Aurelian and the Third Century by Watson Alaric;

Author:Watson, Alaric;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2011-07-31T16:00:00+00:00

The purpose and legacy of Aurelian’s walls

The circumstances that inspired Aurelian to build the walls to a large degree dictated their nature. They had to be built in a hurry and with non-military labour and at a minimum cost. They had to be imposing enough to do the job required of them but the situation did not allow indulgence. The walls were therefore impressive rather than ostentatious; functional rather than beautiful. Only here and there, for example in the curtains of the major gateways, was there any attempt at aesthetic embellishment. It is clear from their structure and dimensions that the original walls were built to protect Rome from sudden attack by barbarian invaders long enough to allow relief forces to be sent to the city’s defence. They were not designed to withstand concerted attack from an army equipped with sophisticated siege machinery. The large number of entrances clearly demonstrates the truth of this. The point is underlined by the fact that so many of the lesser posterns were closed and the remaining portals strengthened when the military circumstances altered to increase the likelihood of siege warfare. Certain strategic flaws in the design and construction of the walls, which once again point to the lack of experience in this kind of construction on the part of the workmen involved, indicate that the function of the walls was as much a psychological deterrent as a physical barrier. These flaws are most obvious at those places where pre-existing structures have been incorporated. A glaring example is the total lack of communication along certain stretches of the walls: at the pyramid, at the short sections of the Aqua Claudia around Porta Praenestina and at the tenement house just to the north of this. It is always possible wooden structures were added at these points which have now vanished without trace. The junction of the wall with the north-west corner of the praetorian camp and the unfortunate re-entrant east of Porta Ostiensis also created unnecessary weak points.25

The design of the walls was clearly made with artillery defence in mind. The provision of windows in the gate and wall-towers for the use of ballistae was a relatively innovative idea, and one perhaps born of the difficulties of meeting manpower shortages. Similar defensive systems are to be found in contemporary or very slightly later fortifications in Gaul and Spain. This design further reinforces the anticipated nature of the attack the walls were intended to withstand. The artillery system had a limited range in the area directly in front of the wall itself, thus providing effective deterrence rather than meaningful defence. Nor was it possible to defend much more than a single stretch of wall at any one time in this fashion. To defend the city from all sides, as would be required in a siege, by arming every artillery emplacement would have required a complement of well over 700 ballistae in working order together with the experienced personnel to man them. This was unthinkable in Aurelian’s day, or at any other time in Roman imperial history.

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