Monument record 8228 - Roman South East Angle Tower

The south east angle tower of the Roman fortress was first encountered during excavations in 1908 and subsequently excavated in its entirety by Prof Newstead in 1930. Previous excavations immediately to the north in 1892 and 1908 had encountered a section of the east fortress wall indicating a distinct curve in the wall line. This curve was interpreted as the lead up to the corner of the fortress and the south east angle tower (1).

The excavations carried out on the site of the tower in 1930 recorded a stone base approximately 7m wide where it joined with the rampart wall narrowing to 6m to the rear and extending back from the wall for approximately 4.8m. The stone foundations of two parallel walls extending from the rampart wall were of good quality construction with ashlar facing on the inside comprised two walls of structure with the third rear wall also recorded although in this case the wall appeared to be somewhat thinner than the others. The infilling of the stone base of the tower comprised a series of layers with evidence of timber strapping in the lower layers similar to that recorded in the turf rampart. Dating evidence, although scant, suggest a late Flavian date for the structure. Amongst the finds recovered from the tower contexts there was the remains of an iron mason’s trowel from the base of the north wall of the tower (2)

Subsequent investigations by Newstead in 1938 involved the tunnelling under the City Wall in order to identify the north west corner of the angle tower. The work further suggested the earth rampart did not extend beyond the rear wall of the tower at that point. Although no datable finds were recovered the investigations encountered traces of the earth rampart underlying the tower (3)

Later investigations on the site of the south east angle were carried out by G Webster of the Grosvenor Museum in 1951. Two trenches were cut into the interior of the tower with the intention of establishing the relationship between the tower and the rampart defences. Trench 1 was cut within the tower area itself revealing further evidence of the turf and clay rampart underlying and infilling the structure.

Although no dating evidence was recovered in 1951, it was argued by the excavator that the earth rampart predated the tower based on several points. The earth rampart appears to have had a well constructed front face suggesting it was not originally meant to be fronted by stonework while the positioning of the deep foundation trench for the front wall and the lip of the outer ditch with no intervening space at this location suggests measures were taken to prevent subsidence of the wall into the ditch. The evidence from trenches 3 & 4 indicate the rampart wall and the stone tower were carefully bonded together in such a way as to indicate they were constructed together suggesting a slightly later, second century date, than that put forward by Newstead in 1938 (4)

More recent investigations at the south east angle tower in 2011 comprised a series of small evaluation trenches excavated in advance of limited landscaping works. The investigations included five trenches (trenches 11-15) within the confines of the tower itself. The evidence from these trenches was limited by the small scale nature of their works, however probable in situ remains of the earth rampart was encountered in trenches 14 and 15. (5)

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

<6> LeQuesne C, 1999, Excavations at Chester: The Roman and Later Defences Part I (Monograph). SCH6156.

<7> Lawson, P H, 1926, Schedule of the Roman Remains of Chester with Maps and Plans, No.46 (Article in Journal). SCH5956.

<8> Harris, B.E. (ed), 1987, Victoria County History - A History of the County of Chester: Volume I, p121,124-128 (Book). SCH3556.

<9> Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies, 1911-Present, Journal of Roman Studies, Vol 42 p94 (Journal/Periodical). SCH1519.

<10> British Archaeological Association, 1847-present, Journal of the British Archaeological Association, 5/212 (Journal/Periodical). SCH1578.

<11> Ordnance Survey, 1870-1982, Ordnance Survey Archaeological Record Card, 1981 SJ46NW18 (Index). SCH2487.