Hardknott Roman Fort

A horrible drive up to the fort but well worth it!

About the fort:

The fort at Hardknott was established early in the second century AD: a fragmentary inscription, dating from the reign of the Emperor Hadrian (117–38), from the south gate records the garrison as the Fourth Cohort of Dalmatians, from the Balkans. The fort was demilitarised in the late 130s, when the Romans reoccupied southern Scotland, but was regarrisoned under Marcus Aurelius in the 160s; it was finally abandoned very early in the third century. Objects found around the fort suggest that thereafter its ruins offered temporary shelter to passing patrols and travellers.

About the fort:

Barracks normally occupied the remainder of the fort; at Hardknott, however, no traces of these remain, although the front of the fort possibly contained barracks of stone and timber. At the rear, building would have been extremely difficult owing to the uneven ground, and the soldiers may have been housed in leather tents, remnants of which have been recovered in excavations. The parade-ground, where the garrison exercised and practised drill manoeuvres, lies on a plateau about 218 yards (200 metres) to the east.

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