But while he was thus disquieted with the rebellion of the Britains, and the disloiall practises of his sonne Antoninus, which to him were not vnknowne, (for the wicked sonne had by diuers attempts discouered his traitorous and vnnaturall meanings) at length, rather through [Sidenote: Heriodianus. Dion Cassius. Eutropius. Dion Cassius.] sorrow and griefe, than by force of sicknesse, he wasted awaie, and departed this life at Yorke, the third daie before the nones of Februarie, after he had gouerned the empire by the space of 17 yeares, 8 moneths, & 33 daies. He liued 65 yeres, 9 moneths, & 13 daies: he was borne the third ides of April. By that which before is recited out of Herodian and Dion Cassius, of the maners & vsages of those people, against whome Seuerus held warre here in Britaine, it maie be coniectured, that they were the Picts, the which possessed in those daies a great part of Scotland, and with continuall incursions and [Sidenote: Eutropius. Orosius.] rodes wasted and destroyed the borders of those countries which were subiect to the Romans. To kéepe them backe therefore and to represse their inuasions, Seuerus (as some write) either restored [Sidenote: _Dion Cassius_.] the former wall made by Adrian, or else newlie built an other ouerthwart the Ile, from the east sea to the west, conteining in [Sidenote: _Beda_.] length 232 miles. This wall was not made of stone, but of turfe and earth supported with stakes and piles of wood, and defended on the [Sidenote: _Hector Boetius_] backe with a déepe trench or ditch, and also fortified with diuerse towers and turrets built & erected vpon the same wall or rampire so néere togither, that the sound of trumpets being placed in the same, might be heard betwixt, and so warning giuen from one to another vpon the first descrieng of the enimies.