Bath and North East Somerset (commonly referred to as BANES or B&NES) is a
unitary authority created on 1 April 1996, following the abolition of the
County of Avon, which had existed since 1974.[1] Part of the
ceremonial county of
Somerset, Bath and North East Somerset occupies an area of 220 square miles (570 km2), two-thirds of which is
green belt.[2] It stretches from the outskirts of
Bristol, south into the
Mendip Hills and east to the southern
Cotswold Hills and
Wiltshire border.[2] The city of
Bath is the principal settlement in the district, but BANES also covers
Keynsham,
Midsomer Norton,
Radstock and the
Chew Valley. The area has a population of 170,000, about half of whom live in Bath, making it 12 times more densely populated than the rest of the area.[2]
A
scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or monument which is given legal protection by being placed on a list (or "schedule") by the
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport;
Historic England takes the leading role in identifying such sites. The legislation governing this is the
Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The term "monument" can apply to the whole range of archaeological sites, and they are not always visible above ground. Such sites have to have been deliberately constructed by human activity. They range from
prehistoric standing stones and burial sites, through
Roman remains and medieval structures such as castles and monasteries, to later structures such as industrial sites and buildings constructed for the World Wars or the
Cold War.[3]
There are 58 scheduled monuments in Bath and North East Somerset.[4] Some of the oldest are
Neolithic, including the
Stanton Drew stone circles and several
tumuli. The Great Circle at Stanton Drew is one of the largest Neolithic monuments ever built, and the second largest stone circle in Britain (after
Avebury). The date of construction is not known but is thought to be between 3000 and 2000
BCE, which places it in the Late Neolithic to Early
Bronze Age.[5] There are also several
Iron Agehillforts such as
Maes Knoll,[6] which was later incorporated into the medieval
Wansdyke defensive earthwork, several sections of which are included in this list.[7] The
Romano-British period is represented with several sites, most notably the
Roman Baths[8] and
city walls in
Bath.[9] More recent sites include several bridges which date from the
Middle Ages to the 18th-century
Palladian bridge in
Prior Park Landscape Garden.[10][4]Dundas Aqueduct, built in 1805[11] to carry the
Kennet and Avon Canal, is the most recent site in the list. The monuments are listed below using the names given in the English Heritage data sheets.
Bathampton Camp may have been a
univallateIron Agehill fort or stock enclosure. A rectangular enclosure, which is approximately 650 metres (2,133 ft) (east-west) by 500 metres (1,640 ft) (north-south), has been identified which may be a
Medieval earthwork.
A
ringwork ditch and bank, up to 5 feet (1.5 m) deep. During the first half of the 13th century a stone circular
keep and low curtain wall was built at the castle.
Built between 1797 and 1801, the Dundas Aqueduct carries the
Kennet and Avon Canal over the
River Avon and the
Wessex Main Line railway. It is 150 yards (137.2 m) long with three arches built of
Bath Stone, with
Doric pilasters, and balustrades at each end.
The Fairy Toot is an extensive oval
barrow of the
Severn-Cotswold tomb type which consist of precisely-built, long
trapezoid earth mounds covering a burial chamber.
A (now recumbent) standing stone close to the
Stanton Drew stone circles. It was described by
William Stukeley in 1723 as being 13 feet (4.0 m) long, it is now about half that length.
A
Carthusian priory established in the 13th century and
suppressed as part of the
dissolution of the monasteries in 1539. The chapter house, prior's cell and refectory survive as agricultural buildings belonging to the sixteenth century mansion,
Hinton Abbey. Surviving earthworks from the great cloister are still visible in an orchard and paddocks.
The hillfort, which is approximately 390 by 84 feet (119 m × 26 m), and 45 feet (14 m) in height, covering 20 acres (8.1 ha), consists of a fairly large flat open area, roughly triangular in shape, that has been fortified by
ramparts and shaping of the steep-sided hilltop around the northern, eastern and southwestern sides of the hill. It rises to an altitude of 197 metres (646 ft) above sea level.
Originally built as a fortified manor house, probably in the 12th century, surrounded by
Newton Park, then a
medieval deer park. At the start of the 14th century, a
keep was built on the site, creating a rectangular, courtyard castle with four corner towers, protected by a ditch on three sides.
The 11th century castle had a single bailey on the south side, possibly making use of an existing
Iron Age fortification. Later an inner bailey was added and a circular
keep surrounded by a
park. The castle was ruined and abandoned by the 1540s and little apart from
earthworks are visible today.
A
Roman site for public bathing which used natural warm springs and surrounding buildings. All of the Roman features are now beneath street level. The buildings above street level date from the 19th century.
A rectangular enclosure approximately 100 metres (330 ft) long and 55 metres (180 ft) wide internally, surrounded by a 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) high stony bank.
The site of a Roman villa which had two corridors, mosaics, hypocausts and baths is bow marked by posts in the ground. A relief from the site is now in the
British Museum. The site is on the
English Heritage list of
Heritage at Risk.
The site of a Roman settlement or temple and associated buildings possibly used for iron and pewter manufacture. Several stone coffins were found at or near the site. The
earthworks of the site are visible in aerial photographs.
The site includes a battery mill and a complete
annealing furnace. There are also the remains of the
water wheels initially used to power the machinery, one of which is still in working order. The battery mills were supplemented by
rolling mills between 1760 and 1830. The mill ceased production in 1924.
Erected in 1720 to commemorate the heroism of the
Civil WarRoyalist commander Sir
Bevil Grenville who on 5 July 1643 fell mortally wounded at the
Battle of Lansdowne. The monument is of
ashlar stone masonry, 25 feet (7.6 m) high, in the English Baroque style.
Solsbury Hill is a small flat-topped hill and the site of an
Iron Agehill fort occupied between 300
BC and 100 BC. The rampart was 20 feet (6 m) wide and the outer face was at least 12 feet (4 m) high. It is a possible location of the
Battle of Badon. It was acquired by the
National Trust in 1930. People
protesting against the building of an
A46 bypass road cut a small
turf maze into the hill. It is also the inspiration for rock musician
Peter Gabriel's first solo
single in 1977.
The hillfort, which is at the top of an isolated outcrop of Oolitic Limestone, is on the route of the
Wansdyke. Several iron agricultural implements, recovered from the site, including blades of sickles or pruning hooks and the iron tip from an
ard, are now in the collection of the
British Museum. The site is on the
English HeritageHeritage at Risk Register as being in danger of deterioration because of extensive animal burrowing.
a
cove of two standing stones with a recumbent slab between them, which can be found in the garden of the Druid's Arms public house. All are of different heights, the stone to the north east being 4.4 metres (14 ft) the south western 3.1 metres (10 ft), and the north eastern 1.4 metres (4 ft 7 in). The stones of The Cove are mineralogically different from those in the nearby
Stanton Drew stone circles. A
long barrow burial chamber has been found under the stones of The Cove. It is thought that this predates the erection of the stones by approximately a thousand years.
A
Neolithic chambered
tomb with multiple burial chambers, of the
Severn-Cotswold tomb type. The barrow is about 30 metres (98 ft) in length and 15 metres (49 ft) wide at the south-east end, it stands nearly 3 metres (10 ft) high. Internally it consists of a 12.8 metres (42 ft) long gallery with three pairs of side chambers and an end chamber. There is a fossil
ammonite decorating the left-hand doorjamb.
The largest
stone circle is the Great Circle, 113 metres (371 ft) in diameter. The date of construction is not known but is thought to be between 3000 and 2000
BCE. The Great Circle was surrounded by a ditch and is accompanied by smaller stone circles to the north east and south west. Some of the stones are still vertical, but the majority are now recumbent and some are no longer present.
^The date given is the date used by Historic England as significant for the initial building or that of an important part in the structure's description.
^Creighton, Oliver; Higham, Robert (2005). Medieval Town Walls: An Archaeology and Social History of Defence. The History Press. p. 60.
ISBN978-0752414454.
^Creighton, Oliver; Higham, Robert (2005). Medieval Town Walls: An Archaeology and Social History of Defence. The History Press. p. 36.
ISBN978-0752414454.
^Davenport, Peter (1998). Medieval Bath Uncovered. The History Press. pp. 91–92.
ISBN978-0752419657.
^Historic England.
"Solsbury Hill (203323)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 8 June 2014.
^Tratman, E.K.
"Little Solsbury Hill Camp"(PDF). Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society. Archived from
the original(PDF) on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
Bath and North East Somerset (commonly referred to as BANES or B&NES) is a
unitary authority created on 1 April 1996, following the abolition of the
County of Avon, which had existed since 1974.[1] Part of the
ceremonial county of
Somerset, Bath and North East Somerset occupies an area of 220 square miles (570 km2), two-thirds of which is
green belt.[2] It stretches from the outskirts of
Bristol, south into the
Mendip Hills and east to the southern
Cotswold Hills and
Wiltshire border.[2] The city of
Bath is the principal settlement in the district, but BANES also covers
Keynsham,
Midsomer Norton,
Radstock and the
Chew Valley. The area has a population of 170,000, about half of whom live in Bath, making it 12 times more densely populated than the rest of the area.[2]
A
scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or monument which is given legal protection by being placed on a list (or "schedule") by the
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport;
Historic England takes the leading role in identifying such sites. The legislation governing this is the
Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The term "monument" can apply to the whole range of archaeological sites, and they are not always visible above ground. Such sites have to have been deliberately constructed by human activity. They range from
prehistoric standing stones and burial sites, through
Roman remains and medieval structures such as castles and monasteries, to later structures such as industrial sites and buildings constructed for the World Wars or the
Cold War.[3]
There are 58 scheduled monuments in Bath and North East Somerset.[4] Some of the oldest are
Neolithic, including the
Stanton Drew stone circles and several
tumuli. The Great Circle at Stanton Drew is one of the largest Neolithic monuments ever built, and the second largest stone circle in Britain (after
Avebury). The date of construction is not known but is thought to be between 3000 and 2000
BCE, which places it in the Late Neolithic to Early
Bronze Age.[5] There are also several
Iron Agehillforts such as
Maes Knoll,[6] which was later incorporated into the medieval
Wansdyke defensive earthwork, several sections of which are included in this list.[7] The
Romano-British period is represented with several sites, most notably the
Roman Baths[8] and
city walls in
Bath.[9] More recent sites include several bridges which date from the
Middle Ages to the 18th-century
Palladian bridge in
Prior Park Landscape Garden.[10][4]Dundas Aqueduct, built in 1805[11] to carry the
Kennet and Avon Canal, is the most recent site in the list. The monuments are listed below using the names given in the English Heritage data sheets.
Bathampton Camp may have been a
univallateIron Agehill fort or stock enclosure. A rectangular enclosure, which is approximately 650 metres (2,133 ft) (east-west) by 500 metres (1,640 ft) (north-south), has been identified which may be a
Medieval earthwork.
A
ringwork ditch and bank, up to 5 feet (1.5 m) deep. During the first half of the 13th century a stone circular
keep and low curtain wall was built at the castle.
Built between 1797 and 1801, the Dundas Aqueduct carries the
Kennet and Avon Canal over the
River Avon and the
Wessex Main Line railway. It is 150 yards (137.2 m) long with three arches built of
Bath Stone, with
Doric pilasters, and balustrades at each end.
The Fairy Toot is an extensive oval
barrow of the
Severn-Cotswold tomb type which consist of precisely-built, long
trapezoid earth mounds covering a burial chamber.
A (now recumbent) standing stone close to the
Stanton Drew stone circles. It was described by
William Stukeley in 1723 as being 13 feet (4.0 m) long, it is now about half that length.
A
Carthusian priory established in the 13th century and
suppressed as part of the
dissolution of the monasteries in 1539. The chapter house, prior's cell and refectory survive as agricultural buildings belonging to the sixteenth century mansion,
Hinton Abbey. Surviving earthworks from the great cloister are still visible in an orchard and paddocks.
The hillfort, which is approximately 390 by 84 feet (119 m × 26 m), and 45 feet (14 m) in height, covering 20 acres (8.1 ha), consists of a fairly large flat open area, roughly triangular in shape, that has been fortified by
ramparts and shaping of the steep-sided hilltop around the northern, eastern and southwestern sides of the hill. It rises to an altitude of 197 metres (646 ft) above sea level.
Originally built as a fortified manor house, probably in the 12th century, surrounded by
Newton Park, then a
medieval deer park. At the start of the 14th century, a
keep was built on the site, creating a rectangular, courtyard castle with four corner towers, protected by a ditch on three sides.
The 11th century castle had a single bailey on the south side, possibly making use of an existing
Iron Age fortification. Later an inner bailey was added and a circular
keep surrounded by a
park. The castle was ruined and abandoned by the 1540s and little apart from
earthworks are visible today.
A
Roman site for public bathing which used natural warm springs and surrounding buildings. All of the Roman features are now beneath street level. The buildings above street level date from the 19th century.
A rectangular enclosure approximately 100 metres (330 ft) long and 55 metres (180 ft) wide internally, surrounded by a 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) high stony bank.
The site of a Roman villa which had two corridors, mosaics, hypocausts and baths is bow marked by posts in the ground. A relief from the site is now in the
British Museum. The site is on the
English Heritage list of
Heritage at Risk.
The site of a Roman settlement or temple and associated buildings possibly used for iron and pewter manufacture. Several stone coffins were found at or near the site. The
earthworks of the site are visible in aerial photographs.
The site includes a battery mill and a complete
annealing furnace. There are also the remains of the
water wheels initially used to power the machinery, one of which is still in working order. The battery mills were supplemented by
rolling mills between 1760 and 1830. The mill ceased production in 1924.
Erected in 1720 to commemorate the heroism of the
Civil WarRoyalist commander Sir
Bevil Grenville who on 5 July 1643 fell mortally wounded at the
Battle of Lansdowne. The monument is of
ashlar stone masonry, 25 feet (7.6 m) high, in the English Baroque style.
Solsbury Hill is a small flat-topped hill and the site of an
Iron Agehill fort occupied between 300
BC and 100 BC. The rampart was 20 feet (6 m) wide and the outer face was at least 12 feet (4 m) high. It is a possible location of the
Battle of Badon. It was acquired by the
National Trust in 1930. People
protesting against the building of an
A46 bypass road cut a small
turf maze into the hill. It is also the inspiration for rock musician
Peter Gabriel's first solo
single in 1977.
The hillfort, which is at the top of an isolated outcrop of Oolitic Limestone, is on the route of the
Wansdyke. Several iron agricultural implements, recovered from the site, including blades of sickles or pruning hooks and the iron tip from an
ard, are now in the collection of the
British Museum. The site is on the
English HeritageHeritage at Risk Register as being in danger of deterioration because of extensive animal burrowing.
a
cove of two standing stones with a recumbent slab between them, which can be found in the garden of the Druid's Arms public house. All are of different heights, the stone to the north east being 4.4 metres (14 ft) the south western 3.1 metres (10 ft), and the north eastern 1.4 metres (4 ft 7 in). The stones of The Cove are mineralogically different from those in the nearby
Stanton Drew stone circles. A
long barrow burial chamber has been found under the stones of The Cove. It is thought that this predates the erection of the stones by approximately a thousand years.
A
Neolithic chambered
tomb with multiple burial chambers, of the
Severn-Cotswold tomb type. The barrow is about 30 metres (98 ft) in length and 15 metres (49 ft) wide at the south-east end, it stands nearly 3 metres (10 ft) high. Internally it consists of a 12.8 metres (42 ft) long gallery with three pairs of side chambers and an end chamber. There is a fossil
ammonite decorating the left-hand doorjamb.
The largest
stone circle is the Great Circle, 113 metres (371 ft) in diameter. The date of construction is not known but is thought to be between 3000 and 2000
BCE. The Great Circle was surrounded by a ditch and is accompanied by smaller stone circles to the north east and south west. Some of the stones are still vertical, but the majority are now recumbent and some are no longer present.
^The date given is the date used by Historic England as significant for the initial building or that of an important part in the structure's description.
^Creighton, Oliver; Higham, Robert (2005). Medieval Town Walls: An Archaeology and Social History of Defence. The History Press. p. 60.
ISBN978-0752414454.
^Creighton, Oliver; Higham, Robert (2005). Medieval Town Walls: An Archaeology and Social History of Defence. The History Press. p. 36.
ISBN978-0752414454.
^Davenport, Peter (1998). Medieval Bath Uncovered. The History Press. pp. 91–92.
ISBN978-0752419657.
^Historic England.
"Solsbury Hill (203323)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 8 June 2014.
^Tratman, E.K.
"Little Solsbury Hill Camp"(PDF). Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society. Archived from
the original(PDF) on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 8 June 2014.