History of St Michael's
According to Bulmer's History and Directory of Cumberland
1901, St Michael's Church was in existence as early as the reign of
Henry I (1100 - 1135).
In A History of Cumberland
1794, Hutchinson reports; 'The church is gloomy, being only
part of the original structure, as appears by the arches of he
north aisle, built up in the outward wall. This fabric has
been built of the materials of the Roman Vallum, and stands upon
the station.'
It is not uncommon to find older
stone being incorporated into later buildings, and it certainly
appears that the the old St Michael's Church may have been built
using stone from Hadrian's Wall, and more interestingly the fort of
Uxelodunum which once stood on the site, more of that
below.
The old church was demolished in
1841 and a new church built for an astonishing £3,030.
The new St Michael's was partially
burned by the overheating of 'stoves or flues' in 1843
destroying pews, the organ and windows. In 1885 the graveyard
was closed to interments, and in 1894 St Michael's was restored and
the vestry enlarged for £1,900.
A Turbulent
Past.
The Iron Age and Roman period is
probably the most fascinating in the history of the site of St
Michael's Church.
In the north of England there was
the Brigantes and here in Cumbria the Carvetii.
The Brigantes became a powerful Celtic tribe with many
alliances. Cartimandua was a Brigantian noble, her
consort (husband) was Venutius of the Carvetii.
After a period of quiet acceptance
of the Roman occupation, the Brigantes became divided, and internal
rebellions ensued. Cartimandua caused unrest among her own
people through her betrayal of the Celtic King Caratacus when
she turned him in to the Romans. After a very public
affair with her shield bearer, Venutius divorced her and began
a series of attacks on her power base. The Romans were forced
to intervene, and had to rescue Cartimandua from peril in
AD69. From then on Venutius ruled the Carvetii and the
Brigantes, and fermented hostility towards the
Romans.
In AD71 Petillius Cerialis, aided
by Gnaeus Julius Agricola came to Britain with the Ala Petriana to
deal with Venutius and the restless natives of the north.
The Ala Petriana
was a 500 strong auxiliary cavalry unit, raised in Gaul
(France) by Titus Pomponius Petra, probably early in the first
century. The Ala Petriana were battle hardened veterans,
recorded as having seen battle in Germany AD56 and again in
AD69.
With Venutius defeated, Cerialis
returned to Rome in AD74, leaving Agricola to continue the campaign
in Britain. Around AD78-79 Agricola established a
fort at Carlisle on high ground above the confluence of the
Eden and the Caldew (Luguvallum). This later
developed into the walled city of Carlisle.
Around this time, Agricola built
the Stanegate (stone road) from Carlisle to Corbridge, with forts
built a day's march apart, enabling troops to be despatched with
lightning speed to deal with any Brigantian uprisings. It is
from these Stanegate forts that further expansion into Scotland was
undertaken by Agricola and his army, which would have doubtless
included the Ala Petriana.
At some time during the reign of
Emperor Trajan (AD98-117) the Ala Petriana was expanded to 1,000
cavalry men, making it the largest cavalry unit in Britain.
Following renewed unrest from the
Brigantes, the Emperor Hadrian visited Britain in
AD122. He devised a plan to construct a wall to
separate the Brigantes from their warmongering allies in Southern
Scotland. This barrier utilised the old Stanegate and
its line of forts, consolidating the Roman Empire, becoming its new
north west frontier, Hadrian's Wall.
The Ala Petriana's full title was
ala Augusta Gallorum Petriana milliaria bis torquata civium
Romanorum.
Ala means wing and refers to their deployment on the
field of battle, on the flanks, where they would have been used to
harry the enemy and for intelligence gathering.
Augusta means 'Emperors Own' and was an honour bestowed
upon them.
Gallorum - from Gaul (France).
Petriana - after the founder Petra.
Milliaria - size of the unit (800 to 1,000).
Bis torquata - they were twice decorated for gallantry
with the torq (neck band).
Civium Romanum - the Petriana were not Roman citizens,
they were auxiliaries from Gaul. Auxiliaries were recruited from
local peoples that had been conquered, they were sent away from
their home to fight on the front line or to garrison the forts.
Auxiliaries did not have the same pay nor privileges afforded Roman
Legionaries, and instead had to earn Roman citizenship through
gallantry and loyalty. This means the Ala Petriana were awarded
Roman citizenship.
Clearly the Ala Petriana had
become a crack military unit, with many battle hardened
soldiers amongst its ranks. It was the the most powerful unit
on Hadrian's Wall and in Britain, it was certainly the
largest. It must have been used with great effect to quell
any uprisings in what was probably one of the most turbulent
regions of the Roman Empire. They would have been commanded
by a seasoned campaigner with a great deal of military experience,
who may well have been in command of the whole of Hadrian's Wall
from the fort of Uxelodunum.
In Hexham Abbey is the tombstone of
Flavinus, the signifer (standard bearer) of the Ala Petriana, which
was found at Corbridge. For more information about the Ala
Petriana, click on the link below.
The Lost Fort of Uxelodunum.
The old fort at Carlisle
(Luguvallum) was eclipsed in the second century by the
construction of another fort nearby on the line of Hadrian's
Wall. It stood on a hill at Stanwix, north of the River Eden,
with clear views over the Solway Plain to the uplands of southern
Scotland. This would have given the garrison a significant
military advantage in guarding the north west gateway to the
Roman Empire.
The fort of Uxelodunum
derives its name from the Celtic word for
water, Uxe and dunum meaning
fortified place. On some ordnance survey maps it
is referred to as Petriana and Pertrianum, which
relates to the Ala Petriana, which was garrisoned at
the fort.
St Michael's Church stands on the
what was the south western corner of
Uxelodunum. The word Stanwix comes from the old
Norse Stane wic meaning stone farm, and may well have
arisen from the re-use of the Roman fort by Norse settlers.
The first fort at Stanwix appears
to have been built at the same time as Hadrian's Wall in AD122 by
the VI Legion, an inscribed stone bearing their name was found at
the site. Sometime around AD160 the fort was enlarged to
occupy an area of 3.96 ha (9.79 acres), making it the largest fort
on Hadrian's Wall. It is thought that the fort was enlarged
to accommodate the enlarged Ala Petriana which was garrisoned here
at Uxelodunum from around this time until the fourth century.