Details

The monument includes a Roman camp on Stamford Heath revealed as a cropmark by
an aerial photograph and confirmed by a field survey in 1987. The enclosure is
on the alluvial terrace above the River Gowy on the west side and 150m to the
south of the Roman road, the course of which is followed by the modern Tarvin
Road. It is bisected by a hedge with drain separating two fields.
The monument is surrounded by a bank with an outer ditch and traces of a
counterscarp in the form of a rectangle with the corners rounded in the
characteristic shape of a Roman earthwork camp. The sides of the enclosure
measure 160m from east to west and 120m from north to south. The area enclosed
is 1.5ha and is therefore similar to the examples of Roman camps at Upton
Heath 4km to the west. The bank averages 8m wide at the base and only 0.2m
high, having been reduced by ploughing since its desertion. The outer ditch is
6m wide and 0.2m deep and remains waterlogged. Outside this a counterscarp 10m
wide and 0.2m high is traceable on the south and east sides. An entrance on
the east side is marked by a gap 7m wide at a point roughly central in the
rampart. There is a corresponding gap in the counterscarp. The site is
overlain by ridge and furrow, the remains of medieval or post-medieval
cultivation, and is currently under cultivation for cereal crops. The post and
wire fence is not included in the scheduling, although the ground beneath is
included.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 5 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Roman camps are rectangular or sub-rectangular enclosures which were
constructed and used by Roman soldiers either when out on campaign or as
practice camps; most campaign camps were only temporary overnight bases and
few were used for longer periods. They were bounded by a single earthen
rampart and outer ditch and in plan are always straight-sided with rounded
corners. Normally they have between one and four entrances, although as many
as eleven have been recorded. Such entrances were usually centrally placed in
the sides of the camp and were often protected by additional defensive
outworks. Roman camps are found throughout much of England, although most
known examples lie in the midlands and north. Around 140 examples have been
identified and, as one of the various types of defensive enclosure built by
the Roman Army, particularly in hostile upland and frontier areas, they
provide an important insight into Roman military strategy and organisation.
All well-preserved examples are identified as being of national importance.

The Roman camp at Stamford Lodge survives as a well defined cropmark and as a
slight earthwork above ground. The waterlogging of the ditches will have
preserved important organic and environmental remains. In the interior there
will be remains of pits and post holes indicating any living quarters or
temporary buildings. The remains will enhance our knowledge of the Roman
occupation of the region particularly connected with the fortress at Chester
to the west.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
RCHME, , Rectangular Enclosure Stamford Lodge, (1987)
Other
CPE UK 1947 2031-2, RAF, (1947)

Source: Historic England