll and the Clach a' Charridh at Shandwick. It was preceded by an "elite farmstead" which may have included a craft-working centre but was destroyed during the early Viking period. These later attacks by Norse raiders on Christian settlements were not without precedent. In

18000-414: The sites of Chesters, Carrawburgh , Housesteads , and Vindolanda . Clayton carried out excavation 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. He used the profits from his farms for restoration work. Workmen were employed to restore sections of the wall, generally up to

18150-531: The size of a town, although there is no certain evidence either of a dense settlement or pre-Roman occupation. Neither have excavations at a similar site at Eildon Hill in Selgovae territory suggested significant occupation prior to the "Roman interludes". There is no evidence from the Highlands of blunt force trauma to humans, although at Sculptor's Cave in Moray , there is 3rd century CE evidence of decapitation with

18300-420: The soldiers on Hadrian's Wall. One, these soldiers who manned the milecastles and turrets on the wall came from the forts near it; two, regiments from auxiliaries were specifically chosen for this role; or three, "a special force" was formed to man these stations. Breeze comes to the conclusion that through all the inscriptions gathered there were soldiers from three, or even four, auxiliary units at milecastles on

18450-516: The south, between the wall and the River Tees , Roman-style settlements appear in the early 2nd century, very shortly after the wall was built. This is earlier than Roman villas in Yorkshire further south. Mortaria stamped with the name ANAVS were produced at Faverdale , some 80 kilometres south of the wall, and most of those found have come from the fort of Coria . Anaus was probably an immigrant to

18600-462: The southern brochs may date to the Antonine advance, the hypothesis being that whether or not they had previously been symbols of Roman patronage they had now outlived their usefulness from a Roman point of view. Edin's Hall Broch in Berwickshire is the best-preserved southern broch and, although the ruins are superficially similar to some of the larger Orcadian broch villages, it is unlikely that

18750-415: The tower was ever more than a single-storey high. There is an absence of Roman artefacts at this site. Various theories for the existence of these structures have been proposed, including their construction by northern invaders following the withdrawal of Roman troops after the Agricolan advance, or by allies of Rome encouraged to emulate the impressive northern style in order to suppress native resistance. It

18900-447: The two basic functions for soldiers on or around Hadrian's Wall. Breeze says that soldiers who were stationed in the forts around the wall had the primary duty of defence; at the same time, the troops in the milecastles and turrets had the responsibility of frontier control. Evidence, as Breeze says, for soldiers stationed in forts is far more pronounced than the ones in the milecastles and turrets. Breeze discusses three theories about

19050-410: The underlying ground was boggy, wooden piles were used. At its base, the turf wall was 6 metres (20 feet) wide, built in courses of turf blocks measuring 46 cm (18 inches) long by 30 cm (12 inches) deep by 15 cm (6 inches) high, to a height around 3.66 metres (12.0 feet). The north face is thought to have had a slope of 75%, whereas the south face is thought to have started vertical above

19200-429: The use of non-ferrous metals began at the commencement of the Iron Age even in the places far from the availabality of raw materials. Circa CE 71 the Roman governor Cerialis launched an invasion. The Votadini, who occupied the south-east of Scotland, came under Roman sway at an early stage and Cerialis sent one division north through their territory to the shores of the Firth of Forth . A second legion took

19350-511: The use of pottery wheels or the production of coins has been found prior to the arrival of the Romans. Some finds of coins are eclectic and have included those minted in Greece or Roman Egypt . A hoard at Belladrum contained silver coins , which are a feature of similar finds on the south coast of the Moray Firth . Bog iron is widespread in upland Scotland and formed a key resource for early metal working. Evidence from Poolewe indicates that

19500-520: The wall as a departure from traditional Roman military architecture as typified by the Roman limes has been seen as noteworthy and has led to exceptional suggestions of influence by some scholars, for example D.J Breeze and B. Dobson suggest "Hadrian may have been influenced by travellers' accounts of the Great Wall of China , built some two hundred years before." This proposal has been challenged by other scholars like Duncan Campbell who argues that, though

19650-406: The wall's width was reduced from the originally planned 10 feet (3.0 m) to about 8 feet (2.4 m), or even less depending on the terrain. Some sections were originally constructed of turf and timber, eventually replaced by stone years or decades later. Bede , a monk and historian who died in 735, wrote that the wall stood 12 feet (3.7 metres) high, with evidence suggesting it could have been

19800-467: The wall. These units were " cohors I Batavorum , cohors I Vardullorum , an un-numbered Pannonian cohort, and a duplicarius from Upper Germany ". Breeze adds that there appears to have been some legionaries as well at these milecastles. Breeze states that evidence is "still open on whether" soldiers who manned the milecastles were from nearby forts or were specifically chosen for this task, and he adds that "the balance [of evidence] perhaps lies towards

19950-503: The whole width of the island. Soldiers were garrisoned along the line of the wall in large forts , smaller milecastles , and intervening turrets . In addition to the wall's defensive military role, its gates may have been customs posts. Hadrian's Wall Path generally runs close along the wall. Almost all the standing masonry of the wall was removed in early modern times and used for local roads and farmhouses. None of it stands to its original height, but modern work has exposed much of

20100-457: The work coming from three Roman legions – the Legio II Augusta , Legio VI Victrix , and Legio XX Valeria Victrix , totalling 15,000 soldiers, plus some members of the Roman fleet. The building of the wall was not out of the area of expertise for the soldiers; some would have trained to be surveyors, engineers, masons, and carpenters. R. G. Collingwood cites evidence for the existence of

20250-421: Was a stone and turf fortification built across the width of what is now northern England and was roughly 4 metres (13 ft) or more high along its length, and the wall was wide enough to allow for a walkway along the top. Quintus Lollius Urbicus was made governor of Roman Britain in 138, by the new emperor Antoninus Pius who soon reversed the containment policy of his predecessor Hadrian, and Urbicus

20400-496: Was an island. It was proclaimed that Agricola had finally subdued all the tribes of Britain. Marching camps may have been constructed along the southern shores of the Moray Firth , although their existence is questioned. Presumably as a consequence of the Roman advance, various hill forts such as Dun Mor in Perthshire, which had been abandoned by the natives long before, were re-occupied. Some new ones may even have been constructed in

20550-409: Was considerable, with strong links to Ireland and a network of monastic sites in the west of Scotland including Applecross , Tiree , Lismore , Eigg and Hinba . Columba's role has been interpreted as that of a "strategist, providing an important link between secular and ecclesiastical power bases." Less well-known is the Pictish monastery at Portmahomack on the east coast founded at the end of

20700-454: Was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. The turf-built Antonine Wall of 142 in what is now central Scotland , which briefly superseded Hadrian's Wall before being abandoned, was declared a World Heritage Site in 2008. Hadrian's Wall marked the boundary between Roman Britannia and unconquered Caledonia to the north. The wall lies entirely within England and has never formed

20850-439: Was even half of Scotland's land mass under Roman control. Although little more than a series of relatively brief interludes of military occupation, Imperial Rome was ruthless and brutal in pursuit of its ends. Extensive analyses of Black Loch in Fife suggest that arable land spread at the expense of forest from about 2000 BCE until the first-century Roman advance. Thereafter, there was re-growth of birch, oak and hazel for

21000-554: Was further east, possibly the Burnfield camp on the River Deveron . The name element esis (or isis ) may derive from eíschusis (*eis-sis) translated from Ptolemy’s ancient Greek text. The name Tuesis (or Toúesis) is possibly a conflation of the Gaulish deities Toutatis and Esus: Toutatis and Esus were famously associated with the deity Taranis in the poem Pharsalia by

21150-446: Was given an annexe and a network of ditched and banked boundaries. The sites at Pegswood Moor and St. George's Hospital, Morpeth , also show probable stock enclosures and droveways, far less substantial than the massive Iron Age sites in the area. The site at Huckhoe is the only one in this area to produce evidence of post-Hadrianic domestic residence (Roman coarse pottery, probably containers of high-prestige imported food, as late as

21300-576: Was in the lower plains to the east of the Grampian Mountains , from the Caledonii whose territory was in the Highland glens further west. Ptolemy's map is the only classical source to mention the Vacomagi by name; other classical sources generally used a generic term, for example Britons or Caledonians . Terminology — from 2nd century AD to 4th century AD: The name was probably a derisory insult to

21450-453: Was in the lower plains to the east – than for the Caledonii, whose territory in the Highland glens was more protected. ..."More than 30,000 armed men were now to be seen, and still there were pressing in all the youth of the country, with all whose old age was yet hale and vigorous, men renowned in war and bearing each decorations of his own. — Tacitus (AD c.56–c.120) Translated from

21600-530: Was occupied much later, from the late second century AD until the early third century AD. It is not known if there was a base at Carpow when data was collected for Ptolemy's map. The name element Tam is a common river name, there are many examples in England; a famous example is the River Thame , one of the major tributaries of the River Thames (Roman: Tamesis – Tam..esis). It has been conjectured that

21750-480: Was ordered to begin the reconquest of Lowland Scotland by moving north. His total force may have been about 16,500 men and commemorative coins were issued celebrating a victory in Britain. Construction of a new limes between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde commenced. Today, the sward -covered Antonine Wall is the remains of a defensive line made of turf and clay circa 7 metres (23 feet) high (including

21900-463: Was slightly north of Stanegate , an important Roman road built several decades earlier to link two forts that guarded important river crossings: Corstopitum ( Corbridge ) on the River Tyne and Luguvalium (Carlisle) on the River Eden . The modern A69 and B6318 roads follow the course of the wall from Newcastle upon Tyne to Carlisle , then along the northern coast of Cumbria (south shore of

22050-453: Was somewhere east of the Highlands and north of the Forth (in other words – Vacomagi territory – or thereabouts). Some historians believe that Bennachie , near Inverurie in Aberdeenshire , might have been a possible location. The Roman army consisted of: During the previous years the Roman advance had destroyed farms and crops; this had probably been worse for the Vacomagi, whose territory

22200-401: Was the clearest statement of the might, resourcefulness, and determination of an individual emperor and of his empire. The wall was also a symbolic statement of Rome's imperial power, marking the border between the so called civilized world and the unconquered barbarian wilderness. As British archaeologist Neil Faulkner explains, "the wall, like other great Roman frontier monuments was as much

22350-435: Was the first to build a wall, eighty miles long, to separate the Romans from the barbarians . The defensive characteristics of the wall support interpretation, including the pits known as cippi frequently found on the berm or flat area in front of the wall. These pits held branches or small tree trunks entangled with sharpened branches. These would make an attack on the wall even more difficult. It might be thought of as

22500-522: Was unrest and rebellion in Roman Britain and from the peoples of various conquered lands across the empire, including Egypt , Judea , Libya and Mauretania . These troubles may have influenced his plan to construct the wall, as well as his construction of frontier boundaries now known as limes in other areas of the empire, such as the Limes Germanicus in modern-day Germany. The novelty of

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