Y Gaer
| Y Gaer (Cicucium) | |
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Remains of the Roman fort
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 Y Gaer (Cicucium)
 Y Gaer (Cicucium) shown within Powys |
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| OS grid reference | SO00332966 |
| Coordinates | 51°57′23″N 3°27′06″W / 51.9565°N 3.4517°WCoordinates: 51°57′23″N 3°27′06″W / 51.9565°N 3.4517°W |
Y Gaer (Latin: Cicucium) is a Roman fort situated near modern-day Brecon in Mid Wales, United Kingdom. Y Gaer is located at grid reference SO00332966 (Landranger 160).
Y Gaer was built around AD 75 and sits on a crossroads of Roman roads in the valley of the River Usk at a strategic point in Roman Wales, linking South Wales and Mid Wales. It was part of a chain of similar forts, such as Gobannium at Abergavenny, a days march away down the Usk valley, and larger bases, such as Moridunum (Carmarthen) via Alabum (Llandovery), Cardiff Roman Fort to the south and Isca Augusta, Caerleon, the main base for the Roman legion locally.
The site was excavated in the 1920s by Sir Mortimer Wheeler, a prominent archaeologist of his day.
The fort was built for a contingent of up to 500 cavalrymen, recruited originally in Spain from the Vettones, and these Vettonian cavalry would have played a significant part in the conquest of the area held by the Silures.
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