The Devil's Dykes (Hungarian: ''Ördög árok''), also known as the ''Csörsz árka'' ("Csörsz Ditch") or the ''Limes Sarmatiae'' (Latin for "Sarmatian border"), are several lines of Roman fortifications built mostly during the reign of

Constantine the Great Constantine I (27 February 27222 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was a Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337 and the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He played a Constantine the Great and Christianity, pivotal ro ...

(306–337), stretching between today's

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

and

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

History

The fortifications consisted of a series of defensive earthen ramparts-and-ditches surrounding the plain of the ''Tisia'' (

Tisza The Tisza, Tysa or Tisa (see below) is one of the major rivers of Central and Eastern Europe. It was once called "the most Hungarian river" because it used to flow entirely within the Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it crosses several national bo ...

) river. They stretched from

Aquincum Aquincum (, ) was an ancient city, situated on the northeastern borders of the province of Pannonia within the Roman Empire. The ruins of the city can be found in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. It is believed that Marcus Aurelius wrote ...

(within modern

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

) eastwards along the line of the northern Carpathian mountains to the vicinity of

Debrecen Debrecen ( ; ; ; ) is Hungary's cities of Hungary, second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain Regions of Hungary, region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the large ...

, and then southwards to

Viminacium Viminacium (also ''Viminatium)'' was a major city, military camp, and the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman province of Moesia (modern-day Serbia). Following the division of Moesia in 87, following Domitian's Domitian's Dacian War, Dacian War, i ...

(near modern Stari Kostolac). They were probably intended to protect the territory of the

Iazyges The Iazyges () were an ancient Sarmatians, Sarmatian tribe that traveled westward in 200BC from Central Asia to the steppes of modern Ukraine. In , they moved into modern-day Hungary and Serbia near the Pannonian steppe between the Danube ...

, a

Sarmatian The Sarmatians (; ; Latin: ) were a large confederation of Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Iranian Eurasian nomads, equestrian nomadic peoples who dominated the Pontic–Caspian steppe, Pontic steppe from about the 5th century BCE to the 4t ...

tribe inhabiting the Tisza plain that had been admitted to the Empire and reduced to tributary status by Constantine, from incursions by the surrounding

Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is ...

and

Gepids The Gepids (; ) were an East Germanic tribes, East Germanic tribe who lived in the area of modern Romania, Hungary, and Serbia, roughly between the Tisza, Sava, and Carpathian Mountains. They were said to share the religion and language of the G ...

. Some elements of the fortifications, however, date from the 2nd century AD, and probably constituted an earlier defensive line constructed under emperor

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus ( ; ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoicism, Stoic philosopher. He was a member of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty, the last of the rulers later known as the Five Good Emperors ...

(r. 161–180) at the time of the

Marcomannic Wars The Marcomannic Wars () were a series of wars lasting from about AD 166 until 180. These wars pitted the Roman Empire against principally the Germanic peoples, Germanic Marcomanni and Quadi and the Sarmatian Iazyges; there were related conflicts ...

, the previous occasion that the Tisza plain was occupied by the Romans. The was intended to expand the Roman Limes, and was built at the same time as the Constantine Wall in

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

(connected to the Limes Moesiae). It was, however, destroyed after a few years, at the end of the 4th century. Indeed, in 374 AD, the

Quadi The Quadi were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people during the Roman era, who were prominent in Greek and Roman records from about 20 AD to about 400 AD. By about 20 AD they had a kingdom centred in the area of present-day western Slovakia, north ...

, a Germanic tribe in what is now

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

and

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

, resenting the erection of Roman forts of the "Limes Sarmatiae" to the north and east of the Danube in what they considered to be their territory, and further exasperated by the treacherous murder of their king, Gabinius, crossed the river and laid waste to the province of

Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a Roman province, province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, on the west by Noricum and upper Roman Italy, Italy, and on the southward by Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia and upper Moesia. It ...

. In 375, emperor

Valentinian I Valentinian I (; 32117 November 375), also known as Valentinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 364 to 375. He ruled the Western Roman Empire, Western half of the empire, while his brother Valens ruled the Byzantine Empire, East. During his re ...

retook Pannonia with several legions. After a short campaign that quickly defeated the Quadi, the fortifications of the "Limes Sarmatiae" were repaired. However, during an audience with an embassy from the Quadi at Brigetio on the River Danube (now Szőny in

), the attitude of the envoys so enraged Valentinian that he suffered a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

while angrily yelling at them, which led to his death 17 November. Following his death, political infighting and a lack of good leadership in the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

led to the "Limes Sarmatiae" being overrun and destroyed.

Notes

{{reflist

References

*Garam Éva-Patay Pál-Soproni Sándor: ''Sarmatischen Wallsystem im Karpatenbecken'', Régészeti Füzetek Ser. II. No. 23., Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum,

, 1983, 2003. *Istvanovits Eszter: ''The history and perspectives of the research of the Csörsz Ditch''.XVIIIth International Congress of Roman Frontier Studies.

Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...

, 2000. *Patay Pál: ''Neuere Ergebnisse in der topographischen Untersuchung der Erdwalle in der Tiefebene'', Móra Ferenc Múzeum Évkönyve,

Szeged Szeged ( , ; see also #Etymology, other alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat ...

, 1969/2 *Penguin ''Atlas of the Roman World'' (1995) *Soproni Sándor: ''Limes sarmatiae''. Archeológia Értesítő 96.,

, 1996 p. 43–52. Roman fortifications in Romania Roman fortifications in Serbia Roman fortifications in Hungary Roman frontiers Roman fortifications in Pannonia Inferior Ancient dikes Linear earthworks

History

See also

Notes

References