Housesteads Roman Fort - Haltwhistle, Cumberland (EH)
Housesteads (Vercovicium, the 'place of able fighters') is found a steep 15 minute walk from the B6318 some 5 miles west of Carrawburgh. It covers an area of 5-acres and takes up a commanding position on the ridge overlooking low-lying land to the north and south and connected to Hadrians Wall between Chesters and Cawfields milecastle.
Terraces are visible below the fort. These are the remains of cultivation terraces, used by the fort and the civilian settlement (vicus), taking advantage of the south facing slope. Some of the vicus buildings are exposed south of the fort and uneven ridges to the south and west show where some buildings still remain buried. Such settlements lay outside almost every long-tem fort in the Roman Empire. These settlements normally develop south of the Vallum, outside the military zone, and later appear to be allowed to encroach the fort.
Headquarters Building
Visible in the picture above are the headquarters building in the centre, the granaries on the left and just in shot on the right, the hospital. This follows the standard Roman military pattern. The headquarters building faces east with an entrance probably decorated with reliefs of Mars and Victory. Within was a forecourt with covered porticoes on three sides and the cross-hall on the fourth. The figure of Mars survives (this can be seen in the museum at Chesters Fort), and the Victory may have been the one standing on a globe now at Newcastle.
Looking East along Hadrians Wall
At the end of the Roman occupation, Housesteads is believed to have been used by brigands and cattle thieves. Its well-preserved ramparts were ideally suited as their base. One historical writer, William Camden (1551-1623), in the seventeenth century abandoned attempts to take measurements of Housesteads for fear of the 'rank robbers thereabouts'.