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From the south gate we walk up to the Praetorium. This was where the Commander of the fort lived, together with his family, and was the largest building in the fort. Just past the entrance at the north east corner of the Praetorium is the kitchen and to the right of the picture can be seen the remains of a third century oven.
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| The entrance to the Praetorium was from the Via Principalis, and it is through here we have come. In front of us is the courtyard, and facing us are the remains of the living quarters of the Commander and his family, together with a latrine. Further beyond the Praetorium you can see the remains of the west wall and gate. The commander of the fort was quite high ranking, probably an equestrian, with the rank of Prefect. One such officer was Quintus Florius Maturnus, whose name survives down the centuries thanks to an altar he set up whilst commanding the First Cohort of Tungrians. |  |
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We are now standing on the eastern end of the upper portico. The portico was a porch with columns supporting the roof. It had an open side facing inwards into the courtyard which we can just make out to the left. To the right are the rooms at the north end of the Praetorium, which were more living quarters and a heated dining room. |
| If we leave the Praetorium and look down upon it fron the Principia we see the hypocaust which heated the dining room. At the far left of the picture, the southern side of the building, were the servants quarters, and out of shot, in the south east corner was a stable. One interesting feature to note is the building we can see at the top right of the photograph. This is the Museum, constructed in 1936, the dimensions of which are based on the Murder House |  |