Housesteads Roman Fort
Encyclopedia
Vercovicium, now known as Housesteads Roman Fort, was an auxiliary
fort
on Hadrian's Wall
, in the Roman province
of Britannia
. Its ruins are located at Housesteads in the civil parish
of Bardon Mill
in Northumberland
, England, somewhat to the south of Broomlee Lough
.
consisted of an unknown double-sized auxiliary infantry
cohort
and a detachment of legionaries from Legio II Augusta
. In the 3rd century, it comprised cohors
I Tungrorum
, augmented by the numerus Hnaudifridi and the cuneus Frisiorum. The Tungrians were still there in the 4th century, according to the Notitia Dignitatum
. By 409 AD the Romans had withdrawn.
The fort was built in stone
around AD 124, soon after the construction of the Wall
began in AD 122. Vercovicium was built overlying the original Broad Wall foundation and Turret 36b. The fort was repaired and rebuilt several times, its northern defences being particularly prone to collapse. A substantial civil settlement (vicus
) existed to the south, outside the fort, and some of the stone foundations can still be seen, including "Murder House", where two skeletons were found beneath an apparently newly-laid floor when excavated.
.
The fort's orientation is unorthodox, in that its long axis is arranged parallel with Hadrian's Wall (which forms its northern defensive wall), due to the lay of the land. Most other early forts straddle the Wall and therefore protrude into barbarian territory. It is also unusual for Britain in that it has no running water supply and is dependent upon rainwater collection (for which purpose there is a series of large stone-lined tanks around the periphery of the defences). It is also famous for having one of the best-preserved stone latrine
s in Roman Britain
.
A recent geophysical survey commissioned by English Heritage
was carried out by TimeScape Surveys at the fort using magnetometry and resistivity techniques. It identified field systems to the west of the fort and an area of settlement to the south enclosed by ditches and the Vallum. A possible bathhouse has also been identified. It is considered that the planning arrangements reflect a decision by the military to zone land use around the fort.
It is likely that the site for the fort was chosen just as much for its strategic position commanding a gap in the Whin Sill
ridge overlooking Knag Burn, as occupying a site on or close to a native settlement. The designation of land use shown by the enclosed settlement and the siting of field systems to the west of the fort clearly support the authors’ thesis that the areas around a fort were precisely defined both in extent and use at a very early date by the army.
The survey to the south and west of the site is surprising in that the known vicus
(civilian settlement) immediately to the south of the fort is clearly shown to be contained by ditches to the east and west, and the Vallum to the south. In addition, there is little evidence of other buildings apart from alongside the west road and possibly to the south of the survey area. The large building to the east of the settlement is probably a bathhouse. How the water supply
was provided is unclear, but it probably came from springs on the hillside.
and is currently in the care of English Heritage
. Finds from Vercovicium can be seen in the site museum, in the museum at Chesters
, and in the Museum of Antiquities
in Newcastle upon Tyne
.
. Nicholas Armstrong bought the farm in 1692, only to have to sell it again in 1694 to Thomas Gibson of Hexham for the sum of £485. They remained as tenants. They were a well-known band of horse thieves and cattle rustlers who used the old Roman
fort as a corral for their ill-gotten gains. They traded as far afield as Aberdeen
and the south of England. At one time every male member of the family was said to have been a 'broken man', formally outlawed by English or Scottish authorities. Nicholas was hanged in 1704, and his brothers fled to America
. The Armstrongs lived in a typical 16th century defensive bastle house
of two storeys: the ground floor for livestock and the upper level for living quarters. Its ruins remain built up against the south gate of the Roman fort and clearly show its defensive nature, with external stone steps and narrow loop windows. A corn drying kiln was inserted into the gate's guard chamber in the 17th century.
In 1698, the farm had been sold to Thomas Gibson who turned the land around the fort to agriculture and thus ploughed up numerous Roman artefacts. The 17th-century bastle was replaced by a farmhouse located over the Roman hospital, which was sketched by Stukely in 1725. Throughout the 18th Century Housesteads was farmed by a single tenant farming family. Since Hodgson recorded the presence of William Magnay as the tenant during that period this fixes the tenure. In particular, the well (thought to be Roman) was documented as having actually been built by William, and used by the family as a bath! Interest in the fort increased in the 19th century, particularly after the farm was purchased by the historian, John Clayton, in 1838, to add to his collection of Roman Wall farms. The Roman site was cleared of later buildings by Clayton, and the present farmhouse built about 1860. John Maurice Clayton attempted to auction the fort in 1929. It did not reach its reserve and was donated to the National Trust
in 1930. The farm was later owned by the Trevelyans who gave the land for the site museum.
Auxiliaries
An auxiliary force is a group affiliated with, but not part of, a military or police organization. In some cases, auxiliaries are armed forces operating in the same manner as regular soldiers...
fort
Castra
The Latin word castra, with its singular castrum, was used by the ancient Romans to mean buildings or plots of land reserved to or constructed for use as a military defensive position. The word appears in both Oscan and Umbrian as well as in Latin. It may have descended from Indo-European to Italic...
on Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall was a defensive fortification in Roman Britain. Begun in AD 122, during the rule of emperor Hadrian, it was the first of two fortifications built across Great Britain, the second being the Antonine Wall, lesser known of the two because its physical remains are less evident today.The...
, in the Roman province
Roman province
In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and, until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of Italy...
of Britannia
Britannia
Britannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
. Its ruins are located at Housesteads in the civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
of Bardon Mill
Bardon Mill
Bardon Mill is a village in Northumberland, England. It is situated to the west of Haydon Bridge and Hexham, on the River South Tyne.-Governance:Bardon Mill is in the parliamentary constituency of Hexham.-Transport:Rail...
in Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
, England, somewhat to the south of Broomlee Lough
Broomlee Lough
Broomlee Lough is an inland lake in Northumberland, England at the southern edge of Northumberland National Park. The lough lies immediately north of the course of Hadrian's Wall. Old legends portray the lake as a repository of hidden treasure....
.
History
In the 2nd century AD, the garrisonGarrison
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....
consisted of an unknown double-sized auxiliary infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
cohort
Cohort (military unit)
A cohort was the basic tactical unit of a Roman legion following the reforms of Gaius Marius in 107 BC.-Legionary cohort:...
and a detachment of legionaries from Legio II Augusta
Legio II Augusta
Legio secunda Augusta , was a Roman legion, levied by Gaius Vibius Pansa Caetronianus in 43 BC, and still operative in Britannia in the 4th century...
. In the 3rd century, it comprised cohors
Cohort (military unit)
A cohort was the basic tactical unit of a Roman legion following the reforms of Gaius Marius in 107 BC.-Legionary cohort:...
I Tungrorum
Tungri
The Tungri were a tribe, or group of tribes, who lived in the Belgic part Gaul, during the times of the Roman empire. They were described by Tacitus as being the same people who were first called "Germani" , meaning that all other tribes who were later referred to this way, including those in...
, augmented by the numerus Hnaudifridi and the cuneus Frisiorum. The Tungrians were still there in the 4th century, according to the Notitia Dignitatum
Notitia Dignitatum
The Notitia Dignitatum is a unique document of the Roman imperial chanceries. One of the very few surviving documents of Roman government, it details the administrative organisation of the eastern and western empires, listing several thousand offices from the imperial court down to the provincial...
. By 409 AD the Romans had withdrawn.
The fort was built in stone
Rock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
around AD 124, soon after the construction of the Wall
Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall was a defensive fortification in Roman Britain. Begun in AD 122, during the rule of emperor Hadrian, it was the first of two fortifications built across Great Britain, the second being the Antonine Wall, lesser known of the two because its physical remains are less evident today.The...
began in AD 122. Vercovicium was built overlying the original Broad Wall foundation and Turret 36b. The fort was repaired and rebuilt several times, its northern defences being particularly prone to collapse. A substantial civil settlement (vicus
Vicus (Rome)
In ancient Rome, the vicus was a neighborhood. During the Republican era, the four regiones of the city of Rome were subdivided into vici. In the 1st century BC, Augustus reorganized the city for administrative purposes into 14 regions, comprising 265 vici. Each vicus had its own board of...
) existed to the south, outside the fort, and some of the stone foundations can still be seen, including "Murder House", where two skeletons were found beneath an apparently newly-laid floor when excavated.
The fort's orientation is unorthodox, in that its long axis is arranged parallel with Hadrian's Wall (which forms its northern defensive wall), due to the lay of the land. Most other early forts straddle the Wall and therefore protrude into barbarian territory. It is also unusual for Britain in that it has no running water supply and is dependent upon rainwater collection (for which purpose there is a series of large stone-lined tanks around the periphery of the defences). It is also famous for having one of the best-preserved stone latrine
Latrine
A latrine is a communal facility containing one or more commonly many toilets which may be simple pit toilets or in the case of the United States Armed Forces any toilet including modern flush toilets...
s in Roman Britain
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
.
A recent geophysical survey commissioned by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
was carried out by TimeScape Surveys at the fort using magnetometry and resistivity techniques. It identified field systems to the west of the fort and an area of settlement to the south enclosed by ditches and the Vallum. A possible bathhouse has also been identified. It is considered that the planning arrangements reflect a decision by the military to zone land use around the fort.
It is likely that the site for the fort was chosen just as much for its strategic position commanding a gap in the Whin Sill
Whin Sill
The Whin Sill or Great Whin Sill is a tabular layer of the igneous rock dolerite in County Durham and Northumberland in the northeast of England. It lies partly in the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and partly in Northumberland National Park and stretches from Teesdale northwards...
ridge overlooking Knag Burn, as occupying a site on or close to a native settlement. The designation of land use shown by the enclosed settlement and the siting of field systems to the west of the fort clearly support the authors’ thesis that the areas around a fort were precisely defined both in extent and use at a very early date by the army.
The survey to the south and west of the site is surprising in that the known vicus
Vicus (Rome)
In ancient Rome, the vicus was a neighborhood. During the Republican era, the four regiones of the city of Rome were subdivided into vici. In the 1st century BC, Augustus reorganized the city for administrative purposes into 14 regions, comprising 265 vici. Each vicus had its own board of...
(civilian settlement) immediately to the south of the fort is clearly shown to be contained by ditches to the east and west, and the Vallum to the south. In addition, there is little evidence of other buildings apart from alongside the west road and possibly to the south of the survey area. The large building to the east of the settlement is probably a bathhouse. How the water supply
Water supply
Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavours or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes...
was provided is unclear, but it probably came from springs on the hillside.
Present day
The site is now owned by the National TrustNational Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
and is currently in the care of English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
. Finds from Vercovicium can be seen in the site museum, in the museum at Chesters
Cilurnum
Cilurnum or Cilurvum was a fort on Hadrian's Wall mentioned in the Notitia Dignitatum. It is now identified with the fort found at Chesters near the village of Walwick, Northumberland, England...
, and in the Museum of Antiquities
Museum of Antiquities
The Museum of Antiquities was an archaeological museum at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It opened in 1960 and in 2009 its collections were merged into the Great North Museum: Hancock.- History :...
in Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
.
Housesteads farm
Housesteads is a former farm whose lands include the ruins of Vercovicium. In 1604 Hugh Nixon "Stealer of cattle and receiver of stolen goods" became the tenant of Housesteads farm. From 1663, Housesteads was the home of the Armstrongs, a notorious family of border reiversBorder Reivers
Border Reivers were raiders along the Anglo–Scottish border from the late 13th century to the beginning of the 17th century. Their ranks consisted of both Scottish and English families, and they raided the entire border country without regard to their victims' nationality...
. Nicholas Armstrong bought the farm in 1692, only to have to sell it again in 1694 to Thomas Gibson of Hexham for the sum of £485. They remained as tenants. They were a well-known band of horse thieves and cattle rustlers who used the old Roman
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
fort as a corral for their ill-gotten gains. They traded as far afield as Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
and the south of England. At one time every male member of the family was said to have been a 'broken man', formally outlawed by English or Scottish authorities. Nicholas was hanged in 1704, and his brothers fled to America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The Armstrongs lived in a typical 16th century defensive bastle house
Bastle house
Bastle houses are a type of construction found along the Anglo-Scottish border, in the areas formerly plagued by border Reivers. They are farmhouses, characterised by elaborate security measures against raids...
of two storeys: the ground floor for livestock and the upper level for living quarters. Its ruins remain built up against the south gate of the Roman fort and clearly show its defensive nature, with external stone steps and narrow loop windows. A corn drying kiln was inserted into the gate's guard chamber in the 17th century.
In 1698, the farm had been sold to Thomas Gibson who turned the land around the fort to agriculture and thus ploughed up numerous Roman artefacts. The 17th-century bastle was replaced by a farmhouse located over the Roman hospital, which was sketched by Stukely in 1725. Throughout the 18th Century Housesteads was farmed by a single tenant farming family. Since Hodgson recorded the presence of William Magnay as the tenant during that period this fixes the tenure. In particular, the well (thought to be Roman) was documented as having actually been built by William, and used by the family as a bath! Interest in the fort increased in the 19th century, particularly after the farm was purchased by the historian, John Clayton, in 1838, to add to his collection of Roman Wall farms. The Roman site was cleared of later buildings by Clayton, and the present farmhouse built about 1860. John Maurice Clayton attempted to auction the fort in 1929. It did not reach its reserve and was donated to the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
in 1930. The farm was later owned by the Trevelyans who gave the land for the site museum.
External links
- VERCOVICIUM FORT On the line of Hadrian's Wall as it exists today
- Hadrian's Wall and Housesteads Fort - National Trust
- Housesteads Roman Fort - The Grandest Station
- History and visitor information: English Heritage
- Information for teachers: English Heritage
- Children's Guide: English Heritage
- Details of Housesteads and the rest of Hadrian's Wall
- Tour of Housesteads Roman Fort