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Summary

The outer bank of the Roman station of Clausentum was marked on a map drawn by Speed in about 1770, and again on Englefield's 1802/4 plan. The bank was just inside the outer ditch of the Clausentum and is sometimes referred to as a vallum. The levelling of the outer bank had begun by the mid 19th century, although in 1858 a large part of it remained and in 1900 it was still "faintly traceable". In the first half of the 20th century roads were laid out across the area and new houses built. In 1901 observations were made during the laying out of roads (SOU 305); the remains of the (presumably gravel) outer bank were removed and used to metal the roads. Also in 1901, during the laying out of Vespasian Road and Chafen Road (SOU 694), the new road was observed to cut through the north end of the outer bank and ditch; no trace of any wall was found. In 1923 observations were made during the levelling of part of the outer bank (SOU 1274) (precise location unknown); Roman artefacts were found apparently beneath the bank, including 3rd and possibly 4th century coins and Samian pottery of late 1st and 2nd century date. In 1958/9 a trench was archaeologically excavated through what was by then the only surviving part of the the outer bank, on land near the south end of Rampart Road (SOU 206) (part of this site may now be under Quayside Road). The excavators suggested that the original bank was possibly of 1st century date, enlarged and refortified in the late 3rd century or 4th century, and levelled in the late 4th century; a grave containing an inhumation was cut through the original bank. Current OS maps show no trace of the outer bank above ground.

Protected Status: None recorded

Other References/Statuses

• HER backup file (new series): SOU 305  Shared backup file, paper & digital - not yet Library Linked
• Old Southampton SMR No/Backup file: SU 4313 NE 5  
• Old Southampton SMR No/Backup file: SU 4313 SE 1  
• Old Southampton SMR No/Backup file: SU 4313 SE 2  

Monument Type(s):

• BANK (EARTHWORK) (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• RAMPART (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Full description

IP 4/9/03: In Speed's description of the "present Remains of Clausentum" in c1770 [9], the outer bank is not mentioned. However the plan of Bitterne [11], originally included with the manuscript copy of [9] (and reproduced as [10]), labels the outer bank. The outer bank is not shown on another plan [12] with the manuscript drafts of [9]. A 1798 plan [16] of Bitterne Manor does not show the bank by the outer ditch, although a 1802/4 plan [17] does (latter is by Englefield).

[13]: This 1820 map shows a "sloping bank" along the line of the outer bank/ditch. (This is presumably a comination of both features - IP.)
[14]: This map, surveyed 1859, shows by hachering both the outer bank and ditch, the former labelled as "vallum".
[15]: This 1865/7 map shows the outer ditch by hachering, labelled "fosse", and the south end of the outer bank.

IP 12/2/04: The levelling of the outer bank had begun by the mid 19th century [15][21] (note the two strange mounds on the line of the bank north of Bitterne Road, possibly just remnants of the bank). In 1858 a large part of the outer bank was still remaining "unbroken" [18]. Between 1897 [22] and 1909 [23] roads were laid out across the area and new houses built ([7][8] show this work had begun in 1901). In 1900 the outer defenses were still "faintly traceable", consisting of a wide ditch and an earthwork [19], but in 1901, and again in 1923, the bank was being removed (see below). The housing development was largely complete by World War II, and although the pre-war map shows the line of the bank, the bank itself seems only to have survived at its south end [24]. Current OS maps show no trace of the outer bank even at the south end.

SOU 305 (Watching Brief on groundworks between the Inner and Outer Ditches at Bitterne Manor in 1901):
[7][8]: During the laying out of roads in the area between the inner and outer ditches, the remains of the vallum within the outer fosse/ditch were removed and carted away to metal the roads. Nothing whatever was found in these heaps. This vallum was partly destroyed in 1863 by the owner of Bitterne Manor House.
HK May 1995: The inference is that the bank was composed mainly or wholly of gravel.

SOU 694 (Watching Brief on laying out of Vespasian Road and Chafen Road in 1901):
[7][8]: A new road* at Bitterne Manor cut through the north end of the outer bank and ditch of Clausentum. Although the road was here cut unusually deep, no trace of any wall was found.
* Clearly what are now Chafen Road and Vespasian Road. IP 20/8/03.

SOU 1274 (Watching Brief during levelling of part of the Outer Bank/Rampart in 1923):
[20]: The precise location is not given. Roman artefacts were found "lying upon the surface beneath the rampart, and must, therefore, have been lying there when the rampart was thrown up". The finds included coins of 3rd and possibly 4th century date, identified as two of Gallienus, one of Tetricus I, one probably from the time of Constantius I and one possible from the time of Constans. There were ten sherds of Samian pottery of late 1st and 2nd century date. (See MSH334 for full details of these and other finds.)

SOU 206 (Excavation on land south of the Pumping Station in Rampart Road in 1958/1959):
[HK March 1995: This account is derived from earlier SMR cards. RN, who wrote these cards, had consulted the SOU 206 archive [1]. Where the following account differs from the statements in [2] and [3], it is because HK has followed RN. The accuracy of his understanding of the archive has not been checked.]
The bank was initially 35 to 40 feet wide and 15 feet high, being a simple earthwork without any timber structure at the front [3]. [2] says the original bank was undated, but [3] dates it to the 1st century. The bank was eroded during a period of disuse. A grave was cut through the truncated bank. The bank was then enlarged and refortified in the late 3rd century, and levelled in the late 4th century (stated in [3], whereas [2] dates the enlargement to the 4th century). [This dating is unsupported by pottery evidence. The archive should be consulted for confirmation.] Other features were found on the site.
(See separate record for full details about the grave and other evidence from the site. IP 2003.)
IP 8/8/03: In 1948 the outer bank was still visible as an earthwork at the southern end of Rampart Road, south of the area of the pumping station (see map [5]). By 1964, this land had been developed, and the bank is no longer shown (map [6]). Quayside Road was not extended eastwards across the area until after 1964.

IP 12/2/04: Many sources refer to the outer bank as a "Vallum", however this conflicts with the definition of the term in the Monument Type Thesaurus as "ditch flanked by mounds", so I have not indexed it as such.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Finds: None recorded

Associated Events

• ESH1366 - Rough Field Survey of the Roman Remains at Bitterne Manor in 1770
• ESH1370 - Watching Brief during levelling of the Roman Outer Bank at Bitterne Manor in 1923 (Ref: SOU 1274)
• ESH206 - Excavation on land south of the Pumping Station in Rampart Road in 1958/1959 (Ref: SOU 206)
• ESH2088 - Watching brief with option to excavate at 56 Chafen Road in 2011 (Ref: SOU 1567)
• ESH305 - Watching Brief on groundworks between the Inner and Outer Ditches at Bitterne Manor in 1901 (Ref: SOU 305)
• ESH694 - Watching Brief at the junction of Vespasian Road and Chafen Road in 1901 (Ref: SOU 694)

Related records

Associated Links: None recorded

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