More information : NZ 159 468. Remains of (NAT) ROMAN STATION (R).
NZ 1591 4691. Remains of (NAT) HYPOCAUST (R). (1)
NZ 15 46. LONGOVICIVM (Lanchester) Roman Fort.
Roman Fort at Lanchester. A stone built rectangular fort, formerly with four gateways and interval towers, covering an area of c 5 1/2 acres. Steer quoting Machlaughlan and other authorities described traces of a surrounding double ditch and internal buildings, including a hypocaust, principa, praetorium, bath house and barrack-building. MacLauchlan also mentioned faint traces of entrenchment immediately outside the fort on the S and W sides which Steer interpreted as a temporary camp and vicus. Four pre Claudian coins (AD 41-45) from the fort indicated possible pre-Flavian or even pre-Roman settlement (3-3a) although excavation by Steer in 1937 revealed no evidence of 1st century occupation. The earliest fort on the site seems to belong to the Hadrianic period (117-138) and was probably destroyed in the later 2nd century. Re-occupation and reconstruction of the fort is known in the reign of Gordian (238-284) with further occupation in the first half of the 4th century (4).
Pevsner says that the fort was in use until the end of the 4th century (5).
The walls of the Fort are practically continuous, except for part of the N side, with a maximum external height of 2 m and c 1.5 m thick. The gateways are represented by gaps in the wall, although foundations of the wall continue across these gaps. There are no traces of gate towers and interval towers.
Traces of a double ditch on the W and S sides are visible; the inner ditch on the W side being 0.7 m deep. Between the inner ditch and the wall is a berm c 3 m wide. No sign of ditch or ditches on the N and E sides.
The only remains of internal buildings is a fragment of wall, 1.2 m high, in a small depression. There is no evidence of a hypocaust, but the shape of the remains indicate that it may be part of the bath-house. There are no visible remains of the temporary camp and vicus to the SW. The fort is in fair condition and the whole area is under pasture.
Surveyed at 1:2500. (6)
As described. Published survey (25") revised. (7)
The revised vicus is situated north and south of the fort, along the line of Dere Street. Recent ploughing of the field at the south-east corner of the vicus disturbed extensive areas of stones and cobbles.
(8)
Name `Longovicivm' accepted for 4th edition Roman Britain Map.
NZ 159 469. Longovicium Roman fort. Scheduled.
NZ 161 465. Longovicium Roman fort-the additional vicus area.
Scheduled. (9) (10)
Excavation was undertaken to uncover building lines in the vicus after ploughing in the winter 1975 uncovered a number of stone features. A building was found some 50 m east of the south-east angle turret. It was 5 m wide internally, of indeterminate length and built with well dressed ashlar blocks. The slab floor was covered in places by a number of broken sandstone roof slabs and numerous iron nails and boot studs. It would seem that the building had been used as a workshop area or local `Cobbler's Shop'. Pottery evidence ranged from 2nd century to 4th century A.D.
(11)
Longovicium, identified as the Roman fort at Lanchester. (12)
Existing survey revised by RCHME during a project on scheduled monuments in County Durham.
The Roman fort of Longovicium, situated in permanent pasture on a ridge, is rectangular, measuring internally 164 m ENE-WSW by 140 m transversely (2.3 hectares). The outside wall face appears to have been systematically robbed and nothing is visible of it, but the stone core survives around the south, east and west and part of the north side to a maximum external height of 3 m. The remainder of the north side survives as an outward-facing scarp. The fort interior is generally flush with the top of the core material; towards the south end of the east wall, the footings of the inner face are exposed for a short distance. The position of the four gates is marked by a lowering in the defensive line, those in the east and west being central to their sides, and those to the north and south offset to the east. The fort therefore faced east towards Dere Street which ran roughly parallel to the east defences a short distance away. Traces of a ditch (apparently double at the south-west corner) can be seen as an outward facing scarp along part of the north side,and also in the west where it is 0.5 m deep. The only exposed structure in the interior is an L-shaped wall face, up to 0.5 m high, visible in the sides of a stone-filled hole. Much of the scheduled area around the fort is regularly ploughed and bore a crop of winter wheat at the time of visit. Within the fields still in permanent pasture, there is much evidence of ridge-and- furrow. In field no. 0008 to the north of the fort are three parallel lynchets, up to 1.1 m high, which may represent the only surviving surface remains of the vicus, visible on air photograph (13a). (13)
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