The Roman Fortress at Longthorpe

Abstract

The Roman military site at Longthorpe, west of Peterborough, was discovered by observation from the air in 1961: no traces now remain on the surface. Excavations between IQ6J and 1973 have shown that a 27-acre fortress with timber buildings, accommodating a legionary vexillation together with auxiliary troops, was succeeded by an 1 i-acrefort. The period of occupation extended from c. 44/8 to c. 62. Crop marks observed from the air at Orton Stanch, 400 m. southeast of the fortress, have led to the discovery of a native farmstead. Excavations there by Messrs. A. Challands, G. B. Dannell and Dr. J. P. Wild have shown that agricultural activities were intermitted for the period of the occupation of the fortress, the settlement being replaced by a large industrial establishment or worksdepot involved in pottery manufacture and possibly in bronze-working with clear military connections. The present report describes the excavation of the fortress : the industrial site is to be published in a future volume of Britannia. Communications (FIG. I) The fortress is situated c. 2-8 miles (4-5 km) east of the junction of the early Roman military roads now known as Ermine Street and King Street in the parish of Ailsworth, north of the Nene, but itself lies on no known Roman road. It may however be significant that an alignment of Ermine Street further south near Norman Cross, if projected northwards, would approach the neighbourhood of the fortress via a comparatively straight parish boundary on the east side of Orton Waterville. The surviving traces of Margary's road 25, running southeast from King Street in Upton parish to the Fen Causeway has an alignment in the north part of Castor parish which if projected would pass close to the north of the fortress: 5 this road, however, or at least its eastern extension, the Fen Causeway, leading to Icenian territory, is likely to have been constructed after the period of the fortress's occupation. 6 Certainly the fortress must have been served by roads during its brief occupation of some 20 years, but the absence of clear traces of them suggests that consolidation of the road-system took place later. The River Nene, which flows past the site, is navigable to light traffic. Geographical and historical setting Excavation has suggested that the site was occupied from soon after A.D. 43 (and perhaps in 48) to c. 61 or 62. Considered in relation to the military history of this period, the fortress appears to have a dual role. First the Fosse Way, only some 34 miles distant at the nearest point in the neighbourhood of Leicester, could be reached by easy routes, so that Longthorpe is well placed to reinforce the early frontier (FIG. 3); secondly, it could control traffic between the Iceni and their northwestern neighbours and could also supervise the region west of the Fens, where the expanded frontier of the Catuvellauni marched with that of the Coritani. After 49, which saw the foundation of the colonia at Camulodunum, 70 miles to the southeast , and the transfer of Legion XX to the borders...

Exhibits at Ballots

“…Two discs almost identical to the Oulton die in size and design, and still attached to their fragmentary iron armour plates, were found with other 63 Further examples include those from Longthorpe, Aislingen and Chester. 64 Roman dies are not common, and I am aware of no direct parallel to the present object. Coin dies provide the most obvious general parallel, and the example from Verulamium has already been cited.…”

Britons and Romans at Chatteris: Investigations at Langwood Farm, Cambridgeshire

“…137 It is conceivable that a military camp -thoroughly backfilled and 'closed' upon the departure of the army -lies somewhere undetected within Langwood's environs. 138 This being said, the distribution of the Claudio-Neronian coinage focuses in the east-central half of the grid and largely coincides with the main trench exposures, where there was no direct evidence of a military presence.…”

Improving our understanding of Londinium

“…. is widely used in Celtic place-names (see Rivet & Smith 1979 who list nine known places in Britain), while the name Durobriuae was used for two settlements in Britain, the other being Water Newton near Peterborough, a site which, unlike Rochester, has sound evidence for a fort (at Longthorpe) in occupation at about this date (Frere & St Joseph 1974: 38–39). Similarly, the tentative identification of Viroconium (Wroxeter) in tablet WT23 is of note as there was also a fort in occupation here at this date (White & Barker 1998: 32–50).…”