Castleshaw Roman Fort

Last updated
Castleshaw Roman fort
Ditch of Castleshaw Roman fort.jpg
A ditch of Castleshaw Roman fort
Greater Manchester UK location map 2.svg
Red pog.svg
Location within Greater Manchester
General information
Architectural styleRoman fort
Town or city Castleshaw
Saddleworth
Greater Manchester
Country England
Coordinates 53°34′59″N2°00′11″W / 53.583°N 2.003°W / 53.583; -2.003
Completed79

Castleshaw Roman fort was a castellum in the Roman province of Britannia. Although there is no evidence to substantiate the claim, it has been suggested that Castleshaw Roman fort is the site of Rigodunum, a Brigantian settlement. The remains of the fort are located on Castle Hill on the eastern side of Castleshaw Valley at the foot of Standedge but overlooking the valley. [1] The hill is on the edge of Castleshaw in Greater Manchester. The fort was constructed in c. AD 79, but fell out of use at some time during the 90s. It was replaced by a smaller fortlet, built in c. 105, around which a civilian settlement grew. It may have served as a logistical and administrative centre, although it was abandoned in the 120s.

Contents

The site has been the subject of antiquarian and archaeological investigation since the 18th century, but the civilian settlement lay undiscovered until the 1990s. The fort, fortlet, and civilian settlement are all protected as a Scheduled Ancient Monument, [2] recognising its importance as a "nationally important" archaeological site or historic building, and protecting it against unauthorised change. [3]

Location

View from Castleshaw Roman fort looking towards Delph View from Castleshaw Roman fort.jpg
View from Castleshaw Roman fort looking towards Delph

The fort and fortlet at Castleshaw are situated on a step of Grindslow shale on the eastern side of Castleshaw Valley below Standedge, part of the Pennine ridge in northern England. [4] From the site there are clear views up and down the valley, although it is overshadowed by higher ground on all sides. It is remote and exposed and lies along the Deva Victrix (Chester) to Eboracum (York) Roman road. The road crosses the Pennines at Standedge where the area dips and narrows, creating a traversable pass which would have been guarded by the Castleshaw fort. [4] The nearest forts are Mamucium (Manchester) 16 miles (26 km) to the west and one at Slack 8 miles (13 km) to the east, both on the line of the Roman road. [5] There was also a small Roman military installation, possibly a fortlet or signal station at Worlow, between Slack and Castleshaw. [5] [6] The later fortlet is on the same site as the fort (grid reference SD99880965 ). [4]

History

Roman

The fort at Castleshaw, constructed from turf and timber, was built around AD 79 and guarded the York to Chester Roman road. [1] Due to the site's protected status as a Scheduled Ancient Monument it has not been possible to excavate the fort, however previous trenches have demonstrated that the fort had two phases to its construction. [7] The location of the fort's granary, stables, the principia (headquarters), the praetorium (commander's tent), and six long narrow buildings which are possibly workshops or storerooms are all known. [7] The fort was small, would probably have been home to around 500 soldiers of an auxiliary cohort, [7] and fell out of use during the mid AD 90s. [1] Rather than allow the defences to fall into potentially hostile hands or be used against Rome, the fort was slighted.

The fort was replaced by a fortlet, also built using turf and timber, in AD 105. Although the fortlet was built on the same site as the fort, it did not use the same foundation trenches. [7] There were two construction phases of the fortlet, the second – dating to c. 120 – featured gates, an oven, a well, a granary, a hypocaust a workshop, barracks, a commanders house, a courtyard building, and possibly a latrine. [8] The barracks were built to accommodate 48 soldiers and even with administrative staff and officers, the garrison of the fortlet would have numbered less than 100. [9] The first phase was laid out along the same lines as the second phase. [8] The fortlet defences – as with most other fortlets – were designed to withstand attacks from brigands or hold off an enemy until reinforcements from the main army could arrive rather than withstand a determined attack. [10] A civilian settlement or vicus grew around the fortlet in the early 2nd century. [9] It probably would have been home to those who benefited from trade with the garrison or hangers on of the soldiers. Since it is unlikely that a garrison of under 100 could have supported a vicus, it has been suggested that the fortlet was a commissary fortlet, one which was the administrative and logistical centre of part of the Roman army. [9] [11] With soldiers regularly arriving to collect pay and orders, a vicus could have been supported. [9] The fortlet fell out of use in the mid 120s. The fort and fortlet of Castleshaw were superseded by the neighbouring forts at Manchester and Slack. [12] The vicus was abandoned around the same time as the fortlet fell out of use. [13]

According to Ptolemy, there was a polis called Rigodunum belonging to the Brigantes near the position of Castleshaw. [14] Rigodunum means "royal fort". [15] Although it has been suggested that Castleshaw is the location of the Brigantine settlement, there is no evidence to support this. [14] Stamps on two tegulae, produced at the Roman tilery at Grimescar Wood near Huddersfield, suggest the fortlet was supplied by the Cohors III Bracaraugustanorum from Pannonia, maybe even garrisoned by them at one stage. [16] Similar stamps have been found in the forts at Manchester, Slack, and Ebchester, indicating these forts were linked. [16]

Post-Roman

A plan of Castleshaw drawn by Thomas Percival in 1752 showing the fort and the later fortlet Castleshaw plan 1752.jpg
A plan of Castleshaw drawn by Thomas Percival in 1752 showing the fort and the later fortlet

After being abandoned by the Romans, Castleshaw was rediscovered by antiquarian Thomas Percival in 1752. The remains were in good enough condition for him to draw a plan and he commented that he was "pleased to find a double Roman camp". He also remarked that the Roman road from Manchester running east to the Pennines was "the finest remain of a Roman road in England that I ever saw". [4] The site has suffered damage from ploughing in the 18th and 19th centuries as it is situated in one of the best draining areas of the valley. [4] In 1897, a local antiquarian and poet, Ammon Wrigley, dug several trenches on the site. He did not record the results of his digging and unrecorded digs continued on and off until 1907. [17] In 1907, the site was bought for the purpose of organised excavation and survey which continued from 1907 to 1908 under the supervision of Francis Bruton who had recently been involved with the excavation of Mamucium. [18] The spoil heaps from the 1907–08 dig were never levelled, leaving a series of misleading modern earthworks on the interior of the site. [19]

Under the supervision of the University of Manchester, further excavation was undertaken on the site in 1957–61 and 1963–64. [19] Between 1984 and 1988, Greater Manchester Archaeological Unit undertook excavations and restoration of the site. A group led by Professor Barri Jones – an expert on Roman Britain – was set up to co-ordinate the work. [20] North West Water, then the owners of the site, ensured the area would not be used for agriculture. In an attempt to make the site accessible to the public, the outline of the fort and fortlet was marked out in low mounds and an education centre was set up nearby. [20] The area beyond the fort was investigated for the first time in 1995–96; archaeologists were searching for a civilian settlement or vicus associated with the fort. [21] Surveys revealed a settlement triangular in shape and to the south of the fort. [21] The vicus is listed as a Scheduled Ancient Monument with the fort and fortlet. [22]

Layout

A plan of Castleshaw drawn by Francis Bruton in 1908 showing the fort and the later fortlet in detail Castleshaw plan 1908.jpg
A plan of Castleshaw drawn by Francis Bruton in 1908 showing the fort and the later fortlet in detail

The fort was rectangular in shape and had sides of 115 metres (377 ft) and 100 metres (330 ft), covering an area of approximately 1.2 hectares (3.0 acres). [1] [2] The fortlet was built over the south of the fort, making it difficult to discover what lay beneath. [19] It has been possible, however, to ascertain that barrack buildings lay on the east side of the fort, a granary on the north, and the principia and praetorium to the south west. [7] [23]

The fortlet was rectangular, with sides of 50 metres (160 ft) by 40 metres (130 ft), and covered 1,950 square metres (0.48 acres). [1] [2] It was originally thought to be surrounded by a single Punic ditch but investigation revealed there to be two Punic ditches separated by a 2 metres (6.6 ft) wide berm. [24] The inner ditch was 3.9 metres (13 ft) wide and 1.3 metres (4.3 ft) deep while the outer ditch was 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) wide and 0.9 metres (3.0 ft) deep. [25] A Punic ditch is a defensive v-shaped ditch with one side much steeper than the other; the ditches surrounding the fortlet had an outer face at 27 degrees and the inner face at 69 degrees. [25] The rampart behind the ditches only survives to 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) at its highest point. [10] It was built from turf on top of sandy clay with a rubble foundation. [10] The fortlet ramparts to the south lay on top of the slighted fort ramparts. [26] Whether corner towers were a feature of the fortlet is unknown, no evidence remains aside from a single posthole, although only the north and east corners survive in good condition. [27] There were two gateways, one to the north and one to the south. [28]

A civilian settlement is located to the south of the fortlet's defences. [29] The extent of the vicus is uncertain, [30] however, test pits have indicated that it probably extends 12 metres (39 ft) west to east and between 25 metres (82 ft) and 35 metres (115 ft) to south. [29]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Longdendale</span> Valley in England

Longdendale is a valley in the Peak District of England, north of Glossop and southwest of Holmfirth. The name means "long wooded valley" and the valley is mostly in the counties of Derbyshire and Greater Manchester.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castlefield</span> Human settlement in England

Castlefield is an inner-city conservation area in Manchester, North West England. The conservation area which bears its name is bounded by the River Irwell, Quay Street, Deansgate and Chester Road. It was the site of the Roman era fort of Mamucium or Mancunium which gave its name to Manchester. It was the terminus of the Bridgewater Canal, the world's first industrial canal, built in 1764; the oldest canal warehouse opened in 1779. The world's first passenger railway terminated here in 1830, at Liverpool Road railway station and the first railway warehouse opened here in 1831.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Werneth Low</span>

Werneth Low is a hill in Greater Manchester, England, and a part of the Pennines. It is located on the borders of Stockport and Tameside, rising to a height of 279 metres (915 ft). The villages of Woodley, Greave, Gee Cross, Mottram and Romiley lie on the sides of the low.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mamucium</span> Former Roman fort in the Castlefield area of Manchester in North West England

Mamucium, also known as Mancunium, is a former Roman fort in the Castlefield area of Manchester in North West England. The castrum, which was founded c. AD 79 within the Roman province of Roman Britain, was garrisoned by a cohort of Roman auxiliaries near two major Roman roads running through the area. Several sizeable civilian settlements containing soldiers' families, merchants and industry developed outside the fort. The area is a protected Scheduled Ancient Monument.

Buckton Castle was a medieval enclosure castle near Carrbrook in Stalybridge, Greater Manchester, England. It was surrounded by a 2.8-metre-wide (9 ft) stone curtain wall and a ditch 10 metres (33 ft) wide by 6 metres (20 ft) deep. Buckton is one of the earliest stone castles in North West England and only survives as buried remains overgrown with heather and peat. It was most likely built and demolished in the 12th century. The earliest surviving record of the site dates from 1360, by which time it was lying derelict. The few finds retrieved during archaeological investigations indicate that Buckton Castle may not have been completed.

Standedge is a moorland escarpment in the Pennine Hills of northern England between Marsden, West Yorkshire and Diggle, Greater Manchester. Standedge has been a major moorland crossing point since Roman times and possibly earlier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alauna (Maryport)</span> Roman fort and settlement on the site of present-day Maryport in Cumbria, England

Alauna was a castrum or fort in the Roman province of Britannia. It occupied a coastal site just north of the town of Maryport in the English county of Cumbria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metchley Fort</span>

Metchley Fort was a Roman fort in what is now Birmingham, England. It was built across four phases using a north-to-south plan.

Watch Hill Castle is a medieval motte-and-bailey on the boundary of Bowdon and Dunham Massey, Greater Manchester, England. It is a scheduled monument. The castle is located north of the River Bollin and south of a deep ravine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scheduled monuments in Greater Manchester</span>

There are 37 scheduled monuments in Greater Manchester, a metropolitan county in North West England. In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a "nationally important" archaeological site or historic building that has been given protection against unauthorised change by being placed on a list by the Secretary of State for Digital Culture, Media and Sport; Historic England recommends sites for scheduling to the Secretary of State. Scheduled monuments are defined in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 and the National Heritage Act 1983. There are nearly 20,000 entries on the schedule, which is maintained by Historic England as part of the National Heritage List for England; more than one site can be included in a single entry. While a scheduled monument can also be recognised as a listed building, Historic England's aim is to set the most appropriate form of protection in place for the building or site. Applications to deschedule a site are administered Historic England, who will carry out an assessment and make a recommendation to the Secretary of State.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vinovia</span> Roman fort in County Durham, England

Vinovia or Vinovium was a Roman fort and settlement situated just over 1 mile (1.6 km) to the north of the town of Bishop Auckland on the banks of the River Wear in County Durham, England. The fort was the site of a hamlet until the late Middle Ages, but the modern-day village of Binchester is about 2 miles (3 km) to the east, near Spennymoor. The ruins are now known as the Binchester Roman Fort.

Pennocrucium was a Romano-British settlement and military complex located at present day Water Eaton, just south of Penkridge, Staffordshire, with evidence of occupation from the mid-1st century until the 4th century.

Mellor hill fort is a prehistoric site in North West England, that dates from the British Iron Age—about 800 BC to 100 AD. Situated on a hill in Mellor, Greater Manchester, on the western edge of the Peak District, the hill fort overlooks the Cheshire Plain. Although the settlement was founded during the Iron Age, evidence exists of activity on the site as far back as 8,000 BC; during the Bronze Age the hill may have been an area where funerary practices were performed. Artefacts such as a Bronze Age amber necklace indicate the site was high status and that its residents took part in long-distance trade. The settlement was occupied into the Roman period. After the site was abandoned, probably in the 4th century, it was forgotten until its rediscovery in the 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derby Racecourse Roman settlement</span>

The Derby Racecourse Roman settlement was the third settlement in Derby or Derventio which was a small town in the Roman province of Britannia. It lies 600m east of Derventio fort in Little Chester, on the outskirts of Derby, in the English county of Derbyshire. The Roman road from Derventio to Sawley on the River Trent passes the settlement. It is a scheduled National Monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Verterae</span>

Verterae was a Roman fort in the modern-day village of Brough, Cumbria, England. Occupied between the 1st and 5th centuries AD, it protected a key Roman road in the north of England. In the 11th century, Brough Castle was built on part of the site by the Normans. Archaeologists explored the remains during the 20th century, and it is now protected under UK law.

Slack Roman Fort was a castellum near Outlane, to the west of Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, England. Its site is a scheduled monument. The ruins of the fort which lay alongside the Pennine section of the Roman road from Deva Victrix (Chester) to Eboracum (York) are no longer visible. The fort may have been the Cambodunum mentioned as a station on this route in the Antonine Itinerary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derventio Brigantum</span> Ancient Roman fort in present-day North Yorkshire, England

Derventio, sometimes described as Derventio Brigantium in order to distinguish it from other places called Derventio, was a Roman fort and settlement located beneath the modern town of Malton in North Yorkshire, England. The fort is positioned 18 miles north-east of Eboracum on the River Derwent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lancaster Roman Fort</span> Roman fort in Lancaster, England

Lancaster Roman Fort, also known as Wery Wall, Galacum or Calunium, is the modern name given to ruined former Roman fort atop Castle Hill in Lancaster in North West England. The first castra was founded c. 80 AD within the Roman province of Britannia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Over Burrow Roman Fort</span> Roman fort in Burrow-with-Burrow, Lancaster, England

Over Burrow Roman Fort is the modern name given to a former Roman fort at Over Burrow, Lancashire in North West England. Today it is the site of the 18th-century country house Burrow Hall. The first castra is thought to have been founded in the first century AD within the Roman province of Britannia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Redhead (1999), pp. 74–81.
  2. 1 2 3 Historic England. "Castle Shaw (45891)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 29 December 2007.
  3. ↑ "The Schedule of Monuments". PastScape. Archived from the original on 23 February 2009. Retrieved 30 December 2007.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Walker (1989), p. 5.
  5. 1 2 Walker (1989), p. 15.
  6. ↑ The Romans came this way : the story of the discovery and excavation of a Roman military way across the Yorkshire Pennines. Norman Lunn. Huddersfield: Huddersfield & District Archaeological Society. 2008. pp. 13–19. ISBN   978-0-905747-03-3. OCLC   268619222.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Walker (1989), p. 20.
  8. 1 2 Walker (1989), p. 21.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Redhead (1999), p. 81.
  10. 1 2 3 Walker (1989), p. 25.
  11. ↑ Walker (1989), p. 79.
  12. ↑ Nevell and Redhead (2005), p. 59.
  13. ↑ Brennaud (2006), p. 65.
  14. 1 2 Walker (1989), p. 13.
  15. ↑ Rivet (1980), p. 18.
  16. 1 2 Walker (1989), p. 78.
  17. ↑ Walker (1989), pp. 5–6.
  18. ↑ Walker (1989), p. 6.
  19. 1 2 3 Walker (1989), p. 7.
  20. 1 2 Walker (1989), p. 2.
  21. 1 2 Redhead (1999), p. 75.
  22. ↑ Historic England. "Monument No. 1130466". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 1 July 2008.
  23. ↑ Walker (1989), p. 18.
  24. ↑ Walker (1989), pp. 22–23.
  25. 1 2 Walker (1989), p. 23.
  26. ↑ Walker (1989), p. 27.
  27. ↑ Walker (1989), p. 28.
  28. ↑ Walker (1989), p. 29.
  29. 1 2 Redhead (1999), pp. 76–77.
  30. ↑ Redhead (1999), p. 80.

Bibliography

  • Brennand, Mark, ed. (2006). The Archaeology of North West England. Council for Archaeology North West. ISSN   0962-4201.
  • Nevell, Mike; Redhead, Norman, eds. (2005). Mellor: Living on the Edge. A Regional Study of an Iron Age and Romano-British Upland Settlement. University of Manchester Archaeological Unit, Greater Manchester Archaeological Unit, and the Mellor Archaeological Trust. ISBN   0-9527813-6-0.
  • Redhead, Norman 'Extra-Mural Settlement in a Marginal Context: Roman Castleshaw' in Nevell, Mike, ed. (1999). Living on the Edge of Empire: Models, Methodology & Marginality. CBA North West, the Field Archaeology Centre, University of Manchester, and Chester Archaeology. pp. 74–81. ISBN   0-9527813-1-X.
  • Rivet, A.L.F. (1980). "Celtic Names and Roman Places". Britannia. 11.
  • Walker, John, ed. (1989). Castleshaw: The Archaeology of a Roman Fortlet. Greater Manchester Archaeological Unit. ISBN   0-946126-08-9.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.