Frontiers of the Roman Empire - Grenzen des Römischen Reiches

Housesteads Fort is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Housesteads, England. It is an ancient Roman fort that was built around 124 AD and is one of the best-preserved examples of a Roman fort in the world. The fort was known as Vercovicium in Latin, which translates to "place of the effective fighters."

The fort was built on Hadrian's Wall, which was a defensive wall built by the Roman emperor Hadrian to protect the northern border of the Roman Empire. The wall stretched 73 miles across England, from the North Sea to the Irish Sea. Housesteads Fort was strategically located near the center of the wall, making it an important military base for the Roman army.

The fort was home to a garrison of around 800 soldiers, including infantry and cavalry units. The soldiers stationed at Housesteads came from various places in the Roman Empire, including Syria, Spain, and Germany. They were responsible for guarding the wall and keeping the peace in the area.

The fort was designed with a unique layout that was typical of Roman forts. It was rectangular in shape, with rounded corners, and was divided into different sections, including living quarters, a granary, and a hospital. The fort also had a large courtyard, known as the praetorium, where the commanding officer would have lived.

Today, visitors can explore the remains of Housesteads Fort and get a glimpse into what life was like for the Roman soldiers stationed there. The site includes the foundations of the fort's walls, barracks, and other buildings. The most impressive feature is the gatehouse, which still stands at the entrance to the fort.

If you're interested in learning more about Housesteads Fort and its role in Roman history, there are many other important sites nearby that are also part of the Hadrian's Wall World Heritage Site. These include Vindolanda, an ancient Roman fort and settlement, and Chesters Roman Fort, which features the best-preserved Roman cavalry fort in Britain.

Weiterführende Links

• Hadrian's Wall
• Vindolanda
• Chesters Roman Fort

The ‘Roman Limes’ represents the border line of the Roman Empire at its greatest extent in the 2nd century AD. It stretched over 5,000 km from the Atlantic coast of northern Britain, through Europe to the Black Sea, and from there to the Red Sea and across North Africa to the Atlantic coast. The remains of the Limes today consist of vestiges of built walls, ditches, forts, fortresses, watchtowers and civilian settlements. Certain elements of the line have been excavated, some reconstructed and a few destroyed. The two sections of the Limes in Germany cover a length of 550 km from the north-west of the country to the Danube in the south-east. The 118-km-long Hadrian’s Wall (UK) was built on the orders of the Emperor Hadrian c. AD 122 at the northernmost limits of the Roman province of Britannia. It is a striking example of the organization of a military zone and illustrates the defensive techniques and geopolitical strategies of ancient Rome. The Antonine Wall, a 60-km long fortification in Scotland was started by Emperor Antonius Pius in 142 AD as a defense against the “barbarians” of the north. It constitutes the northwestern-most portion of the Roman Limes.