Ancient Ruins

Lore & Background

The ancient Roman city of Pompeii in modern-day Italy was completely destroyed during a volcanic eruption in the 1st century CE, and its uncovered ruins are now preserved as a World Heritage Site. The city of Lisbon in Portugal was completely destroyed in 1755 by a massive earthquake and tsunami, and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake in the United States left the city in almost complete ruin. Entire cities have also been ruined, and some occasionally lost completely, to natural disasters. Apart from acts of war, some important historic buildings have fallen victim to deliberate acts of destruction as a consequence of social, political and economic factors. In the 16th century, the English monarch Henry VIII set about confiscating the property of monastic institutions in a campaign which became known as the Dissolution of the Monasteries, and many abbeys and monasteries fell into ruin when their assets, including lead roofs, were stripped.

In Their Own Story

In the 20th century, a number of European historic buildings fell into ruin as a result of taxation policies which required all structures with roofs to pay substantial property tax. The owners of these buildings, like Fetteresso Castle (now restored) and Slains Castle in Scotland, deliberately destroyed their roofs in protest at, and defiance of, the new taxes. Other decrees of government have had a more direct result, such as the case of Beverston Castle, in which the English parliament ordered significant destruction of the castle to prevent it being used by opposition Royalists. Ireland has encouraged the ruin of grand Georgian houses, seen as symbols of Britain. In the period of Romanticism, ruins (mostly of castles) were frequent objects for painters, places of meeting of romantic poets, nationalist students, etc. (e.g. Bezděz Castle in Bohemia, Hambach Castle in Germany, Devin Castle in Slovakia).

Reader's Guide

Ruins are of great importance to historians, archaeologists and anthropologists, whether they were once individual fortifications, places of worship, ancient universities, houses and utility buildings, or entire villages, towns, and cities. Many ruins have become UNESCO World Heritage Sites in recent years, to identify and preserve them as areas of outstanding value to humanity. There are famous ruins all over the world, with notable sites originating from ancient China, the Indus Valley, ancient Iran, ancient Israel and Judea, ancient Iraq, ancient Greece, ancient Egypt, ancient Yemen, Roman, ancient India, sites throughout the Mediterranean Basin, and Incan and Mayan sites in the Americas. Ruins remain a popular subject for painting and creative photography and are often romanticized in film and literature, providing scenic backdrops or used as metaphors for other forms of decline or decay.

Did You Know?

• The ancient Roman city of Pompeii was completely destroyed during a volcanic eruption in the 1st century CE.
• The city of Lisbon in Portugal was completely destroyed in 1755 by a massive earthquake and tsunami.
• The 1906 San Francisco earthquake left the city in almost complete ruin.
• In the 16th century, Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries caused many abbeys and monasteries to fall into ruin.
• The owners of Fetteresso Castle and Slains Castle in Scotland deliberately destroyed their roofs to protest property taxes.