The Castle Mall Archaeological Project, Norwich

Norfolk Archaeological Unit

Senior Project manager - E. Shepard

Background

Norwich, the largest city in Medieval England, dominated East Anglia from the 11th century onwards. As a centre of both royal and ecclesiastical power it developed a sophisticated economy and social structure. In spite of fluctuating economic fortunes it flourished throughout the 17th and 18th centuries as the country's 'second city'. Scheduling had been extended to the area of the castle precinct in 1979, following recognition of the site as one of national importance. Sufficient information survived in documentation, or had been recovered by previous excavation, to demonstrate that the castle defences overlay a substantial part of the pre-Conquest settlement of Norwich, one of the largest towns in England in 1066. The castle was an early Norman royal fortification which was first besieged as early as 1075. Although some truncation was evident in the form of landscaping for a Cattle Market (established in 1738) the site had largely remained open space since the laying out of the castle's defences. In response to the threat of redevelopment for a retail centre (Castle Mall), a large scale excavation was undertaken by the Norfolk Archaeological Unit. This took place between 1987 and 1991 and recovered a substantial amount of data relating to the history of the city between the Late Saxon and post-medieval periods. This summary describes the historical development of the site and outlines the major areas of current research. Illustration: Plan of the city of Norwich showing area of excavation

Historical Development & Current Research

The Late Saxon Settlement (10th to late 11th centuries)

Although a few stray finds of Middle Saxon date were recovered, it is likely that settlement of this part of Norwich began during the 10th century. Evidence for Late Saxon occupation was found across much of the site although the quality of the survival varied significantly. Several types of pre-Conquest building were identified, including examples of post-hole, post-in-trench and sunken featured construction. Associated with these were cess and storage pits and areas of refuse disposal, some of which may have related to craft or industrial processes. The latter includes waste from pottery manufacture, one notable clay-lined pit containing substantial amounts of Thetford-type ware including waster-like fragments. Environmental evidence indicates that, amongst other functions, some of the buildings had been used for grain storage.

A Late Saxon cemetery was found beneath the later southern bailey rampart. Eighty-five articulated and twenty-nine disarticulated skeletons were recovered. The cemetery appears to have remained in use until the construction of the Norman castle after which burial may have moved to the cemetery of St John de Berstrete to the south (described below). No church relating to this Saxon cemetery has been identified. Another pre-Conquest cemetery and associated church were recorded beneath the subsequent defences of the north-east castle bailey (East Anglian Archaeology, 28 'Excavations within the North-East Bailey of Norwich Castle, 1979' B.Ayers 1985) and yet another may be suggested by the presence of scattered human remains in the northern part of the Castle Mall site. These disturbed burials, which were redeposited in later pits, indicate the presence of approximately forty-three individuals. Dating is at present uncertain and the results of radio-carbon analysis are awaited.

The Norman period (late 11th to 12th centuries)

Pre-Conquest buildings had apparently been demolished or abandoned as part of the clearance of the site for the construction of a timber castle, Domesday Book (1086) referring to ninety-eight properties being enclosed by the defences. The first castle was established in 1067 or 1068 and the impact of this event on the pre-existing town can be compared with similar occurrences at sites such as Lincoln and Chester. The castle was held by the king and a large area of crown land, the Castle Fee or Liberty, was defined around it, probably by a ditch in some places.

Until the construction of the castle at Orford in 1165, Norwich was the only royal castle in Norfolk and Suffolk and its status is indicated by the construction of a stone keep between c.1094 and 1122. The excavation of the southern bailey ditch and the construction of a stone bridge (which may have included a stone gatehouse at the southern end) between the bailey and motte are further evidence of its growing importance. The date and role of the north-eastern bailey are also of considerable interest, although only a small part of these defences has been examined archaeologically. Evidence for the defensive layout of the castle, as well as the architecture and constructional details of masonry elements of the defences (such as a well shaft within the barbican nearly 30 metres deep) will form a major part of the forthcoming publication.

The Medieval Castle (13th and 14th centuries)

During the 13th century a massive barbican ditch was excavated, the keep and inner bailey apparently being maintained as a fortress. The keep was in use as a prison from about 1300, a role which was to continue into the 19th century. The southern bailey appears to have declined in defensive significance during the 13th century and encroachment by the townspeople into the area began, initially illegally. This encroachment increased with the granting of the baileys to the city in 1345. The construction of the city walls between 1297 and 1344 probably had significant implications for the relationship between the castle and the city.

The Medieval City (12th to 14th centuries)

The medieval walled city covered an area measuring one and a half miles from north to south and one mile from east to west, making it larger than contemporary London. The walls enclosed a Benedictine monastery and cathedral, four large friary precincts, nearly seventy churches, several hospitals, a thriving commercial waterfront and numerous markets.

The Castle Mall excavations revealed evidence for activities throughout the medieval period on the edge of the castle precinct and in the churchyard of St. John de Berstrete (now St John the Baptist, Timberhill). The earliest reference to this church dates from 1157, although architectural details may suggest an origin in the Late Saxon period.

A total of one hundred and eighty-nine articulated and forty-two disarticulated skeletons were recovered from the cemetery, with much of the disarticulated material derived from later features and the surrounding cemetery boundary ditch. The line of this ditch continued to influence property boundaries in this area well into the modern period. The precise dating of the burials remains to be established, radio-carbon analysis being awaited. Up to thirty-five of the skeletons showed evidence of leprosy although there are no records of particular links with any of the lazar houses or hospitals in and around the city. The nearest leper hospital lay outside St Stephen's Gate.

A wealth of evidence exists for the development of medieval tenements in the Castle Mall area, over sixty being studied as part of the current project. This documentary evidence includes property measurements, records of the ownership of buildings and the occupations of those who lived in the area around the Castle Fee. When combined with the excavated evidence (both from the Castle Mall and elsewhere in the city) these two sources of information offer the potential for an integrated study of medieval and later tenement development.

The site yielded evidence of a variety of crafts and industries, notably bell founding and other forms of metal working, as well as the normal range of domestic refuse. The evidence for bell founding is of particular importance, Norwich having been prominent in bell founding techniques. A bell pit excavated to the east of the Timberhill cemetery dated to between 1250 and 1400, although mould fragments from the lining of the barbican well (described below) indicate that bell founding continued on or close to the site at a later date.

The Late Medieval /Post-Medieval Transition (15th to 16th centuries)

The late medieval to post-medieval periods saw two principal developments; the decline of the castle and the further development of the city. In the documentary record the decline of the castle is represented by court cases which involved the unlicensed dumping of refuse, the erection of booths selling food and drink while the assizes were in session and the grazing of animals in the southern bailey. A number of these and other activities were represented archaeologically, notably the continued disposal of refuse and the exploitation of the castle ramparts and ditches as quarries, most probably for building materials for the expanding city.

Other evidence of the castle's decline was visible in the backfilling of the deep well in the barbican. This feature was excavated to a depth of over eighteen metres and was sampled by augering for a further eleven metres. The excavated fill had accumulated between about 1450 and the late 16th century and yielded a finds assemblage of great significance, both for the interpretation of the archaeology of Norwich itself and also on a national scale.

The pottery assemblage constituted 4.5% of the total from the site and, although some residual material was present, it was substantially a mid 15th to 16th century group, of critical importance for the understanding of the transition from medieval to post-medieval ceramic traditions.

The faunal assemblage consisted of approximately 15,000 bones including the major categories of domestic livestock (although horse remains were scarce), dogs, cats and rabbits. Other species present included hare, deer, dolphin and badger. The bird bone assemblage was also substantial, including an unusually large number of goose wings. It is probable that the presence of these was related to the manufacture of either quill pens or arrows.

The worked bone and antler objects included an antler casket mount and thirty-two pins or pens made from goose radii. Other worked bone items included part of a plaque, perhaps used to frame a figural scene on a diptych or casket, and another carved frame, possibly part of a reliquary. Some objects were of 13th to 14th century date and their apparent residuality may indicate their curation as heirlooms. The substantial number of copper alloy finds included eight coins and five tokens, as well as a large quantity of mounts and studs (many gilded) which may have served as harness mounts. A high status example is a belt or harness stud with a gilded cross engrailled on a green enamel background. None of the objects appeared to date later than the early 16th century. Well over 3,000 pieces of ironwork were recovered, the assemblage being dominated by small annular buckles, apparently disposed of over a short space of time. The fills from which they came also contained a significant proportion of spurs and spur fittings and its is possible that the buckles related to the refitting of spur leathers. Other ironwork includes chain mail, arrowheads, fragments of armour and offcuts from the production of dome-headed mounts. It is possible that this debris came from a workshop repairing armour and weaponry. The leather assemblage included three knife scabbards. The environmental material indicates waste disposal of several types, although there was no evidence for the presence of sewage. Overall, this constitutes the single most important finds assemblage from the site with implications which reach far beyond the city of Norwich itself.

The continued expansion of the city was represented both by the quarrying mentioned above and by the development of the tenements and associated pits and wells, many providing useful finds and environmental assemblages of varying character.

The post-Medieval period (Late 16th to 18th centuries)

The decline of the castle continued during the post-Medieval period, with the ditches becoming increasingly infilled and the encroachment of the city into the former castle precincts. Filling of the barbican ditch during late 16th and 17th centuries was fairly haphazard but became more organised in the early 18th century, probably indicating deliberate levelling prior to the construction of the Cattle Market in 1738. In one part of the ditch a plank and post revetment was inserted to facilitate access.

A considerable proportion of the total pottery assemblage (over 270 kg) came from this ditch and included a range of local post-medieval wares as well as regional, English and continental imports. The ditch fills also contained a huge assemblage of animal bones, offering the opportunity to examine aspects of animal husbandry during the agrarian revolution of the 18th century. In addition the occurrence of articulated remains of animals can be related directly to documentary references to the burial of horses, dogs, cats and pigs in the ditch. This disposal occurred both on a haphazard basis and, in a more organised fashion, during outbreaks of plague such as that in 1666. A wide range of other finds were also recovered.

From the late 16th century onwards the settlement of 'Strangers', mainly Dutch immigrants, began within the city. Earlier contacts with the Netherlands are attested by the presence of quantities of Dutch-type pottery and other finds including a sledge made from the jaw bones of two horses, recovered from fills of the barbican ditch. Only two other fragments of such sledge runners are known from archaeological sites (in Dordrecht, Holland and in York). This sledge is paralleled in 16th-century Dutch and Flemish paintings, such as those by Pieter Breugel the Elder.

Perhaps the most unusual find of this date was a parrot, bones of which were found in a 17th-century refuse pit. This is the first archaeological site at which parrot bones have been recovered in England.

The collapse of the gatehouse at the southern end of the castle bridge has been attributed to the activities of individuals quarrying for sand. Structures associated with the Cattle Market include post alignments indicating cattle pens and gravel surfaces.

A small group of burials was excavated from the top of the castle mound and appeared to comprise the remains of seven inmates of the prison (six adults and a child) who had been buried with little ceremony sometime during the 17th century. Pathological changes were unusually abundant and indicated a high level of stress-related disorders, as well as a concentration of head wounds.

The modern period (19th to 20th centuries)

The continued success of Norwich as a centre of marketing and retailing led to an organised attempt to level the remaining elements of the castle's defences, culminating in the remodelling of the livestock market in 1862.

During the Second World War a number of air raid shelters were constructed across the northern part of the site.

Future Work

Preparation of the final publication is well underway and the integrated report will appear in the East Anglian Archaeology monograph series.

Liz Shepherd

---