HER 413 DESCRIPTION:-

Site of early Roman fort at Cirencester, which was established c.49AD. This fort is known as the 'Leaholme Fort'. This succeeded the earlier fort (SMR 412) that belonged to the first half of the first century AD.

1961 - Wacher's excavations in 1961 (SMR 30373 and 30377) revealed northwest defences, consisting of a turf rampart below the later street, north of which were an inner and outer ditch. There was evidence of 3 successive sets of timber buildings and occupation seems to have extended into the Flavian period.

1962 - Proton magnetometer survey conducted 1962 in St Michael's Fields in an attempt to locate the southeast boundary of the Claudian fort found in 1961. Survey conducted by Mr Michael Tite of the Research Laboratory for Art & Archaeology at Oxford. It suggested a line for further investigation but did not achieve a decisive result. {Source Works 240, 476, 3775 & 2840.}

1962 - A watching brief was carried out in 1962 (SMR 30407) during the laying of a sewer trench from the Leaholme site to Watermoor road, over the site of Wacher's Leaholme excavations (SMR 30373). The trench cut obliquely across what was thought to be the curve of the rampart and both ditches, between which the intervals were similar to those observed last year (1961) in Leaholme. D Brown interpreted this apparent curve as indicating the west corner of the fort and that an approximate line for the southwest side was thus indicated, although its exact position is not fixed, since the radius of the curve was unknown. {Source Works 476, 3775 and 862.}

Since very little of this curve was discovered and documented, its radius and extent remained undetermined, and interpretations for the southwest side of the fort remained speculative. Further excavations were carried out in 1972 to determine the southwest side, and therefore the location of the corner (see below).

1964 - Excavations in 1964 in Chester Street {Source Work 476} in Insula VI produced evidence of commercial and military activity. A vacant garden in Chester Street scheduled for building, excavated by permission of Mr Sutton, yielded information about the fort and the town. The trench lay at right angles to the northeast boundary of Insula VI and part of the street forming this boundary was found. Fronted by a stone building of three periods, extensively robbed. Function unknown but thick occupation debris suggests commercial. Evidence for the fort was found, comprising two ditches, running northwest to southeast - at right angles to the northwest side ditches revealed in 1961. These ditches formed part of the northeast side of the fort defences and lay in the northeast gate vicinity. The Inner ditch had been extensively quarried, with little surviving. Two sides for the fort have now been identified, although no substantial evidence exists for the remaining southeast and southwest sides. {Source Work 3775.} Size and position for fort is an approximate 6 acres. {Source Work 476.}

1972 - A trench measuring 25.5m was dug at Price's Row in the hope of finding the southwest side of the fort defences. Although a part of a ditch was found, there was no evidence for any further ditches or the rampart, causing Holbrook {Source Work 4926.} to conclude that the southwest side of the defences were not to be found in this area. Therefore, there was not enough evidence to suggest that the west corner was located in the area of the 1962 watching brief.

Below insulae V & VI, there is evidence for at least 3 successive sets of timber building within the fort and the intervallum road. {Source Works 2840, 476 & 297.}

1980 - A development-led excavation in 1980 at 2-8 Chester Street, Cirencester (HER 30413). The investigation revealed military layers pertaining to the Roman fort {Source Work 4926.}

"(SP027014 sited to description of authority 1) A fort or possible campaign camp was built at Cirencester within a year of the invasion in an area later occupied by the southern end of the Roman town. In c AD 50 a new fort was built which survived until it was probably abandoned during the mid 70's, before the creation of the Civitas Capital of Corinium Dobunnorum (SP 00 SW 1). (1)" {Source Work 4249.}

2021 - Watching brief and excavation carried out at Leaholme Court, Cirencester.

"While previous development and excavations in the 1960s had caused extensive disturbance and truncation to earlier remains, it was possible to identify largely intact, deeply stratified, surfaces and silt deposits associated with Street F, aligned NE-SW across the site, in addition to floors and possible opus signinum. The latter most likely relate to some of the earliest phases of shop buildings along the northern edge of Insula V, but residual 1st century pottery in later deposits and a finely worked, lathe-turned Tuscan column base - potentially the first example of monumental worked stone from Cirencester carved in Painswick limestone - could have derived from structures associated with the 1st century Leaholme fort." {Source Work 17783.}

2022 - On 12th September 2022 Foundations Archaeology undertook an archaeological watching brief at 37 Chester Street, Cirencester. The project comprised the monitoring of groundworks associated with the construction of a single storey rear extension. The watching brief identified the top of a poorly dated, but possible Roman wall, which was situated adjacent to the postulated line of Roman Road ‘D’. It remained unclear if the wall was part of a building, or a land boundary. A stone and brick-built domestic well was of Victorian, or later date {Source Work 17938.}