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Herd Hill milefortlet 4 is a Roman frontier installation situated on the Cumbrian coast in Cumberland, forming part of the coastal defences that extended the Hadrianic frontier system southwestward from the Wall itself. Dating to the second century AD, the milefortlet comprised a small fortified enclosure designed to control movement along the shoreline and provide a garrison point at regular intervals along this strategic maritime boundary. The site is characterised by substantial earthwork remains including the milefortlet's defensive ditches and ramparts, alongside parallel linear banks and ditches that formed part of the broader defensive system intended to regulate access to the coast. These physical features represent a significant example of Roman military engineering adapted to coastal topography and remain important archaeological evidence for understanding the extent and nature of Roman frontier organisation in northern Britain.
Herd Hill (milefortlet 4) and associated parallel banks and ditches, part of the Roman frontier defences along the Cumbrian coast is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1014917. View the official record →
Herd Hill milefortlet 4 is a Roman frontier installation situated on the Cumbrian coast in Cumberland, forming part of the coastal defences that extended the Hadrianic frontier system southwestward from the Wall itself. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1014917.
Herd Hill (milefortlet 4) and associated parallel banks and ditches, part of the Roman frontier defences along the Cumbrian coast is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1014917.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Cardurnock Marsh turret 4a (0.4 km), Herd Hill North (tower 3b), 175m north east of the sheep wash, part of the Roman frontier defences along the Cumbrian coast (0.5 km), Pasture House turret 3a (0.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Herd Hill (milefortlet 4) and associated parallel banks and ditches, part of the Roman frontier defences along the Cumbrian coast'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.
Herd Hill (milefortlet 4) and associated parallel banks and ditches, part of the Roman frontier defences along the Cumbrian coast stands on Triassic Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Triassic. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.