Day 49: Hadrian's Wall

Distance: XII miles
Date: AD CLXXVI

Antonius Rinaldus woke early. He'd long anticipated this day, when he would set eyes on the very edge of the civilized world. Antonius was eager to get underway, but his hosts had prepared a fine full Britainnic breakfast, and he was not one to turn down a good meal, so he sat for an hour through three courses: cold food, hot food, and some kind of heated charred bread, covered in a tangy orange flavored paste, and washed down with hot coffee. He walked out into a windy, rainy, morning, dropped down to the river, and headed upstream, north, towards the frontier. After less than an hour's walk, the rain eased, the weather brightened, and he caught his first glimpse of The Wall.


There it was, stretching out along the crest of the Whin Sill. Just to the left was Cawfield quarry, the source of the squared stones used for the buildings along the wall, and sides of the wall itself. Straight ahead was milepost 42, where Antonius knew he'd find a dozen or so men, grumpy about their cramped living conditions and lack of good food. He decided to turn a little to the right and join the wall east of the Milecastle.


Antonius, being a man of letters, knew that the wall was built a half century earlier, after Emperor Hadrian himself had visited this remote backwater. Hadrian decided that the limit of the empire would be here, along a 76 mile line from sea to sea. He decreed that a wall be constructed, 10 feet wide, to clearly separate civilization from the barbarians. The wall would be manned by thousands of troops, whose job it was to keep the marauders to the north out. Gateways, like Milecastle 42, would be placed at intervals of exactly one mile. Merchants and farmers could pass through at these places - after they'd paid the appropriate taxes.


The wall itself was in remarkably good condition - even after 50 years. It had been built to last. The core was clay and rubble, with some mortar, on a foundation of stone slabs. The faces were rough squared stones, bonded by mortar, with pointed tails to tie them to the core. The mortar is what made the whole process so expensive. To make the mortar required lime, which in turn required kilns, where chunks of limestone were burned in a hot charcoal fire - an expensive process that took several weeks. Transporting barrels of water from far off rivers for mortal and clay was another logistical hurdle. Antonius was justifiably proud of what his father's fathers had accomplished.


The wall itself was only the most visible sign of the empire's limit. The real barriers were the ditches on either side, the cleared land between the ditches and the wall, and of course the troops. So the wall didn't need to be high. In most places it was low enough so that even the shortest centurion could peer over the top.


Shortly after turning east, Antonius encountered a fellow Roman tending the wall, applying a magic balm to the base in order to keep weeds from growing, and defacing this great symbol of Rome.


Walking along up there, with the wind howling, the skies darkened by clouds, looking at the vast country to the north, it really did feel like the edge of the world. Antonius looked south, where he could see farms nearby. That was the direction of Rome, of home. From this cold lonely spot he thought of his villa, his olive grove, and his beautiful wife Donna, indulging his need to travel, and waiting patiently for his return. He thought of his daughter, Nina, traveling to Aegyptus to study their strange tongue, and his kind and gentle son, Antonius the Younger, who once lived peacefully with the savage tribes of Germania.


Thoughts of home warmed him, even with the cold north wind. He moved on, walking up and down, following the wall. The hills were steep, and the wall showed no mercy, going straight to the top of every one.


The centurions stationed at the Milecastles were friendlier than Antonius was expecting. They welcomed a friendly Roman face and appreciated news of home. When they heard that Antonius was the personal physician to the emperor, Marcus Aurelius, they were enthralled, and brought out bread and wine. Antonius would have liked to stay, but he needed to keep moving. He was expected at Vircovicium before nightfall.


At Milecastle 37, Antonius looked directly through the arched doorway toward Caledonia, with not even the wall between him and that strange and forbidding land. The sight was enough to frighten any Roman: a world beyond the empire. Antonius steeled himself, and worked to overcome his fear. He knew that soon, he'd be in that land.


For Antonius knew the promise of Caledonia. He was not only the physician to Marcus Aurelius, he was a close confidante. The emperor had shared with him stories of a potent medicine from beyond the limit of empire, a golden elixir that helped you overcome any obstacle: the water of life.


On the horizon now, Vercovicium came into view. The fort held nearly a thousand soldiers, and the surrounding town a thousand people. Here could be found many of the comforts of home. Antonius was particularly excited at the thought of proper Roman latrines!


Antonius was staying just south and east of the fort. He walked along Stanegate, a fine straight road, like all the Roman roads. He found his inn quickly enough. Out front a stone wall fenced in a small yard containing two frolicking lambs. He smacked his lips, thinking of the fine dinner that awaited him.


Tomorrow, Antonius will be heading back to the wall, where he'll walk east to Milecastle 31, then through the gate and north, into the land of the barbarians. There his quest for the water of life will start in earnest. All he has to guide him are stories and a name: "Glenmorangie".

Location:Vercovicium, Brittainia, Imperium Romanum