Monument record 8206/11 - Roman east wall at the south east angle of the fortress

An extensive stretch of the east wall from the south east corner to Thimbleby’s Tower has been recorded from archaeological investigation since 1892, confirming a length of Roman wall approximately 37m in length.

First discovered in 1892, the wall was recorded in a basement to the rear of Messrs Dickson’s Seed Warehouse (now the site of No 10 St John Street) immediately north of Thimbleby’s Tower (then called the Wolf Tower). The wall was recorded 4.82m in advance of the present City Wall and consisted of the plinth and the wall foundations. They were recorded in situ in 1892, however, it is unknown whether they survived the redevelopment of the site at the start of the 20th century. (1)

In 1908 a further stretch of the Roman wall was discovered beneath the adjacent property (No 12 St John Street) in advance of the redevelopment of the site for the National Telephone Company. The first discovery was made in June of that year when a number of large blocks of sandstone were uncovered and later proved to be the upper courses of a highly preserved section of the Roman wall. Following limited excavation of the wall, a substantial section of the wall was preserved in situ beneath the Telephone Exchange while the remaining portions were covered up. (1)

The excavations of the Roman wall at No 12 St John Street uncovered a section some 17.30m in length abutting the discovery at the Seed Warehouse round the southern boundary of No 12 St John Street. The wall survived to a maximum height of 1.97m including seven courses of masonry with no trace of mortar, the weathering plinth and the sub plinth (1) In 1996, further excavations were carried out at No 12 St John Street confirming traces of the Roman fortress wall (5)

In 1930 permission was given to excavate the area immediately to the south of the wall in the hopes of finding evidence of the south east corner of the Roman fortress. The excavations, under the auspices of Prof Newstead and Prof Droop encountered not only the south east angle tower (CHER 8228) but also evidence of the earth rampart (CHER 8205/4), the ditch (CHER 8207/3) and the extramural berm (CHER 8579). The foundations of the fortress wall opposite the tower consisted of large boulders set in mortar laid over a foundation of rubble over which was set a single course of sandstone slabs which overhung the foundation. The total thickness of the wall at this point was 1.21-1.36m (2) In 1938 further limited excavation exposed further evidence of the tower and the adjoining wall (3)

Further investigations at the south east angle tower were carried out in 1951 recorded the inner face of the east wall were it coincided with the earth rampart. Although a complete section across the wall was not possible at this time, the excavations did suggest that the inner face consisted of two courses of large sandstone blocks with a rubble fill (4)

The date of construction of the stone revetment wall is disputed. It is possible that the southern and eastern sectors were started at the beginning of the second century, along with the towers, but that remaining sectors were not completed until the early third century. Evidence of two phases of reconstruction incorporating re-used stones has been found on all but the south side, accompanied in some cases by rubble in the ditch. It is suggested that reconstruction to the original width is to be dated to the start of the fourth century, but that doubling of the width may belong to the Saxon period.

<1> Newstead, R (Prof.), 1909, On a recently discovered section of the Roman wall at Chester (Article in Journal). SCH5556.

<2> Newstead, R (Prof.), 1932, The S.E. Corner of the Roman Fortress. Chester (Article in Journal). SCH5709.

<3> Newstead, R (Prof.), 1948, Records of Archaeological Finds VI (Article in Journal). SCH5761.

<4> Webster, Graham, 1952, Excavations on the Legionary Defences at Chester, 1949-52 (Part i) (Article in Journal). SCH5715.

<5> Chester Archaeology, 1996, Chester 12 St John Street 1996 Excavation, R2165 (Client Report). SCH4050.

<6> Historic Environment Service (Mike Morris), 2010, South East Angle Tower Chester: Rapid Desk-based Assessment, R3168 (Client Report). SCH6304.

<7> Earthworks Archaeological Services, 2012, Landscaping works and new lighting at the South East Angle Tower and Newgate, Chester, R3326 (Client Report). SCH6812.

<8> LeQuesne C, 1999, Excavations at Chester: The Roman and Later Defences Part I (Monograph). SCH6156.

<9> Lawson, P H, 1926, Schedule of the Roman Remains of Chester with Maps and Plans, No.46 (Article in Journal). SCH5956.

<10> Harris, B.E. (ed), 1987, Victoria County History - A History of the County of Chester: Volume I, p121,124-128 (Book). SCH3556.

<11> Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies, 1911-Present, Journal of Roman Studies, Vol 42 p94 (Journal/Periodical). SCH1519.

<12> British Archaeological Association, 1847-present, Journal of the British Archaeological Association, 5/212 (Journal/Periodical). SCH1578.

<13> Ordnance Survey, 1870-1982, Ordnance Survey Archaeological Record Card, 1981 SJ46NW18 (Index). SCH2487.