Limes (Roman Empire)

Limes (plural limites) is a modern term used for the Roman border defence in Germany. It marks the borders of the Roman Empire, though it was not used by the Romans for this purpose.

Frontiers of the Roman Empire

UNESCO World Heritage Site
The limes Germanicus, 2nd century
Location	The valleys of the Rhine and the Danube; Britain.
Includes	Hadrian's Wall, Roman defenses along the Cumbrian coast, and the Limes Germanicus; the Antonine Wall is a later addition to this site
Criteria	Cultural ii, iii, iv
Reference	430
Inscription	1987 (11th Session)
Extensions	2005, 2008
Area	526.9 ha
Buffer zone	5,225.7 ha

The term has been extended to refer to the frontier defences in other parts of the empire, such as in the east and in Africa. It is used by the World Heritage site bureaucracy to include the two walls in Britain, the Antonine Wall and Hadrian's Wall.

The Limes is often associated with Roman forts, but it could apply to any area near the walls where the Romans exercised loose control with military forces.

Limes (Roman Empire) Media

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  Roman Empire 125 AD near its maximum extent

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  Northern Frontiers in 337 AD showing the reconquests of Constantine the Great

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  Roman Empire with dioceses in 400 AD

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  Römische Kastelle in Zentralschottland (Gask Ridge), 1. bis 2. Jahrhundert n.Chr.

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  Map of forts and walls in North Britain around 155 AD (most forts on and south of Hadrian's Wall have been omitted)

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  Map of British and Gallic forts on the Saxon Shore

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  Map of the legion camps and forts in Germania Inferior

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  Map of the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes

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  Location of the Roman camps on the Rhine-Lake Constance line and in the hinterland provinces of Maxima Sequanorum and Raetia I, 3rd century AD

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  Map of Limes in Austria (system of fortifications representing the boundary of Roman control)

References