The 20th Legion

The 20th “XX Valeria Victrix” Legion was stationed at Chester and was one of the four that invaded Britain in 43 AD. They were stationed at Chester after moving from Colchester. They invaded Scotland in AD 78-84 up the west coast via Carlisle. They built the fortress in Scotland at Inchtuthil, the most northerly Roman legionary fortress in the Empire. They again returned to Scotland to help build the Antonine Wall in 142 AD. Units were stationed along Hadrian’s Wall and were last mentioned in Britain in 296 AD.

The legion emblem is a jumping boar.

They continued to be stationed in Britain for 300 years with occasional postings abroad and helped build Hadrian’s Wall.

The Legion was initially stationed in Chester, and a tombstone there has an image of what one of the legionnaires looked like. It reads, “To the spirits of the departed, Caecilius Avitus from Emerita Augusta, optio of the twentieth legion Valeria Victrix, served 15 years, lived for 34 years. His heir had this stone made. He was Spanish, from the city of Merida, named Augusta Emerita in Roman times.

Further Reading

• The XX Legion in Britain from Warwick University.
• Legio XX Valeria Victrix – Livius.org
• Legio XX Valeria Victrix – Wikipedia