Granaries and the grain supply of Roman frontier forts: case studies in local grain production from Hauarra (Jordan), Vindolanda (Britain), and Vindonissa (Switzerland)
Date
2012-08-29
Authors
Koon, Kelsey Marie
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Abstract
This thesis addresses the question of whether Roman military garrisons on the frontiers of the Empire could sustain their annual supplies of grain from the local countryside; and if they could, to what extent. The paper examines first the general diet of a Roman soldier and the administrative and logistical system by which the military was supplied with its required foodstuffs. Three case studies of specific forts: Hauarra in present-day Jordan, Vindolanda in present-day Britain, and Vindonissa in present-day Switzerland, based on the surviving granary structures of the forts and on the theoretical grain yields of the area, show that it was possible for these forts to supply themselves with their annual requirements of grain from the local area, without recourse to costly importation.
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Keywords
roman military, military studies, military supply, ancient agriculture, roman frontier, grain, ancient cereal farming, hauarra, vindolanda, vindonissa, ancient military