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Monument Types

• TOWN DITCH (MEDIEVAL - 1066 AD to 1539 AD (between))
• TOWN DITCH (POST MEDIEVAL - 1540 AD to 1900 AD (between))

Associated Events

• 71 Sidbury (Ref: WCM100043)
• Rear of 49-55 Friar Street (Ref: WCM100156)
• Friars Gate, Union Street (Ref: WCM100263)
• 61 Sidbury (Ref: WCM100462)
• Borehole D, City Walls Road (Ref: WCM100495)
• Borehole E, City Walls Road (Ref: WCM100496)
• City wall (Ref: WCM100507)
• City wall (Ref: WCM100508)
• City wall (Ref: WCM100509)
• City Walls, East (Talbot Street) (Ref: WCM100948)

Full description

City ditch, constituent of medieval city defences WCM 96100.

This part of the extramural ditch appears as a stream (the Frog Brook) on Speed’s map of 1610 and as a conventionalised ditch on the 1651 map editions. Doharty’s map of 1741 shows it as a strip of land with trees between the city wall and the Frog Brook. Broad’s map of 1768 shows the course of the ditch as a strip of rough ground between the city wall and the Frog Brook. Young’s map of 1779 shows it as a strip of rough ground with the Frog Brook down the middle.

Richardson 1957 reported ‘the usual considerable thickness of black earth’ disclosing the presence of the ditch outside the city wall in the Talbot Street area {1}. The 1976 Friars Gate excavation (WCM 100263, 16/38) found sandstone footings, probably the base of a support for the Friars Gate bridge (WCM 96106) cut into the partly silted up ditch, possibly associated with the enlargement of the gate in 1246. Two later walls, interpreted as later modifications to the bridge, were built right across the width of the ditch leaving only two small openings in their lower courses for drainage purposes {2}.

No other complete profiles/sections have been obtained for this part of the city ditch (but see WCM 100656, Bowling Green Terrace, to the north). A number of interventions have explored its western edge. Bennett’s 1973 trench XIII, 16/19 (WCM 100507) recorded the top of the ditch fill sealed under dumps of clay and building rubble. Bore hole ‘E’ 15 metres south-east of WCM 100507 revealed ditch fill to a depth of 4.5 metres below the 1973 ground level; it was a consistent mottled grey sandy clay with sandstone fragments, becoming darker with depth. Bennett’s 1973 trench 16/20 (WCM 100508) was again ‘dug only to the top of the medieval ditch fill’ {3}. Hirst’s 1975 Talbot Street excavation 16/23 (WCM 100156) recorded a profile through the city wall including the lip of the ditch outside {4}.

Management note 18/9/03 The S end of Clare Street car park probably represents the only substantially surviving part of the city ditch along the E side of the circuit.

Cross-reference to: 96101, Sidbury Gate
Cross-reference to: 96102, City Wall, line of, Clare Street area
Cross-reference to: 96103, City Wall, section r/o Friar St cinema
Cross-reference to: 96104, City Wall, line of, south of Friars Gate
Cross-reference to: 96105, Tower, alleged, south of Friars Gate
Cross-reference to: 96140, pre-CW bank
Cross-reference to: 96136, City Ditch, Friars Gate – St Martin’s Gate
Cross-reference to: 96134, City Ditch, St Peter’s – Sidbury Gate

Sources and further reading

Related records

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