‘Pushing the boundaries of Roman Britain’ – landscape, frontier and identity in northern Britannia

This study comprises the use of both newly-created and existing archaeological aerial-survey data (the latter accessed from Historic England), alongside other previously-undertaken forms of archaeological evidence (published and unpublished excavations, surveys and palaeoenvironmental work) and a conceptual framework of landscape, frontier and identity theory, to examine the northern frontier of Roman Britannia. The project investigates wider regional variations in landscapes across the length of the frontier: north and south of the well-known borderland along Hadrian’s Wall, from the legionary fortress at York in the south to the outposts beyond the edge of Roman control further north. It also assesses differences to either side of the major natural boundary dividing the region (the Pennine uplands). The aim is to show how aerial survey, rather than merely providing a contextual backdrop to site-based research, can be used to answer academic questions around the Iron Age and Roman periods. Discussion includes the nature of the existing indigenous landscape prior to Rome’s occupation (cultural and natural), and the subsequent changes which occurred, assessing the impact of the Roman frontier’s establishment and development on the region’s landscapes, and the identities of the people living there (both native and newly-arrived).