| Summary : A section of the Medieval town defences situated between Northgate and Eastgate in the northeast area of Taunton. The earthwork is located 70 metres north of the Church of St Mary Magdalene and formed part of the town defences comprising an earthen bank and ditch which encircled the town from the 11th- to the 13th century. The earthwork at Borough Bank is 50 metres long and aligned west-north-west to south-south-east. The bank is two metres high and 3.5 metres wide. The ditch continues beneath Canon Street car park and a building called `The Chestnut Tree'. The earliest known reference to the defences comes from a document of 1158 which refers to a town ditch running from Northgate to Eastgate. The borough defences were remodelled from 1215-1216 and their courses possibly altered. It was not long however that these bank-and-ditch structures, possibly surmounted by a palisade, were used for other purposes. In 1290-1, Robert Amy paid one shilling for a plot of land on the `ancient ditch of the town'. This process apparently continued in a piecemeal fashion until by the late 14th century the banks had ceased to be of any practical use, although the ditches remained vital to the town's drainage. This continued to be the case until the English Civil War began, when new defences were cast up (See HOB UID 190846, ST 22 SW 48). Excavations have identified defences to the northwest, northeast and southeast, while documentary evidence and topographical survey have been used to suggest the remaining probable lines of the defences. |
More information : Medieval bounds of Taunton. There are various references to medieval boundary features at Taunton:
a. 1158: `From the East Gate along the Ditch to North Gate', which would be along the old Borough and St Mary's/St James's parish boundary.
b. 1635: `The Towne ditch commonly Hurle ditch on the south' of the site of Gray's Almshouses.
c. 1647: `Four acres and a half upon Hurleditch'.
d. 1681: `The Town Ditch on the west part and Fore Street on the east', bounding a property in Fore Street.
(The fact that these references concern no more than ditches and that three of them are 17th century, when Taunton was an open town (see ST 22 SW 48), must show that the medieval bounds of Taunton were fairly trivial, but Radford and Hallam refer to a Town rampart and suppose that on the west side of the town at least this was of sufficient strength, and sufficiently old, to influence the abrupt SW corner of the castle's outer moat). (1)
There are no surviving traces of the medieval town boundaries. (2)
Bank and ditch of the old town bounds found at ST 228248 in 1966 when Lipton's supermarket was being built (3), and at ST 230244 in 1972 during demolition of Huish's Grammar School (4).
Lipton's supermarket site is at ST 22732475 and the Huish's School site at ST 23072445. (5)
The defences were remodelled in 1215-16 and their courses possibly altered. It was not long however that these bank-and-ditch structures, possibly surmounted by a palisade, were used for other purposes. In 1290-1, Robert Amy paid one shilling for a plot of land on the `ancient ditch of the town'. This process apparently continued in a piecemeal fashion until by the late C14th the banks had ceased to be of any practical use, although the ditches evidently remained vital to the town's drainage. This continued to be the case until the English Civil War began, when new defences were cast up (ST 22 SW 48). Four excavations have aided in the identification of the defences on the NW, NE and SE sides, while documentary evidence and topographical survey have been used to suggest the remaining probable lines of the defences. (6)
Taunton is mentioned in 1086 when 64 burgesses were paying the bishop 32s and a market was paying 50s. During the period 1135-39 a charter of Stephen granted the bishops burgesses of Taunton the customs of London and Winchester. (7)
ST 2288 2468. Borough Bank, a section of the Medieval town defences 70 metres north of St Mary Magdalene Church located between Northgate and Eastgate in the north east part of Taunton. The defences were formed by an earthen bank and ditch which encircled the town from the 11th- to the 13th century. The earthwork at Borough Bank is 50 metres long and aligned from west-north-west to south-south-east. The top of the bank is flat and is 2 metres high and 3.5 metres wide. The rear of the bank extends for a further 20 metres into the gardens of St Mary's vicarage. The ditch continues beneath Canon Street car park and a building called `The Chestnut Tree'. The earliest known reference to the defences comes from a document of 1158 which refers to a town ditch running from Northgate to Eastgate. Scheduled.(9) |