Not far from Newcastle the next morning we stopped at the first of many sites where we could walk upon and learn the history of Hadrian's famous wall. Heddon-on-the-Wall was part of the north-western border of the Roman Empire for around 300 years. Emperor Hadrian who reigned from AD 117-138 arrived in Britain in AD 122 to strengthen the empire's frontier here where we now stood. He realized that the cost of conquering the whole island would far exceed any economic gains so he decided to build a permanent barrier. This part of the wall was over ten feet high and ran continuously for 73 miles, as we were to see as we followed it along. Thousands of soldiers were stationed at large forts and smaller installations along the Wall known as milecastles and turrets and we would visit three of them on our way to Carlisle. Just nine miles away was the fascinating Roman fort town and museum at Corbridge, first excavated in 1906. The remains visible today include superbly preserved granaries, a market complex and compounds for legionary soldiers and the collection of finds in the museum were the most extensive collection from the Hadrian's Wall area.
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| Our first glimpse of Hadrian's Wall, Heddon-on-the-Wall |
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| remains and reconstruction of a segmented cuirasse, Corbridge |
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| the Corbridge Lion, late 2nd or early 3rd century |
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| find 'Waldo Marie', Corbridge Roman town |
The next stop along Hadrian's Wall was Chesters Roman Fort near the village of Hexham, nestled in the valley of Chollerford. It was built to house a Roman army garrison of 500 cavalry troops guarding the nearby bridge across the River Tyne and has unusually well-preserved baths and steam room which looked like they could be easily put to use today. Abandoned after the Romans left Britain the fort was excavated by the pioneering archaeologist John Clayton in the 19th century. The museum of collections he discovered was worth the visit, as was the views of the beautiful countryside of the valley and Tyne river.
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| steam bath, Chesters Roman Fort |
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| by the River Tyne, Chesters Roman Fort |
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| highway B6318 near Housesteads |
Our last stop was at Housesteads Roman Fort, one of the 16 forts along the wall and the most complete example of a Roman fort in Britain. Here was garrisoned an 800-strong infantry regiment from AD 122 to the end of the 4th century. The walk up to the dramatic hilltop location in that wild upland landscape, once the edge of the Roman Empire, took 20 minutes. The sun was trying hard to breakthrough the low clouds, but one could still imagine the quiet and solitude of this place almost 2000 years ago. Like most empty spaces in this part of England sheep grazed on the hills in all directions and the horizon seemed to go on forever. Carlisle, and just beyond the western edge of the Wall beckoned, so we left this last amazing place for our next AirBnB, a bit footsore but thoroughly pleased with the day's discoveries we have long wished to visit. One last stop in the nearest local pub and goodbye to England tomorrow. GWS
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| our last pub stop in England (Carlisle) |
