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The Antonine Wall has World Heritage status alongside Hadrian's Wall to the south. It was built in 140 AD on the orders of Hadrian’s successor, Emperor Antoninus Pius. It ran 37 miles (60km) from Old Kilpatrick in the west to near Bo’ness in the east and formed the north-west frontier of the Roman Empire, but was abandoned after 20 years and the frontier shifted back south to Hadrian’s Wall. Unlike the latter, the Antonine Wall was constructed mostly out of layers of turf. These ramparts reached a height of almost 10 feet (3 m). In front, to the north, ran an enormous ditch, up to 16 feet (5 m) deep. Behind the wall ran a road to enable the movement of troops and supplies. There were 17 manned forts along the wall, plus additional ‘fortlets’. The Antonine Wall website calls it “the biggest, most awe-inspiring building project the people of Scotland had ever seen” – which is true but for the fact that Scotland did not exist at the time. There are several stretches of the wall that can be seen today – one of the best is at Rough Castle (address below). See the World Heritage website for details of all locations. The largest collection of Antonine Wall artefacts is held by the Hunterian Museum in Glasgow.
Bonnybridge
Bearsden Roman Bath House is the excavated stone remains of a bathhouse and latrine annexed to the fort that stood nearby, part of the defences of the Antonine Wall, constructed c140 AD and abandoned 20 years later. The remains were discovered when Victorian houses were redeveloped in 1973 and are now displayed, with useful information boards, surrounded by late 20th century suburban residences. The boards allow easy interpretation of the remains. It is a fascinating site, but most people will not tarry longer than about 20 minutes. The fort is buried under modern housing and roads.
Bearsden
Glasgow
Bignor Roman Villa is thought to have reached its peak in the 4th century. It was famously rediscovered in 1811, when farmer George Tupper’s plough hit a piece of stone. Excavations revealed wonderful mosaics buried under the turf of the South Downs and the site soon became a tourist attraction. Buildings were erected (on Roman foundations) in the early 19th century to protect the remains. These are typical flint and thatch agricultural buildings of the time and are of historical value themselves. The Tupper family still farm some 2,000 acres at Bignor and still own and run the villa as a tourist attraction. The mosaics are stunning – the up-market floor coverings of their day. Sadly, we can only make educated guesses about the people that once enjoyed them as part of their home.
Bignor Roman Villa is set in lovely countryside and also hosts regular reenactments.
Chanctonbury Ring is an Iron Age hillfort, constructed c6-400BC, though actually in use since Neolithic times. It was probably not a fort, nor ever occupied, but more likely a religious site or, possibly, animal enclosure. 2 Romano-British temples have been found on the hill (they are not visible). In 1760, Charles Goring of nearby Wiston House planted a ring of beech trees around the hill; these, or their descendents, are still there. The hill was used by the army during WW2. There are several other prehistoric sites nearby. Chanctonbury also has a number of legends associated with it - most notably variations of the story that the Devil appears if running seven times anti-clockwise (or backwards) round the hill, alleged links with witchcraft (young ladies sleeping out on the hill are more likely to conceive), UFOs as well as suggestions that the hill is haunted and claims that spending the night on it is an unpleasant experience. Nonetheless, there are great views from the top.
Steyning
The excavation of Fishbourne Roman Palace by Barry Cunliffe in the 1960s caused a sensation. It is the largest Roman residence north of the Alps, with the largest collection of in situ mosaics in the UK and the earliest garden discovered so far anywhere in the country. The palace dates from the 1st century AD and underwent various alterations in its time until it burnt down in c270AD. The first occupant was possibly Togidubnus, a local British pro-Roman tribal chieftain.
Managed by the Sussex Archaeological Society.
Fishbourne
A concrete memorial near the beach between Deal and Walmer commemorates the landing of Julius Caesar and his invading army in 55BC, which allegedly took place nearby. However, the location of this great event, and Caesar’s more serious landing the following year, 54BC, is disputed. It is suggested that Caesar, who described his landing in graphic detail, actually came ashore a little further north, in Pegwell Bay. This, claims the experts, more accurately fits the coastal geography of 2,000 years ago. The remains of a Roman fort have also been uncovered near Pegwell Bay, now inland but close to where the coast would have been twenty centuries ago. Maybe the Romans landed at Deal first and Pegwell Bay later.
Anyway, we can still stand by the Deal-Walmer memorial and contemplate the Romans offshore, fearfully hesitant to get stuck into the screaming woad-covered Britons waiting for them on the shingle beach – until the eagle-bearer of the X Legion leaped from his ship and lead to way to battle – and victory.
At school, we used to recite, “Julius Caesar, the Roman geezer, conquered Britain with a lemon squeezer.” Just thought I’d mention it.
Walmer
Deal
Discovered during excavation work for the new Guildhall Art Gallery, the remains of London's Roman Amphitheatre date from the 2nd century AD. It had a capacity for an audience of 7,000 watching animal fights, executions and gladiatorial contests. The ruins of the eastern entrance, including sections of wooden drains, are displayed in an innovative way, underneath the art gallery - which is where you need to enter to see the amphitheatre.
Richborough, which the Romans called Rutupiae, is a fascinating, multi-layered, site. Now 2 miles inland, 2,000 years ago it was on the coast where Emperor Claudius’s invading army landed in 43AD. They built a defensive barrier on the site, which then became a supply base, developing into a significant port, town and major point of entry into Britain. A monumental marble-clad arch was built (welcome to Britain!), the foundations of which can still be seen at the start of Watling Street – the Roman road that went through London all the way to the West Midlands. Nearby is the site of the amphitheatre, which could accommodate an audience of up to 5,000 people. The town was large – extending far beyond the existing visible remains of a stone-walled fort, built in the 3rd century as part of the defences of the ‘Saxon Shore’, guarding Britain against the Germanic pirates whose ancestors eventually settled and became the English. Richborough continued to be important right to the very end of the Roman occupation, probably well into the 5th century. The crumbled ruins, excavated outlines (including that of an Anglo-Saxon church) take some understanding, but it is an absolutely intriguing place to visit – right at the heart of Britain’s story.
The Roman theatre at Verulamium is unique in Britain, because it's a theatre with a stage, rather than an amphitheatre. It was built in about 140AD, later redeveloped and by the 4th century it is estimated it could seat an audience of some 2,000. Close to the ruins are the foundations of shops and a temple. There is not a great deal to see, but it is opposite the Roman Museum - so park near the latter and combine the two.
Part of the Gorhambury Estate.
St Albans
Rough Castle is the best-preserved of 16 forts that the Romans constructed along the Antonine Wall, built in 140 AD to form the north-west frontier of the Roman Empire, but abandoned after 20 years. It is accessible at the end of a track past an industrial estate, or from the Falkirk Wheel. It's an agreeable spot, much-loved by dog-walkers. The remains of the wall and ditch are clear and it's possible to pick out the outline of the fort's ramparts, ditches and gateways as well as the route of the military road that ran south of the wall. To the north of the fort are the fairly rare remains of defensive lilia pits. There excellent information boards giving general information and markers where the various buildings once stood.
There are no facilities at this site and you will need to walk.
Bonnybridge
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