Information for record number MWA6012:
Site of Possible Roman Settlement on Foxhill

Summary The site of a Roman settlement on Foxhill. Linear features and an enclosure are visible as cropmarks on aerial photographs and Roman pottery has been recovered from the site.
What Is It?  
Type: Settlement, Enclosure, Linear Feature
Period: Romano-British (43 AD - 409 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Alderminster
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 21 49
(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 Curvilinear features and possible penannular gullies show on aerial photographs.
2 Field survey conducted here in 1985-6 recovered Roman sherds.
3 Plan.
4 The site was located as a cropmark and was fieldwalked in 1985 and 1986. The hillfort is situated on marl and is in a hilltop location, with a slight downhill slope to the N and steep slopes down to a brook on the SW, S and SE. The main feature on air photographs is an enclosure of about 1.4ha, with a large defensive ditch and a western entrance. The ditch on the SE appears to be interrupted; ground inspection reveals that the interruption is the result of Post Medieval or modern quarrying. To the SE of the main enclosure is a smaller subrectangular enclosure ant to the N sre curvilinear features and possible penannular gullies. The site falls into parts of two modern fields and both have been examined. The rampart has been totally flattened by subsequent cultivation; however, two clear concentrations of Iron Age pottery were noted in the interior of the hillfort enclosure. The pot sherds are all small and extremely friable. Burnt stone was was also commom on the site. A sparse scatter of Roman sherds over the cropmarks to the N of the hillfort may indicate a Roman site close to the hillfort.
5The remains of an Iron Age hillfort on Foxhill, is visible as cropmarks and was mapped as part of the South East Warwickshire and Cotswold Hills HLS NMP Target Areas project. The hillfort is defined by a curvilinear ditch which is only well defined on the west and southeast sides. The south side has been destroyed by post-medieval quarrying. An entrance is visible to the west. The enclosed area measures about 133metres by 119metres across. To the east of the hillfort, at SP 21485 49734, is a small sub rectangular enclosure measuring about 16metres by 19metres across. Further possibly Roman archaeological features are visible to the north of the hillfort, at SP 21387 49889, and comprise a ring ditch (SP 21350 49872) and possible rectangular enclosures, one is double ditched, at SP 21405 49879.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP2854
Author/originator: Pickering J
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP2854 A-D, J-S
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Desk Top Study
Title: SE Warwickshire and Cotswolds NMP Project
Author/originator: Amanda Dickson
Date: 2010-2012
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Plan
Title: RB settlement, Foxhill, Alderminster.
Author/originator: Hingley R C
Date: 1985-6
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Serial
Title: WMA vol 29 1986
Author/originator: Hingley R C
Date: 1986
Page Number: 56
Volume/Sheet: 29
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: RB settlement, Foxhill
Author/originator: Hingley R C
Date: 1985-6
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Field Survey Form
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source WMA West Midlands Archaeology. This publication contains a short description for each of the sites where archaeological work has taken place in the previous year. It covers Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands and Worcestershire. Some of these descriptions include photographs, plans and drawings of the sites and/or the finds that have been discovered. The publication is produced by the Council For British Archaeology (CBA) West Midlands and is published annually. Copies are held at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. back
technique Field Survey The term ‘field survey’ is used to describe all work that does not disturb archaeological deposits below the ground through an excavation. Field survey techniques involve recording measurements that help archaeologists draw plans or diagrams of archaeological features. There are a variety of different field survey techniques, including geophysical survey, building recording survey, field walking survey, landscape survey and earthwork survey. back
technique Cropmark Cropmarks appear as light and dark marks in growing and ripening crops. These marks relate to differences in the soil below. For example, parched lines of grass may indicate stone walls. Crops that grow over stone features often ripen more quickly and are shorter than the surrounding crop. This is because there is less moisture in the soil where the wall lies.

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technique Aerial Photograph Aerial photographs are taken during an aerial survey, which involves looking at the ground from above. It is usually easier to see cropmarks and earthworks when they are viewed from above. Aerial photographs help archaeologists to record what they see and to identify new sites. There are two kinds of aerial photographs; oblique and vertical. 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 Iron Age About 800 BC to 43 AD

The Iron Age comes after the Bronze Age and before the Roman period. It is a time when people developed the skills and knowledge to work and use iron, hence the name ‘Iron Age’ which is given to this period. Iron is a much tougher and more durable metal than bronze but it also requires more skill to make objects from it. People continued to use bronze during this period.
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period Roman About 43 AD to 409 AD (the 1st century AD to the 5th century AD)

The Roman period comes after the Iron Age and before the Saxon period.

The Roman period in Britain began in 43 AD when a Roman commander called Aulus Plautius invaded the south coast, near Kent. There were a series of skirmishes with the native Britons, who were defeated. In the months that followed, more Roman troops arrived and slowly moved westwards and northwards.
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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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period Post Medieval About 1540 AD to 1750 AD (the 16th century AD to the 18th century AD)

The Post Medieval period comes after the medieval period and before the Imperial period.

This period covers the second half of the reign of the Tudors (1485 – 1603), the reign of the Stuarts (1603 – 1702) and the beginning of the reign of the Hannoverians (1714 – 1836).
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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.
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monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument ARCHAEOLOGICAL FEATURE * Use only for features assumed to be archaeological but which cannot be identified more precisely without further investigation .Use more specific term where known back
monument SETTLEMENT * A small concentration of dwellings. back
monument STONE * Use only where stone is natural or where there is no indication of function. back
monument FEATURE * Areas of indeterminate function. back
monument RECTANGULAR ENCLOSURE * A rectangular shaped area of land enclosed by a boundary ditch, bank, wall, palisade or similar barrier. back
monument RAMPART * A protective earthen mound, often the main defence of a fortification. back
monument LINEAR FEATURE * A length of straight, curved or angled earthwork or cropmark of uncertain date or function. back
monument WELL * A shaft or pit dug in the ground over a supply of spring-water. back
monument FIELD * An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock. 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 RING DITCH * Circular or near circular ditches, usually seen as cropmarks. Use the term where the function is unknown. Ring ditches may be the remains of ploughed out round barrows, round houses, or of modern features such as searchlight emplacements. back
monument DITCH * A long and narrow hollow or trench dug in the ground, often used to carry water though it may be dry for much of the year. back
monument HILLFORT * A hilltop enclosure bounded by one or more substantial banks, ramparts and ditches. Use more specific type where known. back
monument TARGET * Any structure or object, used for the purpose of practice shooting by aerial, seaborne or land mounted weapons. back
monument SUBRECTANGULAR ENCLOSURE * A monument consisting of an area enclosed by a ditch, bank, wall, palisade or similar barrier, where the barrier follows an almost rectangular course. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record