When the Roman successfully invaded Britain in 43 AD, they quickly overcame the southern British tribes, despite annoyances like the revolt of the Iceni under Boudicca. It was a different story in the north, where tribes from what is now Scotland were a constant thorn in the Roman's side.
Northumberland,
England
Extensive remains of a Roman fort in an astonishing, remote position high above Eskdale at the top of Hardknott Pass. Hardknott was founded by the Emperor Hadrian in the early 2nd century AD. The extensive foundations reveal a commandant's house, barracks, parade ground, and bath house. The location in an exposed position below the summit of Hardknott Pass has to be seen.
Ravenglass,
Lake District,
Cumbria,
England
A short section of Hadrian's Wall, standing to a height of almost 9 feet. The core of the wall is original but there has been some later refacing done on the exterior surfaces. Banks Turret - a small defensable fort on the Wall - is a mile to the east, and medieval Lanercost Priory is less than a mile away.
Hare Hill,
Cumbria,
England
A Roman milecastle on Hadrian's Wall, on the western side of the River Irthing gorge. The milecastle is part of a well-preserved section of Hadrian's Wall, stretching for over a mile across the east Cumbrian hills. Harrow's Scar is connected to Birdoswald Roman Fort, one of the most important Roman forts along the Wall.
Birdoswald,
Cumbria,
England
A short section of Hadrian's Wall measuring 255 metres in length. The Wall is up to 3 metres wide and stands to a height of 1.7 metres in places.
B6528,
Heddon-on-the-Wall,
Tyne and Wear,
England
Housesteads is the best preserved of the thirteen permanent Roman army posts along the length of Hadrian's Wall, the famous barrier built to keep the northern tribes out of the settled Roman south.
Bardon Mill,
Hexham,
Northumberland,
England,
NE47 6NN
A section of wall from a Roman bath house, standing in the middle of modern Leicester, a few blocks from the cathedral. The wall is over 30 feet high, and the foundation walls of the bath house can be seen at the foot of the wall. Immediately besie the Wall is a museum of Leicester area archaeology.
St Nicholas Street,
Leicester,
Leicestershire,
England,
LE1 4LB
Jordan Hill is a 4th century Romano-Celtic temple. Little of the temple remains beyond the foundation walls. Within the walls is a shaft over 10 feet deep, thought to have been built c 69-79 AD. The site appears to have fallen out of use c 379-395 AD, during the reign of the Emperor Theodosius.
A pair of turret that formed part of the Hadrian's Wall defenses. Leahill Turret was built about 122 AD. It was later demolished under the Emperor Severus in the early 3rd century, and briefly reoccupied in the 4th century. The turret is approximately 13.5 feet by 14.5 feet across. Only the foundation walls remain, to a maximum height of just over 1 metre. Leahill is also known as Turret 51B. The turret is constructed independently of the wall (i.e. it is not built into the wall itself, but stands beside it as an freestanding structure).
Banks,
Cumbria,
England
Discovered in 1949, remains of an extensive villa with lovely mosaic floors depicting ancient myths. Also on the site, the remains of one of the earliest Christian chapels in England.
Lullingstone Lane,
Eynsford,
Kent,
England,
DA4 0JA
Turf and timber fort dated to 60 AD with reconstructed gyrus, granary, gateway and ramparts.
Coventry Road,
Bagington,
Coventry,
Warwickshire,
England,
CV8 3AJ
A Roman temple and villa complex built upon an earlier Iron Age hill fort. Part of the Lydney Park estate.
Lydney Park Estate,
Old Park Lydney,
Gloucestershire,
England,
GL15 6BU
The best preserved of the many Roman remains in Lincoln, Newport Arch is a gateway across Bailgate, at the northern extremity of the old Roman city, where the Roman Ermine Street led north towards York. The Newport Arch was built in the early 2nd century AD, and is the only Roman arch in Britain still in daily use for transportation.
Newport/Bailgate,
Lincoln,
Lincolnshire,
England,
LN1 3AZ
Remains of a Roman villa dating to 280AD. The best preserved part of the villa are its baths, but there are also very good examples of underfloor heating and mosaic floors to be seen. Tableaux depict life in Roman times, and there are exhibits of Roman finds from across the Isle of Wight. Seasonal opening.
Cypress Road,
Newport,
Isle of Wight,
England,
P030 1HE
The remains of a large Roman villa on a slopng site over the River Evenlode. The most impressive feaure at North Leigh is an almost complete section of mosaic flooring, largely composed of geometric patterns.
North Leigh,
Oxfordshire,
England
Partial remains of a Roman bridge, including foundations and abuttment stones, now lying in a farm field. The bridge originally led to the nearby 3rd century Roman fort of Piercebridge.
Piercebridge,
Yorkshire,
England
A Roman signal tower on a bend of the River Irthing. It stands at right angles to the line of Hadrian's Wall, presumably to allow for easier signalling, though it appears to ante-date the wall. The tower is about 20 feet square, and has extremely deep foundations, which would indicate that it originally stood to a very great height.
Banks,
Cumbria,
England
A short section of Hadrian's Wall. The interesting thing about the Planetrees section of the Wall is that the wall is narrow, and is set upon very broad foundations. This illustrates clearly the change in plans that was implemented partway through the construction of the Wal, when the initial wide Wall design was downsized to allow for a much narrower wall layout.
Chollerford,
Northumberland,
England
Poltross is one of the best preserved milecastles along Hadrian's Wall. The interior is 21.5 metres by 18.5 metres in size. Within the milecastle are remains of an oven, and a section of a stair leading up to the ramparts of the Wall.
Gilsland,
Cumbria,
England
Remains of a Roman bath house associated with the fort of Glannaventa across the lane. Though there is little to see of the fort, plenty of the bath house remains to explore. The walls stand to over 12 feet in height, making the bath house one of the tallest surviving Roman sites in northern England. The bath house is thought to date to the period between the 2nd and 4th centuries AD. The fort was established in about 130 AD to guard the important harbour at Ravenglass.
The Roman fort of Regulbium was built here by the Emperor Carausius in the 3rd century. The striking twin towers of a 12th century church stand within the boundaries of the Roman foundations.
Reculver,
Kent,
England
The Roman fort at Ribchester (Bremetennacum Veteranorum) was established during the first phase of Roman occupation of Britain, sometime in the early 70s AD. The fort was built at a river crossing over the Ribble, at a pomint where Roman roads from Chester, York, and Carlisle converged. This early fort was part of a network of similar forts across the north of Britain, and was manned by a troop of cavalry from Spain. It was a simple affair, constructed of turf and timber, but was rebuilt in stone sometime in the middle of the 1st century. Later in that century the Spanish cavalry was replaced by a Samartian cavalry troop from Eastern Europe.
Riverside,
Ribchester,
Lancashire,
England,
PR3 3XS
A third century Roman fortification with remains of a triumphal arch that may mark the spot where the Romans first came ashore for their successful 43AD invasion of Britain. Later, an early Christian church was built within the walls of the Roman fort. There are inner and outer earthworks, and extensive remains of fortifications.The fort was built on the seashore, but is now 2 miles inland.
Richborough,
Sandwich,
Kent,
England,
CT13 9JW
In 1942 a farmer near the Hampshire village of Rockbourne was digging out a ferret when he came across oyster shells and a bit of tile. Luckily the farmer called in a local amateur antiquarian named AT Morley Hewitt, who dug an exploratory hole. To his enormous surprise, Morley Hewitt's hole exposed a Roman mosaic floor!
Rockbourne,
Hampshire,
England,
SP6 3PG
Remains of a bath house, restored in the 17th century, believed to be Roman (though this is open to some dispute - some authorities consider it to be no earlier than the 17th century!). The bath house is lined with red brick, and is contained within an office building, accesible off Surrey Street.
5 Strand Lane,
London,
Greater London,
England,
WC2R 3EE
In 1930 renovations to a tavern on St Sampson's, York, revealed the remains of a caldarium, or steam bath, from the Roman city of Eboracum. The caldarium, and a neighbouring plunge bath, have been excavated, and visitors can now see the place where Roman soldiers and citizens came to find relaxation.
St Sampsons,
York,
Yorkshire,
Yorkshire,
England,
YO1 8RN
The "Roman Garden" monicker is something of a misnomer. Certainly there is no indication that a garden existed on this site near Newgate during Roman times. The garden space was, in fact, assembled in 1949 from bits and pieces of Roman artifacts found throughout Chester. The gardens contain Roman columns and a "hypocaust" or underfloor heating system. The gardens were remodeled in 2000 to provide access to the River Dee. Interpretive panels tell the story of Roman Chester and the garden site.
Little St John Street,
Chester,
Cheshire,
England
The remains of Roman 'mansio', or Official Hotel, dating to at least the 3rd century AD. The remains, though now moved from its original site to a purpose built museum, show extensive wall paintngs and mosaics, a hypocaust (underfloor heating system), and remains of defensive fortifications.
New Street,
Dover,
Kent,
England,
CT17 9AJ
The partial remains of a Roman fort established at the easter terminus of Hadrian's Wall. Segedunum features a viewing tower which gives good views over a site which includes a reconstructed bath house and a section of the original Wall.
Wallsend,
Tyne and Wear,
England,
NE28 6HR
A section of Hadrian's Wall running along the crest of Sewingshields Crag near Simonburn. This section of the Wall was built around 122 AD and incorporates Milecastle 35, which is sited in an impressive location on Whin Sill.
Simonburn,
Northumberland,
England
This site was settled as early as the late Iron Age, when it was an important tribal centre for the native Atrebates. When the Romans settled in Britain, they reused the settlement site to create a new town called Calleva Attrebatum (loosely translated as Town in the woods of the Atrebattes).
Silchester,
Hampshire,
England
A section of the city walls of Verulamium, the old Roman city of St Albans. The walls were constructed between 265 and 270 AD. Surviving sections of the wall include the foundations of towers, and the London Gate.
King Harry Lane,
St Albans,
Hertfordshire,
England
The great Roman baths here were used from about 80-400AD, but they gradually fell into disuse, and were covered up by subsequent building on this site. Then in 1775 the baths and temple complex were discovered by accident, and they have been restored to their former glory. This is without a doubt the best Roman site in England, and well worth seeing. A museum houses finds from the excavations, including a giant stone Medusa's head, and a wonderful bronze head of Minerva.
Pump Room,
Stall Street Bath,
Somerset,
England,
BA1 1LZ
Attraction Type:
Roman Heritage Highlight: The sculpted head of Medusa is a Roman gem, but the real treasure is simply the extent of original Roman work on one site
Venta Icenorum was a Roman civitas, or administrative centre, built around 70 AD, following the failure of the Boudiccan revolt. It served as the capital of the Boudicca's Iceni tribe, the most powerful of the native British tribes in East Anglia. Loosely translated, the name Venta Icenorum means 'market-place of the Iceni'. The site was gradually expanded over the years, with the addition of a forum, basilica, and baths, and town walls. Venta Icenorum was occupied until roughly 400 AD.
Norwich Road,
Caistor St Edmund,
Norfolk,
England,
NR30 5RA
A superb Roman fort, built sometime around 85AD to guard the major road known as the Stanegate, which stretched roughly east to west across the top of Roman Britannia from the Solway to the mouth of the Tyne. This means that Vindolanda was in place roughly 40 years before the building of Hadrian's Wall. The earliest forts of wood have been very well preserved beneath a covering of turf. A museum on the site contains an extraordinary array of finds from the site ranging from household objects, textiles, leather goods, and even the earliest known written documents in Britain. Among the buildings on the site are a bath house, barracks, workshops, and temple.
Chesterholm,
Northumberland,
England,
NE47 7JP
The excavated bathhouse of an army post on Watling Street, the great Roman road running from London to Viroconium (Wroxeter). In addiotion to the bath house there are partial remains of othe buildings associated with the staging post. A museum displays finds discovered on the site.
Watling Street,
Wall,
Lichfield,
Staffordshire,
England,
WS14 0AW
Walltown Crags is perhaps the most scenic place to view Hadrian's Wall. The Wall twsts and winds its way along the slopes of Whin Sill, creating a dramatic view at every turn. The countryside is superb, and the Wall well preserved for much of this area.
Greenhead,
Northumberland,
England
A small section of Roman wall survives on the slope below Lancaster Castle. The wall is near the rear of Mitre House and is thought to have been part of the last Roman fort on the site, erected some time in the 4th century, probably around 330 AD. What we see today is the core of the wall, as all the facing stones have disappeared.
Off St Georges Quay,
Lancaster,
Lancashire,
England,
LA1 1YZ
Attraction Type:
Roman Heritage Rating:? Location: On the east slope of Castle Hill near the rear of Mitre House
Extensive remains of a road which is generally thought to be Roman, though some authorities believe it to be either Saxon or, possibly, pre-Roman. Reached by a path across a field. The road is composed of very large slabs making up a lightly rounded surface, with no evidence of gutters. It is possible that the road was built to ease troop movements to the coast. Local legend tells that it was built by the giant Wade so that his wife could take her sheep to their pasture more easily.
Pickering,
Yorkshire,
Yorkshire,
England
A very well preserved section of Hadrian's Wall, located a short distance west of Birdoswald Roman Fort. The Willowford section of the Wall stretches 2999 feet in length, and includes the remains of two turrets and a Roman bridge used to carry Hadrian's Wall over the River Irthing.
Gilsland,
Cumbria,
England
Remains of a Roman bridge that used to carry traffic across the River Irthing. The bridge is now completely on dry land, and a modern footbridge takes walkers across the river and along an extremely well-preserved section of Hadrian's Wall to the Birdoswald Roman Fort a short distance away.
Gilsland,
Cumbria,
England
The highest point along Hadrian's Wall, as the wall climbs and descends the slopes of Winshields Crag. The views over the surrounding area are superb. The Wall averages 1 metre high along this stretch, and 2.2 metres wide.
Twice Brewed,
Northumberland,
England
The 1st century Roman city of Viroconium Cornoviorum, complete with bath and forum. Wroxeter was the fourth largest city in Roman Britain, and this importance is reflected in the remains of the city. The site was lost for centuries before it was rediscovered in the Victorian period. Such was the public interest in the subsequent excavation of Wroexter that the landowner donated the site to the public, making it one of the very first archaeological sites in Britain to become a tourist attraction regularly open to visitors.
Temple - 0.1 miles (straight line) - Zone: 1
