Summary

The upstanding and buried remains of Brougham Roman fort (Brocavum) and its associated civil settlement and Brougham medieval castle.

Source: Historic England

Details

The monument includes the earthwork and buried remains of Brougham Roman fort, the buried remains of the fort's associated vicus or civil settlement lying to the south and south-east of the fort, and the upstanding and buried remains of Brougham Castle. The fort and castle are located on the south bank of the River Eamont just below its confluence with the River Lowther. The monument is divided into three separate areas; one contains the fort and castle, another contains the buried remains of the vicus in the field to the south of the fort, and the third contains the buried remains of the vicus in two fields to the south-east of the fort.

Further buried remains of the vicus lie to the north of the river and A66 beneath Frenchfield Sports Centre and are scheduled separately (CU279, National Heritage List entry 1007180). A Roman marching camp is located north of the A66 about 500m north-east of the fort and is scheduled separately (CU242, NHLE 1007187). An extensive Roman settlement and cemetery is located north of the A66 about 550m ENE of the fort and is scheduled separately (CU154, NHLE 1007203).

The northern defences of the Roman fort have been obscured by medieval alterations caused by construction of the castle and its defences but the RCHME's 1991 survey indicates that the fort measured about 125m north-south by 110m east-west, enclosing an area of 1.37ha (3.4 acres). The fort's defences consist of a turf-covered bank up to 0.9m high outside of which is a levelled berm and an outer ditch 10-14m wide and up to 1.4m deep. The defences are obscured towards the northern end of the fort by a later rectangular enclosure between the fort and castle. Only the site of the fort's west gate can be identified with certainty. Internally the surface of the fort has been disturbed by later ridge and furrow ploughing, drainage works and probable stone-robbing. In the southern half of the fort there appear to be the disturbed remains of a two-celled structure.

Archaeological excavation in 2007 revealed well-preserved buried remains of the vicus in the field on the opposite side of the B6262 road to the south of the fort. These remains flank a Roman road issuing from the fort's south gate and include C3 and C4 rectilinear timber-framed buildings, minor roads, lanes, cobbled surfaces and a broadly contemporary field system represented by a system of ditches. In the field to the east of Moor Lane and south of the B6262 further building remains, trackways, ditched field boundaries and several large wells or waterholes were revealed, while further east in the field south of the A66 trackways, field boundaries, wells or waterholes were also located together with several certain or probable cremation burials. These burials almost certainly formed part of the same burial ground that was largely destroyed during widening of the A66 in the later half of the C20.

Brougham Castle is of stone construction and together with its southern defences it overlies the very northern part of the Roman fort. It has been constructed on the spur of a low river-cliff jutting into the floodplain which provides a natural defence on the north side and on the northern part of the west side. Access is via a cobbled causeway leading from Moor Lane and passes through the outer gatehouse, gatehouse court and inner gatehouse to emerge into a cobbled courtyard. A five-storey keep is attached to the south side of the gatehouses and between the keep and the east curtain wall there are the remains of buildings including early and later halls, a halls court, and a forebuilding. A kitchen oven is located at the south-east corner of the castle courtyard. Along the south curtain wall are the remains of the kitchen court, chapel and lodgings. To the west is a well and at the castle's south-west corner there is a four-storey tower known as the 'Tower of League'. Adjacent to the west curtain wall are the remains of an oven. Other service buildings were located along the west curtain but all have been removed to ground level.

The castle is surrounded by a moat on three sides that measures 15-18m wide and up to 4m deep. On the west side there is an outer ditch with a counterscarp bank. An earthen causeway crosses the ditch towards its south end. The inner moat is crossed in two places by stone-revetted causeways, one adjacent to the Tower of League, the other crossing the moat's southern arm adjacent to a postern and giving access into a rectangular enclosure between the fort and castle mentioned above.

This enclosure was a garden created or re-established by Lady Anne Clifford on the northern part of the Roman fort. It was bounded on the west side by a low stone wall partially visible in the southern arm of the moat. To the south of the moat the wall is partly buried beneath a low, turf-covered bank. At its south-west corner there are traces of a former structure identified by the RCHME's survey as a summer house. The garden enclosure was between 40-45m wide and although there is now no trace of its eastern end it may have extended all the way to Moor Lane.

EXTENT OF SCHEDULING

This includes the upstanding and buried remains of Brougham Roman fort and two separate parts of its associated vicus, together with the upstanding and buried remains of Brougham Castle. The monument falls into into three separately scheduled areas of protection; one contains the fort and castle, another contains the buried remains of the vicus in the field to the south of the fort, and the third contains the buried remains of the vicus in two fields to the south-east of the fort.

The boundary of that part of the monument that includes the Roman fort and the castle runs along the field boundaries which flank the B6262 to the South and Moor Lane to the East. It then follows the south bank of the River Eamont on the monument's north side before running 2m beyond the outer edge of the castle's defensive earthworks on the monument's north-west side as surveyed by the RCHME in 1991, prior to completing a circuit of the monument by running SSE to the field boundary flanking the B6262.

A number of features are excluded from this part of the scheduling: these include all modern field and garden boundaries, all gates and gateposts, all signposts and telegraph poles, the site ticket office, shop and museum, all modern flagged paths, a stone-setted ramp leading from the road to the ticket office, a septic tank, and the former site ticket office and museum located in the castle's courtyard. The ground beneath all these features, however, is included.

The boundary of that part of the monument that includes part of the vicus and field system lying to the south of the Roman fort follows the modern field boundaries which flank the B6262 to the North and Moor Lane to the East and which, to the South, runs approximately WSW north of Dinglefield. To the West, the boundary is defined by a line running north-west from a point 2m beyond where the excavated length of the sewage pipeline crossed the southern field boundary. While some fragmentary remains of a Roman field system extend to the west of this western boundary they are not included in the scheduling because the core area of this part of the vicus and its associated field system are included within the scheduled area.

A telegraph pole, all modern field boundaries and all gates and gateposts are excluded from this part of the scheduling, however, the ground beneath these features is included. While the course of the trench containing the sewage pipeline is archaeologically sterile re-excavation has the potential to disturb adjacent, undisturbed deposits and it is thus included within the scheduling.

The boundary of that part of the monument that includes part of the vicus and field system lying to the south-east of the Roman fort follows the modern field boundaries which flank Moor Lane to the West and the B6262 and A66 to the North. On the monument's east side the boundary is defined by a line running south from a point 2m east of where the excavated length of the sewage pipeline ends. To the South, the boundary is defined by the modern field boundaries which meet Moor Lane north of Dinglefield.

All modern field boundaries, gates and gateposts are excluded from this part of the scheduling, however, the ground beneath them is included. While the course of the trench containing the sewage pipeline is archaeologically sterile re-excavation has the potential to disturb adjacent, undisturbed deposits and it is thus included within the scheduling.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Brougham Roman fort (Brocavum) and civil settlement and Brougham Castle is scheduled for the following principal reasons:

* Survival: the monument survives well with the castle displaying significant upstanding fabric that illustrates its constructional development during the five centuries of its occupation, while the Roman fort survives well as a substantial earthwork partly overlain by the castle and partly surrounded by defensive ditches;
* Potential: various limited archaeological excavations within the vicus, castle and castle's bailey have revealed the well-preserved remains of buried archaeological features and the monument retains enormous potential for the preservation of similar archaeological material;
* Historic interest: the monument retains significant historic interest to enhance our understanding of the Roman and medieval military occupation and settlement of northern England and the responses to perceived and actual threats from the north during these periods;
* Documentation: the Roman fort and castle are well documented both historically and in the archaeological records which adds to their interest;
* Group value: the castle has group value with strategically contemporary castles along the Stainmore Pass route over the Pennines at Bowes, Appleby and Brough, while the Roman fort has group value with strategically contemporary forts at Brough & Kirkby Thore to the east, Low Borrowbridge to the south, Old Penrith and Carlisle to the north and Ambleside to the south west.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Summerson, H., Brougham Castle, Brougham, (1998)
Williams, J., 'Transactions of the Cumberland & Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological Society' in Excavations at Brougham Castle, 1987, , Vol. 92, (1992), 105-121
Zant, John M, 'Transactions of the Cumberland & Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological Society' in An Excavation at Brougham Castle, , Vol. 1, 3rd Series, (2001), 31-37
Other
Oxford Archaeology North, Whinfell Holme Sewerage Works to Hackthorpe pipeline, 2014,
The Roman Fort andd Later Earthworks at Brougham Castle. RCHME Survey, 1991. ,
Wooler,F., Brougham Watching Brief, 2010,

Source: Historic England