EXPLORING ROMAN COLCHESTER

ROMAN TOURS

29 Aug

A Devastating Revolt, Stolen Roman Stone and a Never Before Seen Location.

Walking down the modern streets of Colchester it’s not too hard to imagine the bustling Roman City that came before. Handily our Roman filled imaginations are helped along by the wealth of Roman Remains that are still present in Colchester as there are some of the earliest, longest, best preserved and unique Roman ruins to be found here in the whole of Britain.

But quite unlike some of the other Roman Cities that we have explored, Colchester wasn’t actually started by the Romans, instead it began life as the centre of the local Celtic Tribes, The Trinovantes and then later the Catuvellauni tribe. As the tribal epicentre it was the perfect target for the Legions of the Roman Invasion in 43 AD and soon fell to the Legio XX Valeria legion as they asserted their dominance in the British Isles.

The Iron Age tribal centre of Camulodunum was quickly re-established as the new Roman Provincial Capital, the most important Roman City in the whole of Roman Britain. As life flourished and went on Camulodunum became a Colonia and model urban centre for the idealised Roman life. The initial Military Garrison left for further conquest to the North and the West, leaving behind a population of retired legionnaires and their families.

You could say Camulodunum was the perfect example of a thriving Roman City, and that is exactly why very little of this original early Roman City remains to be seen today. Seeing Camulodunum as the very pinnacle of the Roman Conquest and a symbol of everything that she resented, Queen Boudicca had her sights for revenge set firmly upon this unsuspecting city. Queen Boudicca’s tribe, the Iceni tribe, along with herself had been sorely overlooked and mistreated. The death of their ruler King Prasutagus caused the Romans to seize total control and annex the tribe as his final wish of splitting his Kingdom into two, half for the Romans and half for his wife Boudicca caused an inherent problem. In Roman life a woman was just not allowed to inherit the property of a man so Queen Boudicca inheriting her husband's seat of power went against everything that they believed in and they soon moved against it in an act that the Iceni never forgot.

In 61 AD Boudicca had her vengeance going after three important Roman Cities, Camulodunum amongst them, razing everything to the ground and slaughtering every occupant in their wake. The second Roman City of Camulodunum that was rebuilt from the smouldering, ill fated ashes of the first was very different to its predecessor, it was heavily fortified and defended, protected from such a violent and devastating act ever happening again within its new 2.4m thick walls.

In 61 AD Boudicca had her vengeance going after three important Roman Cities, Camulodunum amongst them, razing everything to the ground and slaughtering every occupant in their wake.

First we find ourselves standing before the Balkerne Gate at the top of Balkerne Hill, preparing to embark upon our exploration of Roman Colchester at the Main and West Gate to the city. Entering as if we have just come off the incredibly important Roman Road from London. The Balkerne Gate is the earliest and largest surviving Roman Gate in Britain and is so well preserved that there is even a pub, creatively named The Hole in the Wall, situated in the top half of its remains.

It’s also one of the few remains that we are visiting on this Tour that has a link back to the original Roman City prior to the Boudican Revolt. You see it is a sizable gate, a massive one actually, even by Roman standards. Less than a quarter of this original huge structure stands today as only the South Pedestrian Arch and Guardroom survive. Originally it would have had 4 arches, 2 for wheeled traffic and 2 for pedestrians. But the reason for its unusually grand size is because it includes the Triumphal Arch that was built in 49 AD to celebrate the arrival of Emperor Claudius. As the wall was built around the City after the Boudican Revolt this arch was simply incorporated as part of the Grand Main Entrance.

Just behind this impressive Roman Gate is the Mercury Theatre, a theatre named after the Roman Messenger God, Mercury and the location of a rather magnificent statue of Mercury almost leaping from the corner of the building. Mercury was actually the patron of all travellers so it’s rather apt that he stands at the starting point to our Roman Tour and the best point to begin a walk around one of the earliest, best preserved and at almost 3 km long, longest Roman Town Wall in Britain.

The Balkerne Gate is the earliest and largest surviving Roman Gate in Britain and is so well preserved that there is even a pub, creatively named The Hole in the Wall, situated in the top half of its remains.

Walking down the Balkerne Hill Footpath an impressive stretch of Roman Wall accompanies you, a sight almost as impressive as it would have stood in Roman Times at the grand height of 6m. You can trace much of the wall remains around Colchester and there’s even a Heritage Trail created for doing just that with helpful information boards, signs and even a map directing you around and offering snippets of history at the relevant locations. We follow this trail around the circumference of the Roman City, down NorthGate Street, (a street so named as it originally would have housed one of the 6 main gates into Camulodunum, The North Gate) and across into Castle Park.

Cutting across the width of Castle Park is a length of Roman Wall that is said to be the most impressive and best preserved section of the internal rampart in Colchester, and that just may be true as within this stretch you can really see the mixture of flint, fired bricks and stone used in the Roman Construction of the walls, beautifully preserved and maintained. This mix of building material is rather unique to Roman Essex as there was a lack of good building stone like that used in the construction of other defensive walls in Roman Britain like those we have previously seen in York and Lincoln.

This Roman Wall in Colchester was built around 65 - 80 AD for the sole purpose of protection and basically as a direct result of the attack during the Boudican Revolt. As well as the 6 Main Gates into the City it also would have incorporated between 12 and 24 Watch Towers. Following the Wall into the North East Corner of Castle Park you soon come across one of two surviving remains of these original six gates. This gate has been given the rather modern name of ‘Duncan’s Gate’ after the man who originally discovered it in 1853. Dr P M Duncan. It’s a much smaller and less grand gate than Balkerne’s Gate and would have only been wide enough for the passage of one cart with a guard tower built over it. The fallen masonry that can be seen around is all that remains of the arch that is estimated to have collapsed around 400 AD.

This Roman Wall in Colchester was built around 65 - 80 AD for the sole purpose of protection and basically as a direct result of the attack during the Boudican Revolt.

Next to Duncan’s Gate is a rather handy passageway, that probably isn’t Roman, in the wall. But it does lead onto ‘Roman Road’, most likely named as it follows the site of the Roman Wall now lost under the modern housing streets. At the bottom of Roman Road and turning right up the high street we find ourselves at the entrance to Firstsite Art Gallery. Firstsite is a modern art gallery and community hub that is well worth the visit, and not just for its art and galleries either as within one of its exhibition cases is a certain exhibit that provides a glimpse into Colchester’s Roman past, The Berryfield Mosaic.

If you were anyone of social substance in Roman Britain then you would have showcased this with a grand display of wealth and culture within your Townhouse, a display that normally resulted in the installation of an elaborate Roman Mosaic much like this one we are standing over in its glass display case. The Berryfield Mosaic dates to the Mid 2nd Century and consists of a central rose motif surrounded by four panels depicting sea monsters chasing dolphins. It was first discovered practically on this very location in 1923, when this site wasn’t actually Firstsite at all; instead it was a Market Garden run by William Cecil Lewis who had a large shock when he dug a little too deep and unearthed something spectacular.

Admiring the art on our wander around the galleries as we shelter from quite the biblical downpour outside we bump into our good friend Joe Boyd. Based in Colchester Joe is a resident artist and creator who shares his work and process over on Instagram and TikTok. We are currently working on a creative collaboration with Joe using some of our finds and he just couldn’t help himself in joining us on our Roman Tour and re-discovering his home city through its ancient past.

So we take Joe around the block to witness one of the most incredible combinations of impressive Roman Wall and Council Parking that we have ever seen, and one that would easily be overlooked going about the daily commute in Colchester. This is Priory Street Car Park and this long stretch of parking is dominated by the remains of the Roman Town Wall. But this section of Town Wall has a lot more than just Roman History contained within its structure. As after the Romans left the Town Wall was a convenient source of building stone leading it to be sorely neglected over the Saxon and Early Medieval Period. However by the time of the 14th Century when Colchester was experiencing a series of attacks during the Peasant Revolt of 1381 the Town Wall once again became an integral part of the City and King Richard II ordered a programme of repairs that included the addition of 8 Medieval Bastions, 4 of these survive today and are visible along this stretch in Priory Street Car Park.

The Town Walls continued to be crucial to Colchester as we enter the period of the English Civil War and several marks and scars from this turbulent time are preserved in the wall, such it’s reconstruction in brick part way down the car park which was undertaken after a breach by the Parliamentarian Cannons during the Eleven Week Long Siege of Colchester in 1648.

It was first discovered practically on this very location in 1923, when this site wasn’t actually Firstsite at all; instead it was a Market Garden run by William Cecil Lewis who had a large shock when he dug a little too deep and unearthed something spectacular.

Just adjacent to this large stretch in Priory Street Car Park is the perfect example of why it became so neglected by the 14th Century. St Botolph’s Priory, one of the first Augustinian Priories in England founded between 1093 and 1100, and a building almost entirely constructed out of stolen Roman Flint and Brick.

As an Augustinian Priory, St Botolph’s had certain privileges over the others in that area as it had the ability to correct abuses, inflict punishments and prescribe regulations. However it was a relatively poor foundation, with limited funds that was eventually dissolved in 1536 and gifted to Sir Thomas Audley, The Lord Chancellor at the time. It remained partly in use as a Parish Church until the Siege of Colchester in 1648 where a large proportion of the building was destroyed by cannon fire. It is mainly the remains of the Nave that remain standing today with grand romanesque columns of considerable height, and it is at the grand entrance to the Nave that Lucie spots the perfect piece of evidence of its stolen building material, embedded into the wall. A segment of Roman Hypocaust Tile instantly recognisable by its distinctive markings.

Back up Queen Street and passing through the location of St Botolph’s Gate, we loop back around up to the Colchester Castle Museum, the largest Norman Keep in Europe. Yet again Colchester Castle is another building that was constructed largely out of stolen Roman Building Materials but it’s the foundations that tell the tale of an incredible Roman past.

Before the Norman Castle there was a grand Roman Temple dedicated to Emperor Claudius. Very few classical Temples have been discovered in Roman Britain and the Temple of Claudius is the largest found. To Queen Boudicca this Temple was seen as the ultimate symbol of Roman oppression, their main target during the attack on Camulodunum and the site of the last stand of the Romans as they held out for a bitter two day siege inside its walls. Originally the Temple would have been a huge structure that is estimated to have spanned at least 32 x 24m, possessing two rows of eight columns with another sixteen around the cella where the cult statue and valuables would be stored.

Yet again Colchester Castle is another building that was constructed largely out of stolen Roman Building Materials but it’s the foundations that tell the tale of an incredible Roman past.

Today the impressive foundations to this Temple can still be seen in the basement of the Norman Keep where they stand 3.5m above the Roman Ground level as the Normans simply reused the Roman Masonry as part of the foundations, probably rather handy. You can also find several Roman Galleries inside the Castle Museum which house an incredible array of Roman Artefacts from two of the most important funerary monuments in the country that predate the Boudica Revolt to The Fenwick Treasure and The Colchester Sphinx.

However the foundations inside the Norman Castle aren’t the only remains of this grand Roman Temple as at the Castle Entrance to Castle Park, hidden inside the back seating area of the suspiciously named Claudius Gateway Cafe are the remaining foundations to the elaborate central gate that would have been part of the 120m long colonnade that led up to the Temple of Claudius. Whilst grabbing a snack from the Claudius Gateway Cafe you can take a seat upon the glass floor and admire the Roman Structure below. Surrounding you on the walls are information boards detailing the story of Roman Colchester and the Temple of Claudius, with artist sketches and renderings of what this Grand Gate would have looked like. Somewhat of a hidden gem of Roman Remains and one the owners of the Cafe are very proud to possess, inviting us warmly inside to take a look for ourselves.

To the rear of the Norman Keep and hidden amongst the gardens behind we enter Castle Park to discover the Roman Ruins that were pillaged by the Normans for all of their building stone for the Castle. Subtly labelled with a small information panel is a rather unimpressive looking assortment of stones which is actually the foundations of one of the three Grand 2nd Century Roman Town Houses that were discovered and excavated here in 1920 by the archaeologist Wheeler. The tiny red terracotta cubes making up the floors are actually the original floors of the townhouse and the walls have been marked by modern flagstones, to aid in some imagination.

Whilst grabbing a snack from the Claudius Gateway Cafe you can take a seat upon the glass floor and admire the Roman Structure below.

We exit Castle Park onto Maidenburgh Street looking for number 75 in particular. This is the site of the Roman Theatre and part of its semi circular structure is marked out into the paving here in an extremely subtle line of coloured bricks. This foundation emerges from the corner of the rather aptly named St Helen’s Chapel, a hint back to the site's Roman Past. St Helen was the mother of the Emperor Constantine who introduced Christianity to the Roman empire. According to legend she was born in Colchester and she remains the patron saint of the city and it is believed that St Helens Chapel as well as being built on the corner of the Roman Theatre, was also built on the site of a much earlier religious building.

These Roman Theatres would have been semi circular buildings where various entertainment would take place such as mime, orations, dance, choral events and different types of plays including farce, tragedy and comedy. As opposed to Amphitheatres which were designed for grand spectacles, gladiators and wild animals the Roman Theatres were designed for stage plays, but their buildings were still large and could hold a capacity of up to 15,000 people.

There are just a few sites left on our Roman Tour to visit as we head past the Town Hall underneath the watchful and stern gaze of Queen Boudicca who sits high above watching over the new city that has grown on top of the one that she destroyed. We are heading through Lion Walk Shopping Centre towards Maldon Roundabout, but first Lion Walk just happens to be built upon the site of an important Roman discovery in Colchester and hidden between its modern shops is a copy of the 4th-century Roman mosaic which was found here in 1974. This mosaic depicts a walking lion and is the streets namesake but quite coincidentally before the renaming of the street it was already known as Cat Lane. Perhaps a hint back to its Roman Past that had been lost to history? The original mosaic is on display inside Colchester Castle Museum and it is believed that originally it would have been a grand square mosaic with a central panel and four semicircular panels like this one surrounding each side.

*Lucie spotting coins on the way to Butt Rd.*

A horrific downpour rather interrupts our Roman Walking Tour as we have to leap into Sir Isaacs Artisan Coffee for some refuge and refreshments. But with the rain lessening and excellent coffee warming the hearts we continue heading through the passageway under the main road and popping up onto the opposite side of Maldon Roundabout. But we aren’t here to see the Police Station, because hidden practically in the grounds of this Police Station are the foundations to a Roman Church that just so happens to be one of the earliest churches in Britain.

This is Butt Rd Roman Church and it is believed to have been built around 320 - 340 AD out of stone and brick walls and a tiled roof with a dirt floor covering around 24.8m long and 7.4m wide. Whilst it might be the earliest church in Britain it wasn’t the discovery of the actual Church itself that made it such an important discovery. What was so important was what surrounded the Church itself as during excavations in the 70s and 80s over 700 Roman graves were discovered. It is estimated that originally there would have been as many as several thousands but much of the graves had been lost during nearby quarrying in the 19th century for sand and gravel. The important thing discovered was that many of the graves were aligned east to west and belonged to a christian cemetery that had been overlaid on top of an earlier pagan cemetery, an act that shows important evidence for increasing influence of Christianity in the Roman Empire.

From the Church Site we continue down Butt Rd turning left onto Le Cateau Road leading to Roman Circus Walk. This is the location that Joe was most excited about on the tour as it was an incredible Roman site that he had never even heard about. And hidden rather off the beaten track is Colchester’s one of a kind Roman Remains, a Roman Circus. The only one known in Britain and the largest known Roman Public Building ever to be found in Britain.

Roman Circuses were built for Chariot Racing, an incredibly popular and dangerous Roman Sport that if you excelled at, could turn you into as much of a Roman Celebrity as the top movie stars we have today. Roman Charioteers were actually the highest paid athletes in history. They are hairpin in shape and range from 250 - 500 m in length consisting of a track running down both sides of a central barrier known as a spina.

Built in the second century and outside the town wall this Circus would have been 450 metres long with seating for 8000 spectators. The starting gates and position of the racing track have been located and their bases reconstructed by the Colchester Archaeological Trust. No remains lie above ground of the Roman Circus as after 150 years of use it was abandoned with the stone reused for other buildings in town like at St Botolph's Priory. Until the discovery of this site chariot racing was only evidenced in Britain in the form of a sculpture of a charioteer found at Lincoln, on a mosaic found at Horkstow and on a variety of moulded glass beakers depicting the sport. It’s rather rewritten the Roman Britain history books and you can learn all about Colchester’s unique Roman Site in the Roman Circus Visitor Centre that is located adjacent to the reconstructed starting gates.

After a day filled with past traces from Roman Camulodunum we head to Joe’s Studio, ready to finish off by getting creative with some of our metal detecting finds and to soak in all of the incredible history that we have unlocked exploring this ancient city.

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Lucilla Gray