Galava Roman Fort, Cumbria
N 54° 25.335 W 002° 58.112
30U E 502041 N 6030503
Galava Roman Fort was built as a way station on a very important cross roads for several Roman routes across Cumbria. All that remain are the excavated foundations. Some of which are exposed, some are overgrown with grass. Shown on maps.
Waymark Code: WM9M7N
Location: North West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 09/02/2010
Views: 7
There are several reasons for having an administrative outpost here. The site is at the head of the lake. An excellent transport medium to bring goods to and from the coast. In Roman times cereal crops would have been possible. Taking grain away by lake would have been a good idea.
The main route from Yorkshire to Ravenglass passed through Galava. An important staging post before the climb through the hills to Hardknott Fort in Eskdale and on to Ravenglass. This port, on the Irish Sea, was an important gateway to Ireland.
The stones from the fort appear in some of the oldest houses in Ambleside. In the care of National Trust.
"Picturesquely situated on the northern edge of Windermere, nothing much remains of the early-2nd century auxiliary fort at Ambleside apart from the faint outline of its defences in the sheep-shorn grass and the consolidated stone foundations of the central range of buildings, here arranged north-south with the main gateway on the east, the barrack-blocks of this latest fort evidently being made of timber.
The name Galava appears as the second station in Iter X of the Antonine Itinerary, where it is listed eighteen miles from GLANNOVENTA (Ravenglass, Cumbria) and twelve miles from ALAVANA (Watercrook, Cumbria). The Gallunio (R&C#113) entry of the seventh century Ravenna Cosmology has also been identified with the Watercrook fort, and is listed between the entries for CALVNIVM (Lancaster, Lancashire?) and MEDIOBOGDVM (Hardknot, Cumbria)." from Roman Britain
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The Romans in Lakeland (
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English Lakes (
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OSGB NY372034
Nearest Postcode LA22 0EN