Hadrian's Wall Stone
The northernmost frontier barrier of the Roman Empire, built of turf on a stone foundation.
The Antonine Wall was a turf fortification on stone foundations, built by the Romans across what is now the Central Belt of Scotland, between the Firth of Clyde and the Firth of Forth. Built some twenty years after Hadrian's Wall to the south, and intended to supersede it, while it was garrisoned it was the northernmost frontier barrier of the Roman Empire. It spanned approximately 63 kilometres (39 miles) and was about 3 metres (10 feet) high and 5 metres (16 feet) wide. The barrier was the second of two "great walls" created by the Romans in Great Britain in the second century AD. Its ruins are less evident than those of the better-known and longer Hadrian's Wall to the south, primarily because the turf and wood wall has largely weathered away, unlike its stone-built southern predecessor.
- Origin
- Northern Britannia
- Type
- Fortification Material / Symbolic Barrier
- Associated Era
- Reign of Emperor Antoninus Pius (2nd Century AD)
- Primary Function
- Military Defense and Border Control
- Cultural Significance
- Represents the limit of Roman authority
- Status
- Standing Ruin
Lore & Background
Construction began in AD 142 at the order of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius. Quintus Lollius Urbicus, governor of Roman Britain at the time, initially supervised the effort, which may have taken as long as twelve years. The wall stretches 63 kilometres (39 miles) from Old Kilpatrick in West Dunbartonshire on the Firth of Clyde to Carriden near Bo'ness on the Firth of Forth. The wall was intended to extend Roman territory and dominance by replacing Hadrian's Wall 160 kilometres (100 miles) to the south, as the frontier of Britannia. But while the Romans did establish forts and temporary camps further north of the Antonine Wall in order to protect their routes to northern Britain, they did not conquer the Caledonians, and the Antonine Wall suffered many attacks. The Romans called the land north of the wall Caledonia. The wall was protected by 16 forts with small fortlets between them; troop movement was facilitated by a road linking all the sites known as the Military Way. The soldiers who built the wall commemorated the construction and their struggles with the Caledonians with decorative slabs, twenty of which survive. Recent research by Glasgow University has shown that the distance stones, stone sculptures unique to the Antonine Wall which were embedded in the wall to mark the lengths built by each legion, were brightly painted unlike their present bare appearance. These stones are preserved in the university's museum and are said to be the best-preserved examples of statuary from any Roman frontier.
In Their Own Story
The wall was abandoned within two decades of completion when the Roman legions withdrew to Hadrian's Wall in 162. After a series of attacks in 197, the emperor Septimius Severus arrived in Scotland in 208, and campaigned against the Maeatae and the Caledonians to their north. While he carried out substantial work on Hadrian's Wall at the time, there is no evidence of any attention being paid to the remains of the Antonine Wall during the campaigns of 208–210. Writing in 730, Bede, following Gildas in his De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, mistakenly ascribes the construction of the Antonine Wall to the Britons in his Historia Ecclesiastica 1.12: "The islanders built the wall which they had been told to raise, not of stone, since they had no workmen capable of such a work, but of sods, which made it of no use. Nevertheless, they carried it for many miles between the two bays or inlets of the sea of which we have spoken..." In medieval histories, such as the chronicles of John of Fordun, the wall is called Gryme's dyke. This evolved over time into Graham's dyke – a name still found in Bo'ness at the wall's eastern end.
Reader's Guide
The Antonine Wall was a turf fortification on stone foundations, typically a bank about three metres (10 feet) high, made of layered turves and occasionally earth with a wide ditch on the north side, and a military way on the south. It is thought that there was a wooden palisade on top of the turf. The stone foundations and wing walls of the original forts on the Antonine Wall demonstrate that the original plan was to build a stone wall similar to Hadrian's Wall, but this was quickly amended. The Romans initially planned to build forts every 10 kilometres (6 miles), but this was soon revised to every 3.3 kilometres (2 miles), resulting in a total of nineteen forts along the wall. The best preserved but also one of the smallest forts is Rough Castle Fort. In addition to the forts, there are at least nine smaller fortlets, very likely on Roman mile spacings, which formed part of the original scheme, some of which were later replaced by forts. The most visible fortlet is Kinneil, at the eastern end of the Wall, near Bo'ness. Lidar scans have been carried out to establish the length of the wall and the Roman distance units used. In addition to the line of the Wall itself there are a number of coastal forts both in the East (e.g. Inveresk) and West (Outerwards and Lurg Moor), which should be considered as outposts and/or supply bases to the Wall itself. A number of forts further north were brought back into service in the Gask Ridge area, including Ardoch, Strageath, Bertha (Perth) and probably Dalginross and Cargill.
Did You Know?
- The Antonine Wall was built of turf on a stone foundation, not entirely of stone like Hadrian's Wall.
- It spanned approximately 63 kilometres (39 miles) and was about 3 metres (10 feet) high and 5 metres (16 feet) wide.
- Construction began in AD 142 at the order of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius, who never visited Britain.
- The wall was first abandoned around AD 158, with the final withdrawal of Roman legions occurring around AD 163–164.
- Twenty decorative slabs commemorating the construction and struggles with the Caledonians survive, and recent research shows they were originally brightly painted.
Frequently Asked Questions
What constitutes Hadrian's Wall Stone?
It consists of massive granite and sandstone blocks erected across northern Britannia during the second century AD under Emperor Hadrian. These stones function as both a military fortification and a physical manifestation of the boundary between order and chaos.
What role does this artifact play in Roman history?
While physically serving for defense and border control, they act as a rigid boundary separating the organized world from the lawless wilderness. They represent the Empire's desperate effort to impose structure on the wild lands through structural dominance.
Where are these stones originally located?
The materials were sourced from Northern Britannia, specifically utilizing local granite and rough-hewn sandstone available in that region. This location was chosen strategically to create a permanent barrier against northern tribes.
Why is Hadrian's Wall Stone considered significant?
It stands as a constant reminder of the high cost required to maintain peace through military strength and structural dominance. The wall signifies the ultimate limit of Roman reach and the fragility of their imposed order.
What happened to the stones after the Empire fell?
Today, these blocks exist primarily as standing ruins that still trace the barrier established millennia ago. They remain a testament to the endurance of Roman engineering despite the eventual fall of the Empire.