Fort Plan
What was Lanchester Fort like?
What was it like to live at Longovicium and what sort of conditions did people live in?
Estate Agents' Description - General Plan
One working fort set on rolling hillside in the bracing landscape of Britannia. Fresh air, good land, good slaves, the ideal opportunity for a young man to start a new life in a new place.
Property comprising:
- 8 infantry barracks.
- 4 cavalry barracks.
- Headquarters buildings with ample office space and strong-room.
- 10 watchtowers, eight of two storeys around the walls and two of three storeys at the main gate.
- Granaries.
- Workshops.
- Hospital.
- Luxury executive villa-style accommodation for commanding officer.
- Running water and sanitation.
- Excellent security system.
- Paved areas and gardens.
- Bath-house with hot and cold running water and lavatories, saunas and fitness centre.
Post is delivered and collected regularly.
Local amenities include the full range of places of worship, modern shops, leisure activities and entertainment.
Healthcare is provided on-site and is free to fort residents.
Security is guaranteed by SPQR Eagle Security Services whose policy of public beatings for convicted criminals ensures that crime is not an issue.
Local food of deer, boar, ox, hare and fish is regularly available and local vegetables are of the highest quality and affordable. Regular deliveries of Mediterranean spices are also received in the markets.
Octavius Aurelius, Chief Medical Officer
(Pompously) In the name of Aurelius Tiburtinus, Commanding Officer, I am instructed to recruit one fine, noble, courageous and loyal serving man to assist me in the hospital here at Longovicium.
May it please the gods to deliver to me to best and truest among you all!
(More playfully)
Actually I asked the commander if I could have some extra help in the hospital after Marcus retired and the commander said, Octavi, just get on with it and tell people what they can expect here. So…
Here’s the fort at Longovicium. A fine specimen it is, too.
High up on the side of the valley you can see where Dere Street heads north through the fields and trees and over the hill to Vindomora.
Looking south you can’t see so far, but over that hill, there’s Eboracum, Londinium, over the sea to Lutetia and Rome itself, only three weeks away! The marvels of modern transport!
Now look at the fort itself, and what do you see? High walls, watchtowers on the corners and in the middle of each side, and at this end, a rather fine gatehouse.
Yes, I know it’s the same as a lot of forts, but I like it. I’ve been here 24 years!
Actually, this gatehouse is pretty much the same as the gatehouse at the other end as well.
All around the fort, there’s the vicus, where the locals live, and wives and girlfriends, and families.
And what does that tell you? This place is safe. Nobody can remember the last time there was a marauding Pict round here. I mean, look at the place. If you were a Pict, surely you’d maraud somewhere else, wouldn’t you?
No wars, no fighting, just a little policing every now and again, a few poachers making a nuisance of themselves, that sort of thing. It’s a good place to come and learn the basics of healthcare without being rushed off your feet with battlefield mayhem!
Anyway, let me show you inside, so you can see some of the things that will keep you busy.
Use the map below to find out more about some of the features of Lanchester Fort and what it was like to live there.
