Bremenium

About trip

This walk takes you back in time to the height of the Roman Empire. A time when this area was at the very edge of the Empire, Bremenium Fort became the most strategically important outpost north of Hadrian's Wall.

The fort could warn of any impending attack from the north, and was also ideally placed to guard the junction between two critcal Roman roads - Dere Street and a branch road running east to The Devil's Causeway. Dere Street was the main highway between England and Scotland until the late 18th Century, and roughly follows the line of the modern-day A68 from Corbridge, and then runs up the valley and beyond the complex of earthworks at Chew Green. The branch road joined the Devil's Causeway at the Bridge of Aln on today's A697.

Points of Interest

Bremenium was built over 2,000 years ago.  The ramparts would originally have consisted of earth and turf, with a wooden palisade on top, and an outer ditch. The fort was rebuilt in stone in the mid 2nd Century - this was when Bremenium became such an important outpost.

The fort is rectangular with rounded corners,with a gate in each wall. It was built to a pattern standard throughout the Roman Empire. This meant that troops would be familiar with the layout, no matter where they were stationed. The whole complex was just under five acres - enough to accommodate five full size football pitches.

Most of the remains visible today date from the early 3rd Century, when Emperor Severus ordered the reorganisation of frontier defences.

Bremenium was left to its fate during the 4th Century, when the Roman Empire began to collapse. However, it's walls still provided a measure of protection over 1,000 years later, during the lawless times of the Border Reivers.

Local Facilities

Food is available in Rochester, at the cafe, and in Otterburn - Percy Arms, Otterburn Mill, and Otterburn Tower.