Hadrian’s Wall – Milecastle 48 – Poltross Burn

Roman Mile Castle in Brampton, Carlisle

Poltross Burn Milecastle — Public Domain / Simon1975

Hadrians Wall At Milecastle 48 Poltross Burn — CC BY-SA 2.0 / Mike Quinn / Hadrian's Wall at Milecastle 48 (Poltross Burn)

Milecastle 48 (Poltross Burn), Hadrians Wall — CC BY-SA 2.0 / Carole Raddato

Milecastle 48 Poltross Burn,at Hadrians Wall — CC BY-SA 2.0 / Carole Raddato

Hadrians Wall Mile Castle — CC BY-SA 3.0 / HUKBMBEAR

Milecastle 48 (Poltross Burn), is a milecastle on Hadrian’s Wall. The mile fort is located in the village of Gilsland, between a tributary of the Irthing and the railway line of the Tyne Valley Line, directly behind the station building. The square is also known by the local population as “The King’s Stables”. The fort is also described on a display board set up on site by English Heritage for visitors. It is located on the best-preserved section or near the transition between the wide and narrow version of Hadrian’s Wall. The neighboring MK 47 is located around 1521 m west and MK 49 1458 m east of Poltross Burn, the Stanegate fort Throp200 m south. It is one of the best preserved small forts on the wall. Its remains were discovered in 1909 by J. P. Gibson and F. G. Simpson. The remains of the wall were restored or conserved and made accessible to visitors in a display area.

The fort was built by the Legio VI. It was probably used until the 4th century AD. It belongs to the long axis type III, has rounded corners, measures 18.5 m (west-east axis) × 21.3 m (N / S axis) and is thus one of the largest mile forts on Hadrian’s Wall. In addition to a considerable part of the surrounding wall and the north and south gates, the foundations of two camp barracks have also been preserved. Two other notable architectural details are a stove and a stair platform in the northeast corner, of which the first step still remains. Using this step, the original height of the battlements could be determined fairly precisely (3.6 m). The height of the rampart including parapet probably reached a height of 4.6 m. In addition to a passage through the rampart, his crew probably also monitored the road to the Irthing Bridge near Willowford, which is approx.

The Hadrian’s Wall – Milecastle 48 – Poltross Burn appears in our Complete Guide to Visiting Brampton, Carlisle!

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