Monument record 12001 - Medieval Defensive Ditch

The ditch defensive system for the medieval city has been recorded archaeologically in a number of locations, particularly outside the eastern city wall. In Foregate St., part of the ditch was identified in 1893 (4), and then again following a sewer collapse in 1972 (2). Excavations carried out at the site of the former library, St John St. between 1988 and 1989 allowed for the recording of the ditch at this location; the dimensions of the feature had been all but removed by later features, but from what remained it would seem to have been approximately 12m wide and about 3m deep. At this location, the ditch was seem to have silted up, at which point the twelfth century kiln was created, followed by its demolition and the cutting of a new ditch larger than its predecessor. This was about 4 - 5m deep and at least 14m wide. Finds from the fills of the ditch after it went out of use suggest that it stopped functioning as a defensive feature at some point during the fourteenth century (8). An unpublished summary report of this ditch (9) provides additional detail: the cutting of the ditch partially demolished and infilled the former kiln, with a base approximately at the level of its Saxon predecessor (CHER 9041). Its outer lip was beyond the eastern boundary of the excavated area, while the inner lip was thought to have been directly above the buried stub of the former Roman wall. According to this report, and contra (8), its width was thought to have been approximately 7m and it was 3.5m deep. Maintenance of the ditch was neglected, and it was used as a convenient dumping ground for refuse. Tip lines including amounts of charcoal were clearly visible. The pottery recovered from the ditch was of predominantly fourteenth or early fifteenth century date, suggesting to the excavators that it became filled relatively rapidly (9).

Alebon P.H. Davey P.J. & Robinson J., 1976, The Eastgate, Chester, 1972 (Article in Journal). SCH5912.

<1> multiple authors, 1973, Excavation Reports and Summaries, p15 (Article in Journal). SCH5782.

<2> Alebon P.H. Davey P.J. & Robinson J., 1976, The Eastgate, Chester, 1972 (Article in Journal). SCH5912.

<3> Anon, 1973, September 1973: North West Newsletter. Excavations (Article in Journal). SCH6497.

<4> multiple authors, 1895, Miscellanea, p326 (Article in Journal). SCH5602.

<5> Simpson, F., 1910, The Walls of Chester (Book). SCH3255.

<6> Morris, Rupert H (Rev.), 1894, Chester in the Plantagenet & Tudor Reigns (Book). SCH946.

<7> Mason, D. J. P., 1994/5, 'And the Walls came Tumbling Down': Excavations Adjacent to the City Walls in St John Street 1988/9 (Article in Journal). SCH5840.

<8> Mason, D. J. P., 1989, Excavations on the site of the former Public Library Buildings, St John Street, Chester Medieval - Post medieval phases (Unpublished Report). SCH6877.