The Archaeological and Historical Society

Transactions Volume 92 2018

Hon. Editor Jill Bourne, M.A., Ph.D.

Hon. Editor (Archaeology) John Thomas, B.A., M.A.

Hon. Editor (Reviews) Peter Walker, LL.B., M.A., Ph.D.

Published by the Society The Guildhall LE1 5FQ General communications relating to the Society’s business should be sent to the Hon. Secretary, The Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society, The Guildhall, Guildhall Lane, Leicester LE1 5FQ. Societies in union are requested to direct their publications, sent in exchange, to the Hon. Librarian, at the same address.

The Editor will be pleased to consider contributions submitted for publication. They should be typed with double spacing and available in electronic form.

Guidance for authors can be found on the website of the Society at www.le.ac.uk/lahs

All contributions should be addressed to Dr Jill Bourne, Hon. Ed. TLAHS, ULAS, School of Archaeology and Ancient Studies, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH. [email protected] All reasonable care will be taken of such material, but the Society and its officers cannot accept responsibility for its accidental destruction or loss. ISSN 0140–3990

© The Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society 2018

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording by any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission in writing of the Society.

Designed and printed in Great Britain by 4word Ltd, Bristol. CONTENTS

List of Abbreviations v

Contributors vi

Scientific dating of the Early Bronze Age log coffin burials at Sproxton and Eaton, Leicestershire 1 Richard Brunning, Andy M. Jones, Gordon Cook and Tony Krus

Remembering, Remodelling and Reusing: Neolithic to Anglo-Saxon Activity at Loughborough Road, Rothley, Leicestershire 15 Gavin Speed

Saxon Burials in West Langton Parish, Leicestershire: a Time Team Investigation 65 Andrew B. Powell and Jörn Schuster

The Parish and Church of Rothley, Leicestershire: a re-interpretation 97 Vanessa McLoughlin

The Town of Lutterworth in the Later Middle Ages 115 Andrew Watkins

Digging up the Past: Community Test-Pit Excavations with Charnwood Roots 147 Julie Attard and Mathew Morris

Risk, Exigency and Migration in Leicestershire, c.1750–1846 183 Dave Postles

The Impact of Total War on Hinckley 205 John Martin and Robert King

Reviews 217 short reports

Settlement activity spanning the Mesolithic to Iron Age between Ryhall and Essendine, Rutland 223 Mark Dodd, Andy Howard, Richard Parker and Rachel Townsend iv contents

Romano-British rural occupation at the Catthorpe Interchange, M1 Junction 19, Leicestershire 239 Nicky Garland

Medieval activity on land at High Street, Kibworth Beauchamp, leicestershire 247 Daniel Stansbie

Archaeology in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland 2017 253 Edited by John Thomas

Officers of the Society 2015–2016 309

Index 315 Abbreviations

The abbreviations of titles of periodicals or serial publications used in Transactions follow the principles set down in British Standard 4148 (1970). In addition, the following abbreviations are regularly used in Transactions:

AASRP Associated Architectural Societies Reports and Papers APS Archaeological Project Services BA Bennett Archives BAR British Archaeological Reports (British and International series) BL British Library B.M. Harl. British Library, Harleian manuscripts BNJ British Numismatic Journal Cal. Close Calendar of Close Rolls Cal. Inq. p.m. Calendar of inquisition post mortems Cal. Pat. Calendar Patent Rolls Cal. SP Dom Calendar of State Papers, Domestic CBA Council for British Archaeology Dir. Directory Derbys RO Record Office DNB Dictionary of National Biography EHD English Historical Documents HBMC Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission (English Heritage) Inq. Inquisition Inq. p. m. Inquisition post mortem LA Lincolnshire Archives LCMS Leicester City Museums Service Leics Leicestershire Linc. Reg. Lincoln Register LMARS Leicestershire Museums, Arts and Records Service Min. Account Roll Ministers Account Roll MS Manuscript MS Rawl. Rawlinson Manuscript, Bodleian NA Archaeology NPG National Portrait Gallery OS Ordnance Survey PRO Public Record Office RCHME Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England ROLLR Record Office of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland PRO Public Record Office RCM Rutland County Museum ROLLR Record Office for Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland TLAS Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological Society (1921/2–54) TLAAS T ransactions of the Leicestershire Architectural and Archaeological Society (1866–1912/13) TLAHS T ransactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society (1955–) TNA The National Archive ULAS University of Leicester Archaeological Services VCH Victoria County History CONTRIBUTORS

Richard Brunning, MA, PhD, MCIFA, is Senior Historic Environment Officer with the South West Heritage Trust, with special responsibility for the Somerset Levels and Moors, a post that he has held for over 20 years. He has been involved in many archaeological projects examining waterlogged archaeological deposits in the UK, and abroad. His doctoral thesis was on structural wood in prehistoric England and Wales, and his particular research interests centre on the archaeology of wetlands, especially the prehistoric and early medieval periods. Contact details: Tel: 01823 347432 [email protected]

Andy Jones, BA, PhD, FSA, MCIfA, is Principal Archaeologist with Cornwall Archaeological Unit. His research interests include the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods, and assitionally the archaeology of the upland and coastal areas of western Britain. Recent significant publications include Settlement and Metalworking in the Middle Bronze Age and Beyond and Preserved in the Peat: an Extraordinary Bronze Age Burial on Whitehorse Hill.

Gordon Cook graduated from the University of Glasgow with BSc (Hons) and PhD degrees in environmental science. He is currently Professor of Environmental Geochemistry at the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre (SUERC), where he is also Deputy Director and for more than 30 years has been head of their radiocarbon dating laboratory. The laboratory specialises in archaeology and archaeological science and during his time within the laboratory, he has published in excess of 200 peer reviewed journal articles and several book chapters on radiocarbon dating.

Anthony Krus is a Research Associate at the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre. He obtained his PhD degree in Anthropology in 2013 from Indiana University, Bloomington, USA. He specialises in the provision of commercial and research-oriented Bayesian modelling of radiocarbon and other chronological data for archaeological and geoscience projects.

Gavin Speed, BA, MA, PhD, MCIfA is a Project Officer with University of Leicester Archaeological Services. Since the late 1990s he has worked on a range archaeological sites both in the UK and abroad. Recent projects include directing a major urban excavation on Stibbe, Leicester, Anglo-Saxon and Neolithic activity at Rothley (see the article this volume, and volume 89, 2015), Iron Age settlements at Birstall (TLAHS 2010), and Cadeby (TLAHS 2011); Iron Age and Roman sites in Northamptonshire, and Highcross Street, Leicester. His research interests focus on settlement transformations from Late Roman Britain to Anglo-Saxon England. He publications, include ‘Towns in the Dark?’ (Archaeopress 2014), plus several articles and interim reports. contributors vii

Nicholas Cooper, BSc DipPostEx, FSA MCIfA, is Post-Excavation Project Manager at ULAS. He specialisesin Roman pottery, small finds, and the Roman/Anglo- Saxon transition. He graduated in 1984 from Leicester, followed by a post graduate diploma in Post-excavation studies. Until 1997 he was a Research Assistant in the School of Archaeology and Ancient History, working on various Roman projects, before joining University of Leicester Archaeological Services in 1998, becoming the Post-excavation Project Manager in 2006. He is currently coordinating the analysis and publication programme of the Highcross Leicester excavations. He teaches on undergraduate and post-graduate courses, and runs the campus-based HE Certificate in Archaeology. He has published many finds reports, along with The Archaeology of Rutland Water (2000): he edited The Archaeology of the (2006). Email: [email protected]

Lynden Cooper BA MCIfA, is a Project Officer at ULAS, with over 30 years archaeological experience, he manages major projects, particularly prehistoric archaeology. He is a worked lithics specialist. He obtained his Archaeology and Prehistory BA from Sheffield in 1986, and then worked for various units. Since 1991 he has been based in Leicester with University of Leicester Archaeological Services. He has directed major rural and urban projects and published on a Roman cemetery, the Northern defences of Leicester, and numerous interim reports in the Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society. He has published many national and international conference reports.. Previous publications include the Hemington Bridges (with S. Ripper), and a Late Upper Palaeolithic site at Launde. He managed the nationally significant Early Upper Palaeolithic Project at Glaston, Rutland. His published lithics work includes a multi-period assemblage from Wanlip, and late Glacial material from N.W. Leicester. Email: [email protected]

Andrew Powell is a Senior Archaeologist at Wessex Archaeology, specialising in post-excavation analysis, and publication. He has authored and contributed to many journal articles, monographs, and popular publications, on subjects ranging from prehistoric sites to industrial archaeology, including reports on several major infrastructure projects. He was lead author for the report on archaeological investigations on the site of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games. He also has research interests in the megalithic tombs of the Irish Neolithic. Correspondence to [email protected], Wessex Archaeology, Portway House, Old Sarum Park, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP4 6EB

Vanessa McLoughlin gained a BA in Biblical Studies from the University of Manchester in 1979. She went on to gain a MA in Historical Studies in 1991 followed by a PhD in English Local History in 2006: both degrees from the University of Leicester. She taught in both mainstream and adult education until her retirement. Currently she undertakes cataloguing and research for the Yorkshire Archaeological and Historical Society in Leeds. She is a Methodist Local Preacher and lives in the Vale of York. Contact details: [email protected] Andrew Watkins studied under Christopher Dyer at the University of Birmingham. In 1989 completed his PhD on society and economy in the late medieval forest of Arden, Warwickshire. He retired as Head of Sixth Form at Lichfield Cathedral School in 2016 after 30 years of school teaching and is now Honorary Visiting Research Fellow at the Centre for English Local History, University of Leicester.

Julie Attard is an Honorary Fellow at University of Leicester. She is primarily an historian of the twentieth century city, with a Doctorate in that field, her interests are not limited to the modern and the urban. She worked with the Leicestershire Victoria County History Trust from 2008 and from 2013 has been the Project Manager of the Charnwood Roots Project. Email: [email protected]

Mathew Morris BA MA ACIfA, is a Project Officer with the University of Leicester Archaeological Services. He has more than a decade of archaeological experience, having excavated a wide range of rural and urban archaeology across the Midlands, from the prehistoric period through to the Second World War. His special interests are, urban, community, Roman, and medieval archaeology. In 2012, he directed the successful archaeological search for the lost grave of Richard III. He has co- authored two books: Visions of Ancient Leicester (2011) and Richard III: The King under the Car Park (2013). He is involved in promoting archaeology for the general public and gives talks to local societies. Email: mlm(@le.ac.uk

Dave Postles, formerly of the University of Leicester, is now Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Hertfordshire

John Martin was formerly Professor of Agricultural History at De Montfort University, and is now Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the University of Leicester. In addition to his research and publications focussing on the transformation of agriculture and rural life, he was the agricultural consultant for the BBC Wartime Farm; Monastery Farm; and the Full Steam Ahead series.

Robert King, BA (Hons). MA, PhD, Chartered MCIPD, spent his working life in and around cast metal foundries before moving into the plastics industry. In semi- retirement he gained his Masters, and Doctoral degrees, in History at De Montfort University. He is currently working, with Professor John Martin, on a series of articles investigating the social History of Hinckley during the First World War. SHORT REPORTS

Mark Dodd is a Project Officer, formerly of Trent & Peak Archaeology, and is currently employed by Oxford Archaeology.

Richard Parker is a Project Officer, who has worked with Trent & Peak Archaeology for the past 14 years, specialising in large scale sites, and quarry excavations. Tel 0115 9259464 Mob 07775566945 email:- [email protected]

Rachel Townsend formerly of Trent & Peak Archaeology is a Geomatics Specialist: she is currently employed as an Aerial Surveyor for the Environment Agency.

Nicky Garland has held a number of positions in commercial archaeological units in the UK and the Republic of Ireland; she completed a PhD in Iron Age and Roman Britain at UCL in 2017. Nicky was formerly a Senior Publications Officer at Cotswold Archaeology, and now holds a research position at the School of History, Classics and Archaeology at Newcastle University.

Andy Howard holds a first degree in Geography, and a doctorate in Quarternary Geology. He has spent over 20 years working within the spheres of Geoarchaeology, Geomorphology, and past-environmental change, undertaking a varied portfolio of projects across the landscapes of the UK, and continental Europe. His career has spanned both the heritage consultancy sector, and academia. He has undertaken teaching and research focussed around landscape evolution, archaeological preservation, and geoprospection. Over the last five years he has become increasingly interested in the impact of future climate change on heritage assets, In 2013 he set up the consultancy Landscape Research and Management, with the aim of providing holistic, yet bespoke, environmental and geoarchaeological advice, and practical assistance, to organisations mitigating, and managing, historic landscapes within the heritag and natural environment sectors.

Daniel Stansbie studied for a BA and MA in archaeology at Cardiff University in the mid-1990s, before working for Avon Archaeological Unit; English Heritage as a stratigraphic analyst, and Oxford Archaeology as a publications officer. Between 2012 and 2016 he studied for his DPhil at the University of Oxford, the subject was Ceramics and Food in Southern England 1500BC-AD1086: this was a part of the EngLaId Project. He is currently a post excavation manager with Cotswold Archaeology. His main interests are in Iron Age and Roman Britain; the archaeology of food and its relations with landscape and material culture; and archaeological theory and interpretation. He is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Archaeologists. [email protected] x contributors

ARCHAEOLOGY IN LEICESTER, LEICESTERSHIRE, AND RUTLAND

John Thomas BA, MA, is a Project Manager with the University of Leicester Archaeological Services. He has worked as a professional archaeologist for over 30 years, most of which time has been based in the East Midlands. He has a particular interest in later prehistoric and landscape archaeology. He was the co-director of the Burrough Hill project between 2010 and 2014. He has published two monographs; many papers in edited volumes; in county archaeological and historical journals of record; and in popular archaeological publications such as Current Archaeology.