Dowdeswell Court Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham Gloucestershire

DOWDESWELL COURT LOWER DOWDESWELL, CHELTENHAM GLOUCESTERSHIRE

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION

CA PROJECT: 1484 CA REPORT: 03001

Author: Tim Havard Simon Cox Approved: ……………………………………………………………. Signed:

Issue: 01 Date: 14 JANUARY 2003

This report is confidential to the client. Cotswold Archaeology accepts no responsibility or liability to any third party to whom this report, or any part of it, is made known. Any such party relies upon this report entirely at their own risk. No part of this report may be reproduced by any means without permission.

Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology

CONTENTS

SUMMARY...... 2

1. INTRODUCTION...... 3

The site ...... 3 Archaeological background...... 3 Archaeological objectives ...... 4 Methodology ...... 4

2. RESULTS...... 5

Trench 1...... 5 Trench 2...... 6 Trench 3...... 6 Trench 4...... 6 The Finds ...... 6

3. DISCUSSION ...... 7

Conclusions ...... 7

4. CA PROJECT TEAM...... 7

5. REFERENCES...... 8

APPENDIX 1: CONTEXT DESCRIPTIONS...... 9

APPENDIX 2: LEVELS OF PRINCIPAL DEPOSITS AND STRUCTURES...... 10

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Fig. 1 Location plan Fig. 2 Trench location plan Fig. 3 Trenches, showing archaeological features

1 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology

SUMMARY

Site Name: Dowdeswell Court Location: Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire NGR: SP 0010 1975 Type: Evaluation Date: 2-3 January 2003 Planning Reference: CD3065/W Location of Archive: Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum Site Code: DCC 03

An archaeological evaluation was undertaken by Cotswold Archaeology in January 2003 at the request of GL50 Properties Limited at Lower Dowdeswell. In compliance with an approved written scheme of investigation (WSI), four trenches were excavated across the development area.

Several garden features of post-medieval date were encountered within trench 1, whilst trenches 2, 3 and 4 revealed extensive terracing and landscaping of the gardens.

The evaluation has characterised the archaeological potential of the site, and has indicated that it is unlikely that any archaeological features pre-dating the nineteenth century have survived the landscaping of the gardens.

2 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 In January 2003 Cotswold Archaeology (CA) carried out an archaeological evaluation for GL50 Properties Ltd at Dowdeswell Court, Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (centred on NGR: SP 0010 1975; Fig. 1). The evaluation was undertaken to accompany a planning application for the construction of four new dwellings, restoration of the main house to form three new dwellings, construction of a swimming pool and orangery and restoration of a bath and summerhouse (ref: CD3065/W).

1.2 The evaluation was carried out in accordance with a WSI prepared by CA and approved by Mr. Charles Parry, Senior Archaeological Officer for Gloucestershire County Council (GCC), the archaeological advisor to Cotswold District Council (CDC). The fieldwork also followed the Standard and Guidance for an Archaeological Field Evaluation issued by the Institute of Field Archaeologists (1999) and the Gloucestershire County Council’s Statement of Standards and Practices Appropriate for Archaeological Fieldwork in Gloucestershire (GCC 1995) and the Management of Archaeological Projects (English Heritage 1991).

The site

1.3 The proposed development area encloses an area of 2ha, and comprises the buildings and grounds of Dowdeswell Court. The grounds are mostly under grass and tree cover. A large proportion of the grounds to the north and west of the present mansion appear to have been subjected to significant landscaping works in the nineteenth century. The site lies at approximately 170m AOD, with the ground dropping away sharply from east to west.

1.4 The underlying geology of the area is mapped as Upper Lias clay of the Jurassic era (BGS 1988).

Archaeological background

1.5 Archaeological interest in the site arises from the potential for previously unrecorded deposits of medieval and earlier settlement, particularly to the north of the site area adjacent to the churchyard, from which evidence of Norman activity has been

3 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology

recovered. Settlement may have extended into the later medieval period until the construction of the first mansion on the site in the seventeenth century. It is not known whether the seventeenth century mansion lies entirely within the footprint of the current Grade II listed mansion (Dowdeswell Court), which dates to the early nineteenth century. The archaeological background to the site is covered in more detail in a desk-based assessment undertaken by Cotswold Archaeology in February 2002 (CAT report 02016).

Archaeological objectives

1.6 The objectives of the evaluation were to establish the character, quality, date, significance and extent of any archaeological remains or deposits surviving within the site. This information will assist the Local Planning Authority in making an informed judgement on the likely impact upon the archaeological resource by the proposed development.

Methodology

1.7 The fieldwork comprised the excavation of 4 trenches. Trench 1 measured 30m in length and 1.5m in width while trenches 2, 3 and 4 all measured 10m in length and 1.5m in width. The number and layout of the trenches was altered (with the approval of Charles Parry) from that originally proposed in the WSI due to steeply sloping ground and the presence of dense tree cover.

1.8 All trenches were excavated by mechanical excavator equipped with a toothless grading bucket. All machine excavation was undertaken under constant archaeological supervision to the top of the first significant archaeological horizon or the natural substrate, whichever was encountered first. Where archaeological deposits were encountered they were excavated by hand in accordance with the CA Technical Manual 1: Excavation Recording Manual (1996).

1.9 Deposits were assessed for their palaeoenvironmental potential in accordance with the CA Technical Manual 2: The Taking of Samples for Palaeoenvironmental/Palaeoeconomic Analysis from Archaeological Sites (1994) and no samples were taken. All artefacts recovered were processed in accordance

4 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology

with the CA Technical Manual 3: Treatment of Finds Immediately After Excavation (1995).

1.10 The archive and artefacts from the evaluation are currently held by CA at their offices in Kemble. Subject to the agreement of the legal landowner the site archive (including artefacts) will be deposited with Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum.

2. RESULTS

2.1 Features relating to the nineteenth century gardens were encountered in trench 1, while trenches 2, 3 and 4 revealed extensive terracing and infilling (Figs. 2 & 3).

2.2 This section provides an overview of the evaluation results; detailed summaries of the recorded contexts can be found in Appendix 1. Details of the relative heights of the principal deposits and features expressed as metres above Ordnance Datum (m AOD) appear in Appendix 2.

Trench 1

2.3 Natural lias clay 102 was encountered in southern half of trench 1 at a depth of approximately 0.3m below the existing ground level.

2.4 The eastern half of a dismantled fountain 126 lay towards the south-east end of the trench. The exterior of this comprised a wall 106 of large well-faced limestone blocks, whilst the interior was made up of a clay lining 107, sealed by a brick preparation layer 108. This was overlain by concrete 108 which formed the basin of the fountain.

2.5 Two possible stone culverts 103 and 112 lay in the southern half of the trench. Only a small portion of 103 survived in culvert form; the remainder of these two features having been heavily disturbed by later activity and resembled french drains rather than culverts.

2.6 The northern part of trench 1 appeared to have been terraced. The natural lias clay 102 had been cut by 114, which had in turn been backfilled with a loose mixture 115

5 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology

of sand, mortar and limestone rubble. This was excavated by machine to a depth of 1.2m below existing ground level; further excavation was rendered unsafe by unstable trench edges.

Trench 2

2.7 Natural lias clay 202 was encountered at a depth of 0.4m below the existing ground surface at the eastern end of trench 2. The rest of the trench appeared to have been cut away by a terrace 203. This had been backfilled by 204 which was very similar in composition to 114 observed in trench 1. This was mechanically excavated to a depth of 1.3m; further excavation was rendered unsafe by unstable trench edges.

Trench 3

2.8 Natural lias clay 302 was encountered at a depth of 1.1m below existing ground level at the eastern end of trench 3. Two probable former garden terraces, 303 and 304 lay at the western end of the trench. These had both been cut into the natural substrate to a depth of at least 0.6m, and had both been backfilled by a general spread 305 of re-deposited topsoil mixed with stone rubble.

Trench 4

2.9 Natural lias clay 402 was encountered at a depth 0.35m below existing ground surface in the northern half of trench 4. A former garden terrace 403 lay in the southern half of the trench. The former topsoil 404 from this feature survived and was sealed by a layer 405 of re-deposited natural clay.

The Finds

2.10 No finds, either unstratified or from specific contexts were recovered during the course of the project.

6 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology

3. DISCUSSION

3.1 The position of fountain 119 from trench 1 corresponds to that of a fountain shown on the 1883 1st edition OS map (CAT 2002, Fig. 6, C). It is still visible on maps up to 1955 (ibid, 16). It is likely to have been dismantled when the existing (now overgrown) waterfall feature was constructed.

3.2 The two stone culverts (103 and 112) in trench 1 may have supplied water to the fountain. However it is only possible to speculate about this without exposing them in their entirety. Their poor state of preservation suggests it is likely that they were disturbed during landscaping.

3.3 Both trenches 1 and 2 revealed a terrace that had been infilled. This is likely to have taken place when the current garden terrace on which they were both situated was formed. Given the nature of the infill (stone and mortar rubble with occasional brick inclusions) it is possible that it came from the early twentieth-century demolition of second floor of Dowdeswell Court (ibid, 13).

3.4 Trenches 3 and 4 showed that extensive landscaping had taken place and that no land surfaces pre-dating this activity survived.

Conclusions

3.5 The evaluation has shown that nineteenth-century garden features survive within the study area. However it has also demonstrated that it is very unlikely that any earlier archaeological deposits survived the extensive landscaping of the gardens in the early-modern and modern periods.

4. CA PROJECT TEAM

Fieldwork was undertaken by Tim Havard, assisted by Darran Muddiman. The report was written by Tim Havard. The illustrations were prepared by Lorna Gray. The archive has been compiled by Tim Havard, and prepared for deposition by Ed McSloy. The project was managed for CA by Simon Cox.

7 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology

5. REFERENCES

CA 2002 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Written Scheme of Investigation for An Archaeological Evaluation

CA 2002 Dowdeswell Court, Lower Dowdeswell, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Archaeological Desk Based Assessment, CA Report No. 02016

BGS (British Geological Survey) 1988 England and Wales Sheet 235 Drift Geology

APPENDIX 1: CONTEXT DESCRIPTIONS

Trench 1 Present Ground Level: 165.63m to 164.72m

101 Topsoil: mid brown grey clay silt, 0.3m in depth. 102 Natural substrate: light brown yellow lias clay. 103 Cut: construction cut for stone culvert, linear in plan, vertical sides leading to a flat base, measuring 0.75m in width, 0.3m in depth and at least 8m in length. Cuts 102. 104 Fill of 103: disturbed/collapsed pieces of flat limestone irregular in size. 105 Cut: construction cut for fountain 119, circular in plan, measuring at least 4m in diameter. Not excavated. Cuts 102. 106 Fill of 105: wall of fountain 119: two courses of well faced limestone blocks measuring 0.2m in height, 0.4m in width and 0.9m in length. 107 Fill of 105: clay lining of fountain 119: re-deposited natural clay, measuring at least 0.4m in depth. 108 Fill of 105: single course of bricks used as foundation for 109 measuring 0.08m in depth. Slopes downwards towards centre of fountain 119. Overlies 116. 109 Fill of 105: layer of concrete forming basin of fountain 119, measuring 0.06m in depth. Overlies 108. 110 Cut for probable tree bole: sub-circular in plan, steep irregular sides leading to a concave irregular base showing extensive root action, 0.95m in diameter and 0.2m in depth. Cuts 102. 111 Single fill of 110: mid grey clayey silt with occasional irregular stone fragments and some root action. 112 Cut: construction cut for stone culvert, linear in plan, vertical sides leading to a flat base, measuring 0.7m in width, 0.29m in depth and at least 5m in length. Cuts 102. 113 Fill of 112: disturbed/collapsed pieces of flat limestone irregular in size. 114 Cut : former garden terrace, not fully excavated, measuring at least 0.8m in depth. Cuts 113. 115 Infill of 114: light to mid brown yellow mixed sand mortar and irregular stone fragments. 116 Fill of 105: thin layer of ashy mortar used as bedding layer for 108. Overlies 107. 117 Fill of 105: rubble infill of fountain basin post demolition. Used as levelling layer for existing garden terrace. 118 Fill of 105: backfill of construction cut 105: mid grey yellow re-deposited natural lias clay. Not excavated. 119 Group number for fountain.

Trench 2 Present Ground Level: 164.75m to 166.08m

201 Topsoil: mid brown grey clay silt, 0.2m to 0.25m in depth. 202 Natural substrate: light brown yellow lias clay. 203 Cut: former garden terrace, not fully excavated, measuring at least 1m in depth. 204 Infill of 203: light to mid brown yellow mixed sand mortar and irregular stone fragments.

Trench 3 Present Ground Level: 161.36m to 163.76m

301 Topsoil: mid brown grey clay silt, 0.25m in depth. 302 Natural substrate: light brown yellow lias clay. 303 Cut: former garden terrace, 0.6m in depth and 3.3m in length. 304 Cut: former garden terrace, 0.8m in depth and at least 2m in length. 305 Layer of levelling/infilling over 303 and 304: 75% re-deposited topsoil and 25% irregular stone rubble.

Trench 4 Present Ground Level: 159.33m to 160.26m

401 Topsoil: mid brown grey clay silt, 0.4m to 0.6m in depth. 402 Natural substrate: light brown yellow lias clay. 403 Cut: former garden terrace, vertical sides leading to a flat base, measuring 0.75m in depth and at least 4.2m in length. 404 Fill of 403: former garden topsoil contained within 403, dark brown grey clay silt, measuring 0.35m in depth. 405 Fill of 403: layer of levelling/infill: re-deposited natural lias clay, measuring 0.4m in depth.

APPENDIX 2: LEVELS OF PRINCIPAL DEPOSITS AND STRUCTURES

Levels are expressed as metres above Ordnance Datum.

Trench 1

Base of Culvert 103 164.97 Top of Fountain Wall 106 165.16 Base of Culvert 112 164.43 Top of terrace 114 164.78 Maximum excavated depth of terrace 114 163.89

Trench 2

Top of terrace 203 165.50 Maximum excavated depth of terrace 203 164.20

Trench 3

Top of terrace 303 161.90 Base of terrace 303 161.31 Top of terrace 304 161.01 Base of terrace 304 160.16

Trench 4

Top of terrace 403 160.15 Base of terrace 403 159.40

10 Site

Fig. 1 Location plan 001

T3 T2 T4

198

197

Reproduced from the 2003 Ordnance Survey 1:1250 map with the permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of The Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office, c Crown copyright Cotswold Archaeological Trust AL50196A SP

Trench

0 100m

Fig. 2 Trench location plan 001

infilled former garden T2 terrace T3 203 T4

infillled infilled infilled former former former T1 stone garden garden garden culvert terrace terraces terrace 112 403 303/304 114

stone culvert fountain 103 119

198

Trench Features SP 0 50m

Fig. 3 Trenches, showing archaeological features