Milecastle 31 facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Milecastle 31
Northumberland, England, UK
The site of Milecastle 31
Milecastle 31 Location in Northumberland
Coordinates	55°02′06″N 2°13′40″W / 55.034899°N 2.227914°W / 55.034899; -2.227914

Milecastle 31 (Carrawburgh) was a small fort built by the Romans as part of Hadrian's Wall. This famous wall stretched across northern England. Milecastle 31 is located near a place called Carrawburgh fort. Today, you can see its remains as a low, grassy mound. It sits right next to the modern B6318 Military Road. Part of the old structure is even covered by the road itself.

Building Milecastle 31

We don't know much about how Milecastle 31 was built. It was one of many small forts along Hadrian's Wall. These milecastles were usually built about one Roman mile apart. They helped the Roman soldiers guard the wall and control movement. So far, only the western wall of Milecastle 31 has been found by archaeologists.

Discoveries at Milecastle 31

People have been looking for and studying Milecastle 31 for a long time. Here's a timeline of some important discoveries:

• Early 1800s: A person named Lingard reported finding old bones near the milecastle. These bones were found between the milecastle and the larger Carrawburgh fort.
• 1934: Researchers tried to find the milecastle itself. They didn't find much of the structure. But they did discover an ancient Roman coin from a ruler named Victorinus.
• 1964: More digging happened before a car park was built nearby. During this work, the western wall of the milecastle was finally located. It showed signs that its stones had been taken away a long time ago.
• 1965: Experts from English Heritage studied the site. They noticed that the northern wall of the milecastle was under the modern road. Most of the milecastle was just a grassy platform. This platform was about 0.25 meters (or about 10 inches) high on its western side.
• 1989: Another study by English Heritage confirmed what was found before. This was part of a bigger project about Hadrian's Wall.

Nearby Watchtowers: Turrets 31A and 31B

Every milecastle along Hadrian's Wall had two smaller watchtowers, called turrets. These turrets were placed about one-third and two-thirds of a Roman mile to the west. Soldiers from the milecastle would likely have guarded these turrets. The turrets connected to Milecastle 31 are known as Turret 31A and Turret 31B.

Turret 31A: The Hidden Watchtower

Turret 31A (The Strands) is completely buried under the B6318 Military Road. This means you can't see any part of it today. Even though someone named R.W. Harris from Durham University looked for it in 1966, the turret hasn't been found exactly where it was expected to be. Predicted location: 55°02′06″N 2°13′39″W / 55.034972°N 2.227382°W / 55.034972; -2.227382 (Turret 31A)

The site of Turret 31B

Turret 31B: The Visible Watchtower

Turret 31B (Carraw East) is located just south of the B6318 Military Road. It's a few meters east of a place called Carraw farm. You can see it as a slight, square, grassy mound. When R. Harris dug here in 1966, he found that the turret's door was on the east side of its south wall. This type of layout is thought to have been used by a Roman legion called XX Valeria Victrix. This legion was based in Deva Victrix (which is now Chester). The entrance floor of the turret was also raised, probably in the late 2nd century. Location on Ordnance Survey 1:25 000 map: 55°02′03″N 2°14′06″W / 55.034166°N 2.234997°W / 55.034166; -2.234997 (Turret 31B)

Visiting Milecastle 31

You can visit the site of Milecastle 31. It's easy to get to from the car park at Carrawburgh (Brocolitia) fort.

Turret 31A is under the road, so you can't see it.

Turret 31B is on private land. However, you can still see it from the B6318 road, as it's right next to it.