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The battle of Mons Graupius has been a constant motif in the study of Roman Scotland. In the nineteenth century CE it was identified with almost every principal Roman site in Perth and Kinross from Dalginross to Blairgowrie. With the advent of aerial photography and the interpretation of crop markings in the twentieth century CE the focus moved to the northeast and a series of marching camps en route to the Moray coast. This has led to the belief that the battle occurred in Aberdeenshire at the foot of Bennachie, a very distinctive hill just south of a large marching camp at Logie Dunro. But the evidence for this site is far from conclusive and the location of the battle remains elusive.

The failure to provide a definitive site for the Roman battle of Mons Graupius has meant an increasing scepticism towards its existence. The original account of the battle comes from the Roman historian Tacitus and his biography of his father-in-law, Gnaeus Julius Agricola. It is claimed that given the family connections, Tacitus has either invented or exaggerated the significance of this battle and it never actually occurred. Tacitus' narrative of the battle of Mons Graupius is essentially a work of fiction.

However, this contention is challenged by the fact that Tacitus records Agricola was awarded a triumph in Rome for his conquest. It is highly unlikely that such an honour would have been conferred without there having been a significant military engagement. Nevertheless, the location of Mons Graupius remains uncertain. The purpose of this website is to highlight a series of marching camps that cross from Fife into Strathearn that have largely been ignored in the search for Mons Graupius. The following pages contend that the neglect of these camps represents a series omission and explores the possibility that they maybe indicative of the battle. They then go on to maintain that this supposition is supported by Ptolemy's second century CE map of Scotland and Tacitus’ original account.

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