The Roman Empire covered a fair chunk of the known world. Often hot, sunny places, well they did like a glass of wine and the occasional olive. But for some reason they headed over here as well, to the British Isles. A land not really known for its vineyards and Sun. But they persevered and probably started to invent things like scarfs, fleece tops, thermal underwear, woolly hats and Gortex jackets . At one stage our local city became the unofficial capital of the Empire as Constantine was proclaimed Emperor here. But as they edged further north the penny must have started to drop. What were we thinking of. Eventually they hit Northumberland and decided sod this for a lark. A giant wall was built across the country to mark the official northern boundary of the empire. The rest of Northern England and Scotland deemed too cold, too wet, with too many hooligans and way too many bagpipes to bother with.

Ok my O-Level History might be a tad rusty and unreliable these days….

A few days back we headed towards the edge of the old empire. To the nearly 2000 year old ruins of a huge Roman fort and town.

Then on to Hadrians Wall.

Once 6m tall and heavily defended. With the remoteness, the grim weather, you can see why it was the inspiration for The Wall in The Game of Thrones.

32 thoughts on “What were they thinking of…”

  5. This is fascinating… thanks for sharing. Apparently the Romans never set foot in my native Ireland, although an old lady my father knew many years ago said she had a vision of ghostly Roman soldiers marching over her land. She always absolutely maintained she saw them!

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  10. It is so cool to see your photos because I am reading a series about guess what: The Romans at the Wall. I have been reading their exploits in many other parts as well and over different periods in their very long history, Absolutely fascinating and uncomfortably familiar, too. But you are right when you say those poor blokes must have wondered “why did we come here to this grey, soggy island?”

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  12. It’s awe-inspiring to think that these ruins once belonged to such a thriving and prominent empire and to wrap our heads around the historical context and significance. Thanks for sharing, Gary!

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  16. The history of our existence as people is so interesting. It tells us so much about how we came to be and ideally where we can go based on the lessons.

    The photos and your thoughts invite reflection, as always.

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