The Wall of Severus is believed to be a defensive fortification built by the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus (reigned AD 193–211) during his military campaigns in northern Britannia in the early 3rd century. Although the structure is mentioned in several classical texts, its precise location is academically disputed due to inconsistencies between sources. Scholarly consensus believes they are most likely referring to the Antonine Wall. However, Hadrian's Wall and Offa's Dyke have both been suggested as possible candidates. Archaeological evidence has been discovered showing parts of Offa's Dyke, on the England-Wales border, is at least as old as the mid 5th century, predating the 8th-century reign of the Saxon King Offa of Mercia by 300 years.

Historiography

Septimius Severus arrived in Caledonia in 208 after Picts began making a series of attacks and incursions since 197. During these military operations in Scotland, the Wall of Severus was reportedly built. Cassius Dio, a Roman historian who lived at the time of Severus, makes no direct mention to any new fortification but does allude to the existing Antonine and Hadrian Walls. Late Roman historians interchange the name Severan Wall with the Antonine Wall. Other historical writers, such as Bede – an 8th-century English monk in the Anglic Kingdom of Northumbria –, link the fortification with Hadrian's Wall. Texts that refer to the wall include:

Existence

As the location of the wall remains undetermined, its existence was academically questioned in the early 20th century because there is no evidence that Severus built any fortifications during his time in Britain. Current academic consensus believes that Severus' campaigns involved repairing and strengthening the abandoned Antonine Wall before falling back to Hadrian's Wall.

Sources