The Roman Fortification North of Hadrian’s Wall (Antonine Wall)

The northernmost wall ever built by Rome

(Wikipedia / CC BY-SA 3.0)

Hadrian’s Wall is one of the most famous pieces of Roman architecture in the world. People marvel at its length and its construction. The wall was built on the far northern frontier of Roman Britain. Many people erroneously believe that Hadrian’s Wall is the northernmost frontier outpost of the Roman Empire. That was not the case. Another wall, built shortly after the completion of Hadrian’s Wall, stood 100 miles north of Hadrian’s Wall. This lesser-known wall, known as The Antonine Wall or Antonine’s Wall, actually marked the northernmost point of the Roman frontier.

So why is The Antonine Wall largely forgotten when Hadrian’s Wall remains in people’s collective memories? One of the reasons is that the construction of Antonine’s Wall was completely different from Hadrian’s Wall. Hadrian’s Wall was made from stone, which is why it remains partially intact today, while the Antonine Wall was a turf wall. Since the other wall was made from turf, it degraded and vanished under the soil. But Antonine’s Wall was actually designed to supersede Hadrian’s Wall in strength and durability.

The Wall

(Wikipedia)

The Antonine Wall stretches for 39 miles between the Firth of Clyde and the Firth of Forth in Scotland. The ruins are largely invisible due to the natural materials used in construction, but the entire length has been identified by lidar scans.

The wall stood ten feet tall and sixteen feet wide. The north side of the wall (facing the untamed frontier) featured a deep ditch designed to slow any attackers before they reached the wall proper. The wall itself might have been even taller than ten feet as there was likely a wooden palisade with various towers and turrets built along its length.

The Antonine Wall is not as long as Hadrian’s Wall, but it was constructed 100 miles farther north. The Antonine Wall is 1,600 miles from Rome and across the English Channel, which constituted the absolute maximum of Roman supply lines during this era.