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Whitley Castle is a large and uniquely-shaped Roman fort ((ラテン語:castra)) north-west of Alston, Cumbria, England that was known to the Romans as Epiacum. The fort was built early in the 2nd century and at least partly demolished and rebuilt around 200. Whereas Roman forts are normally "playing-card shaped" (rectangular with rounded corners), Whitley Castle is lozenge-shaped to fit the available site. In addition, it has the most complex defensive earthworks of any known fort in the Roman Empire, with multiple banks and ditches outside the usual stone ramparts. The fort appears to have been sited to control and protect lead mining in the area as well as to support the border defences of Hadrian's Wall. The fort was surveyed by the geologist Thomas Sopwith in the 19th century and the historian R.G. Collingwood in the 20th, with a geophysics survey in the 21st, but it has not been fully excavated. Among finds at the fort are altars with inscriptions to Hercules by the 6th Legion of the Roman army (normally stationed at York) and to Apollo by the fort's garrison of auxiliaries, the 2nd Cohort of Nervians. Other finds include a midden containing shoes; coins, fragments of Samian pottery, beads, nails, and a bronze handle shaped like a dolphin. ==Situation== Whitley Castle is about above sea level in the Pennine hills on the border of Cumbria and Northumberland. It lies to the west of the modern A689 road beside the Pennine Way long-distance footpath. During the Roman era, Epiacum was situated about south of Hadrian's Wall and north of the main road which ran between Luguvalium (Carlisle) in the northwest and Eboracum (York) in the southeast. The Maiden Way road connected it to Magnae (Carvoran) on the Wall and Bravoniacum (Kirkby Thore) on the Carlisle–York road. Whitley Castle is one of the most isolated Roman sites in Britain, which may help to explain both why it remains largely unexcavated as of 2012 and why so much of it has survived. The site is a lozenge-shaped spur of high ground on Castle Nook hill farm〔 under permanent pasture. The remains lie under the grass, and are most clearly seen in aerial photographs. The Roman fort itself covers about ; outside it is a system of concentric defensive ditches. The fort may have been sited to exert control over the area near Alston and its lead mines, as well as to provide support for Hadrian's Wall.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Whitley Castle」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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