Information for record number MWA5163:
Site of Saxon Settlement to E of Alveston Manor

Summary The site of an Early Medieval settlement. Archaeological work has identified evidence of a palisade, a burial, and enclosures. Pottery was found in one of the palisade trenches. The location is to the northeast of the Alveston Manor Hotel.
What Is It?  
Type: Settlement, Enclosure, Building, Post Hole, Burial, Palisade
Period: Early medieval - Migration (801 AD - 800 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Stratford upon Avon
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 20 54
(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 1970: Four palisade trenches ran N-S at the W end of the excavation. Two of these cut an Anglo Saxon grave and the most W contained early Medieval pottery. The whole complex suggests replacement of a boundary fence covering a long period.
2 1971: The palisade trenches were seen to extend S and E and appear to be part of a series of conjoined enclosures dating from the end of the pagan Saxon period. Replacement palisades had been erected and indicate a considerable lifespan for these enclosures.
3 Noted by Ordnance Survey.
4 Plan showing features identified both in 1934-6 and in 1971.
5 Large scale plan of the site.
6 Correspondence from 1988 relating to a development proposal.
7 A note about a theory that a tunnel ran from the hotel's cellar to other buildings in the town.
 
Sources
Source No: 6
Source Type: Correspondence
Title: Alveston Manor site
Author/originator: Various
Date: 1988
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Excavation Report
Title: WMANS
Author/originator: WJF
Date: 1971
Page Number: 31
Volume/Sheet: 14
   
Source No: 7
Source Type: Note
Title: Alveston Manor
Author/originator:
Date: c. 1981
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Plan
Title: Alveston Manor site
Author/originator:
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Plan
Title: Alveston Manor site.
Author/originator:
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Record Card/Form
Title: OS Card 46SE10
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1974
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 46SE10
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Serial
Title: WMANS no 13 (1970)
Author/originator: Rahtz, P (ed)
Date: 1970
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 13
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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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
source WMANS West Midlands Archaeological News Sheet, a publication that was produced each year, this later became West Midlands Archaeology. The West Midlands Arcaheological News Sheet contains reports about archaeological work that was carried out in the West Midlands region in the previous year. It includes information about sites dating from the Prehistoric to the Post Medieval periods. It was produced the Department of Extramural Studies at Birmingham University. Copies are held at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. back
technique excavation Archaeologists excavate sites so that they can find information and recover archaeological materials before they are destroyed by erosion, construction or changes in land-use.

Depending on how complicated and widespread the archaeological deposits are, excavation can be done by hand or with heavy machinery. Archaeologists may excavate a site in a number of ways; either by open area excavation, by digging a test pit or a trial trench.
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period Medieval 1066 AD to 1539 AD (the 11th century AD to the 16th century AD)

The medieval period comes after the Saxon period and before the post medieval period.

The Medieval period begins in 1066 AD.
This was the year that the Normans, led by William the Conqueror (1066 – 1087), invaded England and defeated Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings in East Sussex.
The Medieval period includes the first half of the Tudor period (1485 – 1603 AD), when the Tudor family reigned in England and eventually in Scotland too.

The end of the Medieval period is marked by Henry VIII’s (1509 – 1547) order for the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the years running up to 1539 AD. The whole of this period is sometimes called the Middle Ages.
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monument HOTEL * A large building used for the accommodation of paying travellers and guests. back
monument PALISADE * An enclosure of stakes driven into the ground, sometimes for defensive purposes. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument SETTLEMENT * A small concentration of dwellings. back
monument BUILDING * A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known. back
monument TUNNEL * An underground channel with a vaulted roof. Use specific type where known. back
monument FEATURE * Areas of indeterminate function. back
monument CELLAR * A room or group of rooms usually below the ground level and usually under a building, often used for storing fuel, provisions or wines. back
monument GRAVE * A place of burial. Use more specific type where known. back
monument ENCLOSURE * An area of land enclosed by a boundary ditch, bank, wall, palisade or other similar barrier. Use specific type where known. back
monument MANOR * An area of land consisting of the lord's demesne and of lands from whose holders he may exact certain fees, etc. back
monument TRENCH * An excavation used as a means of concealment, protection or both. back
monument BURIAL * An interment of human or animal remains. Use specific type where known. If component use with wider site type. Use FUNERARY SITE for optimum retrieval in searches. back
monument TOWN * An assemblage of public and private buildings, larger than a village and having more complete and independent local government. back
monument BOUNDARY FENCE * A fence that indicates the limit of an area or a piece of land. back
monument POST HOLE * A hole dug to provide a firm base for an upright post, often with stone packing. Use broader monument type where known. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record