Stys, 1

HADRIAN'S WALL

Meghan Stys
History 353/Classics 314
Dr. Lobur

Stys, 2
Hadrian's Wall is argued to be the most distinctive physical remains of the northern expansion
and defense of the Roman Empire.1 Stretching from the Irish Sea to the North Sea, the wall intersects
the northern English countryside for 117 kilometers. An astounding 120 meters in width, the
fortification is considered one of the great ancient walls, comparing to the Great Wall of China, the
Limes, and Offa's Dyke. The official purpose of Hadrian's Wall remains unknown; however, it is
believed that it completed construction to secure the boundary line between the Roman Empire and the
unestablished frontier of northwestern Europe.2
The Roman emperor Hadrian ordered the construction of Hadrian's Wall in the AD 120s,
beginning in AD 122 and opening in AD 128. Succeeding the emperor Trajan, Hadrian wanted reform
for the empire. Rather than continue to secure any and all lands like his predecessor, Hadrian sought to
end wars of conquest. Instead, he often intermingled with the Roman army, frequently observing
troops within the provinces and building walls and fortresses to determine the perimeters of the empire.
This attempt to define the empire's limits helps to understand one of the purposes of Hadrian's Wall.3
It can be argued that the emperor ordered the construction of the fortification as part of an
experimental process. Though there were other walls that predated Hadrian's legacy, the monument
itself is renown for its time. One way in which the wall is considered unique, is that it is assembled of
different materials. Rather than a continuous line of stone, the western half of the wall is built of turf,
while the eastern portion is constructed of stone. This phenomenon continues to perplex archaeologists
and scholars today.4
The structure contains a wall ditch, obstacles, a curtain wall, a military way, a ditch, and
separate north, marginal, and south mounds. As a result, Hadrian's Wall is one of Britain's most
evocative archaeological monuments and has been a source of scholarly fascination since medieval
1
2
3
4

Wells, 2005, 19.

Wells, 2005, 19-23.
Curry, 2012, 106-127.
Breeze, 2013, 37-39.

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times.5 Though Roman culture played an essential role in the creation of the wall, the complexity of
the monument is equally as impressive. In addition to the notable architectural designs, it includes
forts, milecastles, and turrets,6 as well as a series of gates that allowed for access from Rome to the
frontier and vice versa. The addition of the gates shows that frequent passage between the empire in
the south and the barbaric land in the north occurred. Forts and nearby military supervision allowed the
empire to control merchant and trade activity, thus proving that one function of Hadrian's Wall was to
monitor and control movement across the frontier.7
Though it is apparent that the wall was indeed the emperor's 'brainchild', one cannot
definitively presume that Hadrian visited the Roman Britain site.8 To add to this controversy, there is
no proof as to how much time the emperor actually spent in Britain. With this lack of detailed
information, it is difficult to assume that Hadrian had an active participation in the wall's construction;
however, it is clear that the construction of the wall deviated from the emperor's original schemes.
Three notable changes altered the wall's appearance as AD 128 approached. For example, one
change that took place is evident in the width of the surface. At the end of the wall's completion, the
width of the eastern half's stone section reduced in size. In addition to this, the second change that
occurred dealt with the building of the Vallum. This great earthwork is presumed to have had the
function of the Roman equivalent of barbed wire, protecting the rear of the military zone.9 Rather
than the soldiers controlling the movement across the wall, the officers stationed at the Vallum held this
duty. The addition of the forts is yet another development that deviated from the original plan. Twelve
forts, a majority large enough to hold an entire auxiliary unit, appeared along the structure's border.
One reason in which the position of the forts is considered unique is that some of them varied their
5
6
7
8
9

Hingley, Witcher, Nesbitt, and Carver, 2012, 760-761.

Bell, 2013, 116.
Wells, 2005, 23.
Bradley, 2012, 139.
Breeze, 2013, 46.

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position. Placed astride and south of the wall,
The experimental nature of the solution was still attached to, the barrier. This implies that
the army realized that once forts were on the line of the Wall it was not necessary for them to
project to the north. The placing of forts actually on the Wall line blurred the distinction
between frontier control and frontier defence.10
Due to the numerous Roman military posts along the border, excavation of Hadrian's Wall has
revealed a plethora of information about the mobile Roman army. One example of the uncovering of
information is in response to the establishment of a drainage ditch at Vindolanda. In 1973, the workers
who were digging the ditch came across ancient Roman garbage. Though this may seem insignificant,
the [clay] layer held everything from 1900-year-old building timbers to cloth, wooden combs, leather
shoes, and dog droppings.11
In addition to the information gained from analyzing the Roman trash, through the excavations,
historians and archaeologists have revealed previous names to the Roman fortification. The uncovering
of the ancient remains has led to the discovery that the wall has been referred to as Picts' Wall,
Roman Wall, and vallum. This shows that up until the twentieth-century, the name of the
monument often changed. One way in which this has been proven is through the uncovering of the
'Ilam Pan,' also referred to as the 'Staffordshire Moorlands Pan.' During this excavation, the bowl
contained the inscription val(l)i.12 Through the inscription, the Ilam Pan confirms the evidence of
the Notitia Dignitatum and the Antonine Itinerary that the Wall was originally call 'vallum.'13
Excavators have also discovered numerous wooden tablets along the line. The wooden tablets
have gained a profound interest because they offer detailed accounts of daily life amongst the soldiers
stationed at the wall. Some of the information found on the tablets include: Work assignments, duty
rosters, supply requests, [and] personal letters.14 Another interesting detail that is recovered from
10
11
12
13
14

Breeze, 2013, 46.

Curry, 2012, 106-127.
Hingley, 2012. 16.
Hingley, 2012. 17.
Curry, 2012, 106-127.

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studying the wooden tablets is that one of them contains the earliest surviving example of women's
handwriting in Latin.15 This rare piece of information, found within a description of a invitation to a
birthday party, provides researchers with a long-lost piece of historical evidence.16
Through the analysis of the archaeological remains, historians can imagine the life of a soldier
stationed at the wall. Even though the tablets provide detailed accounts of daily activity, which appears
to be somewhat leisurely, W. H. Auden, who retained an adequate amount of information about the
Roman wall, pictured a different scenario in his 1937 poem entitled, Roman Wall Blues. In this
fictional account, Auden provides an elaborate image of the hardships a soldier might have faced
during their time spent at the fortification:
Over the heather the wet wind blows,
I've lice in my tunic and a cold in my nose.
The rain comes pattering out of the sky,
I'm a Wall soldier, I don't know why.
The mist creeps over the hard grey stone.
My girl's in Tungria; I sleep alone.
Aulus goes hanging around her place,
I don't like his manners, I don't like his face.
Piso's a Christian, he worships a fish;
There'd be no kissing if he had his wish.
She gave me a ring but I diced it away;
I want my girl and I want my pay.
When I'm a veteran with only one eye
I shall do nothing but look at the sky."17
Though monitoring the empire's barrier is no easy task, the soldiers stationed at the forts
enjoyed many perks. Some of these so called benefits included family time, decent food, and the

15 Curry, 2012, 106-127.

16 Curry, 2012, 106-127.
17 Bradley, 2012, 155.

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supply of adequate footwear.18 One question that remains, however, is that if the soldiers often
received sufficient downtime, what was the purpose of their being stationed at the wall?
Because of this realization, it is argued that the bases and forts did not exist along the frontier
border to provide military assistance if the empire experienced a surprise attack. Rather, natural
advantages often provided Rome with sufficient protection, with military fortifications being built for
additional support. However, in the case of Hadrian's Wall, few battles erupted, posing the question
again as to why the armed forces set up camp there. It is more perceivable that the wall finished
construction not as an impervious barrier sealing Fortress Rome off from the world but as one tool the
Romans used to extend influence deep into barbaricum through trade and occasional raids.19
Due to its continued importance, the reconstruction of Hadrian's Wall has occurred numerous
times throughout history. One example of this is the provenance of RIB 1389 and the repair of the wall
in AD 158. RIB 1389 was once found on the wall; however, the inscription is now lost. Scholars and
historians have knowledge about the marking based on a manuscript that is located in the British
Library. RIB 1389 reads: leg(io VI V(ictrix) P(ia) F(idelis) refecit Ter(tullo) et Sac(erdote)
co(n)s(ulibus), (The Sixth Legion Victrix Pia Fidelis rebuilt this in the consulship of Tertullus and
Sacerdos).20 From the inscription, one can assume that the stone received its place by the Sixth Legion
during the consulship of Tertullus and Sacerdos in AD 158.
Hadrian's Wall often forwent rebuilding efforts in the medieval ages. During the border
conflicts between England and Scotland, people robbed sections of the wall, most notably the stone that
comprised its foundation. These stones, often used for the construction of castles and houses,
weakened the fortification's structure. Additionally, a separate wall arose on top of the ancient Roman
footings during the medieval period. In this situation, the rampart of Hadrian's Wall was rebuilt, either
18 Curry, 2012, 106-127.
19 Curry, 2012, 106-127.
20 Hodgson, 2011, 59.

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to protect and define the lands of the Priory or by the landowners who purchased the estate after the
Dissolution.21
John Clark, Newcastle Town Clerk, led another act of reconstruction presumably between the
years of 1848 and 1873. Because Clark controlled the development projects of the city, he sought to
improve and rebuild certain areas along the wall's border. During this period, Newcastle upon Tyne
removed debris, repaired fallen sections, and distributed property along the remains, adding to the
wall's overall sense of aesthetic value. The area that Clayton restored is referred to today as the
Clayton Wall. Due his contributions, it can be argued that the appearance of today's landscape
probably owes more to the work of Clayton and his successors than to the Romans.22
It is clear through the continued rebuilding efforts that the legacy of the wall did not end with
the collapse of the Roman Empire in 1453; its significance simply grew with the demise of Roman rule.
One way in which the monument continues to have a notable impact is through heritage. For example,
in 1987, Hadrian's Wall gained the recognition of being a World Heritage Site, meaning that the
UNESCO believes the wall has international importance. Due to the site mostly remaining intact, in
addition to its position on the English landscape, visitors have experienced a personal time capsule of
Roman history. The World Heritage Site is posed with a problem, however, as much of the land that
falls along the wall is owned by private individuals. In other words, there is a great concern as to the
preservation of Roman history.23
As more people continue to settle near the monument locally or travel to visit as tourists,
conflicting interests often pose a problem. When Hadrian's Wall opened as a National Trail in 2003,
the rise in conflicts led the World Heritage Site to compose a series of management plans to ease the
tension related to the wall. In order to combat the strained relationship between tourism and preserving
21 Hingley, Witcher, Nesbitt, and Carver, 2012, 763.
22 Hingley, Witcher, Nesbitt, and Carver, 2012, 766.
23 Bell, 2013, 115-117.

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the culture of the monument, the management plan has produced a series of frameworks which they
deem to be crucial for good practice and for balancing interests.24 These six aspects include: state of
the environment, clarity of purpose, participatory management, importance of voluntary agreements,
local involvement, and monitor and review progress.25 By incorporating these six methods, the World
Heritage Site planed to pay equal attention to both ends of the spectrum.
Hadrian's Wall has remained an important monument throughout its history. Playing an
essential role in the ages of the Roman Empire, the medieval period, the conflicts between Scotland and
England, and well into today's society, just to name a few, the legacy of the wall has left a notable
historic element in the northern British estates. With hundreds of tourists traveling to the monument
each year to relive its history, it is clear to see that the importance of Hadrian's Wall continues to have a
worldwide impact.
It would appear as though the life and legacy of the Roman Emperor Hadrian would be well
documented given the plethora of intriguing information about his reign; however, in actuality, there is
much controversy concerning the accomplishments and characteristics of Hadrian. Though his reign is
undoubtedly notable, it is difficult to find accurate information about the significance of his rule from
the sources of antiquity. Nonetheless, one achievement of his that is collectively agreed upon is the
fact that, much like the first emperor of Rome, Hadrian set the borders of the empire at practicable
limits.26 Adding walls to the empire's perimeters ensured the security of Rome's boundaries. The wall
regulated encounters with northern barbarians, defined the empire's limits, and served as a site for
military defense. Ultimately, Hadrian's Wall is a symbol of a period of history no more than dimly
known, but it is a monument that can quicken the historical imagination, and its profound purpose has
existed well beyond the collapse of the empire.27
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26
27

Bell, 2013, 120.

Bell, 2013, 120.
Bradley, 2012, 138.
Bradley, 2012, 155.

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Bibliography:
Bell, Victoria Rewcastle. The politics of managing a World Heritage Site: the complex case of
Hadrian's Wall. Leisure Studies, 32, no. 2, 2013, 115-132.
Bradley, K. Recovering Hadrian Kilo, 94(1), 2012, 130-155.
Breeze, David J. The Roman Frontiers in Britain. Bloomsbury Academic, 2013, 1-109.
Curry, Andrew. ROMAN FRONTIERS. National Geographic, 222, no. 3, 2012, 106-127.
Hingley, R. Hadrian's Wall: A Life. Oxford University Press, 2012, 1-394.
Hingley, Richard, Robert Witcher, Claire Nesbitt, and Martin Carver. Life of an ancient monument:
Hadrian's Wall in history. Antiquity, 86, no. 333, 2012, 760-771.
Hodgson, Nick. The provenance of RIB 1389 and the rebuilding of Hadrian's Wall in AD 158. The
Antiquaries Journal: Being The Journal Of The Society Of Antiquaries Of London, 91, 2011, 59-71.
Wells, Peter S. THE LIMES AND HADRIAN'S WALL. Expedition, 47, no. 1, 2005, 18-24.