A Watching Brief at Ellesmere Castle, Ellesmere,

by H R Hannaford

Archaeology Service

Community and Economic Services A WATCHING BRIEF AT ELLESMERE CASTLE, ELLESMERE, SHROPSHIRE

by H R HANNAFORD

A Report for Countryside Service Shropshire County Council

Archaeology Service

Community and Economic Services

Report Number 154 © Shropshire County Council January 1999 Winston Churchill Building, Radbrook Centre, Radbrook Road, , Shropshire SY3 9BJ Tel. (01743) 254018 A Watching Brief at Ellesmere Castle, Ellesmere, Shropshire

CONTENTS Page No 1 Introduction 2 2 History of the Site 3 3 The Watching Brief 6 4 References and Sources Consulted 7 5 Acknowledgements 7

ILLUSTRATIONS Fig. 1: Site location, showing the rebuilt wall (in red); 1:10,000 scale Fig. 2: Ellesmere castle, showing the rebuilt wall (in red) along Sandy Lane; 1:1250 scale Fig. 3: Section through the retaining wall before rebuilding; 1:20 scale

1 A Watching Brief at Ellesmere Castle, Ellesmere, Shropshire

1 Introduction Ellesmere is a small town in northwest Shropshire. The modern town is centred on a historic core which was the site of a medium sized medieval market town with a castle and parish church. On the east side of the town is the Mere, the largest of a group of a dozen or so glacially formed pools or kettle-holes which comprise the Shropshire "Lake District".

The earthwork remains of Ellesmere Castle (County Sites and Monuments No. SA1004), a Norman motte and bailey castle, are situated on a mound of glacially deposited sand (NGR 4031 3467) overlooking the Mere. In 1994, a 6m long section of a roadside retaining wall along Sandy Lane, a road which marks the southwest boundary of the castle bailey, collapsed into the road. Inspection revealed that further sections were liable to collapse and required rebuilding.

The castle is a scheduled ancient monument (county number Shropshire 163). Although the section of the wall which collapsed was deemed by English Heritage to lie just outside the scheduled area, it was nevertheless considered desirable that an archaeological watching brief be maintained on the rebuilding of the collapsed section and repairs to the adjoining sections of the wall.

The Archaeology Service was commissioned by the Countryside Service of the Community and Economic Services department, Shropshire County Council to carry out the watching brief. The watching brief on the rebuilding and repairs to the wall was carried out in December 1998, and this report details the findings of this work.

2 A Watching Brief at Ellesmere Castle, Ellesmere, Shropshire

2 History of the Site Prehistoric and Roman Periods Prehistoric activity yin the vicinity of Ellesmere is marked by the discovery of a middle Bronze Age socketed axe (SA1570) of the Penard phase (c. 1200-1000 BC), found in 1890 at Swan Hill (NGR SJ 4027 3536) by a blacksmith; the axe, which was formerly in the Ellesmere Museum, was transferred to Shrewsbury Museum in 1928 (Chitty 1929, 69, and SMR file).

Two Roman coins have been recovered from Ellesmere. One (SA879) is of Claudius (41-54 AD) and was found in a garden, now a school playground (NGR SJ 4025 3461), at the foot of the bowling green situated on the castle motte (Chitty, 1929 68, and SMR file). The other (SA874) is of Victorinus (268-270 AD) and was found in the canal towpath near Beech House (NGR SJ 3999 3417) (Chitty, 1927-8, 117 and SMR file). Both are probably stray finds, and are unlikely in themselves to indicate Roman occupation in the immediate area.

The Medieval Manor The name Ellesmere means "Elli's lake" (Gelling, 1990, 123) and is first recorded in the Domesday Book (1086) as Ellesmeles, although the settlement at Ellesmere probably had its origins in the middle Saxon period.

In the 19th century, a fragment of an Anglo-Saxon cross (SA3726) was discovered close to the church. The cross has been dated to c. 750-850 AD, and bore a design showing Northumbrian influence. It once stood in the vicarage garden, was variously used as a door jamb and built into a garden wall, and was finally incorporated into the hard-core beneath the floor of the dining room of the Old Vicarage (SMR record file; Pratt, 1983). The mention of two priests in the Survey of 1086 has led to the suggestion that there may have been a collegiate church at Ellesmere in the late Saxon and Norman periods (Eyton, 1860, 246). The precinct of the Saxon church and the medieval churchyard is probably marked by the block of land which now lies between Church Hill, Church Street, Pinfold Lane, and St John's Hill. The present church (SA880), dedicated to St Mary, still contains traces of 12th century building. (Buteux, 1996, 4)

Before 1066, the manor was held by Edwin, Earl of Mercia (c.1062 -c.1071) and paid £10 in revenue. After Edwin's death in 1071, his lands were given to Roger of Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury, and at the time of the Domesday Survey in 1086, Ellesmere was held directly by Earl Roger. The manor then comprised 4½ hides; there were 5 ploughs and 10 ploughmen in lordship, with 36 villagers, 14 smallholders, and two priests, with a further 14 ploughs. The manor at this time was valued at £20. Mundret (possibly the Sheriff of Cheshire) and Reginald (the Sheriff of Shropshire) each held one hide in the manor (the latter's was the hamlet of Lee), with 2 ploughs and 4 slaves in lordship, and a further 4 villagers and 7 smallholders with another 3½ ploughs. These holdings were valued in 1086 at 23 shillings. (Thorn and Thorn, 1986, 4,1,19 and notes.) The manor had a number of other outliers, which included Birch and Lyth, Cockshutt, Colemere, Crosemere, Elston, Estwick, Hampton (Hampton Wood and/or ), Hardwick, Kenwick Park, Kenwick Wood, Lyneal, Old

3 A Watching Brief at Ellesmere Castle, Ellesmere, Shropshire and New Marton, Newnes, Newton, Northwood, Ridge, Stockett (in Cockshutt), Tetchill, and Trench (Thorn and Thorn, 1986, 4,1,19 notes; Caird , 1990.)

After the rebellion of Earl Roger's son and heir, Robert de Bellême, in 1101, the manor was forfeited to the Crown. Henry I granted manor to William Peverel of Dover before 1138. After the civil war, on the restoration of Henry II, the king confirmed the manor on Dafydd ab Owain, a prince of North Wales, when he married the king's sister, Emma, in 1174. Dafydd was later imprisoned by his nephew Lewellyn, and the manor passed into the hands of King John. In 1204 John gave Ellesmere to Lewellyn, but in c.1210 Lewellyn forfeited the estate, and a Tenure Roll records that in 1211 one Robert Lupus held Ellesmere from King John. (Eyton, 1860, 232-7; Thorn and Thorn, notes.)

By 1220 Henry III had restored Ellesmere to Lewellyn, but by 1231 the Sheriff of Shropshire was answerable for the issues of the manor as an escheat. From 1232-41 the Sheriffs of Shropshire had custody of the manor. In 1242 John le Strange, the sheriff, was required to maintain custody of Ellesmere Castle out of the profits of the manor. (Eyton, 1860, 237-8.)

Although nominally in Pimhill Hundred at this time, the manor of Ellesmere was regarded as a hundred in its own right. By a patent of July 20th 1253, the king demised the manor and hundred of Ellesmere to John de Grey for 15 years, and he withdrew the manor from the county of Shropshire (which it did not re-join until 1529). De Grey subsequently forfeited the estate to the Sheriff of Shropshire, Hugh de Acovere, in 1256, and the king then granted the estate to his son, Edward. In 1259 the custody of manor was given to Peter de Montfort, who also acquired the adjacent manors of Colemere and Hampton. (Eyton, 1860, 238-9; Thorn and Thorn, notes.)

In 1263 Hamo le Strange was given seizin of the Manor, Castle, and Hundred of Ellesmere for 17 years, and he in turn enfeoffed his brother, Roger le Strange, in the estates of Ellesmere, Coolmere, and Welshampton. Ellesmere then continued with the le Strange family (the Barons Strange of ) until it passed by descent to the Stanleys, Earls of Derby. (Eyton, 1860, 239-46.)

The manor was bought from the co-heirs of Ferdinando, Earl of Derby, by Sir Thomas Egerton, Lord Keeper under Elizabeth I and Lord Chancellor from 1603. His son, John, was created Earl of Bridgewater in 1617. The Bridgewater estates eventually passed by descent to Lord Brownlow of Lincolnshire. (Caird, 1990.)

The Castle The motte and bailey castle at Ellesmere (SA1004) was probably built by Earl Roger shortly after 1086. The castle was built on a glacial moraine deposit overlooking the mere to the northeast. The motte survives to a height of 11m and has a diameter at its base of 80m; it is surrounded by a ditch 20m wide by up to 3.5m deep, beyond which, on the southeast side, is a crescent-shaped bailey up to 30m wide. The bailey is bounded by a ditch up to 15m wide and an outer bank, which continues around the northeastern side of the motte. The castle probably also had an outer bailey on the north and possibly east sides. (SMR file, SA1004.) Building work and repairs were carried out to the castle on a number of occasions in the 13th century. The castle was

4 A Watching Brief at Ellesmere Castle, Ellesmere, Shropshire garrisoned in the 13th century, and was still occupied in 1309. (Buteux, 1996, 4.) A bowling green now occupies the top of the motte.

The Town The early settlement at Ellesmere probably occupied the higher ground around the castle and churchyard. The town was granted a borough charter by Joan of Wales at some time between 1216 and 1237, and the manor was granted a weekly market in 1221. In 1258 Peter de Montford was empowered to raise money to provide defences for the town, although it is not known whether any were actually constructed. There were 59 burgages recorded in 1280, with two chaplains and a nun. The town's prosperity appears to have declined towards the end of the medieval period, although it recovered for a period following the opening of the Ellesmere Canal in 1796. The town's importance as a market town declined again with the coming of the railways. (Buteux, 1996, 2-8.)

Sandy Lane Sandy Lane gives access to the southern part of the town from the Shrewsbury Road, and at one point runs along the southwestern side of the former motte and bailey castle, where it probably overlies the course of the bailey ditch. Local folklore tradition would have it that Sandy Lane was the main road into the town from Shrewsbury before the construction of the Ellesmere Canal in 1794-6 lowered the water level in the mere by 10ft and allowed the construction of the present main road. However, a mid 18th-century map of the county (Roque, 1752) which pre-dates the construction of the canal by 50 years shows both Sandy Lane and the main Shrewsbury Road on their present alignments, as do later maps (e.g.. Baugh, 1808).

5 A Watching Brief at Ellesmere Castle, Ellesmere, Shropshire

3 The Watching Brief The standing section of the stone retaining wall to be repaired was taken down with a JCB mechanical excavator; the stone was put to one side to be re-used in the rebuilding of the wall. The soil and subsoil deposits behind the wall were also removed to a width of 800mm from the existing road edge and to a depth of up to 600mm below the present road level.

The wall itself (Fig. 3; 1) was built of mainly un-dressed sandstone and limestone blocks, probably from a variety of sources, bonded in a hard pink mortar of 18th- or 19th-century type. A terrace cut (3) for the wall was identified in the deposits behind the wall, and the fill (2) of this cut produced a quantity of 19th-century pottery. The terrace cut for the wall had been cut into a homogenous deposit of brown sandy loam (4) which produced pottery of late 17th- to early 19th-century date, indicating that the retaining wall was probably built in the early 19th-century. A number of possible pits cut into this deposit were suggested by slightly darker patches of soil; one of these features contained the skeleton of a large animal, probably a sheep or calf, whose backbone, scapular and pelvis were revealed at road level within the excavations - the remainder of the skeleton lay beyond the edge of the excavations. The brown humic soil rested on a layer of orange sand mottled with brown humic soil (5), which comprised natural subsoil disturbed by animal and root activity; this deposit in turn lay over the clean and undisturbed natural orange sandy subsoil (6), which sloped down steeply towards the road.

No other significant archaeological features or deposits were revealed or disturbed during the repairs to the wall.

6 A Watching Brief at Ellesmere Castle, Ellesmere, Shropshire

4 References and Sources Consulted Baugh, R, 1808: Map of Shropshire, Llanymynech Buteux, V, 1996: Archaeological Assessment of Ellesmere, Shropshire, Hereford and Worcester County Council Archaeological Service Report 314 Caird, R, 1990: Notes in record file index for the Bridgewater Estates in the SRRC Chitty, L F, 1927-89: TSAS 4th series, Vol XI, 117 Chitty, L F, 1929: "Notes on recent acquisitions to the Prehistoric Section, Shrewsbury Museum", TSAS 4th series, Vol XII (I), 68, 69 Eyton, Rev R W, 1860: Antiquities of Shropshire, vol X, 232-249 Greenwood, C & J, 1827: Map of the County of Salop from an Actual Survey Made in the Years 1826 & 1827 Pratt, D, 1983: A Pictorial History of Ellesmere and District 1790-1950, Ellesmere Rocque, J, 1752: Actual Survey of the County of Salop Rowley, T, 1972: The Shropshire Landscape Thorn, F, and Thorn, C, (eds), 1986: Domesday Book: Shropshire, Chichester

ABBREVIATIONS AOD Above Ordnance Datum DoE Department of the Environment OS Ordnance Survey SMR County Sites and Monuments Record, Shire Hall, Shrewsbury SRRC Shropshire Records and Research Centre TSAS Transactions of the Shropshire Archaeological Society TSAHS Transactions of the Shropshire Archaeological and Historical Society VCHS Victoria History of the Counties of : A

5 Acknowledgements The writer would like to thank Phil Hall and George Francis of JDM Midlands Ltd for their help and co-operation during the watching brief.

7 © Crown copyright

SANDY LANE, ELLESMERE 1998 Fig. 1: Site location, showing the rebuilt wall (in red); 1:10,000 scale N

bowling green

motte

School House inner bailey

Gaydon

Rose Bank

© Crown copyright

0 50 metres

SANDY LANE, ELLESMERE 1998 Fig. 2: Ellesmere Castle, showing the rebuilt wall (in red) along Sandy Lane; 1:1250 scale SW NE

topsoil

3

2 4 1 wall 5

road

6

0 1 metre

SANDY LANE, ELLESMERE 1998 Fig. 3: Section through the retaining wall before rebuilding; 1:20 scale