What was hadrians wall made of

The reasons for this change in plan are not clear—perhaps the extra thickness was deemed excessive for the amount of work required. The milecastles and turrets were clearly built first because in many instances they were provided with a projecting stub of the wider gauge bonded to the narrower gauge of the Wall.

The turf section of the Wall was on a much broader base 6 metres , with milecastles and turrets built of stone— eventually the whole system was rebuilt in stone. Where practicable a ditch ran in front of the curtain wall-but often the ground was too hard or the slope sufficiently steep to render one unnecessary.

The stone walls themselves were well-built, with a rubble core between facings of dressed stone set in lime mortar.

Although nowhere do the walls survive to their full height, the evidence from preserved stretches of stairways; etc. There was undoubtedly a stone parapet wall, of the type depicted in contemporary illustrations, with crenellations at the top along with a walkway.

The turf sections of the wall were thicker because of the nature of the material which was simply cut pieces of turf, stacked neatly on top of the cobblestone foundations. This was the material normally used by soldiers to construct their marching camps and forts.

In fact, some of the features of the Hadrianic forts—the rounded corners and internal towers—are more appropriate to turf than to stone.

In order to complete the defences, three major bridges had to be built over intervening rivers. These were at Willowford, Chesters and Carlisle and traces of their abutments remain.

Roman engineers built bridges from one end of their empire to the other, and they built them to last. Many, such as the one at Cordoba below , which has Roman foundations at any rate, are still used today.

The bridge at Chesters carried the Wall over the river Tyne on a series of eight closely spaced piers. The piers supported vaults and were 3 metres across, the same gauge as the wall foundations, indicating that there was probably a parapet and walkway at the top.

At Willowford, where the Wall crossed the Irthing, a single large abutment right survives to a height of a few courses suggesting a similar but shorter bridge which had been remodelled on at least two subsequent occasions. Virtually nothing remains of the bridge over the Eden River at Carlisle, however.

At intervals of one Roman mile, a series of small fortlets were built to house the troops that were assigned the duty of patrolling that particular stretch of wall and, in most cases, to serve as a gateways for local traffic. The stone versions measured about 15 x 18 metres while the turf ones were somewhat larger. Each milecastle contained one or two stone or timber barracks-the number and size depending on the strength of the unit manning them, which could range anywhere from about 15 to 35 dozen men.

There was also an oven, usually in the northwest corner and a staircase to give access to the ramparts. It is assumed that there was a tower above the gate but, since none of them have survived higher than a few courses of masonry, it is impossible to prove.

All of the mile castles were rectangular in shape with rounded corners. Some of them have their long axis running away from the Wall while others run parallel to it, reflecting the preferences of different legions involved in the work. This probably also accounts for the slight differences in the construction of the gates-two sets of doors in each gate or one. All along the south face of the Wall, if there was no river or crag to provide extra defense, a deep ditch called the Vallum was dug.

In some areas the Vallum was dug from solid rock. Life and death on Hadrian's Wall. Much of what is now Scotland was occupied or controlled by the Romans for over years. He died in York and his sons made a peace with local tribes which lasted for a hundred years.

Skip to main content. Join us on. However, the presence of a solid barrier backed up with military force provided a strong psychological deterrent. It is significant that the emperors who followed Hadrian did not abandon the concept of running barriers.

Instead they repaired and rebuilt frontiers. In the early third century the emperor Severus fought a war in Scotland, but did not hold the territory. No one can say why these emperors did not annexe the lands that they fought over. What happened to the wall at the end of the Roman period is not entirely clear.

Its function as a frontier may have been lost, with people instead trying to make a living inside the forts, looking to their own protection for as long as they could.

Parts of the wall were repaired in timber or occasionally crude stonework, but the infrastructure of the empire had lost cohesion. By the late sixth century, much of the frontier had probably been abandoned. The fact that we do not know everything there is to know about the wall is part of its fascination. Furthermore, on top of its historical interest, the wall also runs through some of the most stunning scenery in northern England.

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