|
NGRef: NY401571 OSMap: Hadrian's Wall, LR86. Type: Wall Fort, Minor Settlement, Bridge (River Eden). |
 |
| Roads | |
|---|---|
|
N (8) to CASTRA EXPLORATORVM (Netherby, Cumbria) Wall: E (8) to BANNA (Castlesteads, Cumbria) Stanegate: E (8) to Old Church (Cumbria) Wall: WNW (5¼) to ABALLAVA (Burgh by Sands, Cumbria) Stanegate: S (½) to LVGVVALIVM (Carlisle, Cumbria) | |
There is some confusion over the Roman name for Stanwix, which is caused by an apparent error or double-listing in the Notitia Dignitatum, a major contemporary geographical reference. This document has an entry Petrianis which undoubtedly refers to the 'Petrian Wing', which we know was the garrison regiment based at the Stanwix fort. It is possible, however, that the ambiguous Axeloduno entry is also connected with Stanwix, though more likely that it refers to the large fort at Netherby. The Notitia Dignitatum entry Petrianis, occurs between the entries for Amboglanna (Birdoswald, Cumbria) and Aballaba (Burgh-by-Sands, Cumbria). Further light is shed on the subject by the Ravenna Cosmology which lists the name as Uxelludamo (R&C#152), between the entries for Banna (Castlesteads, Cumbria) and Avalana (Burgh by Sands, Cumbria).
Aside from the classical geographies there are other sources which list the names of Hadrian's Wall forts, the Rudge Cup, found in Wiltshire, where the name appears as Uxelodum between the entries for Aballa (Burgh by Sands) and Camboglans (Birdoswalds, Cumbria), and also on the Amiens Patera (discussed on the Rudge Cup page) as Uxelodunum, between the same two stations. It is now commonly accepted that Petrianum was the adopted name for the Stanwix fort while its official name was Uxelodunum.
The etymology of the accepted Roman name is undoubtedly Celtic in origin, the suffix dunum being readily translated as 'fortified place', though the prefix is a little more difficult to interpret. The Axe/Uxe prefix may have derived from the Celtic word for water, which is the basis for many British river-names, such as the Exe, Axe, Usk, Esk, and others,¹ or alternately, the name may be connected with Uxellinus, a Celtic god with attributes akin to the Roman Jupiter. The name may therefore be interpreted either as 'The Waterside Fort' or 'The Fortress of Uxellinus'. The modern name is a little easier to translate, and stems from the Old English stan-wic meaning the 'stony settlement', probably due to its being built upon the ruins of the Roman cavalry fort.
There are only six inscriptions on stone recorded in the R.I.B. for the Stanwix fort, two altarstones (RIB 2025/6), one of which may be dated to AD167, two undated building inscriptions (RIB 2027/8), and two tombstones (RIB 2029/30). All of these texts are shown and translated on this page.
| LEG VI VIC PF G P RF |
|---|
| "The Sixth Victorious Legion, Loyal and Faithful, for the Spirit of the Roman People, have made [this]." (RIB 2027) |
| LEG XX V COH I FEC |
|---|
| "The first cohort of the Twentieth Legion Valeria have made [this]." (RIB 2028) |
| Praefectus alae Petrianae, Petrianis |
|---|
| "The Prefect of the Petrian wing, at Petrianum." |
| (Notitia Dignitatum xl.45; 4th/5th C.) |
The large fort at Stanwix housed a force of one-thousand cavalry, the Ala Petriana, the only milliary ala in the whole of Britain, which was named after a distinguished former commander of the unit, Titus Pomponius Petra. Although no epigraphic evidence has been unearthed which mentions this unit, the garrison is named in the Notitia Dignitatum of the late-4th/early-5th centuries.
"The western sector of the Wall was the most dangerous, as we have seen, both on account of the nature of the ground and because of the hostile population beyond it. It is not surprising to find, then, that at Stanwix near Carlisle was stationed the Ala Petriana, the only milliary Ala in Britain. Such regiments are always found on the post of danger, and the prefect of this Ala was the senior officer in the whole of the wall garrison. Here, then, lay Command headquarters, and it has been shown that a signalling system existed along the road from Carlisle to York, which would enable the prefect at Stanwix to communicate with the legionary legate at York in a matter of minutes." (Frere Britannia p.137)
The suggestion that the Ala Petriana Milliaria was moved from Stanwix to a new fort at Newstead, perhaps during the governorship of Julius Verus (c.AD155), has since been discredited. The move is not attested by inscriptions, but the size and plan of the Newstead fort suggested that it was built to house a garrison of one thousand horse, and the only unit of that type in Britain was the Petrian Wing. An alternate and commonly accepted suggestion is that Newstead was a vexillation fortress built to house a number of legionary and auxiliary cohorts.
 |
| Based on the Carlisle/Stanwix map in The Carvetii by Higham and Jones (Fig.28 p.58). |
| For the southern portion of this map click here. |
| MATRIBVS DOMESTICIS SVIS ASINIVS SENILIS VSLM |
|---|
| "To the Mothers of his Household, Asinius Senilis willingly and deservedly fulfilled his vow." (RIB 2025; altarstone) |
| DEDICATA IMP VERO III ET VMIDIO QVADRATO COS |
|---|
| "A dedication for the consuls, the emperor Verus for the third time, and Ummidius Quadratus.¹" (RIB 2026; altarstone; dated: AD167) |
| DIS MANIBVS MARCI TROIANI AVGVSTINI TITVM FACIENDVM CVRAVIT AEL AMMILLVSIMA CONIVX KARISS |
|---|
| "To the shades of the departed Marcus Troianus Augustinus, this inscription was made under the direction of Aelia Ammillusima, for a most precious husband." (RIB 2029; tombstone) |
| DIS MANIBVS ... |
|---|
| "To the spirits of the departed [...]" (RIB 2030; tombstone) |
| Stanwix, Cumbria |
|---|
|
| Nothing remains of this important military site apart from a slight platform visible in the church-yard. Many remains found on the site are now housed in the Tullie House Museum in Carlisle. |
