Kair House

Kair House stands in fertile farmland near Fordoun in Aberdeenshire. The site was first used as a small Roman camp in the first century under Julius Agricola. In the early 3rd century Emperor Septimius Severus brought six legions north to try once more to conquer northern Scotland. They enlarged the camp to more than 48 hectares and dug deep ditches still visible from the air. The camp protected a key route that linked the Gask Ridge to the port of Deva. Two gateways were guarded by earthen ramparts called titula. On one side the Berviewater stream formed a natural defence. Excavations in 1945 revealed the full extent of the fortification after it had been abandoned around 212. Visitors today see grassy banks marking the ditches and gate defences. The flat fields show where tents once stood for thousands of legionaries. A short walk north follows the line of the old Roman road towards the North Sea coast. The remains lie quiet in open countryside, a reminder of Rome’s last push into the north.