List entry Summary
This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
Name: Roman camp 50m south of Elm Bank
List entry Number: 1014115
Location
The monument may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
| County |
District |
District Type |
Parish |
| Cheshire West and Chester | Unitary Authority | Waverton |
National Park: Not applicable to this List entry.
Grade: Not applicable to this List entry.
Date first scheduled: 27-Mar-1996
Date of most recent amendment: Not applicable to this List entry.
Legacy System Information
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System: RSM
UID: 25715
Asset Groupings
This list entry does not comprise part of an Asset Grouping. Asset Groupings are not part of the official record but are added later for information.
List entry Description
Summary of Monument
Legacy Record - This information may be included in the List Entry Details.
Reasons for Designation
Roman camps are rectangular or sub-rectangular enclosures which were
constructed and used by Roman soldiers either when out on campaign or as
practice camps; most campaign camps were only temporary overnight bases and
few were used for longer periods. They were bounded by a single earthen
rampart and outer ditch and in plan are always straight-sided with rounded
corners. Normally they have between one and four entrances, although as many
as eleven have been recorded. Such entrances were usually centrally placed in
the sides of the camp and were often protected by additional defensive
outworks. Roman camps are found throughout much of England, although most
known examples lie in the midlands and north. Around 140 examples have been
identified and, as one of the various types of defensive enclosure built by
the Roman Army, particularly in hostile upland and frontier areas, they
provide an important insight into Roman military strategy and organisation.
All well-preserved examples are identified as being of national importance.
Although there are no visible upstanding remains, the camp at Waverton
survives as a well defined crop mark and includes indications of its
entrances. Although only two thirds of the fort remain intact there will be
remains of the rampart spread and of an earlier ground surface beneath it.
There will also be traces of the interior arrangements including latrine pits
and any post holes for buildings which may have been erected in the interior.
History
Legacy Record - This information may be included in the List Entry Details.
Details
The monument includes a Roman camp located as a crop mark on an aerial
photograph in 1994. The differential growth of crops on the more fertile ditch
fills on this site are clearly visible from the air for the length of three
sides of this rectangular enclosure.
The camp is in a field to the west of the road from Christelton to Whitchurch,
the A41. Part of the area of the camp has been destroyed by the road and the
house foundations on Eggbridge Lane. These areas are not included in the
scheduling. The visible long side of the parallelogram is to the north west
and measures 120m to the corner 20m from road edge. The south western side
measures 80m with a clear entrance gap in the middle 15m wide. The south
eastern side extends for 40m before the road edge cuts it off. The original
camp would have covered an area of 1.2ha making it smaller than many of the
known examples and possibly earlier than most. The camp is situated on a route
to the east of the River Dee from the Roman town at Whitchurch to Chester.
The road hedges and the road surface are excluded from the scheduling although
the ground beneath these features is included.
MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
Selected Sources
Legacy Record - This information may be included in the List Entry Details
National Grid Reference: SJ 45134 63955
Map
© Crown Copyright and database right 2012. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey Licence number 100019088.
© British Crown and SeaZone Solutions Limited 2012. All rights reserved. Licence number 102006.006.
The above map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. For a copy of the full scale map, please see the attached PDF - 1014115.pdf
This copy shows the entry on 26-May-2013 at 01:21:45.