CASTLE FIELD

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The Burgh enclosure is a bivallate Iron Age earthwork enclosure, roughly rectangular in shape, and enclosing an area of 7 hectares which includes Burgh Church (St Botolph's: TM 25 SW 21). It is the largest Iron Age fortification in Suffolk. It has been excavated on 3 occasions (1900-1, 1947-57, and 1975). The results of all excavations were published together in 1988 by Martin. The enclosure was constructed in the 1st century BC, with a "destruction horizon" belonging to the early 1st century AD followed by a marked increase in the presence of wheel-made "Belgic" style pottery and imported wares. An inner enclosure of circa 1 hectare was constructed in the north-west corner, probably prior to the Roman conquest, though it may be very early Roman in date. Part of it was levelled circa AD 60. Occupation of the site continued well into the fourth century. A hypocaust and tessellated floors suggest the existence of a villa. The church was built within the earthwork during the late Saxon period. During the 19th century, the earthwork was erroneously identified with the place called Combretovium in the Antonine Itinerary, and was long thought to be a Roman fort or camp. A possible circular feature was identified in the north-west corner of the enclosure in the 1900-1 excavations. This has been identified in the past as the possible site of a Norman motte, although finds were exclusively Roman, and nothing shows up on air photographs. Martin (1988) suggests that if a circular feature did exist, then a more plausible explanation would be a medieval or post-medieval windmill mound, as perhaps suggested by the field name "Old Mount" recorded in the mid-19th century. Finds of Mesolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Age date were also recovered during the various excavations.

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(Centred TM 224523) Castle Field (NAT) (Roman Pottery, Tesserae, Tiles, Coins, Fibulae etc found AD 1900-01) (1)

A quadrilateral enclosure 800' x 500', believed by Raven to be Cambretonium (a), which includes the church. "The name Castlefield is still preserved and the late Major Rousse of Woodbridge could remember the ruined walls". Finds included coins of ?Tiberius, Crispus and Constantine II and an unidentified gold coin, also a gold bracelet. "In 1901 excavations at this place yielded 'very interesting rubbish', tiles, potsherds, painted wall-plaster, a coin or two and other relics of a possible Roman Villa (b)". Formerly marked on OS as "Site of Camp". (2)

Excavations in 1900 "yielded building materials, nails, pins and terra sigillata F.30 and 29/27 (Domitian). Coarse ware discarded. Coin Valentinian.....Though regarded by G E Fox as a military site, this view no longer seems tenable. Further investigations proceeding". (3)

IA 'C'. Farm or open settlement. (4)

Rectangular earthwork consisting of a double bank with ditch between, almost ploughed out, with a circular mound in the N corner of class 'D' type (see plan). (5)

Roman Building (R) (site of) (6)

Castle Field occupies a clay-capped promontory bounded in the SW by the flood-plain of the River Deben and in the SE by a former stream valley now occupied by Drab's Lane. To the NW the ground falls away gently, and in the NE it rises gradually. From c.1949 to 1957 the late JDW Treherne assisted by his son Mr RD Treherne, undertook a series of trial excavations in Castle Field, yielding finds indicating continuous occupation from c 50BC to the mid 4th C AD. The finds, as listed by Treherne, are retained by his son (the drawings are in Ipswich Museum), who pointed out the sites of the excavations on the ground; he also classified the ambiguous and incomplete MS notes of his father. (The cardinal points given in the notes are wrong by 45o; for N read NW, S read SE.) The periods of occupation are as follows:
I. c 50 BC. An unenclosed Belgic settlement in Castle Field, and probably extending into the fields to the NW and NE. Excavations revealed drainage ditches, rubbish pits and a "pit dwelling" (at about TM 22335228). There is now no trace.
II. "The Claudian Ditch". Treherne excavated the parts of the SW and SE arms of a V-shaped ditch at TM 22325233 and TM 22375233. The ditch was about 9 feet deep and 12 - 15 feet wide. Finds from the bottom of the ditch which was sealed by clay, probably from a tumbled inner rampart, show occupation from about 10 AD to 61 AD. Treherne suggests that the ditch enclosed a rectangular area around the highest part of the hill, but he found no trace of the NW or NE arms. There is now no trace of the "Claudian Ditch".
III. Flavian period. Treherne found pottery of this period in the ditch above the clay sealing, but notes no structures. Probably the rectangular earthwork, planned by VCH and visible as a soil mark both on the ground and on APs, is a Flavian fort constructed not long after the Boudicca rebellion. It appears to have comprised double banks and ditches enclosing an area c 200.0m NW-SE by c 120.0m transversely, but ploughing has reduced the ramparts to flint scatters and the ditches to slight depressions 0.8 m maximum depth. On the SW flood-plain side the fort is defined by a flinty scarp visible for about 65.0m. Soil marks adjacent to Drab's Lane suggest an entrance. There is no trace of the circular earthwork shown by VCH on the N corner of the fort.
IV. Finds of the 2nd to the 4th century by Treherne and the results of earlier excavations indicate a villa site in Castle Field. Treherne suggests that it stood on the highest point (Area TM 223524) and that it has been destroyed by soil erosion. He excavated a hypocaust at TM 22425240, but no details are known.
Surveyed at 1/25000 with the aid of AP 73/097.088. (7)

TM 22485227 and 22495229. IA or RB. The W. rampart and ditch of the enclosure was sectioned by the North Sea Gas trench. The rampart was 6.0m wide and 0.4m high - the ditch 8.0m wide and continued below the trench bottom which was 1.3m deep. The E ditch was over 10.0m wide and 1.0m deep. A collapsed pile of tiles, possibly a hypocaust was also revealed at TM 22405200. (8)

No change to field report of 17 12 73, but the defined area of this settlement is now under short corn stubble enabling the defensive works to be surveyed on 1:2500 MSD. Other than the earthworks, as surveyed, there are no identifiable surface remains of occupation; perambulation produced four sherds of 3rd/4th century Roman pottery from individual vessels, and there is a general wide spread of broken Roman tile in the general area of TM 224 524 (probably the 'hypocaust' excavations of Treherne). No Roman building debris other than the tile was evident, nor was any prehistoric material found. Finds and excavations over the years show this to have been an extensive area of occupation over a prolonged period. Early excavations and conclusions suggest the existing earthworks to be Flavian in construction - the general 'lay-out' is certainly Roman military in plan. (9)

TM22305223. The portion of the earthworks within the St Botolph's graveyard was excavated Aug-Oct 1975. On the projected SW line of the N-S rectangular earthwork, a V-sectioned feature 7.5m x 6.3m, x 3.5m deep was recovered, possibly an unfinished ditch segment. The fill contained material of the C1st AD, and an isolated human skull. Further linear features running parallel to and inside the ditch were also revealed, plus remains of a possible Roman building. (10)

SOURCE TEXT

(1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

6" 1928

(2) edited by William Page 1911 The Victoria history of the county of Suffolk, volume one

The Victoria history of the counties of England Page(s)281-2, 301

(2a) General reference

Raven JJ 1895 The History of Suffolk Page(s)30

(2b) The Antiquary: a magazine devoted to the study of the past

37 Page(s)342

(3) Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History

Moore, IE 24, 1940-8 Page(s)172

(3c) General reference

Anon, circa 1901. Woodbridge Field Club: Excavations at Castle Field, Burgh, 1900-1901 (Privately printed; copy at Ipswich Museum).

(4) Ordnance Survey 1962 Ordnance Survey map of southern Britain in the Iron Age

(5) edited by William Page 1911 The Victoria history of the county of Suffolk, volume one

The Victoria history of the counties of England Page(s)586-7, 591

(6) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

6" Provisional Edition

(7) Field Investigators Comments

F1 NKB 17-DEC-73

(7d) Externally held archive reference

MS Notes JDW Treherne

(7e) Oral information, correspondence (not archived) or staff comments

(8) Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History

Mowat, R (Suffolk Archaeological Unit) 33, 1974 Page(s)213

(9) Field Investigators Comments

F2 FDC 28-SEP-76

(10) Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History

Martin M 33, 1975 Page(s)322-3

(12) by Ivan E Moore ; with Judith Plouviez and Stanley West 1988 The archaeology of Roman Suffolk

(13) by Eleanor Scott 1993 A gazetteer of Roman villas in Britain

Leicester archaeology monographsNo.1 (1993) - Site number SU 4. no.1 Page(s)173

(11) by Edward Martin ...[et al] 1988 Burgh : the Iron Age and Roman enclosure

East Anglian archaeology reportsvol 1 (1975) - no.40

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ST BOTOLPHS CHURCH
BURGH

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Poss. site of Icanho (St Botolph's Monastery)

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