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Ilkley Roman Fort is a
- ''The Romans in West Yorkshire'' - West Yorkshire Archaeology Advisory Service
The first fort at Ilkley was founded by
/ref> but this was later abandoned in the 120s. A second fort was erected around 161 AD which survived for 30 years, before being burnt down, perhaps during a documented rebellion by the inhabitants of northern Britain. It was immediately replaced by a stone fort which survived until the end of the Roman period. The fort was abandoned in the late 4th or early 5th century. A substantial civil settlement, the ''
- All Saints Parish Church
/ref> Around the area are four signs showing the edges of the walls of the fort.
/ref> The area of the fort extends underneath the Manor House and nearby All Saints Parish Church. The church has a collection of Roman altars and Anglo-Saxon crosses.History of the Building
- All Saints Parish Church The Roman altars date to the reigns of
The History of Wharfedale
', Otley: William Walker, pp.72–5
- ''The Romans in West Yorkshire'' - West Yorkshire Archaeology Advisory Service Roman fortifications in England Military history of Yorkshire Ilkley Scheduled monuments in West Yorkshire
Roman fort
In the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, the Latin word ''castrum'', plural ''castra'', was a military-related term.
In Latin usage, the singular form ''castrum'' meant 'fort', while the plural form ''castra'' meant 'camp'. The singular and ...
on the south bank of the River Wharfe
The River Wharfe ( ) is a river in Yorkshire, England originating within the Yorkshire Dales National Park. For much of its middle course it is the county boundary between West Yorkshire and North Yorkshire. Its valley is known as Wharfedale.
...
, at the centre of the modern town of Ilkley
Ilkley is a spa town and civil parish in the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, in Northern England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Ilkley civil parish includes the adjacent village of Ben Rhydding and is a ward within the ...
, a Victorian spa town
A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits.
Thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath in 1668. H ...
in West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
, 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 ...
.
Identification
The traditional view is that ''Olicana'' is the fort at Ilkley, but the identification is not settled.ILKLEY- ''The Romans in West Yorkshire'' - West Yorkshire Archaeology Advisory Service
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
mentions ''Olikana'' in his ''Geographia
The ''Geography'' ( grc-gre, Γεωγραφικὴ Ὑφήγησις, ''Geōgraphikḕ Hyphḗgēsis'', "Geographical Guidance"), also known by its Latin names as the ' and the ', is a gazetteer, an atlas, and a treatise on cartography, com ...
'' (c. 150), although Rivet and Smith give ''Olenacum'' as the proper form of the name, rejecting Ptolemy's ''Olikana'' as corrupt. The 1086 Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
gives ''Ilecliue'' also variants ''Illecliue'', ''Illiclei'' and ''Illicleia'' for Ilkley. Modern scholarship has, however, suggested that the Roman name would be better applied to the fort at Elslack
Elslack is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England, close to the border with Lancashire and 4 miles west of Skipton. Thornton in Craven is nearby. The Tempest Arms is a large pub in the village, sited by th ...
(''Eleslac'' in Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
) near Skipton
Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Air ...
.
Rivet and Smith suggest the name ''Verbeia'' instead, this being the Roman name for the River Wharfe. An altar-stone dedicated to the goddess Verbeia
In ancient Celtic polytheism, Verbeia was a goddess worshipped in Roman Britain. She is known from a single altar-stone dedicated to her at IlkleyRIB 635. She is considered to have been a deification of the River Wharfe.
An image of a woman (also ...
is thought to originate from the site.
History
The first fort at Ilkley was founded by 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 mid ...
around 80 AD and was largely constructed of wood,Ilkley history before the Victorians/ref> but this was later abandoned in the 120s. A second fort was erected around 161 AD which survived for 30 years, before being burnt down, perhaps during a documented rebellion by the inhabitants of northern Britain. It was immediately replaced by a stone fort which survived until the end of the Roman period. The fort was abandoned in the late 4th or early 5th century. A substantial civil settlement, the ''
vicus
In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (plural ) designated a village within a rural area () or the neighbourhood of a larger settlement. During the Republican era, the four of the city of Rome were subdivided into . In the 1st century BC, Augustus r ...
'', formed the nucleus of the village that followed. Excavations have yet to reveal continuous habitation from Roman times, but it is quite likely that a village established itself within the ramparts of the fort following the Roman departure.History of the Church- All Saints Parish Church
Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
settlement probably did not take place until well into the seventh century, and the sculptured crosses are evidence of a church here in the eighth and ninth centuries.
The site today
A wall, once part of the fort, can still be seen near the town's Manor House Museum. Ilkley Manor House website/ref> Around the area are four signs showing the edges of the walls of the fort.
/ref> The area of the fort extends underneath the Manor House and nearby All Saints Parish Church. The church has a collection of Roman altars and Anglo-Saxon crosses.History of the Building
- All Saints Parish Church The Roman altars date to the reigns of
Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius (Latin: ''Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Pius''; 19 September 86 – 7 March 161) was Roman emperor from 138 to 161. He was the fourth of the Five Good Emperors from the Nerva–Antonine dynasty.
Born into a senatoria ...
(138 to 161), and Septimius Severus
Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa (Roman province), Africa. As a young man he advanced thro ...
and his son Caracalla
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor S ...
(211 to 217).Shaw, Thomas (1830). The History of Wharfedale
', Otley: William Walker, pp.72–5
References
External links
* * *{{PastScape, mnumber=49938 , mname=VERBEIA ROMAN FORT- ''The Romans in West Yorkshire'' - West Yorkshire Archaeology Advisory Service Roman fortifications in England Military history of Yorkshire Ilkley Scheduled monuments in West Yorkshire