Editing Roman conquest of Britain (section)

==From AD 117==
{{main|Scotland during the Roman Empire}}
[[File:Roman.Britain.Romanisation.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Levels of Romanisation by area and date]]
Under [[Hadrian]] ({{Reign}}117–138), Roman occupation was withdrawn to a defensible frontier in the [[River Tyne, England|River Tyne]]-[[Solway Firth]] frontier area by the construction of [[Hadrian's Wall]] from around 122.

When [[Antoninus Pius]] rose to the throne, he moved quickly to reverse the empire limit system put in place by his predecessor. Following his defeat of the [[Brigantes]] in 139 AD,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.unrv.com/empire/timeline-of-second-century.php |title=Roman Timeline 2nd Century AD |last= |first= |date= |website=unrv.com |publisher=UNRV |access-date=1 June 2017 |quote=}}</ref> [[Quintus Lollius Urbicus]], the [[List of governors of Roman Britain|Roman Governor of Britannia]],<ref>W. Eck, ''Die Statthalter der germanischen Provinzen vom 1.-3. Jahrhundert'' (''Epigraphische Studien'' Band 14, Cologne/Bonn, 1985, p.&nbsp;168.</ref><ref>''Historia Augusta'', ''Antoninus Pius'' 5.4.</ref><ref>Freeman, Charles (1999) ''Egypt, Greece, and Rome''. Oxford University Press. p. 508. {{ISBN|0-19-872194-3}}.</ref> was ordered by Antoninus Pius to march north of [[Hadrian's Wall]] to conquer the Caledonian [[Scottish Lowlands|Lowlands]] which were settled by the [[Otadini]], [[Selgovae]], [[Damnonii]] and the [[Novantae]], and to push the frontier further north. Lollius Urbicus moved three legions into position initially establishing his supply routes from [[Coria (Corbridge)|Coria]] and [[Bremenium]] and moved three legions, the [[Legio II Augusta]] from [[Caerleon]], the [[Legio VI Victrix]] from [[Eboracum]], and the [[Legio XX Valeria Victrix]] from [[Deva Victrix]] into the theatre between 139 and 140 AD, and thereafter moved his army, a force of at least 16,500 men,<ref>Hanson, William S. "The Roman Presence: Brief Interludes", in Edwards, Kevin J. & Ralston, Ian B.M. (Eds) (2003) Scotland After the Ice Age: Environment, Archaeology and History, 8000 BC – AD 1000. Edinburgh. Edinburgh University Press.</ref> north of Hadrian's Wall.

The [[Selgovae]], having settled in the regions of present-day [[Kirkcudbrightshire]] and [[Dumfriesshire]] immediately northwest of Hadrian's Wall, were amongst the first of the Caledonian tribes to face Lollius Urbicus's legions together with the [[Otadini]]. The Romans, who were well versed in warfare on hilly terrain since their founding, moved quickly to occupy strategic points and high ground, some of which had already been fortified by the Caledonians with [[Hillforts in Scotland|hill forts]]. One such was [[Burnswark Hill]] which was strategically located commanding the western route north further into Caledonia and where significant evidence of the battle has been found.<ref name="Live Science">{{cite web |url=http://www.livescience.com/55049-photos-ancient-roman-battle-sling-bullets.html |title=In Photos: 1,800-Year-Old Roman Battle Site |last=Metcalfe |first=Tom |date=13 June 2016 |website=livescience.com |publisher=Live Science |access-date=2 June 2017 |quote=}}</ref>

By 142 the Romans had occupied the entire area and had successfully moved the frontier north to the [[River Clyde]]-[[River Forth]] area when the [[Antonine Wall]] was constructed. This was abandoned in 162 and only subsequently re-occupied on an occasional basis. Meanwhile, the Romans retreated to the earlier and stronger Hadrian's Wall.

Roman troops penetrated far into the north of modern Scotland several more times. There is a greater density of Roman marching camps in Scotland than anywhere else in Europe as a result of at least four major attempts to subdue the area.{{cn|date=February 2025}}