A large Roman fortress believed to have played a key role in the successful invasion of Britain in 43 AD was discovered off the coast of the Netherlands.
Studies have shown that a Roman legion of “thousands” preparing to fight is stationed in Wilsen, 20 miles from Amsterdam, on the Oljje, a tributary of the Rhine.
Dr. Arjen Bosman, the archaeologist behind the findings, said the evidence points to Velsen, or Fleum In Latin, it was once the northernmost part of the empire camp The purpose of the (fortress) was to stop a Germanic tribe called Chauci when the invading Roman army was preparing to cross from Boulogne, France to the beaches of southern England.
The fortified camp seems to have been established by Emperor Caligula (12-41 AD) in preparation for his failed attempts Britannia It was about 40 AD, but it was later successfully developed and used by his successor Claudius for his own invasion in AD 43.
Bosman said: “We must know that Caligula is Netherlands Because there are burned emperor’s initials on the wooden barrels, it shows that these are all from the imperial court.
“What Caligula came to do was to prepare for the invasion of England-to obtain the same military achievements as Caesar the Great-but to invade and stay there. He could not complete this job because he was killed in AD 41, Claudius took over where he left in 43 AD.
“We found planks under the watchtower or the fortress gate. This was the stage before the invasion of England. The planks were in the winter of 42/43 AD. It was a wonderful date. I jumped up when I heard it.”
Claudius’ invading army was not affected by the Germanic tribes and landed in Kent. By the summer of AD 43, the emperor had enough confidence to go to Britain and enter antlers (Colchester) received submissions from 12 chiefs in the triumph.
Within three years, the Romans claimed that all of Britain had become part of their empire.
Bosman said: “The main force came from Boulogne and Calais, but the northern wing of this attack must be covered and protected by the fortress of Wilson. The Germanic threat appeared many times in Roman literature.
“This is an early warning system for the French army. It doesn’t matter what the Germanic tribes put on the battlefield, because there is a legion.”
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The research was carried out during the construction of the Velsertunnel under Nordzeekanaal in the 1950s, and archaeological excavations took place in the 1960s and 70s.
In 1997, Bosman found Roman ditches in three places, a wall and a door are considered to be sufficient evidence that the area has become a nationally protected archaeological site.
But at this stage, the Wilsen camp, which was determined to be used between AD 39 and AD 47, was considered small.
This theory is supplemented by an early fort discovered in 1972, known as Velsen 1, which is believed to have been in operation from 15 AD to 30 AD. A thorough excavation of the site revealed that the site had been abandoned after the Frisians, an indigenous Germanic nation in the coastal area of the Netherlands, rebelled. Archaeologists found human remains in some previous wells, a strategy used by the retreating Romans to poison water.
The existence of the two fortresses within a few hundred meters of each other has led researchers for decades to believe that they are probably just Castle, A small military camp of only one or two hectares.
Only in November, by piecing together the characteristics of the late Veslen fortress, which was noticed in the 1960s and 70s but was not recognized as Rome at the time, and taking into account his own archaeological discoveries in the past quarter of a century, he reached a new know.
“It’s not just one or two hectares like the first fortress in Wilson, but at least 11 hectares,” Bosman said. “We always thought it was the same size, but it was not the case. It was a Team Fortress, and it was a completely different thing.”
Bosman added: “Until this year, I would like to know the number of discoveries on Velsen 2, a large number of military materials, a large number of weapons, long daggers, and javelins, far exceeding the number we found on Velsen 1.
“And we know that there was a battle on the Vilsen 1 and you will find weapons on the battlefield. The number of weapons in Velsen 2 can only be explained in the context of the legion. Thousands of people occupied this fortress.
“On 11 hectares of land, for a complete army of 5,000 to 6,000 people, this is not a complete fortress, but we don’t have a place to end in the north, so it could have been bigger.”
After Claudius ordered all his troops to retreat to the rear of the Rhine, the fortress of Wilsen 2 was abandoned in AD 47. Roman rule over Britain ended around 410 AD, as the empire began to collapse due to civil war and the growing threat of Germanic tribes.
