Information for record number MWA774:
Civil War Battlefield NW of Southam

Summary The possible site of the Civil War battlefield of Southam, where a skirmish took place during 1642. The site cannot be defined with confidence due to a relative lack of historical sources and limited archaeological evidence. The suggested location is to the northwest of Southam.
What Is It?  
Type: Battlefield
Period: Unknown
Where Is It?  
Parish: Southam
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 41 63
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1 On 23rd August 1642 a skirmish took place at Southam, in the direction of Bascote, between the King and the Parliamentary forces. A cannon ball and an inlaid spur have recently been discovered on the site.
3 Simon Marsh (Battlefields Trust) proposes that the skirmish took place to the northwest of the town, based on landscape analysis considered against the documentary sources. Given the topography around Southam, the routes available to the Royalists, accounts of the battle taking place next to a river, in "Southam field" and some limited finds data, the possible site of the skirmish is placed somewhere on the northern side of the town between the modern A423 and the River Itchen.
4 In 2018 Simon Marsh of the Battlefields Trust provided further information on the possible site of the Skirmish at Southam. Two routes were available to the Royalists as they undertook there advance to Southam via Kenilworth and the Welsh Road or via the modern A432. As such it seems likely that the skirmish took place between the Welsh Road and the A423 to the northwest of Southam. Accounts of the battle note that the fighting occurred between the River Itchen and in Southam field, which is thought to be around the area of the farm called Southam fields farm on the 1st edition OS map.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Shakespeare's Land
Author/originator: Ribton-Turner C J
Date: 1893
Page Number: 285
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Correspondence
Title: Further Email from Simon Marsh about the site of the Skirmish at Southam
Author/originator: Marsh S
Date: 2018
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Correspondence
Title: Email from Simon Marsh about the site of The Battle of Southam
Author/originator: Marsh, S
Date: 2014
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: OS Card, 45NW4
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1956
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 45NW4
   
Images:  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source OS Card Ordnance Survey Record Card. Before the 1970s the Ordnance Survey (OS) were responsible for recording archaeological monuments during mapping exercises. This helped the Ordnance Survey to decide which monuments to publish on maps. During these exercises the details of the monuments were written down on record cards. Copies of some of the cards are kept at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. The responsibility for recording archaeological monuments later passed to the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historic Monuments. back
period Modern The Modern Period, about 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
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period modern About 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
more -> 		back
monument CIVIL * This is the top term for the class. See CIVIL Class List for narrow terms. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument BATTLEFIELD * The field or area of ground on which a battle or skirmish was fought. back
monument ROAD * A way between different places, used by horses, travellers on foot and vehicles. back
monument FIELD * An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock. back
monument CANNON * A large mounted gun, now disused and placed in a prominent position as a piece of street furniture or as a "feature". back
monument MARSH * A low lying area of land that is usually waterlogged at all times and is flooded in wet weather. back
monument FARM * A tract of land, often including a farmhouse and ancillary buildings, used for the purpose of cultivation and the rearing of livestock, etc. Use more specific type where known. back
monument TOWN * An assemblage of public and private buildings, larger than a village and having more complete and independent local government. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record