Reasons for Designation
In Cumbria and Northumberland several distinctive types of native settlements
dating to the Roman period have been identified. The majority were small, non-
defensive, enclosed homesteads or farms. In many areas they were of stone
construction, although in the coastal lowlands timber-built variants were also
common. In much of Northumberland, especially in the Cheviots, the enclosures
were curvilinear in form. Further south a rectangular form was more common.
Elsewhere, especially near the Scottish border, another type occurs where the
settlement enclosure was `scooped' into the hillslope. Frequently the
enclosures reveal a regularity and similarity of internal layout. The standard
layout included one or more stone round-houses situated towards the rear of
the enclosure, facing the single entranceway. In front of the houses were
pathways and small enclosed yards. Homesteads normally had only one or two
houses, but larger enclosures could contain as many as six. At some sites the
settlement appears to have grown, often with houses spilling out of the main
enclosure and clustered around it. At these sites up to 30 houses may be
found. In the Cumbrian uplands the settlements were of less regimented form
and unenclosed clusters of houses of broadly contemporary date are also known.
These homesteads were being constructed and used by non-Roman natives
throughout the period of the Roman occupation. Their origins lie in settlement
forms developed before the arrival of the Romans. These homesteads are common
throughout the uplands where they frequently survive as well-preserved
earthworks. In lowland coastal areas they were also originally common,
although there they can frequently only be located through aerial photography.
All homestead sites which survive substantially intact will normally be
identified as nationally important.
Details
The monument includes a Romano-British farmstead located on the western end of
Beadle Hill from where it commands extensive views in all directions except
the east. It includes an earth and stone bank up to 4m wide and 1m high which
represents the farmstead's eastern rampart. Flanking this rampart is an outer
ditch measuring up to 6m wide and 0.3m deep. There is an entrance
approximately 3m wide at the mid point of the eastern rampart. Elsewhere the
monument is less well defined, although parts of the north and west ramparts
are visible as slight breaks of slope. The remainder of the monument's
defences are visible as cropmarks on an aerial photograph which highlights
features such as infilled ditches and indicates that the enclosure and ditch
measures approximately 75m square.
Two drystone walls and the ruins of a drystone structure in the farmstead's
south east corner are excluded from the scheduling but the ground beneath
these features is included.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
23738
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals Other
Legal
This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
End of official list entry
