What was here after the fort and vicus?
The end of the fort and vicus
The Roman army left the Castleford fort in about AD 100, probably because the area around Castleford was peaceful. People went on living in the shops and workshops of the vicus after the Roman army left. They probably earned their living from the travellers using the Roman road through Castleford on the way to the new Roman town at York (Eboracum). Gradually the number of people in the vicus declined and by AD 180 the buildings were empty and derelict.
A new Castleford
A new settlement was built on the site of the Roman forts from AD 250. This time it was not Roman soldiers who lived there, but native Britons who had taken on a Romanised lifestyle. They are sometimes called Romano-British.
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1. The Romano-British people who built the new settlement were concerned about their safety. They protected themselves with four large ditches.
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2. The main finds from this date were a temple, some burials and evidence of spoon-making.
The new builders had a ready supply of stone from the old vicus and fort buildings. The archaeologists also found 2 lime kilns for mortar production. The evidence from coins and pottery finds tells us that Romano-British people lived in Castleford until about AD 400.
Timeline:
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