We know from letters home written by soldiers defending Hadrian’s Wall that they had a pretty miserable time of it. Now, new research published in the journal Parasitology has discovered that Roman Army troops were not only contending with harsh weather and unfriendly locals, but also the attacks of parasites.
- Hadrian's Wall: where is it, when was it built, how long is it and best walks
- Rare Roman knife handle discovered at Hadrian's Wall proves ‘celebrity cult’ of gladiators, say experts
Researchers from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge analysed 50 sediment samples from the sewer drain of a third-century latrine block at the Roman fort of Vindolanda, close to the Wall.
They found three types of intestinal parasite: roundworm, whipworm and Giardia duodenalis. This last organism is microscopic and its discovery at Vindolanda provides the first evidence of its existence in Roman Britain.
“The three types of parasites we found could have led to malnutrition and cause diarrhoea in some of the Roman soldiers,” said Marissa Ledger, who led the Cambridge component of the study as part of her PhD.
Despite the Romans’ love of cleansing baths and their provision of latrines at Vindolanda, it appears that roundworm and whipworm were legion at the fort: more than a quarter of the samples tested contained eggs from one or other nematode parasite.
Researchers used a bio-molecular technique called ‘ELISA’ – in which antibodies bind onto proteins produced by single-celled organisms – to reveal the presence of the Giardia duodenalis.
“While the Romans were aware of intestinal worms,” added Ledger, “there was little their doctors could do to clear infection by these parasites or help those experiencing diarrhoea, meaning symptoms could persist and worsen. These chronic infections likely weakened soldiers, reducing fitness for duty.”
Those stationed at Vindolanda would also have experienced nausea, stomach cramps and weight loss. But that wasn’t all.
Ancient outbreaks
“Some soldiers could have become severely ill from dehydration during summer outbreaks of Giardia,” surmised the study’s senior author Piers Mitchell, affiliated scholar at Cambridge’s McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research. Often caused by contaminated water, such outbreaks could have run through the garrison like a dose of salts, with much the same effect.
And if that all sounds pretty grim, researchers believe that these three parasites weren’t the only enemies from within plaguing the troops at Hadrian’s Wall.
As Mitchell explains, “The presence of the faecal-oral parasites we found suggests conditions were ripe for other intestinal pathogens such as Salmonella and Shigella, which could have triggered additional disease outbreaks.”
It seems such vexations were nothing new to the Roman Army in Britannia. The team also investigated a fort that had been constructed around AD 85 and abandoned six or seven years later. A sample from a defensive ditch contained both roundworm and whipworm.
Doubtless there was many a Celt and Pict who viewed the Roman colonisers as parasites. There’s a certain irony therefore in discovering that, at the same time, parasites were taking over the colons of the Romans.
Read the full paper here: Parasite infections at the Roman Fort of Vindolanda by Hadrian’s Wall, UK
Top image: 3rd century baths and latrine block at Vindolanda. Credit: Vindolanda Trust
