Vinovia or Vinovium was a Roman fort and settlement situated just over 1 mile (1.6 km) to the north of the town of Bishop Auckland on the banks of the River Wear in County Durham, England. The fort was the site of a hamlet until the late Middle Ages, but the modern-day village of Binchester is about 2 miles (3 km) to the east, near Spennymoor. The ruins are now known as the Binchester Roman Fort.
Not much is yet known about pre-Roman settlement in the immediate area. The fort was probably established around AD 79 to guard the crossing of the River Wear by Dere Street, the main Roman road between York, Hadrian's Wall and Scotland, and also the fort's main street (via principalis). Sitting atop a hill 15 metres (49 ft) above the Wear, Binchester was the largest Roman fort in County Durham. The land was cleared of trees and brush and a huge levelling fill laid down on the plateau before construction of the fort began. Archaeologists found four coins of Vespasian that seem to corroborate that initial building was related to Agricola's march northward into the territory of the Brigantes. Two phases of timber structures, most likely barrack blocks, were constructed atop the levelling deposit. Much later, perhaps centuries later, buildings inside the fort were levelled and reconstructed in stone. These included a commandant's house at the heart of the fort and a well-appointed baths building, both of which went through several phases of development.
It is not entirely clear which garrison units would have called Binchester home. The cuneus Frisorum Vinoviensium and the equites catafractariorum have been mentioned in inscriptions from the site. The cavalry units of the ala Vettonum, a cohort of Frisian soldiers, and part of the Sixth Legion might also have stayed here at some point in its history. In fact, it may have been men from the Legio VI Victrix who built the original fort.
An extensive civilian settlement (vicus) existed to the north and west of the fort, the remains of which are buried under the pastures of Binchester Hall Farm. The southern part of the fort is now beneath Binchester Hall, while some of the defences were destroyed in a landslip in the 19th century. Part of the stone bridge on which Dere Street crossed the River Wear can still be seen when the river is low. In 2007, several mausolea were found to the north of the vicus.
Although the Roman occupation of Britain ended officially around 410, the area around Binchester seems to have remained occupied by the local population. By the early 6th century, a small Anglo-Saxon cemetery had been founded, and the demolition of the fort's buildings for reclamation of the materials had started, some of which were eventually used in the construction of the nearby 7th-century Escomb Church. A hamlet and manor house survived at Binchester until the late Middle Ages. The site of the manor house is now occupied by the 17th-century Binchester Hall.
Source: Pleiades — A Community-Built Gazetteer and Graph of Ancient Places. View the Pleiades record →
Vinovia or Vinovium was a Roman fort and settlement situated just over 1 mile (1.6 km) to the north of the town of Bishop Auckland on the banks of the River Wear in County Durham, England. It is recorded in the Pleiades gazetteer of ancient places as a fort site from the Roman period in Britain.
Vinovia 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 Old Durham (13.6 km), Piercebridge (15.6 km), Piercebridge Roman Bridge (15.7 km). Aubrey Research maps over 2,200 Roman sites across Britain, drawn from the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer.
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