BRIAN PARNABY continues his feature on castles of Cumbria

Published at 15:40, Wednesday, 27 January 2010

view from above: Hardknott Fort, Eskdale

Undoubtedly, Birdoswald, built in 122 AD, is one of the best-preserved and most interesting examples of Roman rule to be found in the Hadrian’s Wall area. Almost 2,000 years of history are on display. The remains of the Fort can be found on a high spur of land overlooking the Irthing Gorge. One of the large grain storage areas was used by local chieftains following the departure of the Romans.

Following Roman occupation, Birdoswald became the homes or lairs of a variety of Chieftains during the incorrectly described ‘Dark Ages’ (the period 500 AD – 1,000 AD), followed by clans of the infamous Border Reivers. In later, more peaceful days, farmers pursued their livelihood in the area – mainly during the Victorian era.

Birdoswald, being situated along Hadrian’s Wall, became effectively one of the first lines of defence of civilised Britannia Province against the barbarians from the North. Its importance to the Romans cannot be under-stated, as Hadrian’s Wall was the limit of Rome’s incursion into Britain and it was vital to the Romans to defend its borders, the Northernmost part of the Empire.

Numerous Roman artefacts have been discovered since archaeologists first began exploration of the remains of the Fort and some of these are on display at the site and at the Tullie House Museum in Carlisle.

Folklore has it that the legendary King Arthur received training in a Roman warrior school along Hadrian’s Wall; it could have been at Birdoswald, perhaps the principal Roman fort in the area.

Galava was built by the Romans as one of a series of forts, expressly constructed to protect the vital trade routes used by them to transfer men and supplies from one part of their Northern possession to another; and as sentinel to provide security for goods in transit imported via Ravenglass. This port, on the Cumbria coast, was probably the Romans most important sea port in the North of Britannia.

Originally, at the end of the 1st century AD, a small timber fort, housing 200 men, stood on the site near what is now known as Waterhead, near Ambleside; but, as the Romans established themselves in the North of England, this site was abandoned early in the 2nd century AD and the Romans replaced it with a substantially-constructed stone building mounted on a platform to provide improved surveillance of the area. The importance the Romans placed on this Fort was the fact that the strength of the garrison was increased from 200 to 500 legionaries. To provide additional security for the occupants of the Fort, it was protected on both sides by the waters of the lake (Windermere) at Waterhead.

Early in the 20th century archaeological exploration discovered substantial portions of the Fort’s defences, including the main gate structure, the commanding officer’s house and the granaries, all of which are still visible.

Galava is situated on land now owned by the National Trust; however, it is maintained by English Heritage.

This Fort occupied an extremely lonely place in Britannia. Indeed, at the time, it was judged to be one of the loneliest outposts of the Roman Empire. Located at the Eskdale end of the famous Hardknott Pass, apart from the loneliness of the area, it suffered from the vagaries of the weather.

Hardknott was built between 120 AD and 138 AD on a site overlooking the Pass itself, thus commanding excellent views of travellers using the route. It stood on the Roman road linking Ravenglass with Ambleside (Galava) and also with Brougham, a Roman fortification at Penrith. The Fort was known by its Roman name of Mediobogdum.

The Fort comprised of the usual buildings, living quarters (barracks), the Commandant’s house, Bath-house and granaries; the latter being of course vital for the provision of the men, much of their staple diet being reliant on wheat, oats, barley, etc.

Today, one can view the remains of the walls surrounding the Fort, with the bath-house area located outside the main walls.

An area of flat level ground can also be seen and this was probably used as a parade-ground for mustering the garrison.

Again, the land on which Hardknott Fort stands is owned by the National, Trust and administered by English Heritage.

To give it its proper description, one must apply the words ‘Naval Base’ to the important Roman Port of Ravenglass, as indeed that was its prime function. Ravenglass came into prominence in Northern Britannia during the 2nd century AD, when the Romans established the port, primarily as a base for the importation of goods, supplies and reinforcements.

At that time there was little settlement in the area; most of the few inhabitants were fishermen or peasant farmers scratching a living.

Regrettably, little is left of this once-thriving base, with the exception of the bath-house, now known as ‘Walls Castle’.

The bath-house had obviously been an important part of the settlement, the Romans of course being well known for their expertise in constructing buildings of this type, with strong emphasis on a running hot and cold water supply, the provision of saunas (long before any other European nation conceived of this idea) and cold baths. Indeed, a present-day sauna would not look unlike the ones used by the Romans, almost two thousand years ago.

The dimensions of the bath-house were impressive: 40 feet x 90 feet (approximately 12 metres x 27 metres) and the walls reached a height exceeding 12 feet (3.75 metres). A bath-house of this size would indeed be necessary as the complement of soldiers has been estimated at 1,000. Indeed, these walls are the highest recorded Roman-built wall still standing in England.

In view of its importance to the Romans as a regional supply point for North-West Britannia, there was a typically well-constructed road leading from Ravenglass, passing the Fort at Hardknott and continuing to Galava, Ambleside.

Ravenglass remained under Roman occupation for over 300 years and is now under the stewardship of English Heritage.

Published by http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk