Beyond the Empire

A Guide to the Roman Remains in Scotland

Andrew Tibbs

• Editore: Robert Hale Non Fiction
• Anno: 2019
• ISBN:
  9780719829284
• Argomento: History
• Categoria: Scottish History

Though Scotland was never successfully conquered by the Roman Empire, the lands north of Hadrian's Wall nonetheless include many Roman sites that bear witness to Rome's attempts to impose her will over the whole of Britain. Beyond the Empire offers a complete listing of all 330 known Roman sites in Scotland, including location maps, details of notable archaeological finds, what is visible on the ground, and how to visit them.A complete guide to the hidden remains of the Roman Empire in Scotland.Will be of great interest to all historians, archaeologists and anyone curious about Scotland's role in, and beyond the Roman Empire.Gives a complete listing of all 330 known Roman sites in Scotland.Superbly illustrated with 150 colour photographs and 100 colour maps.Andrew Tibbs is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

BEYOND THE EMPIRE BRINGS TOGETHER ALL of Scotland’s known, and sometimes suspected, Roman sites in one volume. It has been written for the ordinary person who might be curious about Scotland’s role in and beyond the Roman Empire, and will hopefully provide a good grounding for finding out more. Research into Roman Scotland has been carried out for hundreds of years, and a book of this size cannot possibly do justice to all that research, or to the many sites. It does not pretend to offer a complete overview of Roman activity in the area. Instead, it aims to give a taster of what archaeologists know about each site – sometimes that can be quite a lot and occasionally it can be very little.

The idea for this book grew out of a series of lifelong learning courses – ‘Beyond the Empire: The Romans in Scotland’ and ‘Marching on Edinburgh: The Romans in the Lothians’ – which I was teaching at the University of Edinburgh for several years. Many of the students were unaware of the impact the Romans had on Scotland. They did not know that it was never absorbed into the Empire, that it remained a military zone, that the army went beyond the Forth–Clyde isthmus and got as far as the Moray coast, and that one of the biggest Roman fortifications in the UK was located at Inchtuthil, in Perthshire.

Archaeology has changed drastically since the earliest excavations began, in the 19th century. Digging is no longer the preserve of the educated elite, with the wealthy landowner taking a stroll down to the site every now and then to see what artefacts had been recovered. Today, excavation is a much more complex and expensive process because archaeologists can extract more data than ever before. Sites can tell archaeologists much about how the Romans lived, who they worshipped, what they ate and what happened when fortifications were abandoned. With modern technologies, archaeologists can create a profile of what lies beneath the soil before they have even put a trowel in the ground. While this volume is an attempt to give a snapshot of life on the edge of the Roman Empire and beyond, knowledge is constantly evolving. Undoubtedly, as more and more new techniques are developed and deployed in the field, archaeologists will learn more about the army, discover new fortifications and perhaps find out that few sites are even Roman.

At the very least, I hope this book will encourage readers to find out more about the Roman archaeology in their own back garden, and hopefully inspire them to visit places they have not seen or heard of before.

Chapter 1

A BRIEF TIMELINE OF ROMAN SCOTLAND

1020–700 BC: The Iron Age in Rome

c. 500 BC–AD 43: The Iron Age in Britain begins around 800 BC, but iron tools do not become commonplace in Scotland until some time around 500 BC. While the citizens of Rome are constructing architecturally advanced buildings such as the Temple of Jupiter, in Scotland the buildings are simpler, towerlike structures known as ‘brochs’. Dun Troddan was built around 500 BC, the same time as the temple in Rome was begun

55 BC: Julius Caesar attempts to invade Britain but has limited success

54 BC: Caesar invades with a larger force and establishes diplomatic ties with tribes in the southeast, in anticipation of bringing Britain into the Empire, before returning to Gaul

AD 43: Verica, a tribal leader in the south of England, is deposed and begs the Emperor Claudius to intervene. Claudius invades, accepting the surrender of eleven tribal leaders

43–60: The Roman Army begins to annex southern Britain

60: Tribal revolt led by Boudica sees the destruction of the fledgling Roman settlements at Verulamium (St Albans), Camulodunum (Colchester) and Londinium (London)

69: Vespasian, formerly the commander who began the conquest of Britain under Claudius, becomes Emperor

69–96: The Flavian period

c. 70–80: Construction begins on the fortifications

that make up the Gask Ridge frontier

71–73/74: Quintus Petillius Cerialis appointed governor of Britain

73/74–77/78: Sextus Julius Frontinus appointed governor of Britain

74–77: Wales falls to the Empire and northern England is annexed

77/78–83/84: Gnaeus Julius Agricola becomes governor

A replica of the Temple of Jupiter on the set of the television series Rome.

The broch at Dun Troddan, constructed between 500 BC and AD 100.

80: Agricola secures Scotland as far north as the River Tay

81–96: Titus Flavius Caesar Domitianus Augustus (Domitian) is made Emperor

83/84: The Battle of Mons Graupius, the final showdown between Agricola’s troops and the Caledoni, takes place somewhere in Scotland

86: Legio II Adiutrix is transferred from Britain to the Danube because the Dacians have invaded the Empire and killed the provincial governor

87/88: Inchtuthil fortress is abandoned

97: Tacitus begins to write his eulogy to his fatherin-law, Agricola

117–138: Publius Aelius Hadrianus (Hadrian) becomes Emperor

122: Hadrian visits Britain and orders the construction of the wall that would bear his name

138–161: Fulvius Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius (Antoninus Pius) becomes Emperor

139/140: Antoninus Pius orders the re-invasion of Scotland, establishing new fortifications and reoccupying many old sites

142: Construction of the Antonine Wall begins

145–211: Lucius Septimius Severus Augustus (Septimius Severus) becomes Emperor

158: Orders are given to refurbish fortifications along Hadrian’s Wall

163–165: The Antonine Wall is abandoned

181–184: Hadrian’s Wall is breached by northern tribes attacking

197–205: Northern tribes wage war on the Romans but are bribed into behaving because of a lack of soldiers to quell the rebellion

208–211: The Emperor Septimius Severus personally leads an invasion force into Scotland. He defeats the Caledoni and bribes them before they renege on this and continue guerrilla attacks on the Roman army

211: Septimius Severus, over-wintering in York, dies. His sons return to Rome to fight for the throne

Late 3rd/early 4th century: Kingdom of the Picts emerges, possibly a loose confederacy of tribes

305–306: Constantius leads a military campaign in Scotland, reaching the end of the land. Constantius dies at York and his son, Constantine, is declared Emperor

305, 360s, 390s: Some evidence indicates that there may have been attempted Roman invasions of Scotland at these times

310: An anonymous Roman text refers to both the Caledoni and the Picts

360: The army is dispatched to Scotland to deal with uprisings by the Scots and the Picts

364: The Scots and Picts continue to invade the northern part of the Empire

367: The Picts are described as being two groupings – Dicaledonae and the Verturiones. The ‘barbarian conspiracy’ involves the Picts and Scots raiding from the north and the Franks and Saxons attacking Gaul, although there is no evidence for these actions being coordinated

383: The end of Roman rule in the north and west, according to most archaeologists, although some coins have been found on Hadrian’s Wall that imply later occupation

410: The ‘official’ date marking the end of Roman rule in Britain, when the Emperor Honorius, dealing with a crumbling empire, tells the citizens of Britain to arrange their own defences against invaders

731: The Venerable Bede, an English monk based at Jarrow by Newcastle, writes Historia Ecclesiastica, which gives an early account of the Antonine Wall

16th century: Timothy Pont produces a map and account of the fortifications that make up the Antonine Wall

1707: Sir Robert Sibbald, the Astronomer Royal, publishes an account of numerous Roman remains in Scotland

1726: Alexander Gordon publishes his map of the Antonine Wall, including an account of Arthur’s O’on

1732: Having walked the entire length of the monument, the Rev. John Horsley publishes his work on the Antonine Wall, giving detailed descriptions of the various components

1755: William Roy undertakes his survey of Roman sites in Scotland and begins to record the Antonine Wall

Agricola: The Great General?

Almost of the information that archaeologists have about Agricola comes from one source, De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae, or On the Life and Character of Julius Agricola, a tract eulogizing the general and detailing his campaigning, particularly in Britain. It was written by Publius Cornelius Tacitus, who had married Agricola’s daughter in AD 77, and begins with a disclaimer, in which the author admits that he is setting out to ‘honour my father-in-law’. This has led many scholars to suggest that the work is biased, showing the great general in too favourable a light.

Agricola was governor of Britain under Vespasian for seven years, an unusually long period during which he may have been expected to complete the conquest of Scotland. According to Tacitus, Agricola went on to conquer the north of Britain, crushing the native Caledoni at the battle of Mons Graupius. Soon after, the Emperor Domitian, seemingly jealous of his achievements, recalled Agricola to Rome.

Unlike the works of Tacitus, the archaeological record tells us very little about Agricola. Although it was common practice for the army to record dedications to the Emperor and governor when constructing or refurbishing buildings, Agricola is mentioned in only a couple. One example is a lead water pipe excavated at the legionary fortress at Chester, which had the following inscription:

This lead pipe was made when Vespasian and Titus were Consuls for the ninth and seventh times respectively, and when Gnaeus Julius Agricola was governor of Britain.

An inscription from the fort at Hardknott Castle in the English Lake District reads ‘Assemble with Agricola’ and may date to his early campaigns. However, the stone was not found during excavations, so some archaeologists think it could equally refer to another governor called Agricola who was here in the AD 160s.

A third inscription referring to Agricola was found in five fragments in 1955, near the forum at Verulamium:

For the Emperor Titus Caesar Vespasian Augustus, son of the deified Vespasian, Pontifex Maximus, in the ninth year of tribunician power, acclaimed Imperator fifteen times, having been consul seven times, designated consul for an eighth time, censor, Father of the Fatherland, and to Caesar Domitian, son of the deified Vespasian, having been consul six times, designated consul for a seventh term, Prince of Youth, and member of all the priestly brotherhoods, when Gnaeus Julius Agricola was legate of the emperor with pro-praetorian power, the Verulamium basilica was adorned.

Having analysed the use of certain words, epigraphy ex...