Visit Birrens Roman Fort
đ Location: Birrens, near Middlebie, Dumfries and Galloway
đ What survives: Earthworks and the fort platform can still be appreciated in the landscape; excavation and inscriptions provide rich evidence for its garrison.
â Best for: One of southern Scotland’s most important Roman forts and its exceptional collection of inscriptions.
đĨž Visit: A rural archaeological site on uneven grassy ground.
đ Nearby Roman places: Broomholm, Netherby and the western Roman roads
Birrens at a glance
| Occupation | Late-first-century fortlet; fort around AD 120, enlarged around AD 142 and rebuilt in AD 158. |
| Garrison | The First Cohort of Nervan Germans and Second Cohort of Tungrians are attested at different periods. |
| Size | Early fort about 1.65 hectares, enlarged to about 2.1 hectares. |
| Troop estimate | The milliary units suggest nominal establishments in the broad order of 800â1,000; actual strength is uncertain. |
Inscriptions
RIB 2110 is a dedication to Antoninus Pius by the Second Cohort of Tungrians. Other inscriptions document changes in units and activities.
References
Historic Environment Scotland: scheduled monument record
Roman Inscriptions of Britain: Birrens
Birrens altars and inscriptions
80 AD This fort was occupied from 140
142 AD rebuilt and enlarged for 1000 1st Cohort Nervana Germanorum,
158 AD had a rebuilding for the 2nd Cohort of Tungrians
163 served as an outpost of Hadrian’s wall
184 AD abandoned
The Sixth Legion and elements of the 22nd Legion were both here, as were the Second Cohort of Tungrians.
References
- Birrens (Trove NRHE)
- Birrens altars and inscriptions (Roman Inscriptions of Britain)
- RIB 2110. Dedication to Antoninus Pius ( 2nd Cohort of Tungrians)
Image Credit – Walter Baxter / western edge of Birrens Roman Fort / CC BY-SA 2.0
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