Ardoch Roman Fort is an archaeological site just outside the village of Braco in Perthshire,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

, about south of

Crieff Crieff (; gd, Craoibh, meaning "tree") is a Scottish market town in Perth and Kinross on the A85 road between Perth and Crianlarich, and the A822 between Greenloaning and Aberfeldy. The A822 joins the A823 to Dunfermline. Crieff has becom ...

. At Ardoch are the remains of a Roman fort and several marching camps which included a signal tower. Part of the Roman

Gask Ridge The Gask Ridge is the modern name given to an early series of fortifications, built by the Romans in Scotland, close to the Highland Line. Modern excavation and interpretation has been pioneered by the Roman Gask Project, with Birgitta Hoffmann ...

, it is said to be one of the most complete Roman camps in Britain, and is one of the best-preserved series of Roman military earthworks in the whole Empire. It is protected as a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

Description

The remains consist of grass-covered earthworks, and are considered among the best preserved Roman earthworks in Britain.David John Breeze, (2002), ''Roman Forts in Britain'', page 60. The site, which has a complex history, comprises two intersecting forts. The earliest fort is believed to be associated with the campaigns of

Agricola Agricola, the Latin word for farmer, may also refer to: People Cognomen or given name :''In chronological order'' * Gnaeus Julius Agricola (40–93), Roman governor of Britannia (AD 77–85) * Sextus Calpurnius Agricola, Roman governor of the mi ...

(1st century). The later fort was apparently reconstructed within two outer ditches so that this later fort was protected by five ditches on both the east and north sides. The field to the north is the remnant of a large annexe.David E. Johnston, (2002), ''Discovering Roman Britain'', page 144. Osprey. Archaeology has demonstrated the existence of a watch-tower (or signal tower) and at least six overlapping marching camps to the north and northeast. Ardoch was one of a chain of camps separated by one-day marches in a generally north–south direction. Other Roman camps in this chain include Strageath,

Inchtuthil Inchtuthil is the site of a Roman legionary fortress situated on a natural platform overlooking the north bank of the River Tay southwest of Blairgowrie, Perth and Kinross, Scotland (Roman Caledonia). It was built in AD 82 or 83 as the advance ...

Battledykes Battledykes is a Roman camp slightly to the north of Forfar, Scotland. According to Hector Boece, Pictish chiefs met at a castle by Forfar Loch to plan how to repel the Roman armies, who invaded several times between the 1st and 4th centuries ...

, Stracathro,

Raedykes Raedykes is the site of a Roman marching camp located just over northwest of Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. National Grid Reference NO 842902. It is designated as a scheduled monument. A marching camp was a temporary camp used mainly for ...

and thence taking the

Elsick Mounth The Elsick Mounth is an ancient trackway crossing the Grampian Mountains in the vicinity of Netherley, Scotland. This trackway was one of the few means of traversing the Grampian Mounth area in prehistoric and medieval times. The highest pass ...

trackway to

Normandykes Normandykes (Grid Reference: NO 830994) is the site of a Roman marching camp to the southwest of Peterculter, City of Aberdeen, Scotland. The near-rectangular site, measuring approximately , covers about of the summit and eastern slopes of a hil ...

Name

The fort has sometimes been identified with the "Alauna" mentioned in Ptolemy's ''Geography''. Ptolemy placed Alauna in the area occupied by the

Damnonii The Damnonii (also referred to as Damnii) were a Brittonic people of the late 2nd century who lived in what became the Kingdom of Strathclyde by the Early Middle Ages, and is now southern Scotland. They are mentioned briefly in Ptolemy's ''Geo ...

tribe, and the name may be associated with the River Allan which flows about to the south of the fort. However the identification of Ardoch with Alauna is considered tentative.Michael Grant, (1986), ''A Guide to the Ancient World: A Dictionary of Classical Place Names'', page 19. H.W. Wilson.

Later history

The site was reused in the medieval period when a

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

was built near the centre of the fort.L. J. F. Keppie (2004), ''The legacy of Rome: Scotland's Roman remains'', page 163. John Donald. The remains of the graveyard enclosure and the site of the chapel are the only archaeological remains which are visible within the fort. A hoard of Roman

silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...

coins was found north of Ardoch in 1671. At that time, Lord Drummond wrote that the ditches were deep enough to hide a man on horseback. Other trenches to the northeast had been damaged by cultivation against his grandfather's orders. In 1726

Alexander Gordon Alexander Gordon may refer to: * Alexander Gordon, 1st Earl of Huntly (died 1470), Scottish magnate * Alexander Gordon (bishop of Aberdeen) (died 1518), Precentor of Moray and Bishop-elect of Aberdeen * Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly (died ...

claimed that at Ardoch Roman Fort a subterranean passage was said to run from the fort, under the River Tay to the fort or 'Keir' on Grinnin Hill. This tunnel was said to contain a great deal of treasure. Ardoch was visited by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

and Prince Albert in 1842, although only Albert investigated the earthworks, Victoria preferred to remain in their carriage.

Ownership and access

Ardoch Roman Fort is part of the Ardoch estate, and is in private ownership, although access is allowed at reasonable times. To the north, the earthwork remains of two Roman marching camps, known as Black Hill Roman Camps, are in the care of

Historic Environment Scotland Historic Environment Scotland (HES) ( gd, Àrainneachd Eachdraidheil Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the mer ...

References

External links