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Brithdir Roman Fort is a Roman military installation situated in Wales on bedrock composed of mafic igneous rock of Ordovician to Silurian age. The fort was constructed on a foundation of dark, dense stone formed deep within the earth during the Silurian period, which would have provided a solid base for the timber and turf structures typical of Roman auxiliary forts. The underlying geology reflects Wales's ancient volcanic activity, part of the complex mountain-building processes that shaped the region millions of years before Roman occupation.
The fort occupies a strategic position within the Welsh landscape, part of the network of military installations the Romans established to control and administer their province. Brithdir's location on relatively high and uneven terrain would have offered natural defensive advantages while allowing visibility across surrounding valleys. The demanding geology of the site would have presented particular engineering challenges during construction and maintenance of the fort's defences and internal buildings.
Brithdir Roman Fort is protected as a scheduled monument by Cadw, the Welsh Historic Monuments service, under reference ME080. This designation recognises the fort's archaeological significance and ensures its preservation for future study and public understanding of Roman Wales. The site contributes valuable evidence to our understanding of how Roman military strategy adapted to the challenging upland terrain of Wales during the imperial period.
Brithdir Roman Fort is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference ME080. View the official record →
Brithdir Roman Fort is a Roman military installation situated in Wales on bedrock composed of mafic igneous rock of Ordovician to Silurian age. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference ME080.
Brithdir Roman Fort dates from the roman period, and is classified as a fort. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Brithdir Roman Fort is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Cadw — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Wales. The official designation reference is ME080.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Anti-invasion Defences 630m E of Cae'r-tyddyn (2.8 km), Nant Helygog ring cairn (2.9 km), Maes Coch Hut Circles (4.4 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Brithdir Roman Fort's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Brithdir Roman Fort stands on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Ordovician To Silurian, bedrock that formed in the Silurian. The rock here is mafic igneous-rock.