Housesteads Roman Fort in North East England
Lying midway on Hadrian's Wall atop a steep escarpment of the Great Whin Sill , Housesteads Roman Fort once played a vital role in defending the Roman province of Britannia from attack along the northern border of their empire. One of the best excavated and preserved Roman forts in Britain, the fort is well worth a visit if you’re interested in the history of the Roman army and their way of life. If, by chance, you really couldn't give two hoots about the Roman army and their history, Housesteads is still well worth a visit as it's located in one of the most dramatic spots in Northumberland! Hadrian's Wall , also known as the Roman Wall, Picts' Wall, or Vallum Hadriani in Latin, is a former 73-mile (80 Roman miles) long defensive fortification that ran east to west across northern England from the Solway Firth to the River Tyne. Built by the Romans beginning in about AD 122 under the orders of then-Emperor Hadrian, the wall took at least six years to compl...