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Frontiers of the Roman Empire – Ripa Pannonica in Hungary (RPH) Nomination statement The border defenses of the Ripa were gradually built up, and consisted of legionary fortresses (castra legionis), between which forts (auxiliarian castella) were constructed for the auxiliary troops, and the sections between these forts were made up of watch towers or signal towers. The forts and legionary fortresses were linked by the limes road running along the right bank of the Danube. The fortified river ports erected in the late Roman period on both sides of the Danube – usually in pairs – were also a part of border defense and foreign commerce. Forts and fortresses Two legionary fortresses and numerous auxiliary forts from Pannonia fall within the territory of Hungary. Not all of these castella are fully known without doubt, particularly those short-lived forts that were only built and used during military operations. In addition to the more than 20 auxiliary forts built from stone, there was also a stone fortress in Aquincum built to hold a garrison of 6000 soldiers, but there must have been more auxiliary forts enclosed by earthworks and other smaller forts that are not known. There have not been excavations on a few known forts’ sites, and on others the results have not been conclusive, so we do not know for sure in every case which of these were continuously in use, which were established later and which were abandoned. The system of fortifications developed in the 1 st and 2 nd centuries along the Ripa resulted in a largely balanced linear military presence. The encampments of both the legions and the auxiliary troops that were developed into fortifications over time are close by the Danube, on the border of the province and at the same time of the Roman Empire. The Ripa Pannonica displays an identical structure to the neighboring provinces along the Danube, primarily the border defenses of Noricum and the two Moesian provinces, while in the case of Raetia more fortifications are located further from the actual borderline. In the case of Dacia both legions and auxiliary troops were stationed inside the province, one cannot speak in a literal sense of a system of fortifications built only along the line of the limes in the area of Transylvania. The linear border defense system in the general sense that was true for the entire Empire therefore showed differences to varying degrees depending on the local conditions and strategic requirements. A river border represented a stronger impetus for an actual presence at this border. This is characteristic of the defensive system for Pannonia, as well as for the later two and then three Pannonian border provinces. The early forts were established at the more important river crossings. The first legionary fortress at Carnuntum was built during the time of Claudius (41-54 AD), and the earliest auxiliary forts of Arrabona (Győr), Brigetio (Komárom), Aquincum – III (Budapest–Víziváros), Lussonium (Paks) and Lugio (Dunaszekcső) can be placed in this same period. The largest proportion of auxiliary troops was sent to the banks of the Danube during the times of Vespasian (69-79 AD) and Domitian (81-96 AD). This was when the earliest legionary fortress was built at Aquincum. Troops were detached to Solva (Esztergom), Cirpi (Dunabogdány), Aquincum and probably Intercisa (Dunaújváros) on the Hungarian section of the border during the rule of Vespasian. The predecessor to the fort at Campona may possibly have been established during the time of Domitian. It was also during the rule of Domitian that in the year 89 the legionary fortress of Aquincum was established. The full occupation of the border, which henceforth became permanent, occurred during the rule of Trajan (98-117 AD). This was when the legionary fortress of Brigetio was established at around the year 100. It was during the reign of Hadrian (117-138 AD) at the latest that the border defense system of the two Pannonian provinces took shape and lasted without significant changes for about two centuries. 36
Frontiers of the Roman Empire – Ripa Pannonica in Hungary (RPH) Nomination statement The early military forts, with a few exceptions, were palisade forts, but already by the end of the 1 st century the legionary fortresses were being built from stone. However, for the auxiliary forts it was only in the case of Arrabona that the earlier palisade fort was reconstructed in stone by the end of the reign of Trajan or the beginning of the reign of Hadrian. The reconstruction of the palisade forts in stone proceeded continuously. This process that began during the time of Hadrian came to a standstill during the Marcomannic Wars (167-180 AD), and in many cases only occurred or was completed during the time of Commodus (180-192 AD). The middle imperial period system of fortifications that developed in this manner was maintained for about 200 years. The auxiliary forts were spread out uniformly and were sufficient for the defense of the river border of the two Pannonian provinces. The average distance between them was in general about 10 miles (1 milia passuum = 1481.5 m), and about 15 miles where the Danube splits into several branches or is surrounded by swampy areas. The longest distance, 32 miles, was due to a mountainous area. The smaller distances primarily occurred in the area of legionary fortresses. The late Roman system of fortifications is inseparable from the late Roman military reforms. As a result of genuine threats, the linear defensive system was switched to one that defended the interior, and due to this the fortified settlements and fortifications along the radial roads leading to the limes gained a more important role. In conjunction with this, the fortifications on the borderline were continuously altered in accordance with contemporary demands under Diocletian (284-305 AD) and Constantius II (337-361 AD). Military construction in Pannonia from the early period of the Tetrarchy (293-306 AD) must also be taken into account. The new type of fortification architecture developed gradually. This essential change was demanded by defensive considerations becoming critically important. During the offensive period of the Roman military, in addition to occasional defense, the forts’ character as barracks was evident. The crucial turn of events from this standpoint was brought about by late Roman military architecture, which definitively broke from this approach towards soldiers’ accommodations and placed the entire onus on defense. This new type of defense included the reinforcing of the protective walls, but even more so the construction of sharply protruding corner and side towers, which generally included the filling in of the earlier ditch running along the base of the walls and the digging of a new one beyond the towers. The fan-shaped corner towers erected through the continuation of the fort walls are earlier than those with an arched ground plan, and the latest had a teardrop shape, although it must be also taken into account whether the given fort was newly constructed or was an earlier fort with rounded corners and existing earlier corner towers. Also worthy of attention in this respect is the complete lack of horseshoe and fan shaped towers at the legionary fortresses in Brigetio and Aquincum, which were abandoned during the time of Constantine. Instead new fortresses were constructed on their side toward the Danube. The fortresses that previously functioned as barracks were remodeled according to the needs of the smaller garrison and the more significant group of civilians joining them. The most noticeable aspect of this was that they removed the agger from the interior side of the defensive walls so that they could construct a continuous row of structures in its place. These were perhaps primarily used to accommodate and attend to the generally larger number of horses present from this point forward. It is generally accepted in the research that these renovations of the fortifications took place over a long period of time, during the time of Constantine (307-337 AD) and Constantius II (337-361 AD). During the course of the large scale military construction phase that arose in the years following the death of Valentinian (364-375 AD) the horseshoe and fan-shaped towers on the forts in the interior 37
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