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Just like members of the Night’s Watch in Martin’s story, the Roman soldiers on Hadrian’s Wall took an oath that forbade them from marrying. There are comments in ancient sources of the Roman wall being overrun by barbarian attacks, but the Romans eventually triumphed and were able to repair the damage done by these assaults (easier to do if it is only men coming through, rather than zombie dragons…). When I’m ‘stationed’ at Housesteads Roman Fort, staring out into the thick fog, I do occasionally wonder what might come out of it. Working on Hadrian’s Wall in all weathers can cause your imagination to run wild. Working on Hadrian’s Wall in all weathers can cause your imagination to run wild

A broad walkway remains on top of Wall, something that is still hotly debated by scholars about whether the same was in place on Hadrian’s Wall. This is similar to the system that Martin’s ice wall uses, although in the story, many of the forts have gone out of use and it is falling into disrepair by the time fans are introduced to the wall. Units were stationed in the forts, and would send soldiers to man the milecastles and turrets on either side. Auxiliary units (non-citizen soldiers) manned the wall throughout its 300-year life. Fourteen forts were ultimately placed around 7 1/3 miles apart, with milecastles (small forts) every Roman mile, and turrets (watch towers) every 1/3 mile. Initially no forts were part of the plan, but as with any big project changes were made to the scheme along the way. The soldiers left their mark by engraving stones built into the structure (called centurial stones), noting which sections they had built. The main phase of building took six years, but work on the forts may have taken another 10 years. It was built by the army of Britain, with the three legions (citizen troops) providing the bulk of the building force. Scholars today think that it was part-defensive structure, part-propaganda statement, and part-tax barrier (extracting taxes on goods moving in and out of the empire). The construction of Hadrian’s Wall began in AD 122, and there are many theories as to why this huge project was undertaken.