Bremiais the name of theRoman fortin the small dispersed settlement ofLlanio,West Wales.It is inLlanddewi Breficommunity area,south-west of Tregaron, inCeredigion.The fort was built by theRomansaround AD 75[1]and was in use to AD 120 inRoman Wales.The fort was situated onSarn Helen,aRoman roadleading north from the fort atDolaucothi.Five inscribed stones have been found within the fort and surrounding military settlement. Two of these have inscriptions which show the garrison to include to acohortfrom theAsturias,northern Spain.[2]Amongst the excavations on the site, is thebathhouse.The bathhouse and fort arescheduled monuments,giving them statutory protection fromdisturbance.[3]
| Bremia | |
|---|---|
 | |
  | |
| Known also as | Llanio Roman Fort |
| Founded during the reign of | Vespasian |
| Founded | c. 73 - 77 AD |
| Abandoned | c. 125 AD |
| Place in the Roman world | |
| Province | Britannia |
| Nearby water | River Teifi |
| Stationed military units | |
| —Cohorts— | |
| II Asturum | |
| Location | |
| Coordinates | 52°11′23″N3°59′05″W/ 52.1896°N 3.9848°W |
| Place name | Llanio |
| Town | Llanddewi Brefi |
| County | Ceredigion |
| Country | Wales |
| Reference | |
| UK-OSNGreference | SN643564 |
| Site notes | |
| Discovery year | Late 17th century |
| Condition | Traces and crop marks |
| Controlled by | Scheduled Monument(SAM: CD129) |
20miles
(Kenchester)
(Llandrindod Wells)
(Carmarthen)
Llandeilo
(Llanio, Llanddewi Brefi)
(Pumsaint)
(Llandovery)
(Y Gaer, Brecon)
(Abergavenny)
(Caerleon)
Blue/black dots are listed in the Cosmography.[4]Grey dots are other substantial forts known through archaeological remains.
Documentary evidence
editThe only documentary evidence for the nameBremiais a list of place names of the known world compiled in around 700 AD, known as theRavenna Cosmography.[1]This places Bremia on the route that runs fromGobannium(Abergavenny) throughAlabum(Llandovery) (see map below). The fort at Llanio is assumed to be the location referred to,[5]and the nearby 'Afon Brefi' stream name, running throughLlanddewi Brefisupports that.[6]
Archaeological evidence
editThe archaeological remains at the site were first noted in the 17th century byEdward Lhuyd,at a site he called 'Cae'r Castell'. Coins, bricks and pottery were all found by him.[2]Details of various excavations were published in 1888, 1961, 1969 and 1972.[2]The dry summers of 1975 and 1976 revealed the extent of the defensive banks and ditches, some street patterns and other details, throughcropmarkson aerial photographs.[2]The almost square enclosure, with characteristic rounded corners, measures some 130 metres (430 ft) across, and could have garrisoned some 500 soldiers.[2]Further occupation evidence outside the fort suggests avicus(settlement) grew up to the south of the fort, which may have housed a further 1,000 people.[2]During the late 1960s and early 1970s a number of excavations were made at the site of thebathhouse,which revealed foundation trenches although the building materials had been removed, and no firm dating evidence was found. A gradiometergeophysical surveyof 2005, 75m to the west of the fort, plotted the line of aRoman roadrunning east-west, from the fort, through building plots, with evidence of small smelting or burning sites.[7]
Inscribed stones
editDuring excavations, five different inscribed stones have been found. Two of these refer to the cohort of auxiliaries that garrisoned the fort, the other three name different centurions whose men had constructed parts of the fort. The cohort stones read, 'COH II ASTVR...' ( "The Second Cohort of Asturians [...]" ) and '...MIBVS...COH II ASTVR', ( "[...]mibus [...] the Second Cohort of Asturians" ). The centurial stones read, 'ARTI MENNIVS PRIMVS', ( "The century of Artius Mennius Primus [made this]"; 'ARTI', ( "The century of Artius [made this]" ); 'VERIONIS', ( "The century of Verionus [made this]" ).[5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^TheRavenna Cosmographyis a 7th century list of place names from the Roman World. In 1949 Richmond and Crawford published an article[4]showing how British entries were ordered so as to follow routes along Roman roads, thus enabling a match with known places, in this case Roman forts along the road from Caerleon to west Wales.
- ^abDAT PRN: 5998Dyfed Archaeological Trust. Accessed 11 March 2014.
- ^abcdefcoflein NPRN: 303530accessed 15 October 2013
- ^CadwSAM No: CD129, Llanio Roman Fort and Bathhouse
- ^abRichmond, I.A.; Crawford, O.G.S. (1949). "I.—The British Section of the Ravenna Cosmography".Archaeologia: Or Miscellaneous Tracts Relating to Antiquity.93:1–50.
- ^abroman-britain.co.uk bremia.
- ^Richmond, I.A.; Crawford, O.G.S. (1949). "I.—The British Section of the Ravenna Cosmography".Archaeologia: Or, Miscellaneous Tracts Relating to Antiquity.93:1–50.
- ^Llanio Trawscoed geophys survey report, David Hopewell, 2006Accessed 16 October 2013.