Hadrian's Wall NMP - Cumbrian Coast

  This area of mapping for the Hadrian's Wall NMP project stretches along the Cumbrian coast from Maryport in the south to the Silloth-on-Solway in the north. The landscape is one of improved pasture, arable land and coastal sand dunes. The archaeology mapped has ranged from prehistoric settlement to a Cold War bunker.

Although Hadrian’s Wall stopped at Bowness-on-Solway, a system of coastal defences continued down the west coast. These defences mirrored the pattern of milecastles and turrets on the Wall itself and comprised milefortlets (every Roman mile) with two towers in between.

There are also the remains of two large forts at Maryport and Beckfoot with traces of the civilian settlements or vici.  Fragments of the Roman road network linking the forts have been revealed in the air photographic record.

The soils and geology of this part of the coastline are conducive to cropmark formation, which has revealed evidence for settlement dating to the prehistoric and Roman periods. A number of isolated curvilinear and rectilinear enclosures, often with internal features, have been mapped as well as groups of enclosures sitting within associated field systems.

Numerous industrial remains, many dating to the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, have been recorded. These include limestone quarries and coal mining along with associated processing sites with lime kilns and coke ovens. Evidence for post medieval salt extraction has also been found on the coast at Allonby where a well preserved salt working site can be seen as earthworks.

The coast’s association with defence continued beyond the Roman period. During the Second World War stretches of the coast were defended with a system of trenches, minefields and pillboxes, some of which are still visible today. There was also a large military airfield at Silloth with various ancillary installations. After the cessation of hostilities RAF Silloth was used to store and break up decommissioned aircraft.

The images used on this page are copyright English Heritage unless specified otherwise. For further details of any photographs or other images and for copies of these, or the plans and reports related to the project please contact the NMR English Heritage's public archive.

For further information on a project or any other aspect of the work of the Aerial Survey team please contact us at: AerialSurvey@english-heritage.org.uk.