Regulbium (Reculver) was a Roman fort on the north Kent coast at the northern entrance to the Wantsum Channel, which then separated the Isle of Thanet from the mainland. Built in the early 3rd century (likely c. AD 210–220), it is one of the earliest of the forts later grouped as the "Saxon Shore" system, and was paired with Rutupiae (Richborough) at the channel's southern end. It enclosed roughly 8 acres within a near-square plan with rounded corners, and was garrisoned into the late 4th century by the Cohors I Baetasiorum, as attested epigraphically and in the Notitia Dignitatum.
Source: Pleiades — A Community-Built Gazetteer and Graph of Ancient Places. View the Pleiades record →
Regulbium controlled maritime access through the Wantsum Channel, the principal sheltered route for shipping between the Thames estuary and the Continent, making it strategically vital for both military and commercial traffic. Its early 3rd-century date places it at the beginning of the coastal defensive system that would mature into the Saxon Shore command.
Excavations since the 19th century, notably by Brian Philp in the 1960s, have revealed the fort's stone curtain wall, internal streets, a principia (headquarters), barrack blocks, and a bath-house, along with a dedicatory inscription mentioning the aedes and cross-hall built under the consularis Rufinus. Coastal erosion has destroyed roughly half the fort, including the north wall and much of the inter
Regulbium (Reculver) was a Roman fort on the north Kent coast at the northern entrance to the Wantsum Channel, which then separated the Isle of Thanet from the mainland. It is recorded in the Pleiades gazetteer of ancient places as a fort site from the Roman period in Britain.
Regulbium is classified as a Roman fort — a military site in the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer. Roman Britain's archaeology encompasses thousands of sites ranging from legionary fortresses and marching camps to villas, temples and towns.
Several Roman sites lie within a short distance, including Wingham (11.8 km), Wingham Roman villa, 100m south of Glendale Cottage (12.1 km), Dispersed medieval settlement remains and a Roman building immediately south west of St Cosmus and St Damian's Church (13.1 km). Aubrey Research maps over 2,200 Roman sites across Britain, drawn from the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer.
Aubrey Research generates detailed historical reports for any location in Britain, incorporating Roman heritage, Domesday Book records, scheduled monument data, archaeological finds and much more. Enter a nearby address to begin.
Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any address in Britain — drawing on Roman heritage, Domesday records, scheduled monument data, archaeological finds and medieval history to reveal the complete story of a landscape.
Research the area around Regulbium