Stretching 117 kilometres across northern England, from coast to coast, is a continuous line of large stones. The stones represent one of the greatest symbols of power in European history. Hadrian’s Wall, built on the orders of the Roman emperor Hadrian in 122 AD, marked the western frontier of Rome’s European-wide empire. The wall was built to separate ‘the barbarians’ in the north of Britain from the Romans. These ‘barbarians’ had spent decades attacking the Roman forces occupying Britain.
Enormous Barrier
One of the biggest barriers ever built, the wall stretched from Wallsend in the east to Bowness on the Solway Firth. It was originally 4.6 metres high and 2.4 metres wide. It had enormous ditches on both sides, as well as turrets, outposts, watch-stations and fourteen forts. Thousands of Roman soldiers and English labourers spent ten years on its construction.
Cosmopolitan Wall
The wall quickly became home to one of the largest and most cosmopolitan concentrations of Roman soldiers in the empire. The thousands of soldiers included men from modern-day Belgium, Spain, Rumania, Syria, France, Croatia, Iraq and North Africa. The lingua franca in this horizontal Tower of Babel was Latin.
A Magnet for Locals
The wall acted like a magnet on local English tribes. Settlements started to appear to the south of the forts. These bustling communities, of up to 2,500 people, included traders, merchants, innkeepers, bakers, butchers, tailors, shoemakers and all types of crafts. The taverns offered locally-produced beer to the soldiers, who spent their salaries on gambling and other forms of recreation.
Most Northerly Town
One of the most important settlements was Corby, the most northerly town in the empire. Corby was a supply base where Romans and civilians collected food and provisions. The town had statues, public fountains and granaries with elaborate columns. There were also bathhouses for the soldiers. In the local fort, the commandant’s house was modelled on a Mediterranean town house. Hunting was popular with the officers: craftsmen made pottery and mosaics with hunting scenes.
Close Relationship
Romans and civilians lived together in a symbiotic relationship for almost three hundred years. Many soldiers lived and died on the wall. Archaeologists have found family tombstones written in various languages. Many soldiers also married civilians and started families. Then, at the beginning of the 5th century, the relationship suddenly finished. As the Roman empire collapsed, the thousands of soldiers on Hadrian’s Wall left for the south of England and then for the continent. With them went the lifeforce of the towns, which were soon empty as people left to look for work and food. Only the stones remained. It was as if those three hundred years of human life had never happened at all.
BRITANNIA RULED
The Roman conquest of Britain began in 43 AD under Emperor Claudius. During more than three centuries, Roman culture and customs thrived throughout the isle until the fall of the roman Empire in the 5th century. Hadrian’s Wall is one the most impressive remains of Roman architecture still standing, but there are also other sites worth visting in Britain:
1. Roman Baths (Bath)
The Baths, in Jane Austen’s favourite city, are one of the best-preserved Roman sites in the world. The Romans built bathhouses on top of the area’s three natural hot springs. More than one million visitors a year explore the incredibly complex hot-water system and walk on the original Roman pavements.
2. Londinium (London)
The Romans built Londinium where London now stands. The population of 45,000 made it Britain’s largest city for over a thousand years. The Museum of London has 47,000 Roman objects, including coins, jewellery and one of the most important leatherwork collections in the world. You can also see part of the 1,800-year-old London Wall.
3. Fishbourne Palace (Chichester)
Built in the 1st century AD, thirty years after the Roman conquest of Britain, this is the largest Roman residence yet discovered north of the Alps. Italian craftsmen built a luxurious residence, with underfloor central heating and landscaped gardens. Visitors can see the largest collection of mosaics in situ in the UK.
4. Caerleon (Newport, Wales)
Wales was the most western point of the Roman Empire, and the fortress here was one of only three permanent fortresses in Britain. The museum is inside the remains of the fortress. The ruins include the most complete amphitheatre in Britain and the only remains of a Roman Legionary barracks anywhere in Europe.