Roman Road Myths - You NEVER knew

[@forthbrdge6162]

An engineering professor I had often said that they built plenty of junk “back in the day”, but the junk all fell down and failed ages ago, all we see today is the stuff they got right. So time has erased evidence of the junk, leaving only the best built behind.

[@efdangotu]

Survivor bias.

[@GryphLane]

A bit like the planes that survived being shot at during the wars where they missed the engine and body. The ones that were didn't survive at all.

[@John-pn4rt]

@@GryphLane Initially the RAF rejected the proposals by operational researchers that they should armour the undamaged parts of aircraft that had returned with damage for exactly that reason. The military initially said, "we need to protect these parts - look at the damage!" Eventually, they did accept the argument about which parts should be protected.

[@davidelliott5843]

The Tuscan Island Giglio (Isola Del Giglio) has a wonderful Roman road all the way from Porto to Castillio. Not bad for what amounts to a beautiful but over-sized volcanic crag. It doesn’t have a hugely deep Aggar so has very few layers if any over the original flags and cobbles. There are also many single arch bridges in the Alps. Some are so slender you’ll marvel at how the heck they ever got built.

[@paulqueripel3493]

I've said the same thing about music. We only remember the good stuff from the past, there was plenty of dross in the charts as well.

[@theverseshed]

With so many dull-as-dishwater diva 'historians' on TV - Paul's are full of enthusiasm, energy and information.

[@pwhitewick]

...and hedge diving. Please... never forget hedge diving. 😊

[@andrewmcgarvie3981]

As a Council highways engineer, thank you for this, even if you arent defend us 😅 From an engineering perspective this all makes absolutely sense, I i always found it odd how much work they were seemingly putting into the roads. Thank you for educating me, as usual!

[@susannah1066]

They had slave labour as well.

[@tgbluewolf]

Why odd? Isn't infrastructure important?

[@KeyserSoze23]

@@tgbluewolf too much work for any government to approve. Anything beyond the bare minimum for usefulness is a redundancy.

[@christopher9727]

..... Do you know Jesus Christ can set you free from sins and save you from hell today Jesus Christ is the only hope in this world no other gods will lead you to heaven There is no security or hope with out Jesus Christ in this world come and repent of all sins today Today is the day of salvation come to the loving savior Today repent and do not go to hell Come to Jesus Christ today Jesus Christ is only way to heaven Repent and follow him today seek his heart Jesus Christ can fill the emptiness he can fill the void Heaven and hell is real cone to the loving savior today Today is the day of salvation tomorrow might be to late come to the loving savior today Romans 6.23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. John 3:16-21 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. Mark 1.15 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Hebrews 11:6 6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Jesus

[@olorin3815]

​@@KeyserSoze23 i mean to be fair most roads wouldn't be built like a what we think of a "proper" roman road, those were more like highways that were important for the military to move fast and it was military that built them. You aren't in permanent war on every front anyway and have a standing army that you pay either way might as well put them to use making roads that will be vital later on for campaigns, most other roads would probably just be dirt or whatever

[@davidmarsden9800]

One of the Vindolanda tablets was a note from a man with a cart saying "he wasn't going to Catterick this week because the roads were bloody awful."

[@philhawley1219]

Today his descendants still can't get to Catterick because the roads are still bloody awful and the Tesla is still charging. Comme Ies Francais dit "Plus la change...

[@brucenorman8904]

I like the Ea Nasir tablet

[@timdurham2080]

@@philhawley1219to be fair they’ve sorted the road to the east of Catterick and it’s the Tank Road to the west but yeah he’ll be still waiting for his car to charge.

[@douglasalexander4348]

@@philhawley1219 Making charcoal would have been a lot easier if the Romans had Tesla’s though. Just pop some wood in the back and wait for it to catch fire.

[@AndriyValdensius-wi8gw]

@davidmarsden Did the Romans have traffic cones ? I wonder what an ancient Roman contraflow looked like ? 😆😁😃

[@chrish5319]

A perfect short video, self contained, informative, great flow from beginning to end, thank you.

[@Hairnicks]

Fascinating when you do your Roman Road stuff, so informative. Love to have the myths squashed and the true story come out.

[@peterbradbury784]

The ditch is called the slang. Think about it.I gained my PhD. from Roman roads.

[@cnn8420]

Yeah until somebody else comes along and proves this video as a myth.

[@andywithers592]

I remember doing this in Geography at school. The teach, who was awesome told us that the shoulder was also used for grazing cattle as they were taken to market. He emphasised this by taking us out to part of the Fosse near Harbury (Warwickshire) and you could still see evidence of this either side of the modern road.

[@pwhitewick]

Now that's a teacher!!

[@user-fl1pc7zu7f]

We still use cattle and horses and sheep to graze the ditches to keep the grass down so we can see either side of the road but the ditches are for drainage.

[@teeanahera8949]

In Australia the grassy verge of each country road, about 10m wide on each side, is called “the long paddock” for grazing, when taking the stock to the rail head and transport to market.

[@user-fl1pc7zu7f]

@@teeanahera8949 is that how they transport still today?

[@ncc74656m]

This is a spectacular debunking, Paul. One of my favorites of your videos so far.

[@hedleythorne]

The bit where you climbed over the fence is where Eric Ravillious painted one of his most famous paintings.

[@bill8784]

Great artist. Have a book of his paintings so will have a look.

[@pwhitewick]

That's the one.

[@davidberlanny3308]

Chalk paths? Just been having a look online

[@highdownmartin]

Nature takes over fast. Roots push stones and material apart. Grasses trap dust and soil builds up, basically burying the road under inches or feet of leaf mould and soil. Frost heave moves things about. Unless you maintain any structure, nature will dismantle it relatively quickly.

[@gillmanningscox9662]

Ravilious - my most admired painter

[@user-ug2wk7db2g]

I remember excavating a stretch of Roman road and finding a pretty typical repair which consisted of a dead dog, broken pottery and the road mender's lunch. Chicken. This was covered by gravel and obviously settled into a pothole again rather quickly. My advice to anyone trying to find a Roman road especially in built up areas. Go speak to the gravediggers. They know when they hit one.

[@ColinH1973]

How had the chicken been cooked?

[@lars573]

@@ColinH1973 I think he means the bones were chucked into the hole to help fill it in.

[@tsubadaikhan6332]

@@ColinH1973 Pan fried with a lemon butter sauce.

[@wheressteve]

Sweet and sour.

[@ArcAudios77]

Paul, appreciated. I live in a Town in Western Scotland where the Antonine Wall passed through or beside 3 Iron Age Hillforts. Growing up - was always taken to a Loch (Lake) nearby in the decent weather. Following study - it's not a natural Loch (Lake) at all it's actually a Roman Quarry used to build both the Roadways & the Antonine Wall nearby. Romans were masters at this - Identification of a suited Stone in the Landscape - Processed long term removal of such stone using forced Labor in the large part. Am of the mindset it worked fairly well. Cannot account for 'revolution' & 'revolt' that happened. Great watch Paul, best wishes to yourself & the 'Good Lady'.

[@delboy9679]

Being an ex hgv trucker I have a keen interest in old Roman roads, good work, keep it up plz ❤

[@richieixtar5849]

Just in time to sit back with my supper and enjoy. Thanks Paul and Rebecca :)

[@ralach]

Still very impressed by the level of research you guys put into your videos; cheers (again) for making and sharing them with us :)

[@pwhitewick]

Thank you very much!

[@pluggedinpete]

"Rebecca! Rebecca! Pauls been diving into hedges again!" Brillian video again Paul.

[@MartinIbert]

The one thing that grates me the most is the thing about the "engineers". The Romans had brilliant engineers. The Roman roads that these memes portray did exist at the time, and they were masterpieces of engineering. All the points you are making are valid, but why people think the Romans didn't have engineers is simply beyond me, because they very clearly did.

[@rogink]

I'm not sure who you are talking about. Have you ever heard the expression 'what did the Romans ever do for us"? Who do you think built the roads, buildings, sanitation, water supply...?

[@tgbluewolf]

​@@roginkUnder direction of the Roman engineers. It was a "both/and" situation, not "either/or".

[@Michael-uc2pn]

I think a key real difference is that the advanced mathematics and modeling exist today to avoid "overbuilding" and spending extra money to make something far stronger and more durable than actually required. The amount of material and work that went into the roadbeds of the nicest Roman roads is just nuts when you realize the heaviest thing expected to travel on it was a loaded down cart pulled by animals traveling at walking speed. You could build that exact same road today, and it would be absolutely destroyed by heavy trucks driving on it within a few years, but it was complete overkill 2000 years ago. They were clearly overbuilding/engineering in many cases. I'm not sure if that was because they really intended those structures to last thousands of years, or if they just didn't have the modeling and data to know exactly what the minimum requirements were for a given structure, but I suspect it was a combination of the two. When people say "then the engineers got involved" I think they're referring to modern engineers with advanced modeling who can build you the cheapest road or bridge that will meet traffic needs for the next 50 years. If you put out a bid for a highway bridge that would last 1000 years today, you'd probably get some pretty insanely overbuilt designs with a pretty insane price tag to go with it.

[@xGOKOPx]

@@rogink Did you see the meme shown at the beginning of the video? The "AND THEN THE ENGINEERS ARRIVED" one.

[@theodoroseidler7072]

To me it is clear that road building has always been very expensive, technically challenging, and a hassle to maintain. It is a manifestation of organized state, long term planning, tax revenue collection, capacity of investment now in order to reap benefits later, and an investment in security.

[@playwithmeinsecondlife6129]

I enjoy seeing the wilds of your island.

[@Gealaiche]

I’m reminded of a program I was watching a while back where they were talking about the vindolanda tablets and which was basically one of the ancient denizens of the fort complaining about the state of the roads…….......”and write to me what is with that wagon. I would already have been to collect them except that I did not care to injure the animals while the roads are so bad.”

[@jerrywesterfield5636]

Eventually some lord would send a message down to the locals to "mend thy ways".

[@davidberlanny3308]

Hi Paul, that looked cold!! I wonder if the wide sections were laybys and places where horses were changed or rested, food was sold etc etc. Just imagine the work involved, the materials required and logistics to build a long road to the standards indicated. Some may well have been but not many I think. It is such a fascinating subject. Well done, Rebecca's Nest productions!!. Have a great week!!

[@hiscifi2986]

Well, you know these Property Developers. They most likely have it earmarked for Toll-Booths, Taverns, and Luxury Huts..😀😀

[@MrBulky992]

Perhaps the wide sections were lanes for overtaking or the hard shoulder for breakdowns? A column of marching men would be as annoying as a modern horse box or a farm vehicle if there were no overtaking lanes for mounted travellers or horse-drawn vehicles.

[@hedgehog3180]

@@MrBulky992 There would also have been plenty of farm vehicle in the form of oxdriven carriages.

[@KarlCraigWest]

I had no idea that Roman roads were so fascinating. Thanks Paul.

[@meenos3]

An excellent video Paul. There must be so many still hidden sections of Roman road at this moment in time. We have a section of Roman road here in the centre of my town in Thoroughsale Woods in Corby Northamptonshire. This is a section of the Leicester to Hunstanton Roman road. I also visited an area section nearby that was dug before a housing estate was built. It was a 50 metre section laid bare and a trench was dug across the agger. There were indeed layers of local material . There were ditches each side and the road was nearly about one side of a dual carriageway. So quite an important road. Your video was very interesting many thanks

[@ClearlyPixelated]

I’d love to see an episode discussing lidar maps, like you showed at 6:49. Those looked so interesting!

[@pwhitewick]

They are fascinating indeed, just need to try and work out how I can build that into a story

[@GavinEarnshaw]

Thanks Paul (& Rebecca). The myth eas what I remember from school history (early 80s). I also remember the odd Time Team with a very excited expert saying a new found Roman road as the ditches were parallel and 'this' wide so must be Roman.😮

[@mavisfilms7797]

Well done kind sir! Most interesting. It constantly amazes me that people live on a street called "Roman Road" and don't have a clue that it might have a reason for being called that.

[@herbertvonzinderneuf8547]

Quite why this one appeared on my YT list, I have no idea. But I am a rather glad it did. I found it an entertaining and informative vid on something I knew nothing about.

[@paulusthegrey]

Large rocks would suggest to me that the Roman road builders may have been dealing with building the road across soft or unstable ground.

[@tsubadaikhan6332]

As an ex roadbuilding labourer, the other possibility is it's over a swamp or across a waterway. Large rocks let the water flow underneath your surface.

[@hedgehog3180]

@@tsubadaikhan6332 Yep it's for drainage and more or less the same technique is used in roads and railway embankments today. Though as you said in modern roads it isn't to drain rainwater but rather groundwater, and also to allow for some expansion if the water freezes.

[@davidwilkinson333]

Great vid as always, Paul, that gets the old grey cells sparking up 😊 My hunch is that we have only found a fraction of the Roman engineering in the UK. My thinking is that the main Roman roads we know today, like the Fosse Way, Stane, Stone and Ermine Streets are the motorways of the network. The big, civilian-built, backbone of the system developed some time after the conquest. Then there would have been, like today, a network of more local 'main' roads, then lanes and tracks leading to and between villa eststes and native settlements. Less massively constructed and with shorter alignments, as seen increasingly into the SW from Dorchester for example, they have probably not survived the ravages of time and agriculture to the same degree as the 'motorways'. The same is likely true too, of much of the initial military network of the campaign period following the landing. Vespasian's troops of the 2nd Legion would have most likely pushed a supply road westward close to the coast and connecting to each resupply anchorage. Much of that military construction may well have been of a mimimalist nature focussed on expediting a rapidly advancing campaign, but subsequently of little utility once the territory had been pacified and thus allowed to deteriorate. If the hill 'forts' were essentially abandoned by the C1st BC where were the 30, or so, Opida, that the Second Legion 'conquered? The lack of evidence of extensive fighting at 'forts' like Maiden Castle, Dungeon Hill and Hambledon Hill suggest they were the sites of 'last stands', by the remnants of the tribal warriors. Perhaps it's the tantalizing and enigmatic nature of much of the Roman period in Britain that makes it so fascinating? 😊

[@josemorenoporras7506]

I think Roman roads where build to meet very serious standards of quality,close to what a German autoban is now. Those roman roads where close to pedestrians,only wheel cars and horses would ride cos it was a very fast road. Road where build indeed by experts&contractors,not military units,that is another big myth. Roman people had tons of money to expend with locals if possible,if not they could import the people to work and build the roads. To build an autoban you need a bunch of experts/engineers and tons of people who knows what are doing,same in the past. It is very easy to find testimony of the experts working on the roads by the amount of things they lost while building them hehehe. No other people had the money to build roads like the Roman Empire till very recent,so many many roads of that period where used and abuse,many where destroyed by pure ignorance and many others you still walk on them but you have no clue.

[@huwzebediahthomas9193]

Roman road going south from the river in Carmarthen, West Wales - called Roman Road. Goes up a 1 in 4 incline initially, then after a mile is lost in farmer's fields, then apparently becomes the old A48, before dual carriageway times. All fairly straight. Always fascinated me. I've anoraked it several times. Needs digging to discover it, there when crossing those farmer's fields, especially.

[@bendenisereedy7865]

It's pretty simple, the Romans just aimed for a feature in the landscape and went straight for it, up hill and down Dale, until they reached it then they aimed for something else.

[@martinmarsola6477]

Another fine and explicit video today. Ancient history but easy to understand through your explanation. Hello to Rebecca for and see you on the next, Paul. Always look forward to them, see you on the next. Cheers Rebecca and Paul! 🇬🇧👍🙂🇺🇸

[@TrippyandDa]

One of my favourite local walking and cycling areas. I just love looking at the ancient history on a map and then seeing it in reality on the ground ❤ Very interesting 👍🏻

[@williamduncan7401]

Hugely depends on WHERE and WHEN the roman road was built. Also the type of the road. Obviously more effort would be put on a road connecting major trade cities, compared to a road between small villages. Here there is an amazing roman road that goes through the mountain. Flat approx 30cm+ stones are put vertically into the ground (rather than tiled like pavement slabs), making them securely lodged and extremely stable with lots of surface area that prevents them from moving at all.

[@dadananda]

Interesting to visit Corbridge near Newcastle. The Roman road through the old town must be 20 feet thick. The reason, when they repaired the road, they just put a new layer straight on top of the old road. They did not remove the old layer first.

[@TRFerron]

I once was told that the ditches not only marked the public land but also were there to prevent carts to go on and off the road because they were all toll roads. The tolls were collected by locals who were assigned (or maybe bought the rights) the be maintainers of the parts of the roads .

[@user-fl1pc7zu7f]

That is interesting

[@bonemasterj]

I thought the raised road surrounded by ditches is also a defensive feature (like a moat) to slow down bandits as it is harder to attack something when you're going up hill.

[@pwhitewick]

I guess the ditch would be too small to act as any significant defence.

[@hedgehog3180]

These ditches are so small you can jump over them so they'd be useless as defense.

[@terrenceodgers5866]

Your detective work is very impressive, Paul.

[@user-vl7ys9nh1h]

Where I work we have lots of dirt roads and they are pretty simple. The area is cleared and leveled if needed and a coarse layer of gravel is laid down with a fine layer on top. Every year to smooth them out so as not to damage product it is sprayed with water and run over by a steam roller. Then more fine gravel is added. This is in an area where you aren't supposed to go over 15mph. This probably wouldn't work in an area that receives a lot of rainfall though, because that just turns these roads into a muddy mess. For us, tho', it's not a big deal because around here it's only like that during our "off season" when the roads can be a little bumpy, when it is dry, and you have to be careful not to get stuck when it's wet.

[@shirleylynch7529]

Another very interesting video. Most enjoyable. Thank you for all your research. We all appreciate it.

[@ianferguson3543]

If it’s a myth it’s one I grew up with. All the sub layers, ditches and so on. I have walked on the Appian Way. I’m happy to keep my childhood roads diagram.

[@pwhitewick]

I think I even mentioned the Appian way as one of the few exceptions!

[@jean-claudewallard9309]

​@@pwhitewickI have no idea of what romans roads looked like in Britain. But here is a document of an ancient road in Spain from which you can see that parts of it are constructed 'like in the books', some not. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mXmVp3Z-jqqtrKcsi=fwy-Sl8yrOtybrRG We have the same in the south of France.

[@iansteel5569]

Very interesting, I wish I had this sort of thing when I was at school on the 60s, I might have paid more attention.

[@harrybruijs2614]

They were also droveways for cattle. And then you needed broad sides along the paved road, so it would be usable even when wet. Some driveways in later ages could be more than 100m wide

[@lindamccaughey6669]

Really enjoyed that thanks Paul. Please take care

[@brooklyngraham1151]

Really interesting video. I remember visiting an aunt who lived in Painswick when I was young. We used to go walking in the woods frequently and I do remember her telling me once that the Romans once built a road through nearby and showed me something that looked more like a long mound than a road. I wonder if this might have been the Ermin Road that connected Cirencester with Cheltenham. I know there is a Roman villa somewhere near Painswick, and perhaps it was something related to that? Anyway just my experience with Roman roads at an early age.

[@tubularap]

Great content, great presentation. Always interesting. I hope you will continue with this as long as you enjoy it.

[@davie941]

hello again Paul , this was really interesting , we need a chat with a roman road builder lol, really well done and thank you again 😊

[@pwhitewick]

Many thanks

[@CocoaBeachLiving]

I'm waiting for memes about how Roman internet was MUCH better than ours..lol. I appreciate what actually was, not the Romantic 'ideal'. Thank you

[@kevwhufc8640]

In 96 our excavations in the centre of the old Roman city verulamium included removing a fair chunk of Roman road from the very centre of the old city. About 3m wide and just over a metre deep, Now that was VERY hard work, no machines just mattocks & pickaxes . Part of the old watling street, a solid impressive construction, over 300 years of repairs, new levels, leaving us with a perfect section for all those interested in roman roads , hard work to dig and not the most exciting section I've ever drawn in thd past 30 years if I'm honest. 95% pebbles and more pebbles small medium and large.

[@pwhitewick]

Love it. Do you have any link or pics that we could see?

[@kevwhufc8640]

@@pwhitewick sadly I can't find anything, I've tried everything From StAlbans museums archaeology, to the local arch society SAHAAS ,plus general Google search , which rarely behaves I ask for verulam excavation pics 96/7 and I get a bunch of images of wheeler from the 30s . VEX 96 ( site code) Verulam Extension . I'm more surprised because I'm sure it was the largest, widest deepest single area opened up since Sheppard Frere finished in 61 . We went beyond Roman to the iron age in some places, the first and only time most of us had a chance to go down too and beyond the "boudiccan ' layer. Although we found dating evidence from the right time period Nobody liked calling it that , even though we're 99.9% certain Archaeologists are always wary about putting names or events to things like that, we take levels we record, bag and tag everything . But leave the stories to the historians, ;) It does highlight one thing, being around insulae XV111 the centre, so the earliest part of the Roman city, it ( the burnt layer) wasn't much, in plan being very patchy in section 3 cm at its deepest and under 1cm in others . Sorry about wandering off topic re the road , but we were lucky to excavate one of the few areas untouched by wheeler or frere we discovered many things, it was honestly one of the top 5 digs in my 30+ years of archaeology, I just wished it could have been 10 or 15 years later when I would have appreciated it more and taken my own photos etc , rather than just a few personal dodgy drawings and a few notes . I could bore you for ever going on about the remains of the early wooden drains, no wood but stains and rows of nail heads all in situ, like a ghost, a perfect wonderful thing , carefully drawn and 'poof' gone soft like sand as we carefully troweled downwards , before we came to those we saw the improved lead replacements that one would usually expect, I'll have to stop, lol b4 I drive you mad. :) It's a rare thing to go from the end of the Roman era through almost 400 years of archaeology in the centre of a city and reach the last few centimetres of the iron age settlement its built on. To me the road at the time was the least interesting. As I've said i wish it had happened later in my career..

[@invokalink162]

Great vid as always Paul. Consistently one of the best channels on youtube. I always wondered where the Roman road was from/to Dolaucothi - the Roman gold mines in Wales. Fascinating place/history and arguably the reason they even went to Wales. No idea where the road is though. Well worth a visit if you ever float this direction!

[@pwhitewick]

This would definitely make for a decent video???

[@invokalink162]

@@pwhitewick Oh heck yes, plenty to film around there mate, but i'ts National Trust i think so you'd have to check about filming during the tour/on the actual grounds i guess. (you can see/film plenty around the site too tho). Decent amount of Roman presence in the area to investigate to make a vid. If you'd like to, happy to meet for a brew if you're near-by fyi ;)

[@glynluff2595]

Having been interested in this subject I read a variety of publications and visited some sites. One suggestion is that the roads were often mere tracks to start with and the first area of organisation was by laying out junctions. Often these junctions were horse stations for use of messengers and contained basic accommodation. At a later date these were joined up by gravelled tracks which were repaired over the time Rome was interested in them. When it comes to boulders at the base of tracks this is the best way to lose them when encountered especially if crossing soft ground. Lighter gravels and stones are added to give footing over the top. Some engineers have produce£ calculations to show the the roads contained 20,000 tons per mile of aggregate. I do not refute that but would say when compared to the width of the road measured and measured out in yards to sum becomes quite tenable when adding the fact that anything from 400 to 2000 years of maintenance can be added to some of them. What is amazing is the ability of the current medieval road system which away from A series roads was scraped and rolled by steam rollers in the early 20th century and capped with coats of tar and stones and granite chipping every few years to have modern traffic run upon them. I find your programme well researched and totally believable!

[@healeynewson6493]

thank you - very interesting and infirmative as always!

[@halporter9]

I had read that the standard was to rebuild, refurbish Roman roads about every 20-25 years. Usually legions did the work, the story goes.

[@RealCadde]

I really like the example where they show a "roman" road made of big ass rocks like a cobblestone road on steroids and then show a gravel or maybe once an asphalt road and say "engineers did this" Without asking themselves the question, when each road was new, which one would you prefer to travel 50+ mph on? The "roman" road would spit you off in a jiffy if you ever tried to take a regular car anywhere beyond 30 mph on it. And anything over 5 mph would be seriously uncomfortable. Yes, the potholed road would arguably be WORSE but it wasn't like that when initially built and it only got that way because of what you described, mass of vehicle and speed of vehicle.

[@johndoe-is2fw]

I work for a farrier. Owning a horse is expensive and the farrier can be a big position in its operating costs if the animal need horse shoes. So when/why does my horse need horse shoes? Horse is a stepp animal, its hoofs are build for softer terrain. So in todays urbanised environment even unfrequent riding on gravel roads will damange the hoof to a point the animal will activly avoid the gravel and drift to the grassy sideline. If thats the case your horse could need some shoes. So a 2m-7m shoulder makes perfect sense to me, they would had metal horse shoes and wooden ones are gone in no time if you grind them over gravel. On todays roads at hobby useage 6-7weeks and a metal shoes need repair.

[@pwhitewick]

Brilliant, cheers for the insights.

[@leonardjackman354]

Anything about Roman Britain is interesting thank you for this video

[@jameswalksinhistory3848]

Learnt something valuable with regards to Quarries along the route -Thank you a great video

[@JanHoos]

what a nice video! thank you, very interesting.

[@pwhitewick]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@barbarabauling7513]

Fascinating. Really informative. Many thanks for the upload :)

[@kirksummerwill5029]

Fantastic rundown of roman roads, thanks.

[@allanchurm]

the romans used lots of top quality clay..the potters in the centuries later used to dig it up from the side of the road to make pots and leave a hole behind which people/carts used to fall into...hence all round the world we have the name POT HOLES

[@jackshaw2701]

That's fascinating if true !

[@gurglejug627]

That makes no sense - if the clay were still soluble it would be no use for a road. If it wasn't soluble it would be no use for potters. Is this a pub story or is there any real evidence/proof for it other than anecdotal?

[@jackshaw2701]

@@gurglejug627 what you on about soluble ? Clay is never soluble hence the fact it holds water. Of course you can use clay as a part of a foundation. Just use big enough stones to stabilise. It may well be anecdotal in all fairness but are you suggesting the impossibility of people foraging materials from a structure at a later date ?

[@gurglejug627]

@@jackshaw2701You're trying to twist an argument into inferring I said something I haven't in any way at all - where have I suggested foraging materials is not a common occurrence? It has been all throughout history. Plastic isn't generally soluble yet it can hold water, for example as a bucket or through capillary action, just as salt can which IS soluble, in other ways - what YOU on about? Whether you're trying to play with words or just cannot answer well I'm really not sure - but whichever words one uses - such as 'easily broken up' or 'form a suspension' is of no consequence to what I am trying to ascertain - as you can easily fathom, I am sure.

[@jackshaw2701]

@@gurglejug627 your attitude infers a ruffling of feathers. Perhaps due to ones character or not least ones argument being based on shaky ground ? Plonker.

[@again5162]

Abandoned quarries are always close to old roads, it's bloody hard work to transport stone

[@stevezodiac575]

OMG. I love this so much! History lives today!

[@pwhitewick]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@themistocleszammit]

Interesting stuff about the shoulder. I would always prefer to ride my horse on a clay surface rather than metalled or gravel. Less risk of injury to her joints from repeated impact on a hard surface.

[@harveywetdog]

A pleasant watch thank you

[@estrafalario5612]

Isaac Romero Gallo has his series on Roman Roads and engineering translated into English and available in KZbin. In addition to historian, he is an actual road and bridges engineer who has worked building them for decades, so he knows the techniques...

[@dave_h_8742]

I always enjoy your video's. Brb.....😂 Glad you covered Blackstone edge medieval road, that picture dosent show the steepness of the road.

[@pwhitewick]

Yup, I think mainly Romans would consider 1 in 4 the max. Very few up to 1 in 6

[@smallsleepyrascalcat]

I really would like to know what our local "roman road" looks below ground now. ^^ Very informative video, I enjoyed it very much... as usual. 🤣

[@NSYresearch]

Thinking about the shoulders on the roads. The agger itself would be hard packed to support wheeled transport, this would make it quite uncomfortable for horses bith shod and unshod. Therefore a softer shoulder would be more useful for mounted travellers. Messengers who needed to move quickly would find the softer shoulder better for both horse and rider.... just a quick thought...

[@pwhitewick]

Makes sense. Although all Roman horses where unshod.

[@NSYresearch]

@@pwhitewick I wasn't sure about if they were or not so knowing this it makes more sense to have a more forgiving track for them to use.

[@olorin3815]

@@NSYresearch well its an okay idea i guess but idk how true that is i doubt shoulder would be maintained much and there might be some holes opening up hidden by grass which would be dangerous when horse is going full speed, it could be less taxing on the horse but also much more dangerous

[@QALibrary]

A great video - it must have taken hours and hours from start to finish

[@pwhitewick]

Always does. Much appreciated

[@foxdavion6865]

Roads only have excessive pot holes and cracks if both poorly irrigated combined with the local administration going cheap on the bitumen, applying a layer that is often as thin as .5 cm, with no padding at all directly under. Modern good roads which last have a layer of concrete/sand under the bitumen, followed by a layer of crushed stones or bluestone then a layer of sand then a layer of clay extending down roughly 3m to 4m and all of them are supposed to have this, but most area administrations in the Commonwealth just slap a thin layer of bitumen over compacted dirt and call it a day.

[@roderickmain9697]

Some of those pictures of how Roman Roads were built were in the course work of our secondary school in 1968. My education has been ruined (LOL). I wonder what is taught in schools today?

[@pwhitewick]

Still being taught today. Go find a modern road construction book.... still there!!

[@landmannmike]

Plenty of false information taught in schools... Thomas Edison didn't invent the light bulb. Crop rotation - pretty much abandoned around the first world war, still taught when I went to school. We only use 10% of our brain. Our tongues taste in 5 zones (remember the map?) Dinosaurs were cold bloodied Etc

[@malcolmrichardson3881]

Very interesting, well aimed and well timed examination of some of the speculative myth-making that so often drowns out critical scrutiny and research. Did the ditches either side of the agger also function as a rudimentary barrier/boundary - similar to the fence posts beside a railway track?

[@Pyjamarama11]

Here in Oz, we engineer our remote roads out of layers of gravel, wetted ( sometimes wirh diesel, sorry Greta) and rolled it binds together well and sheds water, you just need to keep on top of any blowholes appearing on the surface We copied the idea from the africans who do the same It really isnt a new idea, probably just forgotten over and over again through the ages

[@Woodentops1]

Thank you Paul. the video is very interesting.

[@MePeterNicholls]

I’d never fully considered ditches before!

[@pwhitewick]

Me neither. Turns out they might not be... Ditches.

[@christopher9727]

..... Do you know Jesus Christ can set you free from sins and save you from hell today Jesus Christ is the only hope in this world no other gods will lead you to heaven There is no security or hope with out Jesus Christ in this world come and repent of all sins today Today is the day of salvation come to the loving savior Today repent and do not go to hell Come to Jesus Christ today Jesus Christ is only way to heaven Repent and follow him today seek his heart Jesus Christ can fill the emptiness he can fill the void Heaven and hell is real cone to the loving savior today Today is the day of salvation tomorrow might be to late come to the loving savior today Romans 6.23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. John 3:16-21 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. Mark 1.15 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Hebrews 11:6 6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Jesus

[@petehiggins33]

Obviously the shoulders were to allow the emergency services to get through the traffic jams.

[@pwhitewick]

Fair!

[@irinadavid800]

Given how heavy and how much damage a horses hooves can do to a gravel surface maybe it nade sense to keep the centre for foot traffic. Also there's the other issue of horse manure which would have potential for very messy feet. The troughs each side so far away could maybe be a place for human waste which would possibly be washed away or at least covered in water during rainy times and being so far from the middle would keep smells lessened.

[@stevenmitchell6347]

Just as today, roads then were built to serve particular needs just as we have everything from two-track rural "roads" to multi-lane interstate highways.

[@angrybadgerairsoft363]

Having lived in radstock I can assure you the fosseway does indeed put us on the map, if it wasn’t for that, nobody would know we existed

[@georgewakefield6764]

Again a great video. There are some areas, like the 90 deviation of path, doesn't provide enough context to fully understand the reasoning and whether or not the road was returned to the original pathway.

[@pwhitewick]

Agreed. Check out our prior videos on this for the full context

[@LKBRICKS1993]

Excellent video really enjoyed watching it.

[@angelaknisely-marpole7679]

Excellent. When we excavated the roman road at Oakenholt with CPAT several years ago, we found wheel ruts!

[@pwhitewick]

Oooh epic. Do you have a paper available to read on that?

[@angelaknisely-marpole7679]

@@pwhitewick coflein.gov.uk/media/272/409/652273.pdf With me in purple on the front cover. See Fig 9 :) And my bum second from the left in Fig 19! Oct 2017 :)

[@MrGreatplum]

Very interesting, Paul. We have to remember that there would have been 350 years of presumably advancing road technology in Roman times in the uk and so what might have been built frequently in 70AD would not have been built in 350AD

[@Sim0nTrains]

Very interesting video, really enjoyed watching it.

[@pwhitewick]

Thanks Simon

[@QPRRhino]

Thanks Paul, Enjoyed that one.

[@frankgulla2335]

Paul, very informative. I will have to look into this more, from my side of the "pond".

[@pwhitewick]

Please do!

[@josephdeinnocentis747]

Absolutely correct. Today’s technology compared to Roman technology like day and night. You cannot compare. Roman technology was amazing for Roman days.

[@lancepenman5471]

a couple of years ago I was in Roman and took a walk down the Appian Way and at one point the road was being repaired with the the top paving stones being relayed. Hopefully this was being done under careful archaeologhist supervision, but it does show that even the best roman roads that survive today still need repair.

[@palmertrees]

the difference being, at least they repaired them (I know several decades)

[@pwhitewick]

Fair!!!

[@paulwhitehouse3690]

Wonderfully enlightening, thank you Paul. I was brought up in Wiltshire to certainly believe in the "immortality" of the Roman road! Paul, Johannesburg

[@NicholBrummer]

The shoulders seem like a good thing to have when a road is used for to walk larger herds of animals to town. This allows to make space for other travellers on the main part of the road.

[@ClimateScepticSceptic-ub2rg]

Uniquely informative video.

[@UKAbandonedMineExplores]

People say the Roman roads were well maintained, but there is a letter found at Vindallandia where a supplier was saying they would not bring any more supplies to the fort if the roads did not get repaired.

[@pathardage1880]

oh, well done, sir. entertaining; informative. thank you.

[@erinna8298]

Thanks Paul, nice one as always :D

[@pwhitewick]

Thanks again!

[@charlesbarnett2724]

Fascinating. Thank you. 👍

[@andrewgraves4026]

As far as I can tell, every video is good!

[@pwhitewick]

I think so too. Well... there are one or two. But the other 340 😊

[@fredmidtgaard5487]

"The layers were laid layer on layer starten with the bottom layer down here"... good to know! It would have been magic if they didnt!

[@christopher9727]

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Come to Jesus Christ today Jesus Christ is only way to heaven Repent and follow him today seek his heart Jesus Christ can fill the emptiness he can fill the void Heaven and hell is real cone to the loving savior today Today is the day of salvation tomorrow might be to late come to the loving savior today John 3:16-21 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. Mark 1.15 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Hebrews 11:6 6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Jesus

[@hedgehog3180]

The ditches were probably both for drainage but also to contain animals, if you're driving sheep or some other animal they will tend to avoid ditches and a ditch is much easier to build than a fence after all. I mean ditches were commonly used to demarcate land in England until relatively recently for this exact reason. Ditches also have the advantage of letting you see over them, which was probably something the Roman army valued. Though I figure the ditches were probably a somewhat temporary replacement for fences, the farmers adjecent to the new roads would probably eventually build proper fences but like they're a fairly decent standin.

[@SaintsofAvalon]

It's when your walking in town and come across 3 guys in hi-viz with a loptop standing looking at a cracked slab when you just have to stop and - stand looking down at the slab with the 3 guys looking at you wondering what you want , then saying " yep deffinatly broken " and walk off - yep i did exactly this 3 weeks ago in Doncaster . Last week the signs are up saying " work here for 6 months " as 2 guys kneel with a hammer trying to break the cracked slabs to lift them out ?. Personally i'd cut the cement between them with a Stihl saw and use a suction lift to lift them out without cracking the mortar joints between the surrounding ones that just creates more problems and cost - it's the difference between knowing how to do the job and having to endure the effect of those in charge who " think they know " and get paid for it .

[@RedSkysAreOnFire]

its 4x4 that damage the roads the most, you get owners online boasting how they created potholes by going out when its icy find a big patch of black ice and sit on it with all four wheels spinning as fast as possible to dig holes into the surface.