Romans in Scotland 5-minute Summary
The Roman military invaded and killed people throughout Scotland from around 75 AD to 400 AD. No towns were built and the primary purpose was to stop or punish Scottish tribes from invading England. The Romans built Hadrian’s Wall, the Antonine Wall and established a line of watchtowers called the Gask Ridge. Forts, harbours and camps were built to maintain the brief periods of occupation
There were 6 notable invasions and many other skirmishes that we know little about.
- 79 AD. Agricola Invaded. He was a French-born Roman General whose exploits were written in a book. This was intended as an occupation, but the legions were needed elsewhere in the empire so Scotland was abandoned.
- 122 AD The building of Hadrian’s Wall separated England from Scotland. The Spanish-born emperor Hadrian visited in 122 AD,
- 142 AD The building of the Antonine Wall between Glasgow and Edinburgh
- 208 AD The African-born emperor Septimius Severus invaded with a huge army. He died in York.
- 306 AD The Serbian-born emperor Constantius I invaded. He died in York. His son Constantine became the first Christian emperor.
- 367 AD The Spanish-born Count Theodosius battled in the snows of Scotland against Scottish tribes
Five legions fought in Scotland – the 20th, the 2nd Augusta, the 2nd Adiutrix, the 6th Legion Victrix and the 9th ( famous from the book “The Lost Eagle of the Ninth”). Detachments of other legions such as the 6th and 22nd Legions also fought.
Other occupation troops called auxiliaries came from all over the Roman Empire, including countries such as France, Spain, Germany, Holland, Belgium, Syria, and Bulgaria.
There is one amphitheatre in Scotland in Melrose and two suspected near Musselburgh and Falkirk. These were turf and wooden places of entertainment and not the large stone amphitheatres of Rome.
The main roads of Scotland follow the old Roman roads in many places. The English Army that invaded Scotland in 1312 for the battle of Bannockburn marched along the old Roman road.