Chew Green is the site of the ancient
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
encampment, commonly but erroneously called Ad Fines (Latin: The Limits) on the 1885-1900 edition of the Ordnance Survey map, in
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, north of
Rochester
Rochester may refer to:
Places Australia
* Rochester, Victoria
Canada
* Rochester, Alberta
United Kingdom
*Rochester, Kent
** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area
** History of Rochester, Kent
** HM Prison ...
and west of
Alwinton
Alwinton (previously named "Allenton" and sometimes still referred to as this) is a village and former parish in Northumberland, England. Alwinton is named after the nearby River Alwin, and means farm on the River Alwin.
Alwinton lies at the he ...
. The encampment was adjacent to
Dere Street
Dere Street or Deere Street is a modern designation of a Roman road which ran north from Eboracum (York), crossing the Stanegate at Corbridge (Hadrian's Wall was crossed at the Portgate, just to the north) and continuing beyond into what is n ...
, a Roman road that stretched south to
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
(
Eboracum
Eboracum () was a fort and later a city in the Roman province of Britannia. In its prime it was the largest town in northern Britain and a provincial capital. The site remained occupied after the decline of the Western Roman Empire and ultimate ...
), and almost on the present-day border with
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
.
Archaeological excavation at Chew Green has uncovered a complex of Roman military camps consisting of a Roman fort, two
fortlets, two camps and a section of Roman road. The Roman remains were overlaid with evidence of the medieval settlement of Kemylpethe that included a small chapel, although the evidence for this latter is based on reports of an undocumented excavation in the 1880s and must be regarded as insubstantial. The largest camp structure is a square that encloses about with a defensive rampart and ditch. Evidence inside the fort indicates it was used as permanent settlement. The encampment likely served only as a military base, not a colonial settlement.
[Stuart, R. (1845). ''Caledonia Romana: A Descriptive Account of the Roman Antiquities of Scotland''. London, UK: Bell and Bradfute.]
The site is within the
Northumberland National Park
Northumberland National Park is the northernmost national park in England. It covers an area of more than between the Scottish border in the north to just south of Hadrian's Wall, and it is one of least visited of the National Parks. The park ...
and within the Military Training Area at
Otterburn.
See also
*
Bremenium
Bremenium is an ancient Roman fort (castrum) located at Rochester, Northumberland, England. The fort is one of the defensive structures built along Dere Street, a Roman road running from York to Corbridge and onwards to Melrose. Significa ...
*
Featherwood Roman Camps
Featherwood Roman Camps are neighbouring archaeological sites in Northumberland, England, north of Featherwood and about east of Byrness. The remains of two Roman camps, near Dere Street, are scheduled monuments.
Description
The two camps, abo ...
*
Quintus Lollius Urbicus
Quintus Lollius Urbicus was a Numidian Berber governor of Roman Britain between the years 139 and 142, during the reign of the Emperor Antoninus Pius. He is named in the ''Historia Augusta'', although it is not entirely historical, and his name ...
*
History of Northumberland
Northumberland, England's northernmost county, is a land where Roman occupiers once guarded a walled frontier, Anglian invaders fought with Celtic natives, and Norman lords built castles to suppress rebellion and defend a contested border with ...
*
Barrow Burn
*
Windy Gyle
Windy Gyle is a mountain in the Cheviot Hills range, on Anglo-Scottish border, the border between England and Scotland. Like the other hills in the area, it is rounded and grass-covered. It is the highest summit on the border, although not the hi ...
External links
Roman BritainKeys to the PastNorthumberland National Park
References
{{reflist
Roman fortifications in England
Roman sites in Northumberland
Former populated places in Northumberland
Anglo-Scottish border
Roman fortified camps in England
Alwinton
Rochester, Northumberland