Roman Army School

Emperor Septimius Severus in Britain and beyond

The Roman Empire in 210 after the conquests of Severus, showing Roman territory (purple) and Roman dependencies (light purple)

The activities of the Emperor Septimius Severus in Britain and beyond

The initiative of the 2026 conference of the Roman Army School is the excavation of the palatial building at the Carlisle Cricket Club dating to about 210, that is within the reign of Severus.

Bust of Septimius Severus (reign 193–211 CE).

Severus expanded the Roman Empire on three continents and his policies and actions from Scotland to Iraq will be investigated. There will be a visit to the Roman fort at High Rochester on Dere Street, the route of Severus’s army into Caledonia.

The weekend will include a visit to Hadrian’s Wall.

Uncovering Roman Carlisle

“Uncovering Roman Carlisle” is a project has uncovered some of the most important Roman remains ever found on Hadrian’s Wall — and it is still continuing in 2026.It began when an archaeological investigation for a new flood proof cricket pavilion at Carlisle Cricket Club in 2017 led to the discovery of the bathhouse. A formerly unknown high-ranking imperial Roman bathhouse, and the largest building on Hadrian’s Wall.

Funded by Carlisle City Council (now Cumberland Council) and supported by local firm Storey Construction, archaeologists from Wardell Armstrong and volunteers uncovered remains of an underfloor heating system (hypocaust), and vast quantities of pottery, bone, and metal artefacts.