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Craik Cross Hill-Borthwick Water is a Roman road in Roxburghshire, southern Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. The road runs across terrain underlain by Hawick Group wacke, a hard sedimentary rock formed during the Wenlock period of the Silurian geological age. This bedrock would have presented considerable engineering challenges to the Roman builders, requiring careful route selection and substantial labour to establish a viable passage through the Scottish Borders landscape.
The road forms part of the broader Roman military infrastructure that penetrated into northern Britain during the occupation. Such roads typically consisted of multiple layers of stone and gravel metalling, designed to withstand both heavy military traffic and the demanding Scottish climate. The Roxburghshire location places this road within a strategically important region of Roman operations in the north of Britain.
The site's archaeological significance lies in its evidence for Roman engineering practices in upland terrain. The wacke bedrock and the challenging moorland setting mean that this road's survival and visibility in the landscape make it an important record of how Roman surveyors and soldiers adapted their standard road-building techniques to the physical constraints of the Scottish interior.
Craik Cross Hill-Borthwick Water, Roman road is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM1709. View the official record →
Craik Cross Hill-Borthwick Water is a Roman road in Roxburghshire, southern Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM1709.
Craik Cross Hill-Borthwick Water, Roman road dates from the roman period, and is classified as a roman road. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Craik Cross Hill-Borthwick Water, Roman road is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM1709.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Prehistoric settlement, 200m ENE of Northhope Haugh (3.6 km), Mid Raeburn to Craik Cross Hill, Roman road & watch tower (6.3 km), Mid Raeburn,enclosure 200m NNE of (6.5 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Craik Cross Hill-Borthwick Water, Roman road's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Craik Cross Hill-Borthwick Water, Roman road stands on Hawick Group, bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is wacke.