In the third century AD, the Romans built a series of forts on the south-east coast of Britain. Today, they include eleven forts, although half a century ago only ten were known. Undoubtedly, there were originally more, but not all of them survive. Some have been destroyed by nature, others by human activity.
These fortifications are often referred to as the Saxon Shore forts. However, the very name ‘Saxon Shore’ (Litus Saxonicum) is only found in the Notitia Dignitatum. It lists only nine forts and the official responsible, the comes litoris Saxonici per Britanniam. The also names the commanders of the coastal defence systems on the other side of the English Channel – the and the on the northern coast of Gaul; a single defence system encompassing both sides of the English Channel makes sense. By the time this document was written, however, many of the forts (at least in Britain) had already ceased to function.
