Hill forts · Scottish Lowlands
Aesica
Aesica — Roman fort, archaeological site in Northumberland, England, UK.
Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 1 h–2 h
- Nearest railway station
- Haltwhistle · 2.8 km
- Free entry
- Dog-friendly
About
Aesica is a hill fort in the United Kingdom. It covers approximately 49 km². Heritage designation: scheduled monument. Part of Hadrian's Wall. Wikidata describes it as: "Roman fort, archaeological site in Northumberland, England, UK". Coordinates: 54.9935°, -2.4656°.
Photo gallery
Protected designations
- Site of Special Scientific Interest: River Eden and Tributaries SSSI
Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.
From the Wikipedia article
Aesica (modern name Great Chesters) was a Roman fort, 1.5 miles (2,400 m) north of the small town of Haltwhistle in Northumberland. It was the ninth fort on Hadrian's Wall, between Vercovicium (Housesteads) 6.0 miles (9.7 km) to the east and Banna (Birdoswald) 6.5 miles (10.5 km) to the west. Its main purpose was to guard the Caw Gap where the Haltwhistle Burn crosses the Wall.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
Description
It is believed that the fort was completed in the year 128 AD, later than most of the wall forts as it was an afterthought to the original plan in which Milecastle 43 was built where the later north-west corner of the fort was constructed, and had to be demolished. The fort was rectangular in plan with towers at each corner and measuring 355 ft north to south by 419 ft east to west, occupying a comparatively small area of 3 acre. The fort had three main gates; south, east and west, with double portals with towers. At some time the west gate was completely blocked up. Remarkably there are "broad wall" foundations of Hadrian's Wall a few metres north of the later proper "narrow gauge" wall…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 54.9935, -2.4656
- District
- Northumberland
- Parish
- Greenhead
- Postcode
- NE49 9NF
- Parliamentary constituency
- Hexham
- Nearest railway station
- Haltwhistle — 2.8 km
Sources
- wikidata: Q4688554 (CC0)
- wikipedia: Aesica (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- commons: Aesica Roman Fort - geograph.org.uk - 251498.jpg (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Aesica?
- Aesica is in the Scottish Lowlands, United Kingdom (postcode NE49 9NF), in the parish of Greenhead.
- Is Aesica a listed building?
- Aesica is officially recognised as scheduled monument listed.
- Is Aesica a protected site?
- Yes — Aesica is part of the River Eden and Tributaries SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest.
- Is Aesica free to visit?
- Yes, Aesica is free to enter.
- How do I get to Aesica?
- The nearest railway station is Haltwhistle, about 2.8 km away. Drivers can navigate to postcode NE49 9NF.