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The
Antonine Wall In 142AD Emperor Antoninous Pius (138 – 161 AD), successor of Emperor Hadrian, ordered the advance of the Roman Empire’s northernmost frontier from Hadrian’s Wall to a line between the Firth of Clyde and the firth of Forth, the narrowest place of the British mainland. There three legions, Legio IV, XX and II, constructed the Antonine Wall and attempted to hold it against the rebellious Celtic tribes of the north. The Romans invaded Britain in 55 BC and gained control of most of modern-day England, which they called “Britannia”, a rich and fertile addition to the Empire. However, to the north was “Caledonia”, or modern-day Scotland, which was populated by fierce Celtic tribes that raided the Roman settlers. So in 80AD a Roman army under the governor Agricola headed north to conquer Scotland and in 83AD they won a major victory over the Picti (painted ones) at the battle of Mons Graupius. For a while there was peace again in Britannia until in 120AD the Picts rose up again causing Emperor Hadrian to order the construction of a 73 mile long stone wall across the north of England. However the Roman estates that expanded north of Hadrian’s wall soon came under attack, and after another revolt in 140AD Emperor Antoninous Pius authorised the building of a new wall further north. The Antonine Wall had a foundation of stone covered by earth and turf, It was 14 feet (4.2m) across at its base, and about ten feet high (3m) with a steep face and possibly topped with a palisade or fence. In front of the wall was a V-shaped ditch 40 feet wide and 12 feet deep, and behind the wall was a road called the Military Way which linked the forts and signaling towers along its length. Originally the plan had been for 6 forts every 4-6 miles, but this was tripled to 19 forts every 2 miles - more than Hadrian's Wall. Half the length of Hadrian's Wall the garrisons in the forts could effectively be doubled. For additional security the native tribes between the two walls were deported to Germany to fight for the Empire. Yet the wall was occupied for less than twenty years. The Scots and the Picts continued to harasse the Romans and breached the wall on numerous occasions sometimes using boats to outflank it. In 164AD the Romans pulled back to Hadrian's Wall but when the new Emperor Septimius Severus arrived in 208AD some portions of the wall were reoccupied and repaired and the wall renamed the Severan Wall. Then after a few more years the turf-built wall was permanently abandoned and the main Roman defensive wall reverted south to the stone barrier of Hadrian’s Wall. The western terminal of the Antonine Wall was at Old Kilpatrick where little evidence of its existence remains but in places along its path in Bearsden and Falkirk parts of the wall are still visible.
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Evidence
of the Roman occupation remains in Scotland:
