Hadrian’s Wall: The Mysterious 38th Parallel for Roman Legionaries and British Barbarians

[@Carvetii]

I am so fortunate to live right on top of Hadrians Wall in Cumbria. I live 800 yards from the fort called Petriana the largest fort on Hadrians wall and was a 1000 strong cavelry fort buried under the city of Carlisle which was a settlement before the Romans arrived and one of the oldest cities in the UK. Our local tribe at the time were called the Carvetti

[@SkunkApe407]

The urge to dress as a Roman soldier, and man the battlements would be too much to bear for me. That or I'd be acting out the castle scene from Holy Grail every morning, cows, catapult, and all.

[@gregengland5178]

That’s awesome. The closest thing we have to that age here in the US is an Native American burial mound. Not very thrilling to see a man made pile of dirt.

[@SkunkApe407]

@@gregengland5178 ever heard of Mesa Verde? It dates back to the 13th Century. There's also Wupatki, which dates back to the 5th Century. Then there's Kinishba, which is believed to be from between the 12th and 14th Centuries. There are several sites in North America that are much older than people realize. The whole "Americans think 100 years is old" trope only exists because Europeans have a tendency to think that nothing of importance existed before them. A quick jog down to South America reveals ruins older than Hadrian's Wall and the Holy Roman Empire itself. The settlement of Caral-Chupacigarro in Peru dates as far back as 2600 BC. There's plenty of ancient ruins in the Americas, just not ones built by white Europeans.

[@gregengland5178]

@@SkunkApe407 Yes, central and South America have all kinds of ancient sites. I’m not sure if those structures at Wupatki were standing in the 5th century or if the area was just settled then. You may have me on that. There are several sites in the southwestern US that have standing structures. I’m not sure how many, if any, date to that time period or the Roman Empire. I’m not an archeologist. Thanks for the lesson though.

[@vytensa]

I live close to Segedunum in Wallsend/North Shields & have walked several sections of the wall. My ambition is to 1 day walk the full length of the wall. It truly is an inspiring piece of architecture

[@rangerhalt]

I walked all 90 miles of hadrians wall, at certain points you're on the wall, at others its up to shoulder and head height, and at some its ridge of grass. If you ever get the opportunity to walk the whole thing I would highly recommend it. Its incredibly satisfying to start looking at one coast and then to reach the other coast knowing you have not only seen the whole wall but would walked right across the northern UK. Oh and go West to East, we went east to west and had the wind in our faces the whole time.

[@archstanton6102]

I went West to East in May 2019. My nephew walking with me got sunburnt on right hand side as that was facing the sun every day. Loved the walk.

[@ktiemz]

This is now the first thing on my bucket list

[@nmxsanchez]

Sounds like a really nice experience. Thanks for sharing, I think I'll also add this to my bucket list.

[@ianallan8005]

All the guide books recommend east to west. I did west to east (and ended up with a sunburnt right ear) a brilliant experience. Except for the weird landlady in Brampton, life size crucifix in the bedroom

[@roonilwazlib3089]

84miles...

[@SnabbKassa]

"That's not a hedge coming towards us. That's the Scots" - Centurion Blackaddicus

[@Simonsvids]

Scots would have been in Ireland then. They did not invade northern Britain until several centuries later.

[@Carvetii]

A ginger hedge at that

[@SlowLane-pv3nf]

@@Simonsvids yes, but if he'd used the term Caledonians you'd have been fine with that.

[@murder13love]

@@Simonsvids ever watched blackadder? 🤔

[@joelhall5124]

Beeeeeeus

[@Virtuous_Rogue]

Say what you will about the Great Wall of China being grander than Hadrian's Wall, but Hadrian's Wall was never breached by the Mongols.

[@hhiippiittyy]

Yet.

[@herosstratos]

@@hhiippiittyy Boris is breaching promises, treaties and laws, but neither will he breach Hadrian's Wall nor is he a Mongol.

[@henryhewitt1571]

Quadripedante putrem sonitu quatit ungula campum

[@alanyoung7655]

😂😂😂

[@henryhewitt1571]

@@alanyoung7655 Are you laughing because the 38th parallel is nowhere near the UK? Perhaps he meant the 58th parallel, though it was more like the 55th. The good news is it wasn't breached by Romans either.

[@johncannon3593]

As a soldier, I found it profoundly powerful to walk along Hadian's wall on a trip to Scotland and England. I imagined my Roman predecessors patrolling the wall nearly two thousand years ago and felt a deep kinship through the ages.

[@justinsmith4562]

You found kinship in the thought of someone patrolling a wall. Get a life man.

[@mackenziekirkpatrick5103]

One of my favorite storylines from Prince Valiant is when he travels north to Hadrian’s wall and meets ‘The Last Roman Soldier’ a descendant of a Roman soldier left behind when Rome retreated from Britain. Great graphic novel!

[@joegordon5117]

I grew up on a small town on the outskirts of Glasgow, right on the Antonine Wall where a fort stood on a hilly point, we had frequent school trips just a short walk from the school to watch archaeologists at work, really inspired a love of history in me at a young age to see it right there where I lived.

[@jougal5028]

I live about 15 miles from the wall and my wife grew up within walking distance of it. My wife's ex-fiance actually worked at one of forts excavating the tablets. We travel to the forts often when I bring friends and family over from the US, One of the things I find the most fascinating about them are the tablets. Reading them is almost like looking through a window into the ancient past. A lot of the tablets talk about everyday personal life written by the very people living those lives. As well as the famous birthday invitation there are writings from the commanders children learning how to write. One of my favorite letters is from a foot soldier complaining to his mother back in Italy about the cold wet weather in the north of England and asking for more socks. Being from Texas and a US Marine I can sympathize with him on multiple levels.

[@uttcftptid4481]

"We're going to build a big, beautiful wall...and the Picts are going to pay for it!" -Hadrian, 2nd century AD

[@samright4661]

Lmao 🤣🤣🤣

[@ticklingoscillators1852]

Walls… work.

[@anarchyantz1564]

And it was fully built, fully manned and lasted longer than one leaders stint in office :)

[@anarchyantz1564]

@@ticklingoscillators1852 We just need one along Canada, then back down along Mexico to keep the rest of the world safe from Americans.

[@jgranger3532]

Great minds think alike.

[@YarMahNarNar]

I've been to Hadrian's Wall, there's a real ethereal feeling walking through the ruins that were once inhabited by one of the largest armies and empires to exist.

[@nmxsanchez]

I think the closest experience I've had was visiting Gettysburg or maybe the Hohokam ruins. But this is on another level I can only imagine. Can't wait for travel to be back to normal! Thanks for sharing.

[@emuwasi]

Its incredible I only saw the area around wall and once brewed but I want to go back after kung flue is under control.

[@roguegargoyle914]

Which is in the middle of the country which had the largest Empire to ever exist.

[@kopynd1]

british empire largest land mass

[@headhunter1945]

Now just imagine, they also inhabited everything all the way up to that wall, at least in latin language speaking nations

[@Henchman1977]

The weather during Roman times in UK was nicer/warmer, favourable for crop production. It subsequently cooled leading to the Dark Ages.

[@shebbs1]

The cooling starting in 536AD (likely due to an earlier eruption of Krakatau in Indonesia, caused massive global change, or at least influenced them. From the fall of the Romans, the rise of *slam, the desertification and failure of the Yemeni empire at the time, the rise of Islam, massive changes to tree growth globally and more, not least the growth of a strong equestrian nomadic culture in what is now Mongolia. A lot of this is indirect follow-on from the initial cold period, but an interesting time to study.

[@johnlshilling1446]

Yep. If only we'd learned not to burn fossil fuel... because... that warm period really destroyed the world and most of mankind! LOL!

[@vincentas1]

@@johnlshilling1446 are you sarcastic?

[@johnlshilling1446]

@@vincentas1 Ya think? But technically, it's "Sarcanism". It's my contribution to all of the "Isms" flying about, these days. The philosophy is certainly in its infancy, but I have high hopes. Like any child, it has nothing but potential ahead of it. I'll be very pleased when this child can stand on its own, not just surviving, but prospering and living long...

[@vincentas1]

@@johnlshilling1446 based if you think that global warming causes global prosperity

[@julianhermanubis6800]

After the abandonment of the Antonine Wall, the Romans actually did conduct a huge military campaign against the Picts led by the Emperor Septimius Severus and his sons. They stayed for a while at Arbeia, in what's now South Shields, Newcastle upon Tyne (which I have visited, although little remains). Right before the pandemic hit, I visited the U.K. from America and hiked about half of the Wall, including stops at Vindolanda, Housesteads and Cilurnum at Chesters. I also visited Roman Corbridge (Corria), which was very interesting.

[@johnmaclagan2263]

A 3 year campaign where the roman losses were heavier than Pictish losses also Severus died in Ebaracum (York) which is nowhere near the Antonine Wall

[@julianhermanubis6800]

@@johnmaclagan2263 Septimius Severus was probably already ill when he started the campaign, plus, if one ancient historian my be believed, his son Caracalla made an assassination attempt on him. But, yes, Septimius did actually die at Eboracum although he had been involved in the Caledonian fighting earlier. However, regardless of Roman losses due to guerilla fighting, the campaign was arguably partially successful for them. Even if it didn't produce the large set of head-to-head battles the Romans would've preferred, the "scorched earth" aspects of the campaign did more or less keep the Picts away from incursions into the Wall area for two generations. The Picts did suffer greatly, and, frankly, the Roman army could sustain losses on a much higher level than the Picts could. It's hard to unequivocably call it a fiasco for the Romans, although it was probably not as easy as they thought it would be at the start. There's not any clear evidence from ancient historians of just what Septimius Severus was hoping to achieve with the campaign---occupation or annexation of Caledonia or pacification/devastation of the Picts. If the former, it would be a failure, if the latter a complete success.

[@johnmaclagan2263]

@@julianhermanubis6800 And yet he managed nothing, as you said "His own son tried to kill him" definitely a loss in my book. Did you visit the Antonine Wall while in the Disunited Kingdom or visit any of the forts here in Caledonia ?

[@julianhermanubis6800]

@@johnmaclagan2263 If Caracalla didn't try to murder you, then you weren't a close relative. He got rid of his brother and co-Emperor Geta eventually. Merely business as usual in 3rd century Rome. And I just can't call the Roman invasion of Caledonia a failure overall, especially if the goal was preventing raids or warfare on the Roman frontier. I'd love to see the Antonine Wall and some of the sites in Scotland, but I'd not made it to them yet. My plan for 2020 was to visit the Legio II Augusta sites in Caerleon, Wales then to head over to Bath and Portus Adurni in Portchester, but the pandemic threw a wrench in that. I'd been going to the U.K. about every second year lately, so I guess I am going to try to make good on my 2020 itinerary late this year hopefully. I'd put the Antonine Wall high on my list the trip after that, so probably it will be Scotland in 2022 or 2023.

[@johnmaclagan2263]

@@julianhermanubis6800 Fair play sounds like your a fan of the Romans, im not but that's fine. My good friend is a scottish historian - i just want to focus on Scotland. Seems you like to travel the world, hope you have happy trips wherever your going

[@DavyRo]

I live beside the wall & I've been working on a new viewing & teaching centre called the sill it's big visiting place & lots of young school kids go there & get taught about the Romans & the wall. It's a fantastic place to visit.

[@markbrown3915]

I visited in 2019, has a great cafe as well.

[@geoffhunter7704]

Archaeologists have discovered in the last 20yrs that both sides of the wall were well populated and farmed.

[@sherylfranklin4284]

Took my husband, an amateur historian, on a surprise visit to Vinlandia during a 6 week vacation to Europe in 2018. It was definitely the height of our British exploration! It was amazing to learn of the wealth of information about the day-to-day activities of common soldiers and wives. And we have all that info (according to the present-day folks at the museum) because the rain put out the fire that was supposed to destroy everything as the soldiers left. My career soldier husband likes to say it proves that soldiers haven't changed in millennia, you need a good sergeant around to make sure the privates do the job, and do it right. Thanks Simon, good and interesting video as always.

[@archstanton6102]

Walked full length twice. In 2011 for my 40th birthday over 6 days and then again in 2019 over 5.

[@CalmDownShh]

You're on track to instantly teleport from one end to the other when you walk it in 2052 at your current rate of a day quicker per 8 years!

[@radders261]

Nice one mate! I hope to do this myself in the future.

[@Ron4885]

Cool. And congrats.

[@Spartan101st]

If you don't mind me asking. How long did it take to walk the whole thing? Did you camp along the wall and stay in towns overnight?

[@archstanton6102]

@@Spartan101st hi, 1st time I camped 1 night and used youth hostel, pub room and bed and breakfast places. I used this guide as has all hotels, cafes and route descriptions www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1912716127/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fabc_0MNZFGFNWHQ21GWKT844

[@reborngamers2k10]

Fun fact. I live near wallsend where the Eastern side of the wall ends. All of the train station there is in English and Latin

[@davidrobinson4400]

I live in South Tyneside. I was well into my teens when I twigged that it's called Wallsend because it was where Hadrian's Wall ended. And it wasn't until I was into my 20s that I realised Northumberland is "Land north of the Humber".

[@jacobgarnham5971]

Not all of Gaul was conquered, one little village held out till the end. They tied up 4 fortified camps and caused Caesar to visit multiple times to confront them.

[@mareviq]

Ah yes, the famous fortified camps of Aquarium, Totorum, Laudanum and Compendium.

[@Dutch-nb1qh]

Astrix. 😆

[@obelic71]

Rumours say the bad sick making tunes of a certain bard can still be heard in the wind.

[@geoffhunter7704]

@@mareviq Ouch!

[@sithompson74]

No, you can't drink the potion

[@pauldavison3426]

So weird growing up literally on the path of Hadrians wall. Getting the bus to school in the summer and seeing countless tourists stood taking photos with an exposed bit of the wall....in the middle of a housing estate.

[@ロース-z7m]

The roman knew: "winter is coming" 🤣

[@dothrakidani358]

Dire wolves... raised by she wolf..makes sense...though they were pretty good with the whole fire and blood thing too...lol

[@mattquinn1147]

Have you ever been to Scotland trust me winter arrived a long time ago

[@dothrakidani358]

@@mattquinn1147 oh my sweet summer child... Lol

[@SeanBolto]

@@mattquinn1147 Hadrian’s wall isn’t in Scotland, however, the north of England is no better 😅 I can vouch for this as a northerner ☺️

[@mattquinn1147]

They built the wall to keep the Celtic tribes in Scotland I live in the east Midlands and Believe me it's not much better down here

[@alexlubbers1589]

I have a Megaprojects or sideprojects idea, the town of Greensburg, Kansas. In 2007 the small town was hit by an F5 tornado, completely destroying 95% of the entire town. They rebuilt the entire thing from scratch, and made it an environmentally friendly area powered by wind and solar.

[@privateelonmusk3704]

The fact the wall had ditches built in front of it and the Romans chose hilly and cliffy areas and had watch towers every couple of miles makes it obvious it was for defensive purposes.

[@earlyriser8998]

I have walked a large portion of the wall and it is impressive and 'awe inspring' to think what muscle and effort can build.

[@megaprojects9649]

Get Surfshark VPN at Surfshark.deals/mega and enter promo code MEGA for 83% off and 3 extra months for free!

[@mustafaemad3614]

I have been campaigning for a long time for the Bar Lev Line with no success. But instead of giving up, I will be campaigning for Benban Solar Park, Aswan High Dam and of course Bar Lev Line.

[@JoeWuhPuh]

Wrong one, it was Surfshark lol

[@BBulletin]

WRT Surfshark: actually, I do want to build a Roman wall around my computer!

[@megaprojects9649]

@@JoeWuhPuh Oops! Get Surfshark VPN at Surfshark.deals/mega and enter promo code MEGA for 83% off and 3 extra months for free!

[@66kbm]

Nice video. Just a reminder that "Legionare" is a Frenchman or a desease. A soldier of Imperial Rome was a "Legionary"

[@robpatty6062]

Just a reminder, disease is spelt with an I

[@LegoTux]

I E H O V A H

[@Kellethorn]

Literally anybody: *Steps into Scotland* Scotland: *"So you have chosen death."*

[@101Mant]

The Romans beat the tribes in Scotland, but they were too decentralised to really conquer and it wasn't worth the cost to try and subdue the region.

[@scottyrousay1608]

@@101Mant odd how they seemed to be going non stop ..then stopped for economic reasons lmao too funny

[@tonyjames5444]

@@scottyrousay1608 Roman Empire wasn't about taking territory for the hell of it they weighed up the economic benefits and if worthwhile went ahead.

[@madyin3509]

@@101Mant The Romans never defeated the Pictish tribes, the Picts done what we call today “guerrilla warfare”. The Picts barely fought them head on, instead attacking their camps in the middle of the night and retreating to the mountains afterwards. Which was by far the smartest way to take the Romans on.

[@johnmaclagan2263]

@@tonyjames5444 Bullshit the Romans thought they were entitled to control the masses, they would conquer anything just to say hey we came and conquered, they attempted 4 times that's right 4 different campaigns into Pictland to annihilate the population and they failed miserably 4 times

[@alexrossouw7702]

Moral of the story: Britain got colonised by Italy before it was cool...

[@SkunkApe407]

A case of the student surpassing the teacher?

[@garymcatear822]

England, Wales and Ireland got colonised, not Scotland.

[@SkunkApe407]

@@garymcatear822 maybe not by the Romans, but the Norse definitely got comfortable in Scotland. Win some, lose some, right?

[@garymcatear822]

@@SkunkApe407 The Norse only occupied the islands that nobody in Scotland were even interested in, anyway we soon dispatched all Vikings from Scotland later, lured their fleet of 200 ships up the Clyde estuary and slaughtered them.

[@SkunkApe407]

@@garymcatear822 the prevalence of clan names bearing evidence of Norse heritage suggests otherwise. The Norse put down roots and occupy the entirety of the UK to this day. The Northern Isles were the first to be conquered by the Norse, but they had mainland settlements in Caithness and Sutherland. They formed alliances with Gaelic clans, which led to a unique Norse-Gael culture that thrived in Galloway and Argyll. Recent genetic mapping has shown that, contrary to popular belief, the Norse never left.

[@KBSimRacing]

Oh yeah. Good timing. Midnight in Australia, I had a feeling Simon was going to post a new video.

[@imouse3246]

Your feeling is well founded. He drops a couple for me at 11:00AM Eastern. 🇨🇦

[@HecticTrainGuy]

Oh I know the feeling. 🇦🇺🇦🇺

[@someutubchannel69]

@@HecticTrainGuy You are always in the future for most of us!!

[@SkunkApe407]

I mean, not like you guys can sleep anyway. You know, being upside down and all... Well that and Drop Bears.

[@rexmann1984]

Well of course the land of criminals is up all night. 😁

[@AdamOpie]

I live just next to the wall, its certainly responsible for a lot of the names of places locally. Many pubs named milecastle and the vallum. Such a great part of history in the area!

[@animefallenangel]

We live in Wallsend, basically have Segedenum on our doorstep!

[@AdamOpie]

@@animefallenangel ah nice, in lemington myself

[@ztoob8898]

Quote of the Day: "We certainly know they didn't come for the weather or the food..."

[@gordonlawrence1448]

Actually Scotland was about 1C warmer back then. It does not sound like a lot but it makes a big difference to crops and rainfall etc. IE it was easier to grow barley in Scotland back then as more sunshine and less rain at the wrong time of year.

[@ukeyaoitrash2618]

@@gordonlawrence1448 if 1 degree warmer is the problem we should have that bag soon enough! 😏😌

[@CrusaderSports250]

It is postulated that the food was what the Romans came for, namely the wheat and barley that was grown, an army takes a lot of feeding and it was thought that Britain could help supply the legions in Europe. You have to question the validity of what anyone says who mentions brave heart in a historic context, a film less believable than the Icelandic moon landings!.

[@johnroberts8233]

@@CrusaderSports250 I've read somewhere that the invasion of the British Isles may have been little more than a pet project of the Roman emperor of the time as a way of shoring up his reputation by making himself look like he was a conqueror following in the footsteps of his predecessors.

[@CrusaderSports250]

@@johnroberts8233 another possibility, one thing is for certain they never went west for riches as that was east, north Africa and the middle east as we know it today was where the wealth was, anyone going west was getting second best if not worse, so an emperor looking to boost his credibility or keep some legions occupied could well have seem western Europe as a good, even if not a profitable move.

[@bullfrommull]

Loved the video. You missed the Gask Ridge. It was another long fortified defence that stretched from the Tay to the Clyde.

[@-GeordieDan-]

There’s still a few of us in the Night’s Watch legion who man Hadrian’s Wall. Ever vigilant of the Wildling Scots.

[@davidmcintyre8145]

At this point most of what is now Scotland was covered by fairly thick forest and the Romans had had a number of very bad military experiences advancing through forests such as in 9CE in Germania where three entire legions were destroyed(and indeed never reformed). It is likely that like the Rhine the wall was seen as a boundary between the civilised Roman Empire and the Barbarous regions beyond civilisation. The Antonine wall also occupies a better defensive position than Hadrian's wall as well as being shorter and so more efficiently garrisoned but it was probably untenable due to the savagery of the tribes many of whom were the Brythonic ancestors of the Modern Glaswegians and other lowland Scots(Welsh being spoken in Strathclyde as late as the 1200s)

[@ignitionfrn2223]

2:00 - Chapter 1 - Roman britain 4:50 - Chapter 2 - Scotland 5:50 - Mid roll ads 7:25 - Chapter 3 - Vanity or necessity ? 8:40 - Chapter 4 - Construction 11:25 - Chapter 5 - The vallum 12:15 - Chapter 6 - Forts 14:20 - Chapter 7 - A new wall 15:30 - Chapter 8 - The end of roman britain 16:20 - Chapter 9 - The other great wall

[@BigBadLoneWolf]

there is a good reason, the romans built the wall where it is, firstly it is one of the narrowest parts of britain, and the Wind Sill, which is a fault line that forms a good natural defence

[@ronaldscheucher4079]

Hadrian*s Wall is just one stretch of border fortifications built or strenghtened by emperor Hadrian in order to consolidate the Roman Empire. Other examples of these many thousand miles long fortifications are the limes along the rivers Rhein and Danube (securing the northern border and north-eastern border) or stone walls in the Sahara securing the roman province of Libia in the south of the empire. So we are talking about a small stretch in Britian here. The wall itself has to be seen as just one element of a bigger "idea". By no means did the Romans consider the Picts as a people who would thread the empire so much more than other peoples living in other unconquered parts of Europe. It´s all part of this big concept of soldier emporer Hadrian consolidating the empire after so many year of inner conflicts and guerilla attacks from ouside.

[@ljphoenix4341]

Only watching this video now due to this wall being mentioned in the XPLRD video 'Disunited Kingdom' and wanting to learn more about it. The amount of things/information you can learn just by watching Simon's many channels is amazing

[@marksadventures3889]

"what yous doin the now?" "Ach we're off to mess with the Romans on the wall give 'em some jip, there's 2 dinari if you can get a centurion's hat off 'im"

[@justinstephenson9360]

First mistake: Antonine Wall is not "little known". Second mistake: Stanegate was nowhere near the modern border. The modern border is at the Tweed (on the east) before rambling west, Stanegate was between the crossings at the River Tyne and Eden, on the Northumberland side, Hadrian's Wall is roughly 70 miles south of the modern border

[@jerrymcg3199]

Third mistake: the Picts weren't Scots.

[@VoceCorale]

Fourth mistake: it's "AntoniNus Pius", not "Antonius"

[@joebutlersnr7017]

And no mention of wallsend , OK it might not be a mistake.

[@ronhall9394]

It's just getting embarrassing that so many southern English don't know the borders and history of their own country. And one point not often mentioned - the Romans were not militarily defeated (although they did get their arses kicked a few times) the main reason they pulled back was internal troubles. There's an old Roman fort up near Inverness that showed evidence of being burnt down - easy assumption it was the Caledones that did it. However a bit later on archaeologists discovered a big barrel of nails buried well down below the burnt main building - update of the 'burnt by Caledones' into burnt by Romans during an orderly withdrawal.

[@EllieMaes-Grandad]

Boudicca was from East Anglia, no direct connection with Wales. She went on the rampage from Colchester to St Albans, via London. Details sometimes defeat our Simon . . .

[@martinmanky9015]

Boudicca got the combined armies off ALL OF ENGLAND beaten by less than 10,000 men. Shameful.

[@EllieMaes-Grandad]

@@martinmanky9015 England [as such] came several hundred years later. Her rag-tag bunch was defeated by a well-trained, very disciplined army.

[@katashworth41]

When I was a kid there was a new housing estate being built near me and a load of Roman ruins were discovered, the estate was given the imaginative name of Roman Way. For the not very exciting place it is now, there’s a hell of a lot of history in my home town.

[@tisFrancesfault]

As a note, it wasn't the scots they were dealing with at the construction of the wall. The wouldn't arrive and establish themselves in Britain proper for a few centuries. The Scots were an Irish tribe from around modern day Ulster. Picts and Britions were the occupants of the region.

[@garymcatear822]

The people of the land known today as Scotland, Scotland was just the name adopted by the natives regardless of where the name came from.

[@101Mant]

@@garymcatear822 thats a big like referring to native American tribes before the Europeans showed up as living in the USA. Sure its what the land is called today but rather meaningless when the nation didn't exist back then.

[@garymcatear822]

@@101Mant England did not exist then either, both England and Scotland were made up of multiple kingdoms in both countries, when the kingdoms in the land we know as Scotland united it was agreed the united land would be called Scotland, and the same in England....i am failing to see the exact point of this discussion, what exactly is it you are trying to tell me? Your initial comment just seemed pointless and irrelevant.

[@tisFrancesfault]

​@@garymcatear822 Whilst I get the point of, and am okay with reference to the Geographic regions in modern terms, if for nothing but continence, is quite acceptable. Its like when referring to what is now known as Turkey , But it would be incorrect referring to say the Lydians as Turks, But one could say they lived in Turkey.

[@CrusaderSports250]

@@tisFrancesfault I agree they would have been a mix of Pict and Briton, and as such should not be referred to as Scots, saying they lived in what today we know as Scotland is fine as it gives us an easy to find geographical reference as you have said.

[@teddyjackson1902]

I know that it serves the national interest to have this narrative that the indigenous people drove the empire back and forced the construction of Hadrian’s Wall, but anyone who has been to Scotland and has traveled through most of it will see exactly why the Roman’s decided to build the wall there and call it a day. There’s nothing worth the cost of expanding to the north of the wall, there’s no obvious resource to exploit, it’s largely a barren and mountainous subarctic waste. They took the valuable part of the island with the pleasant climate, agriculture, working mines, and proximity to their heartland, and left it at that.

[@captainjack8319]

Good fences make good neighbors, but sometimes you gotta have a wall.

[@lairdbufflehead]

Another great video. 👍🏻 I grew up in Bearsden about a half mile north of Antonine’s Wall and the Roman bathhouse. I believe that that wall was mostly earth but had a timber fence/wall on top. You might consider a separate video on Roman occupation of Scotland. There are a series of forts which run up towards Perth. Ardoch Fort in Braco being the biggest suggesting a long standing trade with the Pics and other tribes.

[@scottd9448]

I have walked on Hadrian's wall, the Great wall of China, touched the Western Wall of Jerusalem & sat on a lump of the London City wall. Wall to wall history.

[@kimbo99]

So are walls as racist as the Democrats insist ?

[@alexleonard3561]

Great video! I love the Roman content. It would be great to see videos on the Aurelian and Theodosian walls of Rome and Constantinople respectively.

[@constantinescuadrian2758]

Legend says Hadrian made Scotland pay for the wall.

[@RichO1701e]

I big, beautiful, Northern border wall

[@sshep86]

Pure lol

[@johnmulligan7609]

😂🤣😂😂

[@garymcatear822]

Oh really? How did he manage that then, you have to conquer and subdue a people before you can demand anything from them and ....well they failed to do that in Scotland....perhaps it was Roman propaganda at the time. Romans to the citizens of Rome:- Erm....We got our arses kicked by these blue people from the north of Britain, but we managed to get them to pay for a wall we built to keep them out. Sounds like you stole that bullshit from Trumps wall and making Mexicans pay for it.

[@constantinescuadrian2758]

@@garymcatear822 It's a joke, mate. Chill.

[@nikolaaswright6028]

Rideau Canal and river system for MEGA/SIDE PROJECTS! Francis "Peggy" Pegahmagabow for Biographics! Who doesnt love a great war sniper and this guy is the best of the best! Vote Canada!

[@Hassy171717]

Or the lock system of the Trent-Severn waterway!

[@nikolaaswright6028]

super useful system, just not a great story...

[@RichO1701e]

I've been to the area around Sycamore Gap. The very spot where Robin saved that poor peasant boy from the Norman soldiers on his way to Nottingham, after landing at Dover!

[@iAdzy]

Interesting hearing you mention Stanegate, I grew up on the Stanegate, now a sleepy little road dotted with small villages.

[@igorbispo7775]

just the legends got the irony when Simon talked about watch The Hobbit...

[@matthewlentz2894]

Thank you! Been hoping for a while that you'd do a video on Hadrian's Wall.

[@marconatrix]

There was no 'Scotland' back then, the Scots were still living in Ireland. Caledonia was then occupied by the Picts in the north and by various British tribes in the south ...

[@jockular123]

North bank of the River Forth was the start of pictland

[@duncancallum]

@@jockular123 So true , but i guess some folks from another island to the left of us will claim it was the Scots who fought the Romans .

[@jockular123]

@@duncancallum people aint too good with chronology. and a century 1000 or 2000 yrs ago seems like no time to some. It was though it only took the romans 8yrs to build Hadrians wall. The Romans did stuff

[@marconatrix]

@@jockular123 The Tay, I think?

[@travismichel8386]

My thesis was on why the invasion failed. This was so helpful and I want to continue my work because of it, thank you!

[@mustafaemad3614]

I have been campaigning for a long time for the Bar Lev Line with no success. But instead of giving up, I will be campaigning for Benban Solar Park, Aswan High Dam and of course Bar Lev Line.

[@RichardGMoss]

Would you care to explain why?

[@mustafaemad3614]

The answer is simple, I am Egyptian, and these megaprojects were made in Egypt. So, why not watch a video on one of my favorite channels, about my home.

[@SkunkApe407]

@@mustafaemad3614 I'm an American, but as a Land Surveyor and Engineer I find Egypt to be utterly fascinating. Especially the pyramids and the Aswan High Dam. Both for separate reasons, obviously. In the case of the Aswan High Dam, I am impressed by dams in general, especially on such a scale. The pyramids, on the other hand, are awe inspiring not only for their size, but because the methods and techniques developed to layout and build them make up the basic foundation of modern Land Surveying and Civil Engineering. One could spend several lifetimes in Egypt, and never run out of amazing architecture and engineering to experience.

[@redf7209]

It basically started off as a copy of the the Limes Germanicus. No economy supporting a tax system can exist alongside a non taxed and non regulated system with an open border. It had to be there. The romans had horses, they relied on grazing for food. An area behind the walll where they could graze, be secure from 'rustling and wolves and kept handy for use would have been imperitive. Coincidentally the area between the wall and the vallum seems to provide this.

[@agnostic47]

"Send socks"", found in a letter sent home by one of the lucky legionaries posted to the wall.

[@ephennell4ever]

Thanks; it was good, but ... may I suggest a possible significant improvement? ... A graphic showing the typical layout/construction of Hadrian's Wall, with scale markings, and depicting a standing figure in/on it would have been *very* helpful/informative. Maybe two or three such, showing what the 'broad'-vs-'narrow' sections were like and their similarities/differences? Perhaps you could release a 'version 2.0' of this? I'm sure I'm not the only one who'd watch it (possibly multiple times)!

[@afrog2666]

The video is a few hours long so I doubt that`s gonna happen any time soon lol, you`d be better off doing the research yourself.

[@grapeshot]

There was African Calvary station up on Hadrian's Wall. I remember reading that Septimus Silvia had a prank played on him by an Ethiopian auxiliary soldier.

[@alisonsmith4801]

The garrison town of South Shields was named " Arbeia " because of the many Iranian barge men.

[@southernsunshine1149]

One of my all time fav KZbinrs! Love your shows!

[@michaelb.3982]

How about a reaction to the ''Glenwood Canyon Highway'' ? It's considered a engineering masterpiece..Nobody thought they could put an interstate through that canyon..Some say it's the best part of the whole American interstate system..I agree !

[@GoodVideos4]

Braveheart showing the Scots being a formidable foe. Another example being Centurion (2010).

[@JimBrodie]

Braveheart is the worst film to cite for anything Scottish.

[@jdb47games]

....or anything at all.

[@WOLFwithTEETH83]

Nothing like Trainspotting

[@dontgivamonkeyz]

Unfortunately most people watch history rather than read it.

[@samright4661]

I like braveheart it makes filthy Scotts look good

[@JimBrodie]

@@samright4661 *Scots.

[@TheRiddle87]

My idea of why the Romans build Hadrians wall: Romans fought a few big wars over brittania. They shipped in huge numbers of troops. And when the wars where finaly over. They where left with a large plot of 'fairly safe' land, and thousands of soldiers with nothing to do. How do you keep an army bussy when there is no 'real enemy to fight'? Let them build a wall, that is at least somewhat usefull. It will keep out (or try to) the annoying scotisch tribes. And will keep the soldiers occupied, building and later defending it. Which is probably better then having them sit around, doing nothing.

[@brucefreadrich1188]

Building was second nature to the Roman army. A well commanded legion on the move would construct a full scale fort each night after the march before going to bed. I think the purpose of Hadrian's Wall being built was to reduce raiding. It was crossable by ladder in the dark or fog by a small band, but once on the south side… then what? What were raiders after? Cattle, sheep, booty? Great. Um… how you gonna get that stuff home again?

[@Joulupukkisukka]

@@brucefreadrich1188 I was scrolling down to see didn't anybody know the idea of a wall would be this - same in wall of china - even if you make a large hole to the wall, now army is getting gathered, others are alarmed and you're not able to return to same location to return home with loot... And oops (esp. in china) your wallbreaking machines are now far away. Thus barbarian tribes going raiding would be destroyed and that'd diminish amount of raiders and the interest of others to raid. And of course your army is busy so it won't have any ideas about making a kingdom of their own, especially since area around is settled by fellow roman ppl.

[@bloodandempire]

Wow awesome video Simon and crew

[@nicosmind3]

That wasnt blue paint covering their bodies, they were naked, and thats what colour Scotts turn when theyre cold!

[@kerrinmarr9204]

We're used to the cold here, its pretty much bad weather all year round 😆

[@SkunkApe407]

Red shanks, blue balls?

[@gordonlawrence1448]

Woad that be a joke?

[@deathbycheese850]

*Scots

[@Rab_-cg9hd]

@@kerrinmarr9204 it’s actually a cosy -3 atm but the suns out 😎

[@VeritechGirl]

When the wall was finished did everyone say “yo Hadrian! We did it!”

[@memofromessex]

Mauritania the modern day country is several hundreds to the south of Mauritania the Roman region, which is more or less where Morocco is today.

[@effyeadude]

Love your channel! More WW2 megaprojects and biographics plz!

[@somthingbrutal]

The Antonine wall isn't that little known, could be biased here as my old high school was built right next to it ;)

[@theshotz5848]

Not sure if this has been suggested or not, or if it's a "Mega Project" but the Illinois Michigan Canal, which connected The Great Lakes to the Mississippi River was a big importance to Illinois Statehood and Shape of the state. Also the some of the State Capital Buildings in the United States are in themselves Mega Projects, some are crazy ornate.

[@lordrayden3045]

Yep I’ve posted thst at more than a few time

[@timinwsac]

Little known fact....Emperor Hadrian sported orange hair.

[@ddark0077]

We would call that Ginger pubes.

[@deback4949]

Ooiiiiii ginger

[@888johnmac]

sitting in the outskirts of Edinburgh , watching this with pride ... and congrats to Simon & script-writer for one of the neatest segways into the sponsor slot ever

[@gordonlawrence1448]

Pity they didnt get the history right. There are actually 3 walls for a start and one was started in AD90 ish. www.antoninewall.org/about-wall/beyond-wall

[@id8151]

Sitting in Northumberland its eh cough cough a wee bit more to home.... but let's not mention that shal we 🤣

[@kathyh1251]

I seem to remember learning that Hadrian feared the might of the military and worried about being possibly overthrown. He sent the armies to build the wall to keep them busy and distracted.

[@Boost00130]

The Roman legions in England were always on the brink of rebellion and at threat of creating their own kingdom. Legions just wanted to fight and get rich so go bored easily sitting doing nothing.... so yes, keeping them busy building a useless wall worked for a bit.

[@highpath4776]

@@Boost00130 Did they have to paint the stones white and the coal black ?

[@johnroberts8233]

An interesting speculation.

[@thewetzelsixx9009]

Certified legend here, and I love hearing Simon have to talk about The Hobbit/LOTR.

[@tyroberts2261]

The three greatest Emperors; Hadrian, Antonius and Marcus Aurelius, all in a row

[@bensantos9219]

Trajan?

[@clearingbaffles]

Not in a row but in her own mind Nancy Pelosi

[@bchin4005]

Vespasian...

[@clearingbaffles]

@@bchin4005 yeah I’ve owned a VESPA. Italian & Asian Fusion sounds interesting

[@robertsmith5744]

Fiat 500

[@geoffreypiltz271]

So we don't know Hadrian's Wall was built. Perhaps it might have something to do with the fact that the granaries along the wall were much larger than required to feed the relatively small number of troops that garrisoned the wall, that the granaries at South Shields were the largest in the Roman Empire and that the Stanegate is the shortest route from the West coast of Britain to the East.

[@sizanogreen9900]

But what about the "limes" wall in germania? I am pretty sure that one was way longer... but nobody here talks about it... am I missing something?

[@chesh1rek1tten]

550 kilometers. So more than 6 times the length. But not made from stone, mostly wood and earth. But also with a vallum and forts and towers in signal distance. Yeah, this one wasn't well researched

[@keithprice475]

One small blip - the Roman province of Mauretania Tingitana was located in the Mahgreb - Morocco, just south of Gibraltar - and not in modern Mauretania as indicated on your map! :)

[@hiigara1]

Ah the North of England. I live literally on the end of the wall. A town in Newcastle called segedunum aka Wallsend

[@colinuk1984]

Unlucky !

[@stonedjesus9814]

Wallsend? My condolences

[@jarraandyftm]

Not the replies you were expecting 😁

[@leemichael2154]

Me too! But of a shithole of we are honest lol

[@colinuk1984]

Im from Darlington but ive lived in the Ends haha

[@jojobaggett6156]

I don’t know why but I love how Simon says “ empire” in the videos. Slightly elongated. Oddly satisfying lol

[@winnifredforbes1114]

And then, along came “Bigus Dickus”! 😹

[@henryhewitt1571]

Kinda like Miles Gloriosus who "Raped Thrace Thrice." Badass dudes. (Miles, Me-lace, in case you didn't know or forgot, means Soldier.)

[@benjiman46]

He has a wife, you know...

[@skidaddlej6786]

Simply brilliant and thank you for your good work, cheers.

[@markshepherd3632]

just using the term Scotland is wrong during this period, the scots were a tribe in modern Ireland. also the wall is wholly in England with it being 76 miles from the border on its eastern point. theres a fort in South Shields called Arbeia it was a supply base for the wall on the coast. theres also excavations in Wallsend beside the old shipyard with a mock up of a building and part of the Wall. Also at Hadrian Road metro/train station the signs are in Latin just make people aware of Tynesides Roman past. if you go to the great north museum there a great modal of the wall from coast to coast, theres also many Roman artifacts including a temple there

[@artistaprimus7080]

Ive always been fascinated by all things Roman. Master builders and masters of war. They created an advanced society while enslaving untold numbers of people at the same time.

[@craigmoyle2924]

When it came to the welsh the south welsh they got battered they could never conquer south Wales julius caesar account says how the soldiers of glamorgan and gwent were the most fearless fighting men in all of europe

[@MasonBryant]

04:49 Wrong, modern Scots were not in Scotland at the time. It was the Picts. Scots invaded when Roman occupation was ending.

[@stevenporter4845]

Went to see it after the video. It’s great. Well worth a visit.

[@simorote]

France Romans: "mine" Spain Romans: "mine: Germany "mine" North africa "Get" Greece "mine" middle east "mine" England "mine" ... Scotland "nope, fuck this".

[@mikhailiagacesa3406]

Germany? "nein"

[@thermotheo]

great vid really liked it, wish it was waaay longer

[@agrosyntrop]

"We're going to build a wall, and the picts are going to pay for it" Hadrianus.

[@RedactedATS]

I am half Scottish, so I've been to Scotland A LOT. And of course I've been to the wall. It's really cool being up close and personal with history ✌❤🇬🇧 and, I have to do it.... 'What have the Romans ever done for us?' 😉

[@dontgivamonkeyz]

That wall has nothing to do with the Scottish or the English... Well apart from it being in modern day England.

[@bairnonessie]

I really wish we knew more of the Picts, they are such a fascinating, yet unknown, race.

[@rogersledz6793]

Thank you so much for uploading this video. It is helping me get through the pandemic!

[@bjw4859]

I have touched it, it is real, & I'm from Australia, & that's a fucking long way to see history.

[@RichO1701e]

Well, to be fair, that's only bcos Australia only has about 200yrs of history...

[@emuwasi]

I've been there too. It's amazing. My biggest regret about it is not having walked it when I had the chance.

[@sshep86]

@@RichO1701e to be fair. They had humans living in Australia long before they did in Britain. So I guess, human history in Australia is much longer than here in the UK. They certainly had an established population of people there long before any successful long term settlement of the British Isles anyway.

[@orbytl2799]

@@sshep86 you mean pre historic ? doesnt that mean pre history?

[@sshep86]

@@orbytl2799 Pre historic generally just means before records began. It doesn't mean that history doesn't exist in that period.

[@edwelty]

That was fascinating! Thank you Simon

[@Hassy171717]

Why do I get the sense that Hadrian's Wall could be the source material for the North Wall in GoT?

[@colinuk1984]

It was.

[@Leisurelee53]

As a scot descendant, i just love the transition: "But there was one people that were even worse to deal with" Cut to scenery shot and title SCOTLAND yes yes i know they were the picts and 1700 years does a lot to an area. But. Stubbornness seems to be a local trait.

[@robinbinder8658]

"...longest roman wall" * limes germanicus has entered the chat *

[@Torbadill]

Yeah to completly ignor the Limes ....

[@RedXlV]

The Limes Germanicus wasn't a wall, it was a series of forts and watchtowers. Only part of it was walled, because most of the border was defined by rivers which are a superior barrier anyway.

[@Torbadill]

Yes ist was a Wall, the direct translation of Limes is Borden Wall.....

[@micbaeloppenheimer7752]

you did an amazing job with the video,you do know your history,thank you for the video !!

[@IntrepidFraidyCat]

What happened to Highlight History? It's been a while....I miss it. :(,,,,

[@itarry4]

Yhea they pushed it for a bit then it goes again then you get a few then nothing again. It's a strange channel.