Hadrian's Wall Footpath and Military Road (B6318) near Harlow Hill - geograph

The Military Road is a name given locally to part of the B6318 road in

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

, England, which runs from

Heddon-on-the-Wall Heddon-on-the-Wall is a village in Northumberland, England, located on Hadrian's Wall. Heddon-on-the-Wall is roughly west of the centre of Newcastle upon Tyne, and just outside Throckley. The place-name 'Heddon' means 'hill where heather grew'. ...

in the east to Greenhead in the west. It should not be confused with the Roman-built Military Way adjoining Hadrian's Wall to the south. Nor should it be confused with other 'Military Roads' constructed in Scotland under Field Marshal Wade who was responsible for a series of highways in Scotland. These include roads at

Corrieyairack Pass The Corrieyairack Pass (Scottish Gaelic – ''Màm Choire Ghearraig'') is a 770 m (2526 ft) high pass in the Scottish Highlands at . It is notable for the presence of one of General Wade's military roads, built at the time of the J ...

and Aberfeldy. For much of its length, the Military Road is straight and resembles a Roman road. However, the term "military road" comes from the impetus to build a road suitable for the movement of military equipment and vehicles between Newcastle and Carlisle. This was largely in response to the poor conditions encountered on the road by Hanoverian forces under Field Marshal Wade in 1746 when trying to suppress the

Jacobites Jacobite means follower of Jacob or James. Jacobite may refer to: Religion * Jacobites, followers of Saint Jacob Baradaeus (died 578). Churches in the Jacobite tradition and sometimes called Jacobite include: ** Syriac Orthodox Church, sometime ...

fighting for

Bonnie Prince Charlie Bonnie, is a Scottish given name and is sometimes used as a descriptive reference, as in the Scottish folk song, My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean. It comes from the Scots language word "bonnie" (pretty, attractive), or the French bonne (good). That ...

in the North. The struggle of the troops under Field Marshal Wade, and his association with other 'Military Roads' in Scotland, is likely to be the source of the claim that he was also responsible for this route. The road is notable as it runs alongside Hadrian's Wall for much of its length, and long stretches of the road are built on the foundations of the wall. Military Road B6318

History

The construction of the historical Military Road, on which the B6318 partially runs, is cited as one of the most damaging single attacks on Hadrian's Wall. The decision to improve road communications was taken in response to the difficulty moving the Hanoverian army under General

George Wade Field Marshal George Wade (1673 – 14 March 1748) was a British Army officer who served in the Nine Years' War, War of the Spanish Succession, Jacobite rising of 1715 and War of the Quadruple Alliance before leading the construction of bar ...

from Newcastle to Carlisle in 1746; the journey reportedly taking almost a week between November 16th and 22nd. In light of the poor condition of the roads, an improved route was considered as a matter of urgency. Construction began in mid-1751, and was completed in 1758. The topography west of Sewingshields made it necessary for the road to diverge from the wall, thus preserving much of what remains of the wall today.

References

* Smith, GH, Excavations near Hadrian's Wall at Tarraby Lane 1976, ''Britannia'', Vol. 9 (1978), pp 19–56 *Lawson, W, The origin of the Military Road from Newcastle to Carlisle. ''Archaeologia Aeliana Series 4''. Vol 44 (1966), pp. 185-207. {{coord, 55.0383, -2.1948, dim:30000_region:GB, display=title Roads in Northumberland Roads in England Hadrian's Wall Military roads

History

See also

References