Ardotalia (also known as Melandra, or Melandra Castle) is a Roman

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

Gamesley Gamesley is a residential area within the Borough of High Peak in Derbyshire, England, west of Glossop and close to the River Etherow which forms the boundary with Tameside in Greater Manchester. Gamesley is a ward of the High Peak Borough ...

, near Glossop in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

, England. Ardotalia 5574

Ardotalia was constructed by Cohors Primae Frisiavonum—The First Cohort of Frisiavones.Roman-Britain.co.uk
/ref> Evidence for the existence of this unit exists not only from the building stone found at the site but also from various diplomas and other Roman writings. This unit would have had around a thousand men, including the specialist craftsmen needed to perform the skilled work of building the fort. This unit was assisted in constructing the fort by the 3rd Cohort of Bracara Augustani. These men were probably Iberian Celts from the colony of

Braga Braga ( , ; cel-x-proto, Bracara) is a city and a municipality, capital of the northwestern Portuguese district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality has a resident population of 193,333 inhabitants (in ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, who seem to have been attached to the XX Legion Valeria Victrix in Chester. Whilst it is unknown which of these Cohorts manned the fort, it seems more likely that the 3rd Cohort of Bracara Augustani performed this duty, as they were from a hilly region and so were more experienced in holding terrain such as that found around Glossop. The Frisiavones were from low-lying lands beyond the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

and so may have been divided between the lower terrain of

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

and Northwich. The First Cohort of Frisiavones were also present at Brocolitia, one of Hadrian's wall forts and settlements, at Carrawburgh,

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 ...

. Evidence for this relies on an inscription on an altar stone, which tells us that Optio Maus (an NCO within the Cohort) had repaid a vow to the goddess Coventina. Whether this altar was the repayment of the vow is unknown. The name Melandra is of unknown origin but may have been originated by the John Watson, Rector of Stockport, who visited the site c. 1771 when substantial stone remains existed. The name Ardotalia is a hypothetical emendation of Zerdotalia written in the

Ravenna Cosmography The ''Ravenna Cosmography'' ( la, Ravennatis Anonymi Cosmographia, "The Cosmography of the Unknown Ravennese") is a list of place-names covering the world from India to Ireland, compiled by an anonymous cleric in Ravenna around 700 AD. Textu ...

. The site is a

Scheduled Ancient 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 ...

. , it is on the Heritage at Risk Register, its condition described as " nerally unsatisfactory with major localised problems".

Doctor's Gate Doctor's Gate is a Roman road in the Derbyshire Peak District of England, which ran between Melandra fort at Glossop and Navio fort at Brough-on-Noe. Doctor's Gate was recorded in 1627 as "Docto Talbotes Gate", named after Dr John Talbot who i ...

Roman road ran between Ardotalia fort and Navio fort at

Brough-on-Noe Brough and Shatton is a civil parish in Hope Valley in the High Peak district of Derbyshire, England. It is named for the two hamlets of Brough-on-Noe and Shatton. Brough is about 2 km, or just over 1 mile, west (upstream) of Shatton; bo ...

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * {{Derbyshire Places of interest History of Derbyshire Roman fortifications in England Archaeological sites in Derbyshire Scheduled monuments in Derbyshire Roman sites in Derbyshire