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vouches that the murus et agger of Severus was- our wall, that
it was originally erected by Severus, that it was of rustic work,
and that Carausius the usurper, about 293 A.D., rebuilt it. But
there is no doubt that this is a later, probably a much later,

The current Latin text of Nennius, apart from one rubric
above cited in a footnote, knows of only one wall; but the
writer of the Irish version1 (which varies not a little from the
Latin, and is of more recent date) must have known of two, both
of which he assigns to Severus. The most important contribu-

ad Britannos ; ubi receptas provincias safer from barbaric incursion, he drew

ut ab incursione barbariea faceret a wall and agger from sea to sea across

tutiores murum et aggerem a mari the breadth of Britain, that is for 132

usque ad mare per latitudinem Britan- miles, and it is called in the British

nise id est per cxxxii. millia passuum speech Guaul. For 132 miles, that is

deduxit et vocatur Britannico sermone from Penguaul (which town is called in

Guaul. [Per cxxxii. vero milliaria passus Scottish Kinueil, but in English Penel-

id est a Penguaul quae villa Scotice Cen- tun) to the mouth of the river Clyde,

ail Anglice vero Peneltun dicitur (one and Kirkintilloch, where the wall ends;

MS. here interjects the words, a flumine the foresaid Severus made it of rustic

Kaldra usque ad Bimindaca) usque ad work, but it was of no avail. After -

ostium fluminis Cluth et Cairpentaloch wards the emperor Carausius rebuilt it,

quo murus ille finitur rustico opere, and fortified it with seven castella, be-

Severus ille prasdictus construxit sed tween the two estuaries, and he con-

nihil profuit. Carutius postea impera- structed a round house of squared

tor reaedificavit et vii. castellis munivit stones on the bank of the river Carron,

inter utraque ostia domumque rotun- which took its name from his erecting

dam politis lapidibus super ripam it as a triumphal arch in memory of

fluminis Carun quod a suo nomine his victory. He [Severus] caused [the

nomen accepit, fornicem triumphalem wall] to be made between the Britons

in victoria? memoriam erigens con- and the Picts and Scots, because the

struxit.] Propterea jussit fieri inter Scots from the west and the Piets from

Britones et Pictos Scottosque quia the north were fighting together against

Scotti ab Occidente et Picti ab Aquilone the Britons, for they were at peace

unanimiter pugnabant contra Britones amongst themselves. And not long

nam et ipsi pacem inter se habebant. afterwards, on his returning into

Et non multo post intra Britanniam Britain, he was slain along with his

reversus apud Eboracum cum suis generals at York,
ducibus occiditur.

The river referred to in the bracketed passage, a flumine Kalda usque ad
Bimindaca, has not been identified.

1 Leabhar Breathnach annso sis : the Irish version of the Historia Britonum of
Nennius (ed. Todd, Irish Archaeological Society, 1848, pp. 62-64).

Suareis in treas rig tainig a m- Severus was the third king that came
Bretnaib ; is leis do ronad clad to Britain; and it was by him was
Saxan a n-agaid na m-barbarda. i. made the Saxon ditch against the bar-
Cruithneachu da m. xxx. ar c. ceimenn barians, i.e., the Cruithne, 2130 paces
ina fad & ase ainm in claid sin la long, and the name of that ditch among
Breatnachu Guaul; & ro forcongair the Britons was Guaul. And he com-
clad aile do denam in n-agaid Gaedeal manded another ditch to be made
& Cruithneach i. Clad na muice & do against the Gaels and the Cruithne, i.e.,
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