The Archaeology of Britain: An introduction from ... - waughfamily.ca

• 140 • W.S.Hanson
eventually settling down in
permanent fortresses at York,
Caerleon and Chester. The bulk of
the military garrison, however, was
made up of auxiliary troops,
including cavalry, sub-divided into
units approximately 500 or 1,000
strong. These were non-citizen
soldiers, recruited from the
provinces of the Empire, who
formed the main front-line and
garrison troops. They were housed
in forts that varied in size
considerably from 0.8 to 4 ha in
internal area (Figure 8.5). Three
examples (Elginhaugh, Housesteads
and Vindolanda) are described
below. Indeed, there is still much
debate about the relationship
between auxiliary fort sizes and the
different types of unit known,
particularly in relation to the
housing of cavalry horses inside or
outside the fort. What is becoming
increasingly clear, however, is that
there is no simple correlation
between auxiliary unit and fort, with
units being split between different
forts and/or different units
occupying the same fort. The
division of units is further attested
Figure 8.3 Distribution of first-century AD Roman forts in Britain (NB not
by the frequency of use of much
all sites were occupied contemporaneously).
smaller installations, known as
‘fortlets’, usually less than 0.4 ha in
internal area (e.g. Barburgh Mill
below and Figure 8.6a). The distinction between a large fortlet and a very small fort can be
difficult, but the former generally lacks any central administrative buildings.
The smallest permanent installations are watchtowers (Figure 8.6b). Though individual examples
do occur, they are usually associated with frontiers and are best known along Hadrian’s Wall (the
so-called ‘turrets’) and the Gask frontier in Perthshire, as at Westerton, described below. They are
not infrequently described as signal stations, though whether or not they were used to relay
signals is much debated. Some capacity to pass on any information gained from look-outs would
seem essential, without necessarily implying the existence of a system for relaying complex
messages (Southern 1990).
Roman military architecture was remarkably consistent for long periods of time. However,
some major changes become apparent from the late third century. New forts constructed at
coastal locations around the south-east coast of England and in north and south Wales put
greater emphasis on defence. They are provided with massive stone walls and projecting bastions