ROMAN AMBLESIDE
Explore Roman Ambleside in the second trail in the "Amble with the Armitt" series.
Welcome to the second trail in the “Amble with The Armitt” series. You will be transported back to a time where Romans occupied the town and you will discover the changes to the Lake District landscape they brought with them. To show this, we will use the artefacts in The Armitt’s collection to learn what life would have been like for the 500 soldiers and their families that arrived from across the Roman Empire to inhabit what was once a remarkable fort.​​
The Romans arrived in the Lake District in the Flavian Period, in the late 1st century AD. The first fort at Ambleside was made of timber; this was replaced with a stone fort in the Hadrianic Period in the 120s AD. The fort was situated at a vital crossroads between the Roman road running north from Watercrook (near Kendal) to Old Penrith, and the road running west over Hardknott pass to the coast at Ravenglass. We don’t know the name of the unit who served at Ambleside, but we know they were auxiliary soldiers. Unlike legionary soldiers, who were Roman citizens, the auxiliary forces of the Roman army were recruited from the conquered peoples of the Empire. If they served in the army for 25 years, they could gain Roman citizenship for themselves and their families upon their discharge. This means that the ‘Romans’ who served at Ambleside Fort were not Italian, but could in fact have come from all over the Roman world.
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This trail includes a series of images, text and a digital map that can be followed walking through Ambleside or simply from the comfort of your own home as we begin to understand the stories of Ambleside’s Roman settlement. ​​
This trail begins at The Armitt, which is situated on Rydal Road, Ambleside opposite the car park for the town centre or a one-two minute walk from the nearest bus stop. We highly recommend that if you are travelling to Ambleside, you use the local buses – 555 or 599. This will help to prevent overcrowding in car parks and reduce environmental impacts upon the area which is situated in the Lake District National Park. If you are a blue badge holder and need to park, there is one accessible parking space at the front of the museum and two others in front of the neighbouring building, Low Nook. Apart from the portion of the trail exploring inside the fort and the surrounding River Rothay, the route focuses on pavements. There will be instances when you need to cross the road, so please be mindful of traffic and other pedestrians.
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The route can also be completed starting from the Ambleside Roman Fort, located in Waterhead near Ambleside in Borran’s Field, beside the A5075 and a short distance west of Waterhead car park.
This trail was created by students from Durham University and Lancaster University. Thank you to Isla Mustin, Rowan Colley and Bastien Hamilton,
