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| The site of Housesteads Roman Fort and Museum |
Due to its remote location,
Housesteads, originally called Vercovicium, is the most well-preserved Roman Fort on Hadrian's Wall. It sits high on a hill on a break in the
Whin Sill ridge near the very center of
the wall (
Castle Black, anyone?). Like all other Roman forts, this one was based on a standard design used throughout the Roman empire and included a barracks, granary, hospital, the commander's house, and the fort headquarters. This particular fort has the best preserved Roman latrines in all of Britain that still "flush" as designed. While all Roman forts had a decidedly Mediterranean style with central courtyards open to the sky, they made accommodations for the cool climate by designing radiant heating in the floors. Amazing! By the way, the 6-minute video housed in the small museum adjacent to the site is a must. It does a great job of succinctly describing how the fort was used and what it would have looked like when it was occupied by 800 Roman soldiers during it's heyday.
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| The bases of columns are visible |
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| The headquarters building in foreground with a view of the Northumbrian countryside in the background |
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| Barracks once lined this avenue |
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| Showing the design of radiant heated Roman floors. |
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| The Roman latrine - wood bench seats would have lined the walls |
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