Milecastle 47 facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Milecastle 47
The site of Milecastle 47
Location in Northumberland
Type	Milecastle
Location
Coordinates	54°59′17″N 2°33′00″W / 54.988021°N 2.549985°W / 54.988021; -2.549985
County	Northumberland
Country	England

Milecastle 47 (Chapel House) was a small fort built by the Romans. It was an important part of Hadrian's Wall, a famous ancient barrier in Britain.

What Was Milecastle 47?

Milecastle 47 was a mini-fortress along Hadrian's Wall. It was located about 270 meters east of Chapel House, near a place called Gilsland. Today, you can find its remains in a field. It looks like a slightly raised area of ground.

Sadly, in the 1800s, people dug up stones from the milecastle. They used these stones for other buildings. They even used explosives to help them remove the stones!

Roman Watchtowers: Turrets

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 of the milecastle. Soldiers from the milecastle would have guarded these turrets. They helped keep watch over the wall. The turrets linked to Milecastle 47 are known as Turret 47A and Turret 47B. A Roman mile was a bit shorter than a modern mile, about 1,480 meters (or 0.92 miles).

Turret 47A (Foultown)

Archaeologists found Turret 47A in 1912 by digging. This turret was located near a place called Foultown. Today, there are no visible remains of this turret.

Turret 47B (Gap)

Turret 47B was also found by archaeologists in 1912. It was located near a place called Gap. Now, a house and garden are built over the site where this turret once stood.