Canovium

Canovium was a Roman fort in the Conwy valley at Caerhun in North Wales. Built around AD 75 near a key river crossing, it guarded the lowest ford across the river Conwy. The fort started as a timber structure for up to 500 soldiers and later became a stone settlement in the early 2nd century. It included large headquarters and officer quarters, granaries and barrack blocks, all bigger than usual for its size. A bath-house stood to the east and a busy civilian settlement lay to the north. The fort controlled the area and may have hosted the Deceangli tribe’s administration, though the tribe stayed largely un-Romanised. A second-century milestone for Emperor Hadrian was found seven miles away in the late 19th century. Occupation continued until at least the late 4th century, with a new cookhouse added later. Today the north-east corner holds the 14th-century parish church of St Mary and its graveyard. Archaeologists have studied the site for decades, with P.K. Baillie Reynolds publishing a major report in 1938 after four summers of digging. The Kanovium Project and local collections keep the fort’s story alive. Visitors can still trace the fort’s layout and imagine its role as the largest Roman military post in the region.