The Roman Fort at Lyne near Peebles.

The area around Peebles is steeped in history, and about 4.8 miles west along the A72 you will find what’s left of the Roman Fort at Lyne. It was originally built to support the main road between Trimontium in the East and Castledykes to the West. The Fort itself dates from the Antonine period and was thought to have been occupied between c142AD-c158AD.

The fort was built of turf and earth and was supported by a narrow kerb of natural boulders. It is enclosed within a traceable rampart which may have been  topped off with a wooden parapet.  Evidence of red sandstone buildings, including the principia, commandant’s house, and granary, has been found through excavations of the site. The remainder of the buildings were probably made of wood. Around 1000 men could have been garrisoned here, including both infantry and cavalry.

A horseshoe was found here in 1901 and this, coupled with the wide streets of the fort itself supports the view that cavalry was present.

The fort itself appears to have been replaced by a later fortlet to the north at Hallyne. The smaller 120 ft square platform with rounded corners covers about a third of an acre and was evidently built to specifically overlook the Lyne Water which was not possible from the earlier Lyne fortification.

For the more adventurous there is Trimontium a Roman fort complex located at Newstead, near Melrose to the East of Peebles. 41 minutes (24.7 miles) along the A72. Trimontium was a permanent garrison three times the size of the largest fort on Hadrian’s Wall and for a significant period was the most northerly bastion of the Roman Empire. For more information visit its website here.