CONSTRUCTING DEFENCE

The so-called Roman forts of the Saxon Shore collectively were one of the largest Roman building projects in Britain. Considered in combination with defensive structures on the other side of the English Channel, the project looks even more grandiose. The forts raise more questions than they provide answers, however. Who exactly built them, and when? Why were they built? And why are they each so different?

By Konstantin Nossov

In the third century AD, the Romans built a series of forts on the south-east coast of Britain. Today, they include eleven forts, although half a century ago only ten were known. Undoubtedly, there were originally more, but not all of them survive. Some have been destroyed by nature, others by human activity. These fortifications are often referred to as the Saxon Shore forts. However, the very name ‘Saxon Shore’ (Litus Saxonicum) is only found in the Notitia Dignitatum. It lists only nine forts and the official responsible, the comes litoris Saxonici per Britanniam. The Notitia also names the commanders of the coastal defence systems on the other side of the English Channel – the dux tractus Armoricani et Nervicani and the dux Belgicae Secundae on the northern coast of Gaul;…

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Ancient Warfare (Digital) - 1 Issue, AW XV.5

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