housesteads02 Housesteads Roman Fort (Vercovicium) Housesteads Fort was added to Hadrian's Wall in about AD 124. The fort is laid out according to a standard design. In the centre of the fort lay the headquarters building, the granaries. the quarters for the commanding officer, and a building normally identified as the hospital. At both ends of the fort lay barracks for the men, stabling and workshops. As originally designed, there were four gateways, a surrounding curtain wall, and an earth rampart. The main fort unit was the First Cohort of Tungrians, from Tongres, in Belgium, originally 800 men strong. Later units included Frisian cavalry and a unit of German troops.