GLOUCESTER AND DISTRICT
ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH GROUP 
Registered charity No.252290                                            Contact us:

~ NEWS ~

Here are some interesting things that have happened in GADARG's area, are happening now, or will be in the not too distant future.

GLEVENSIS - Issue 40 of GADARG's annual journal is now available. This issue contains the usual wide selection of reports and articles on local history and archaeology. Signifant amongst the items this year are the new Glevensis Editor Diane Charlesworth's paper on the Iron-Age and Roman period sites in the north west of Gloucestershire, the medieval Manor of Whitminster by Terry Moore-Scott and in the historical vein, Russell Howes considers the revolt of Owain Gyn Dwr and the Parliament of Gloucester in 1407.

Click GLEVENSIS on the left for background information on the journal and for a the full Contents List of this issue - and of past copies.

CAG ANNUAL CONFERENCE - The CAG conference is this year titled 'Building Gloucester: from the 1st to the 21st century, will consider the archaeological and other heritage aspects of the forthcoming redevelopments of the historic city. The programme will include: Understanding Roman Gloucester by Henry Hurst; The Medieval Landscape of Gloucester by Nigel Baker; Early Modern Gloucester by Nicholas Herbert; Regeneration in an Historic City, by Chris Oldenshaw; Recent New Work: Llanthony Priory and The Wotton Cemetery by Martin Watts; The Next Phase: Regeneration and the Research Agenda by Jonathan Smith.

The conference will take place on Saturday 25th October 2008 at the University of Gloucestershire, Oxstalls Campus, Gloucester 10am to 5pm. The event is reasonably priced at £10, with free parking. Advanced booking is advised.

Please click for order form.

[Photo of dig]

FROCESTER - Despite what was written in last year's Glevensis, Eddie Price has continued digging at Frocester, albeit on a reduced scale. Volume 4 of his publications (on the history of the village) is selling well, and members will be pleased to hear that he has been awarded an MBE for his lifetime's archaeological work.

TEWKESBURY ABBEY - GADARG carried out a minor archaeological investigation in May for the Abbey Lawn Trust; Terry Moore-Scott and Nigel Spry have jointly produced a report on the project. Although the findings were negative, such projects provide useful experience and enhance GADARG's reputation.

[Image Llanthony Secunda]
LLANTHONY SECUNDA - One aspect of the draft proposals for the major urban regeneration scheme for the area of Gloucester dockland south of Llanthony Bridge (the so called 'Gloucester Quays Development') has caused considerable concern among historians and archaeologists over the intention to develop within the scheduled ancient monument area at Llanthony Priory. Consultative advice from one of our own members has now made the developers aware of the true importance and extent of the site. Interestingly, recent work by a contract archaeological team has changed our understanding of the actual site of the Priory church. Its work confirms recently studied records that show that the church was further to the north, on land on which the new Gloucestershire College has been built. Llanthony Priory Redefined? by Martin Watts & Pat Hughes.

The City Council has given outline planning consent for the Gloucester Quays development. Besides a supermarket at Monkmeadow, the development includes a factory outlet centre at High Orchard, which English Heritage was said to have commended as an ideal use for the historic industrial buildings there. Controversially, the development also includes flats, offices and a hotel on the site of the commercial scrapyards within the Llanthony Priory scheduled ancient monument. In an appendix to the planning application, the applicants' archaeological consultant argued that any buried remains here were peripheral or post-monastic, and that building was acceptable provided the scrapyards were excavated archaeologically beforehand. The planning officer reported, however, that the proposed buildings were so tall and close to the standing monument that they would conflict with national planning advice, so the council imposed a condition requiring them to be redesigned or relocated. Recent archaeological excavation at the south east of the site has revealed substancial remains, including what seems to be a second gatehouse.

The Council has also reiterated a condition of its original planning brief, that the applicants must find a use for the derelict range of medieval buildings within the priory. A trust has been set up to safeguard the Llanthony Priory site and in order to further this the City will in effect pay for the first three years of its opperation while the Trust sets up a security and essential maintenance regime. The site has now been securely fenced and security is being provided by the Gloucestershire College, who's students now can use the land. Not everyone believes this management arrangement will be viable in the long term.

UNPUBLISHED EXCAVATIONS -The Committee for Archaeology in Gloucestershire first compiled a list of unpublished excavations in 1987. Since then many of these sites have been reported on, however many still remain unpublished and the backlog is increasing. The Committee is deeply concerned by this, as is its parent body the Bristol and Gloucestershire Archaeological Society. None of the seventeen post-1974 Gloucester excavations, acknowledged as needing publication, have yet been published. Gloucester Museum offices acknowledged the problem and, having reviewed the need with representatives from GADARG and BGAS, have found funds to employ a new officer to join the historic environment team, to look into the documentation of these past museum excavations. CAG is now compiling an even more comprehensive list for the county as a whole, and is exploring what can be done.

RECENT FIELDWORK BY GADARG - Since 2002 fieldwork has been done on well over twenty sites. The major sites have been at Deerhurst, Frocester Court Villa, High Brotheridge, Leckhampton, Standish and Whitminster Roman Villa. Volunteers for future work who are not already on the contact list should telephone Ann Maxwell on 01386 751662.

[Engraving of Tanner's Hall]

TANNERS' HALL - Gloucestershire County Council has sold the remains of the Tanners' Guildhall. Gloucester's oldest secular building, the ancient hall, which dates from the 13th century, was used as a meeting place by the guild of leather tanners, one of the city's earliest craft guilds.

Originally thought to be on the site of Sainsbury's food store in Hare Lane, the hall was discovered in 1976 during a search through the city's records. It is clear that the building went through many structural phases in the last couple of centuries, now the slight remains are in urgent need of TLC. This ancient monument is of prime concern to Gloucester Historic Buildings Ltd, the joint City and Gloucester Civic Trust's charitable building preservation company. It is to be hoped that the new owners will be able to produce a suitable scheme to secure a future for this important structure.

[Illustration of Blackfrairs Priory]

GLOUCESTER HERITAGE URBAN REGENERATION COMPANY (GHURC) - In October 2006, the Company unveiled its plans for the regeneration of seven central areas of the city. Foremost amongst these areas are the Brunswick Road GlosCat sites and the adjacent Greyfriars area, King's Square (including the site of the Whitefriars - under the bus station) and the south-west quadrant of the city centred on Blackfrairs. Archaeologically, 'Greater Greyfriars' is already causing concern because of proposals to build over the remaining vestiges of the city defences in front of the old technical college. On the opposite side of Brunswick Road, the plans being developed for a combined health and community facility (the Four Gates Centre) could impinge on the site of first century pottery kilns and a Roman cemetery.

Both the city and county archaeologists are officially involved in GHURC's deliberations of the archaeological implications of redevelopment. One of their principal aims is to ensure that the development planning process pays enough attention to archaeological concerns and to convince the company that this is in the public interest. Local independant bodies generally agree that it is important to formally involve external specialist expertise, as well as local knowledgeable individuals, in any archaeological discussions.

[Image Priory Road]
PRIORY ROAD GARDEN, ST MARY'S STREET EXCAVATION REPORT - The archaeological report on Priory Road Garden, St Mary's Street, Gloucester has been published by GADARG. During the spring and summer weekends and evenings from 1972 to 1975, GADARG undertook an archaeological excavation in the Priory Road Garden. The excavation revealed 1st and 2nd century timber buildings, a 3rd century curving enclosure feature, a supposed Roman ditch and a late Roman road. The road survived into the Norman period when it was cut by drainage ditches that joined into a watercourse around St Oswald's Priory. From the 13th century, on the site of the road, industrial, timber buildings with clay floors and stone ovens were constructed. These structures were followed by a sequence of clay floored timber and stone buildings with stone hearths. The properties, with yards beyond accessed by passageways, fronted onto the street. The properties were demolished in the 1930's.