13 September – On this day

Some believe that the construction of the famous Hadrian’s wall began on this day. The wall built on the command of the emperor Hadrian stretched all the way across northern Britain between the River Tyne and the Solway Firth and took six years to complete. Much of the stone wall still stands and was designated a UNESCO world heritage site in 1987.

Hadrians_Wall_map

The wall is 117 kilometres long, it measured approximately 3 metres wide and 5-6 metres high, the Romans also built a fort about every 8 kilometres. Although there is still some uncertainty surrounding the reason for its construction, many believe it was to delimit the Empire and separate it from the ‘barbarians’ beyond.

Picture credits

Feature image: “Hadrian’s wall at Greenhead Lough” by Velella – Personal photograph taken by Velella.. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons

Map:  “Hadrians Wall map”. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons