The Antonine Wall: the Northern Frontier of Roman Britain

Sep 10, 2010
Jennifer Young

Roman Fort on the Antonine Wall - Photo by Excalibur

The Antonine Wall runs across the centre of Scotland. A World Heritage Site, it represents a defensive fortification built by the Romans.

The Antonine Wall is the main relic of the Roman incursions into Scotland. Built as a defensive fortification, it was occupied only for a short period during the Roman occupation of England and Wales. Despite this, and the fact that it is overshadowed by Hadrian’s Wall some distance to the south, is regarded as having considerable historical significance and has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Romans in Scotland

The Antonine Wall does not mark the northern frontier of the Roman occupation in Britain – that distinction belongs to Hadrian’s Wall, in Northumberland. Indeed, the Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland notes that ‘Scotland cannot be considered to have been part of the Roman Empire’. Nevertheless, the idea that the Romans never made significant forays into Scotland is inaccurate.

Over the duration of their Empire, the Romans made several incursions into Scotland, though none lasted very long or succeeded in subduing large areas. The first to come was Agricola, who made several expeditions between 79AD and 83AD, reaching as far as Galloway and Ayrshire in the west and Moray in the north. The Antonine invasions, during which the Wall was built, took lace from 138-9.

The landscape and terrain of Scotland, however, proved better suited to the guerrilla warfare of the indigenous tribes rather than the manoeuvres of the Roman Army, so the Antonine Wall was quickly abandoned and later forays north by the Romans seem to have been in response to local rebellions (Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland).

The Building of the Antonine Wall

The Antonine Wall was built on the orders of the Emperor Anoninus Pius, from whom it took its name: its construction (from 139AD) followed the second major Roman surge north of the frontier at Hadrian’s Wall, which had been constructed twenty years or so previously. The Antonine Wall was built across the narrow central belt of Scotland, from near present-day Bo’ness on the Firth of Forth to Old Kilpatrick on the Clyde.

Unlike its southern neighbour, which was built of stone, the Antonine Wall was constructed mainly of turf, on a stone foundation and probably with a supporting timber parapet. On the southern side a series of forts were built along its 37-mile length; on the north, a defensive ditch approximately 12m wide was constructed and the earth excavated thrown onto the northern side as a further barrier.

To date, the remains of 17 forts have been identified (see the Antonine Wall website for a map), at roughly three-mile intervals. Other forts, such as the one at Cramond outside Edinburgh, were built at distances behind the main fortification to aid with supply. The wall was occupied for only a short time, having been abandoned by 155 AD, and reoccupied for only a short period subsequently.

Where to see the Antonine Wall Today

The wood and turf construction of the Antonine Wall, along with its short period of occupation, means that the remains visible today are neither as dramatic nor as extensive as those of Hadrian’s Wall. In many places, however, remnants of the wall, the defensive ditch and the ancillary buildings can be seen. All are in the care of Historic Scotland (though unstaffed) and are open to the public, free of charge.

The best place to gain an idea of the construction and layout of the defensive fortification is Rough Castle, near Falkirk, where the remains of ramparts, ditch, pits and a fort can be seen. There are earthworks marking the remains of forts at Bar Hill and Castlecary, and the foundations of a bath house are visible at Bearsden.

A further six sites, where stretches of the ramparts or ditch are visible, are managed and interpreted for visitors. These are:

Duntocher
Croy Hill
Dullatur
Seabegs Wood
Watling Lodge
Westerwoods-Castlecary.

Although the existing remains have yielded a number of Roman artefacts relating to the Romans’ limited occupation in Scotland, these aren’t displayed on the wall itself. Instead they can be found in the region’s museums, most notably at the Glasgow’s Hunterian Museum and the Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh but also in the local museums in Falkirk, Kirkintilloch and Bo’ness.