Milecastle 2

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Milecastle 2
Tyne and Wear, England, UK
Fossway (A187) - geograph.org.uk - 2879628.jpg
Milecastle 2 probably lies under the A187 road
Tyne and Wear UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Milecastle 2
Location in Tyne and Wear
Coordinates 54°58′44″N1°34′10″W / 54.978979°N 1.569447°W / 54.978979; -1.569447 Coordinates: 54°58′44″N1°34′10″W / 54.978979°N 1.569447°W / 54.978979; -1.569447
Grid reference NZ27656501

Milecastle 2 (Walker) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. No remains are currently visible, having been built over, but its probable location is at or near the junction of the A187 Fossway and Tunstall Avenue, in the parish of Wallsend.

Contents

Construction

Milecastle 2 was a short-axis milecastle of unknown gateway type. Short-axis milecastles were thought to have been constructed by the legio II Augusta who were based in Isca Augusta (Caerleon). [1]

Northing: 6482, Easting: 2705

Excavations and investigations

faint traces of it being discernible in the ploughed ground.

Associated turrets

Each milecastle on Hadrian's Wall had two associated turret structures. These turrets were positioned approximately one-third and two-thirds of a Roman mile to the west of the Milecastle, and would probably have been manned by part of the milecastle's garrison. The turrets associated with Milecastle 2 are known as Turret 2A and Turret 2B.

Turret 2A

No remains have been identified of Turret 2A. Two locations have been suggested, one by Eric Birley in 1961, [5] based on Horsley's locations of Milecastle 2 and Milecastle 3,and an alternative by Grace Simpson in 1978, based on Maclauchlin's locations of Milecastle 2 and Milecastle 3. [6]
Location: 54°58′39″N1°34′33″W / 54.977519°N 1.575791°W / 54.977519; -1.575791 (Turret 2A) (both locations lie within the same 100m grid square).

Turret 2B

No remains have been identified of Turret 2B. Two locations have been suggested, one by Eric Birley in 1961, [5] based on Horsley's locations of Milecastle 2 and Milecastle 3,and an alternative by Grace Simpson in 1978, based on Maclauchlin's locations of Milecastle 2 and Milecastle 3. [7]
Location: 54°58′36″N1°34′50″W / 54.976636°N 1.580487°W / 54.976636; -1.580487 (Turret 2B)
Alternative location: 54°58′36″N1°34′55″W / 54.976642°N 1.582049°W / 54.976642; -1.582049 (Turret 2B Alternative)

Monument records

MonumentMonument Number English Heritage Archive Number
Milecastle 21003510NZ 26 NE 25
Turret 2A24898NZ 26 SE 13
Turret 2A (alternative)25012NZ 26 SE 57
Turret 2B24901NZ 26 SE 14
Turret 2B (alternative)25013NZ 26 SE 58

Related Research Articles

Milecastle 3

Milecastle 3 (Ouseburn) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. No remains exist, but it was thought to have been located at the junction of the A187 Byker Bridge and Stephen Street.

Milecastle 1

Milecastle 1 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. It was located near the valley of Stott's Pow. Its remains are covered over, and are located beneath the recreation ground at Miller's Dene. Early excavations and investigations of Turret 0B were mistakenly interpreted as Milecastle 1. The Milecastle sits within the parish of Wallsend.

Milecastle 0

Milecastle 0 is a possible milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall which may have preexisted the fort of Segedunum. Although its existence has been suggested by historian Peter Hill, no evidence of this milecastle has been found. It is not known whether the decision to establish forts on the line of the wall predated the decision to extend the wall to Wallsend, so it is possible that this milecastle was never built.

Milecastle 5

Milecastle 5 was the first milecastle west of Pons Aelius fort of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. No remains exist of the milecastle, though its supposed position is at the junction of the A186 Westgate road and the B1311 Corporation Street. No remains currently exist.

Milecastle 9

Milecastle 9 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its remains exist partially as a low platform, and are located in West Denton, 300 yards (270 m) from Chapel House Farm. However, the northern part of the remains are now mostly covered by the modern roads (A69/B6528). The milecastle marks a watershed between those with relatively well-defined positions and those whose position are less certain.

Milecastle 10

Milecastle 10 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. It is located near to the modern village of Throckley in Tyne and Wear, northern England. Much of the milecastle lies beneath a road but partial remains of the north wall can be seen in the garden of Dene House. It has been excavated several times and its walls located, though the remains have been "considerably damaged by ploughing". Only one of the two associated turrets has been located and excavated.

Milecastle 12

Milecastle 12 (Heddon) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its remains lay under Town Farm, Heddon-on-the-Wall, with nothing visible on the surface.

Milecastle 14

Milecastle 14 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its remains exist as a low platform, south of the B6318 Military Road and about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) to the west of the road junction at Rudchester Farm.

Milecastle 15

Milecastle 15 (Whitchester) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its remains exist as a bold platform with robbed walls located on the southern side of the B6318 Military Road approximately 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) west of its crossing of the A69 road. It has not been excavated.

Milecastle 16

Milecastle 16 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. The milecastle is located at Harlow Hill, Northumberland. There are no visible surface remains of the milecastle or either of its associated turrets.

Milecastle 17

Milecastle 17 (Welton/Whittledean) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. The milecastle is located near to the Whittle Dene reservoirs and is visible as a platform in the ground. Just 174m west of the milecastle is a distinct change in wall construction, indicating that it may have formed a boundary between different legions. The existence of the milecastle has been known since at least 1732 and excavations have produced numerous finds and evidence of post-Roman occupation. The associated turrets both lie beneath the B3618 Military Road. A stone found near the milecastle is the only known written record of the name of Gaius Julius Marcus, a Roman Governor of Britain whose name has been erased from other inscriptions possibly because he fell out of favour with Emperor Caracalla.

Milecastle 19

Milecastle 19 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Sited just to the east of the hamlet of Matfen Piers, the milecastle is today covered by the B6318 Military Road. The milecastle is notable for the discovery of an altar by Eric Birley in the 1930s. An inscription on the altar is one of the few dedications to a mother goddess found in Roman Britain, and was made by members of the First Cohort of Varduli from northern Spain. The presence of the Vardulians at this milecastle has led to debate amongst archaeologists over the origins of troops used to garrison the wall. A smaller altar was found at one of the two associated turrets.

Milecastle 21

Milecastle 21 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. The site was identified by measurement only, as the milecastle's remains have been totally removed. This is probably due to extensive quarrying at the site, which now lies under pasture.

Milecastle 22

Milecastle 22 (Portgate) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its remains exist as a low, turf covered platform just east of the Portgate roundabout. The platform is 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) on the east side, reducing to only a parch mark on the west side.

Milecastle 27

Milecastle 27 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. It was located on the line of Hadrian's Wall, approximately midway between the A6079 and the River North Tyne. Its remains survive as a slight squarish platform with a maximum height of 0.4 metres (1.3 ft), but it is poorly defined to the north and east.

Milecastle 25

Milecastle 25 (Codlawhill) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its remains exist as a low platform, and are located to the south of the B6318 Military Road, nearly 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) to the west of its junction with the A68.

Milecastle 26

Milecastle 26 (Planetrees) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its position is slightly to the south of, but mostly covered by the B6318 Military Road., and it is located around 700 metres (0.43 mi) east of the B6318 Military Road's junction with the A6079. No visible traces exist currently. The dimensions are the same as Milecastles 23, 24, and 25.

Milecastle 30

Milecastle 30 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its remains exist as an outward-facing scarp with a maximum height of 0.8 metres (2.6 ft). Masonry from the east wall remains in situ. The remaining stretch is 3.1 metres (10 ft) in length by 2.25 metres (7.4 ft) thick, and survives to a height of 0.6 metres (2.0 ft). It is located at the western part of Limestone Corner, just off the B6318 Military Road.

Milecastle 32

Milecastle 32 (Carraw) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. Its remains exist as earthworks and with no exposed masonry. The layout of the milecastle walls is defined by robber trenches (to a maximum depth of 0.3 metres. The north wall is beneath a modern wall.

Milecastle 33

Milecastle 33 was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall, one of a series of small fortlets built at intervals of approximately one Roman mile along the length of the UNESCO World Heritage Site in northern England.

References

  1. David J Breeze and Brian Dobson (1976). Hadrian's Wall. Allen Lane. pp. 14–15. ISBN   0-14-027182-1.
  2. Horsley, John (1732), Britannia Romana or the Roman Antiquities of Britain, Frank Graham (published 1974), ISBN   0-85983-090-X
  3. Breeze, David J (1934), Handbook to the Roman Wall (14th Revised edition - Nov 2006), Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne, p. 17, ISBN   0-901082-65-1
  4. 1 2 3 "Milecastle 2". Pastscape. English Heritage. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  5. 1 2 Birley, Eric B (1961), Research on Hadrian's Wall, Titus Wilson & Son, p. 71
  6. "Turret 2A". Pastscape. English Heritage. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  7. "Turret 2B". Pastscape. English Heritage. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2010.

Bibliography