Roman soldiers will turn a park into a battlefield.

A massive reenactment this summer will see 30 cavalrymen come together in the area for the first time in nearly 2,000 years.

The event - on July 1 and 2 - is being staged in conjunction with a major new exhibition celebrating the regiments that once guarded Hadrian's Wall.

And its backers are confident that it will help lure more tourists to the frontier and boost the area's economy.

Hadrian’s Cavalry explores the role and daily life of the Roman army’s cavalry forces in a wall-wide exhibition that stretches the full 150 miles of the World Heritage Site area – from Maryport in the west to South Shields in the east.

It will bring together a unique collection of cavalry objects, including ornate helmets, armour and weapons on loan from national and international museums.

The main funder of Hadrian’s Cavalry is the Arts Council England’s Museum Resilience Fund.

Bill Griffiths, chairman of the Hadrian’s Cavalry steering group, said: “This is a once in a lifetime experience, bringing together for the first time these very special Roman cavalry objects.

"To be able to do it across the museums and heritage attractions of Hadrian’s Wall, where cavalry regiments played a key role in protecting the Empire and projecting Imperial power, makes it even more exciting.

“The cavalrymen were famous for their lavishly decorated helmets and body armour. The cavalry horses were also held in high esteem; enjoying customised stabling in barrack blocks built to accommodate the riders and their mounts."

The battle reenactment in Carlisle will be one of the largest ever seen in the UK.

Mr Griffiths added: "A troop of 30 Roman cavalrymen, also referred to as a turma, will showcase some of the exercises the cavalry would have performed on training grounds at sites across the Wall and described by Hadrian himself almost 2,000 years ago.

"It will be an amazing spectacle and unique to this exhibition.

"We are grateful to Carlisle City Council who are helping to fund this special event, to Christian Levett for helping sponsor the exhibition, and to our main funder, Arts Council England.”

Great North Museum: Hancock in Newcastle celebrates the prestige and power of the Roman cavalry helmet with an exhibition including two bronze ‘Ribchester-style’ Helmets, which are being displayed together at the museum for the very first time.

Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery in Carlisle is home to one of the biggest Hadrian’s Cavalry exhibitions; looking at the role of the cavalry regiments in Carlisle, across Hadrian’s Wall and across the entire Roman Empire. An immersive audio/visual experience will take visitors back in time to experience what life was really like for cavalrymen along Hadrian’s Wall.

Some of the Roman forts along the Wall will highlight the role of cavalry horses in Roman society. The exhibition at English Heritage’s Corbridge Roman Town and Museum will explore what the depiction of horses in Roman artefacts – including brooches, sculpture and pottery – tells us about their status and role in Roman life. Chesters Roman Fort and Museum will tell the story of the strong bond between cavalrymen and their horses, including how the animals were looked after and maintained.

The display at Roman Vindolanda will focus on the personal stories of cavalry soldiers stationed on the Wall itself, revealed through the Vindolanda writing tablets and other objects found in on-going excavations at the site.

More displays at Housesteads Roman Fort and Museum, Arbeia Roman Fort and Museum, the Roman Army Museum and Senhouse Roman Museum will complete the story of the Roman cavalry. There will also be smaller cavalry themed events over the year.

Completing the Hadrian’s Cavalry exhibition will be a specially commissioned contemporary art installation at Chesters Roman Fort. The piece, at the Roman site from July 2017 until September 2017, will use the natural environment and sound to evoke the presence of the 500 hundred horses once stabled within these iconic Roman ruins.

Jane Tarr, Director North, Arts Council England said: “I’m really pleased that the Arts Council is supporting the Hadrian’s Cavalry exhibition through our Museums Resilience Fund. This is a fantastic example of partners working together to bring Hadrian’s Wall to life right along its length. Visitors to the world heritage site and local audiences will get to see world class objects, many in the locations they would have been seen 2000 years ago. I look forward to seeing how the project develops and how it will enable the museums involved to become more sustainable and resilient businesses. It will be interesting to see how this project can provide a model for the future.”

The 10 museums and heritage attractions taking part in Hadrian’s Cavalry are:

· Arbeia Roman Fort and Museum (South Shields)

· Segedunum Roman Fort, Baths and Museum (Wallsend)

· Great North Museum: Hancock (Newcastle upon Tyne)