Birgitta Hoffmann | |
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Born | Maisières, Belgium | 18 May 1969
Alma mater | |
Known for | Study and new interpretation of Gask Ridge, Roman Military installations, Roman frontiers and Ancient Glass |
Scientific career | |
Fields | |
Institutions |
Birgitta Hoffmann (born 18 May 1969) is an archaeologist and adult education teacher. Her research covers the Roman military, especially the Roman frontiers and ancient glass and beads of the first millennium AD. [1] [2] [3] [4]
Hoffmann studied at the University of Durham under Brian Dobson before studying at the University of Freiburg for her PhD. [1]
She was a lecturer at University College Dublin and an honorary research associate at the University of Liverpool, as well as working at Queen's College Canada and the Virginia Military Institute [5] From 1995 she has worked as the co-director of the Roman Gask Project. [6] [7] [8] [9] In 2005 she set up Wilmslow Community Archaeology, a voluntary archaeology and history group in the Wilslow area. [10] Since 2008, she has taught adult education courses in archaeology and classics and is the course director of the Manchester Continuing Education Network. [11] [10]
In 2016 Birgitta was the Liberal Democrat candidate for the Wilmslow East Ward local council elections. [12] [13] In 2019 she was the Liberal Democrat candidate for the Wilmslow West ward for the Wilmslow Town Council and Cheshire East Council, [14] and was subsequently elected to the town council. [15]
Domitian was Roman emperor from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Flavian dynasty. Described as "a ruthless but efficient autocrat", his authoritarian style of ruling put him at sharp odds with the Senate, whose powers he drastically curtailed.
Gnaeus Julius Agricola was a Roman general and politician responsible for much of the Roman conquest of Britain. Born to a political family of senatorial rank, Agricola began his military career as a military tribune under governor Gaius Suetonius Paulinus. In his subsequent career, he served in a variety of political positions in Rome. In 64, he was appointed quaestor in Asia province. Two years later, he was appointed Plebeian Tribune, and in 68, he was made praetor. During the Year of the Four Emperors in 69, he supported Vespasian, general of the Syrian army, in his bid for the throne.
The Roman conquest of Britain was the Roman Empire's conquest of most of the island of Britain, which was inhabited by the Celtic Britons. It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, and was largely completed in the southern half of Britain by AD 87, when the Stanegate was established. The conquered territory became the Roman province of Britannia. Attempts to conquer northern Britain (Caledonia) in the following centuries were not successful.
The Battle of Mons Graupius was, according to Tacitus, a Roman military victory in what is now Scotland, taking place in AD 83 or, less probably, 84. The exact location of the battle is a matter of debate. Historians have long questioned some details of Tacitus's account of the fight, suggesting that he exaggerated Roman success.
The Flavian dynasty, lasting from AD 69 to 96, was the second dynastic line of emperors to rule the Roman Empire following the Julio-Claudians, encompassing the reigns of Vespasian and his two sons, Titus and Domitian. The Flavians rose to power during the civil war of AD 69, known as the Year of the Four Emperors; after Galba and Otho died in quick succession, Vitellius became emperor in mid 69. His claim to the throne was quickly challenged by legions stationed in the eastern provinces, who declared their commander Vespasian emperor in his place. The Second Battle of Bedriacum tilted the balance decisively in favor of the Flavian forces, who entered Rome on 20 December, and the following day, the Roman Senate officially declared Vespasian emperor, thus commencing the Flavian dynasty. Although the dynasty proved to be short-lived, several significant historic, economic and military events took place during their reign.
The Gask Ridge is the modern name given to an early series of fortifications, built by the Romans in Scotland, close to the Highland Line. Modern excavation and interpretation has been pioneered by the Roman Gask Project, with Birgitta Hoffmann and David Woolliscroft. The ridge fortifications: forts, fortlets and watchtowers were only in operation for a few years, probably fewer than ten.
Inchtuthil is the site of a Roman legionary fortress situated on a natural platform overlooking the north bank of the River Tay southwest of Blairgowrie, Perth and Kinross, Scotland.
According to Tacitus, Calgacus was a chieftain of the Caledonian Confederacy who fought the Roman army of Gnaeus Julius Agricola at the Battle of Mons Graupius in northern Scotland in AD 83 or 84. His name can be interpreted as Brittonic *calg-ac-os, 'possessing a blade', and is seemingly related to the Gaelic calgach. Whether the word is a name or a title is unknown.
The Agricola is a book by the Roman writer, Tacitus, written c. AD 98. The work recounts the life of his father-in-law Gnaeus Julius Agricola, an eminent Roman general and Governor of Britain from AD 77/78 – 83/84. It also covers the geography and ethnography of ancient Britain.
Elginhaugh Roman Fort was a Roman fort of the 1st century AD, located in Midlothian, Scotland.
Scotland during the Roman Empire refers to the protohistorical period during which the Roman Empire interacted within the area of modern Scotland. Despite sporadic attempts at conquest and government between the first and fourth centuries AD, most of modern Scotland, inhabited by the Caledonians and the Maeatae, was not incorporated into the Roman Empire with Roman control over the area fluctuating.
Inverquharity is a Roman fortlet in Scotland, close to the Highland Line about 5 miles (8 km) north of Kirriemuir, Angus.
Cawdor (Roman Fort), located near the small village of Easter Galcantray (15 miles or 24 kilometres east of Inverness), was suspected of being one of the northernmost Roman forts in Great Britain, although no evidence of Roman occupation has been found to date.
The architecture of Scotland in the Roman era includes all building within the modern borders of Scotland, from the arrival of the Romans in northern Britain in the first century BCE, until their departure in the fifth century CE. Ptolemy indicated that there were 19 "towns" in Caledonia, north of the Roman province of Britannia, but no clear evidence of urban settlements has been found and these were probably hillforts. There is evidence of over 1,000 such forts, most south of the Clyde-Forth line, but the majority seem to have been abandoned in the Roman period. There is also evidence of distinctive stone wheelhouses and small underground souterrains.
The Hadrianic Society was a British historical society focused upon Hadrian's Wall and Roman Britain as well as the Antonine Wall, the Gask Ridge, and other Roman Frontier systems. It was founded in 1971 under the leadership of Brian Dobson, David Breeze, and Valerie Maxfield. The Hadrianic Society closed in 2018. Some of its functions continue to be fulfilled by the Roman Army School.
David John Breeze, OBE, FSA, FRSE, HonFSAScot, Hon MIFA is a British archaeologist, teacher and scholar of Hadrian's Wall, the Antonine Wall and the Roman army. He studied under Eric Birley and is a member of the so-called "Durham School" of archaeology. He was a close friend and colleague of the late Dr Brian Dobson.
Mumrills was the site of the largest Roman fort on the Antonine Wall in Scotland. It is possible that Mumrills could exchange signals with Flavian Gask Ridge forts. Some believe Mumrills may have been the site of Wallace's defeat at the Battle of Falkirk. The farm at Mumrills was also used as an early site for the Falkirk Relief Church.
Drumquhassle was a Roman fort associated with the Gask Ridge in Scotland. It was found from aerial photography in the late 1970s. The name selected for the fort deliberately made it hard for English born readers to pronounce. The fort was from the Flavian period; it was built and briefly occupied by during the administration of Sallustius Lucullus. It is known as a "Glen-blocker" fort and is located within sight of Loch Lomond.
Glenbank was the site of a Roman fortlet associated with the Gask Ridge in Scotland. It was discovered from aerial photography by G. S. Maxwell in 1983. It was confirmed by geophysics and excavations which were carried out in 1984 and 1999. It is beside the Roman road that linked the forts at Ardoch and Doune. It is currently the most southerly of the known Gask fortifications. It was probably built around 70-80 AD. Several other Gask installations have been identified running north to Bertha.
Fleur Kemmers is the Lichtenberg Professor for Coinage and Money in the Graeco-Roman World at Goethe University, Frankfurt.