Limes is a Latin word (singular: limes, plural: limites) that refers mainly to the Germanic border defense or boundary system used by ancient Rome to mark the borders of the Roman Empire. In modern times, the term has also been used to describe similar border defenses in other parts of the empire, such as in the east and in Africa.

Overview

The Roman frontier was more than 5,000 kilometers long. It started at the Atlantic coast of northern Britain, went through Europe to the Black Sea, then to the Red Sea, and across North Africa back to the Atlantic coast. The borders changed during times when the Roman Empire grew larger or smaller. They became more stable during the early Empire period under Augustus, but continued to change in different provinces over time. Borders had different parts depending on local needs. Often, they used natural boundaries, such as rivers, with roads behind them to help soldiers move between linked forts, like the Danubian Limes. In other places, roads with linked forts were used, such as the Stanegate and Fosse Way.

Today, remains of the frontiers include roads, forts, walls, ditches, and nearby civilian settlements. Soldiers stationed at the borders were called limitanei. Their job was not to win large wars, but to stop small or medium-sized groups of raiders.

Notable examples of Roman frontiers include:

• Hadrian's Wall in northern England
• Antonine Wall in Scotland
• Saxon Shore, late Roman coastal forts in South-East England
• Limes Arabicus, the border of the Roman province of Arabia Petraea facing the desert
• Limes Tripolitanus, the border in modern Libya facing the Sahara
• Fossatum Africae, the southern border of the Roman Empire, extending south of the Roman province of Africa in North Africa
• Germanic Limes, including the: Lower Germanic Limes, Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes
• Danubian Limes, including the: Rhaetian Limes (only those parts along the Danube), Noric Limes, the border of the Roman province Noricum, from the River Inn along the Danube to Cannabiaca (Zeiselmauer-Wolfpassing) in Austria. Pannonian Limes, the border of the Roman province Pannonia, along the Danube from Klosterneuburg, Austria to Taurunum in Serbia. Moesian Limes, the border of the Roman province Moesia, from Singidunum, Serbia along the Danube to Moldavia.
• Dacian Limes, including: Limes Alutanus, the eastern border of the Roman province of Dacia; Limes Transalutanus, the later advanced eastern frontier of Dacia; Limes Porolissensis, the northernmost line of defense of the province.

Etymology

The word limes in Latin, which appears in forms like limitis (a way of showing possession in Latin grammar), is the origin of many words in other languages, such as the English word limit and the French word limite. The Latin word līmes (pronounced /ˈlaɪmɪz/) had several meanings, including a path that marked the edge of a field, a line that showed where one area ended and another began, a road or channel like a riverbed, or a difference between things. After the 3rd century AD, limes was often used to describe a military region controlled by a leader called a dux limitis.

According to Julius Pokorny, a scholar who studied the origins of words, limes comes from an ancient language group called Indo-European, where words like el- or lei- meant "to bend" or "to curve." Pokorny believed that the Latin word limen, meaning "threshold," is related to limes, as a threshold is a stone used to cross from one place to another. Some scholars think of a border as a kind of threshold, as explained by Merriam-Webster dictionaries and another scholar named J. B. Hofmann. However, another dictionary, the White Latin Dictionary, suggests that limen comes from a different root, ligmen, which relates to "to tie." This idea implies that a threshold connects the inside and outside of a house. Another scholar, W. Gebert, also wrote about this topic.

The word limes first appeared to mean a "land border" in 98 AD, as written by the Roman author Tacitus. Later, around 122 AD, the term was clearly used to describe the border along the Danube River during the time of the Roman emperor Hadrian. Some experts believe that the Germanic border, or limes, was called Munimentum Traiani ("Trajan's Bulwark") by people living at that time, based on a description by the writer Ammianus Marcellinus. This name refers to a military structure that Emperor Julian rebuilt in 360 AD.

Limes were grouped into three types based on how they acted as barriers: natural, artificial, or internal. Natural barriers included rivers (like the Rhine, Danube, and Euphrates), mountains (such as the Carpathians in Dacia or the Atlas Mountains in Mauretania), or deserts (like those near Egypt and the provinces of Arabia and Syria). Artificial barriers were man-made structures, such as walls or roads. Internal barriers were special areas within the Roman Empire, like the praetentura, which was a region under the control of a military commander to stop possible attacks by enemies. One example was the praetentura Italiae et Alpium, managed by a leader named Quintus Antistius Adventus during the Marcomannic Wars.

Main strategic-territorial sectors of the Romanlimes

The frontier in Britain existed from the 1st to the 5th century AD. At first, the Fosse Way road marked the boundary. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the Gask Ridge and then the Stanegate, with their rows of forts and watchtowers, marked the northern edge of Britannia. Later, Hadrian's Wall became the frontier, and for a short time, the Antonine Wall further north. The defense of Hadrian's Wall used forts and castella. Security on the coasts in the west and southeast was managed by forts and chains of watchtowers or signal towers along the coastline.

The garrisons, Exercitus Britannicus, were mostly made up of auxilia cohorts. The strategic reserve included three legions stationed in Eburacum (York), Isca Silurum, and Deva. The Classis Britannica, based in Rutupiae (Richborough), was responsible for monitoring the waters around the British Isles. Legions, auxilia, and the fleet were commanded by provincial governors. From the 3rd century, units of comitatenses, limitanei, and liburnaria (marines) were under the command of two generals:

• Comes Britanniarum
• Dux Britanniarum

This section of the limes existed from the 3rd to 5th centuries AD and covered the provinces of:

• Britannia Inferior
• Belgica
• Lugdunensis
• Aquitania

This limes of the Late Antiquity ran through the territory of the present-day United Kingdom and France. In the 3rd century, a separate military district, the Litus Saxonicum, was created on the British side of the English Channel between the estuaries of the Wash and the Solent to repel Saxon pirates. The Gallic side of the English Channel and Atlantic coast were included in this area. Monitoring and coastal surveillance were done by a chain of watchtowers, signal towers, forts, and fortified ports (Gaul). Most of the Saxon Shore camps likely served as naval bases.

The garrisons of the forts included infantry and several cavalry regiments. Monitoring the Channel was the responsibility of the Classis Britannica and Classis Sambrica, based in Locus Quartensis (Port d’Etaple), guarding the mouth of the River Somme. Units of comitatenses, limitanei, and liburnaria in this area were under the command of three generals:

• Comes litoris Saxonici per Britanniam (Count of the Saxon Shore)
• Dux Belgicae secundae
• Dux tractus Armoricani et Nervicani

This section of the limes existed from the 1st to the 5th century AD and ran through the province of Lower Germania (Germania Inferior). It lies on the territory of today’s Netherlands and Germany. This limes was a river border (limes ripa) on the Rhine, defended by a chain of camps running from the North Sea (Katwijk-Brittenburg camp) to Vinxtbach (opposite Rheinbrohl fort on the Upper Germanic Limes), forming the border between the Roman provinces of Germania Inferior and Germania Superior. Unlike the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes, it was not marked by a solid wall or palisade. No defensive ditches or ramparts have been identified. Guards were stationed in nearby castra and watchtowers built directly on the Rhine. The limes was supported by a well-developed military road. Each camp had its own river port or landing stage and storage area, as the Rhine was both a border and a major transport and trade route. In the first section, between the camps of Rigomagus (Remagen) and Bonna (Bonn), there were only a few camps. In the middle section between Bonna and Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum (Nijmegen), there were more camps, including larger legion camps, most of which were cavalry barracks. The third section, between Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum and Mare Germanicum (the North Sea), had many small streams and marshy land, so only one cavalry camp existed. Border security here relied mainly on closely spaced, small cohort forts.

The occupying troops, Exercitus Germaniae Inferioris, were mostly auxilia cohorts. From the 2nd century, the strategic reserve included three legions stationed in Bonna/Bonn, Novaesium/Neuss, Vetera/Xanten, and Noviomagus/Nijmegen. The Classis Germanica, based in Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium/Cologne, was responsible for controlling the North Sea, Rhine estuary, and Lower Rhine. Legions, auxilia, and fleet units were commanded by provincial governors. From the 3rd century, ripenses (river guards), comitatenses, and liburnaria were under the command of the Dux Belgicae secundae.

This limes existed from the 1st to the 5th century AD and guarded the provinces of:

• Germania Superior
• Rhaetia

It lay on the territory of the present German states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse, Baden-Württemberg, and Bavaria. To the north, it bordered parts of the Roman province of Rhaetia north of the Danube and protected the eastern edge of Germania Superior east of the Rhine. In Upper Germania, the border defenses initially consisted only of a post road. Around 162/63 AD, the Romans built a defensive barrier with watchtowers, signal towers, palisades, ditches, and earthworks. On a short section of the Rhaetian Limes, a solid stone wall was built. In its final form, the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes was about 550 kilometers long, stretching from Rheinbrohl in northern Rhineland-Palatinate to Hienheim on the Danube. Between Osterburken and Welzheim, the limes ran 81 kilometers almost straight south.

This section of the limes existed from the 1st to the 5th century AD and guarded part of the Roman province of Noricum. It is located on the territory of present-day Austrian states of Upper and Lower Austria. It ran along the Danube

Post-Romanlimites

The Limes Saxoniae in Holstein was created in 810 AD. This was much later than when the Western Roman Empire fell. Charlemagne thought of his empire, which later became known as the Carolingian Empire, as the real continuation of the Roman Empire. He called himself "Emperor of the Romans." Formal orders were written in Latin, which influenced how the Empire's frontier was named.

In fiction

• The novel series Romanike takes place at the Limes Germanicus during the time leading up to the first attack by Germanic tribes in 161 AD.
• The book Roman Wall: A Novel, written by Winifred Bryher, is set in 265 AD during the Limesfall.

Gallery

• The east gate of a fort has been rebuilt in Welzheim, Germany
• A wooden tower has been reconstructed near Rainau, Germany