Roman Fort Ruins and Remains (Drone Footage)

This Drone Footage Video captures the remains and ruins of the Hardknott Roman Fort in the Lake District. In Roman Records, this fort has been called Mediobogdum.

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To get to the roman fort you would of travelled along the route of an ancient Roman Road. This road extends from a coastal fort at Ravenglass running up the Eskdale valley to this very fort. Beyond this fort it continues over the Hardknott and Wrynose passes towards other forts at Ambleside and Kendal. This specific fort on the flanks of Hardknott Pass and with commanding views does Eskdale, would have provided a base for Roman troops policing the potentially hostile native population living in the valleys and on the lower fells.

Built early in the Second Century AD during the reign of Emperor Hadrian, the fort seems to have been initially occupied only briefly and was probably re-occupied later in the Second Century. It housed an infantry unit (a Cohort) of 500 men who we know to have been the fourth Cohort of Dalmatians. This may be the fort called Mediobogdum in surviving Roman Records.

After many extensive archaeological excavations in the late 19th century and consolidation and further excavations in the 1950s and 60s. These digs revealed the remains of the Fort's defenses and gateways and parts of the internal building arrangements including as seen in this video, Commanding Officers House, The Headquarters and The Granaries. In this video you can also see the remains of a bathhouse that would have been one of the limited ways and opportunities they would have had for leisure because of the remote location. Beyond the fort, upslope lies the parade ground, a rare thing to survive from this period and was evidence that strict military discipline governed the lives of the troops.

The Horrea (The Granaries) are common in forts and were used to store grain which was the main nutrition in the troops diet. It is said that they did also store things such as meat, vegetables, fruit, and beer here. You can see in this fort there are two granaries which both were assessed via the Principalis. These buildings were long with thick outer walls, heavily buttressed to support the weight off its heavy slate roofs. The Grain was likely to be kept in Sacks or bins with the floor having raised wooden floors.

Principia (The Headquarters) was the most important building within the fort and occupied a central position at the junction of two main roads, hence why there are gates on all sides of the fort. It would have been where the Commanding Officer gave their orders for the day and officiated ceremonial and official occasions. The building had a hall and three rooms with the outer two from the North West being pay and record offices.

The Praetorium (Commanding Officer's House) was designed to show authority and show that the commanding officer was from the upper levels of society. Some officers were accompanied on duty by their families and all would have been expected to accommodate visiting officials. To reflect the officers' status and circumstances a higher quality spacious housing is necessary. The soldiers would have had basic living conditions in timber barracks elsewhere within the fort. The house was large and single-storied, with rooms arranged around a central private courtyard, a design based on Roman townhouses. In the video, you can only see one range of rooms and the outer wall of a second survived.

Equipment Used: DJI Phantom 3 Advanced
Editing Software: Final Cut Pro X
Music: 'Reaching For The Sky' by Lerome
Assess Link: https://www.looperman.com/tracks/detail/101902

Location: Hardknott Pass, Eskdale CA19 1TH

Enjoy! :)

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