Women Who Lived and Worked in Roman Military Forts. This discovery overturns the belief that forts were solely occupied by men, according to archaeologist Penelope Allison from the Australian National University.
“They did not live in isolated communities,” Allison, who studied remnants from 1st to 2nd century forts on the western front of the Roman Empire, stated.
“Many women lived in the forts, possibly as wives, managing shops, engaging in crafts, and trading.”
Ordinary Roman soldiers were not allowed to have wives, and it was long believed that only high-ranking officers could bring their wives into the forts. “Any other women, whether wives, concubines, or prostitutes, were not permitted to live in the forts, as it was feared that women would disrupt military discipline,” Allison explained.
However, despite Rome’s prohibition on ordinary soldiers marrying, the reality was quite different on the front lines. In a separate study, Allison analyzed artifacts found at the forts that indicate the presence of women.
“The presence of discarded objects speaks volumes about the places people frequented and their activities,” Allison remarked. Using computer software, she mapped the distribution of over 30,000 artifacts.
She discovered items used by women, such as hairpins, beads, perfume bottles, and spinning wheels scattered throughout the structures and along the paths in the forts. “They often gathered in various areas within the fort,” Allison noted.
The locations of these items suggest that women had vibrant lives within the fortifications, which were seen more as bustling towns than as isolated military outposts filled only with men.
“Women truly participated in life within the fort, serving important roles as wives, mothers, craftsmen, and traders,” Allison concluded.
M.T.
