| Summary : Remains of a fortified site of Saxon date, known as Daw's Castle. The fortification survives as a curvilinear earthen bank, which encloses an area of approximately 2 hectares. The northern side of the site has been lost to coastal erosion and landslips. The surviving section of bank measures roughly 180 metres in length and has been shown by excavation to have been constructed in two phases. The first phase is thought to date from the reign of King Alfred, between 871 and 899. A mortared stone wall at its base fronted a bank. The second phase involved the construction of a more substantial wall, with a wider bank behind and a berm and ditch in front. This phase is believed to date from the 10th century. This is probably the site of the burh of Weced (Watchet), first mentioned in the Burghal Hideage (see ST 04 SE 28). Watchet was a mint (see ST 04 SE 94). Inhumations possibly dating to the 5th century have been found near by. The site was discovered during the construction of three lime kilns in the mid to late 19th century (see ST 04 SE 112). The site is scheduled and in guardianship, the limekilns are also listed. The bank defining the southern part of the enclosure is visible as earthworks on aerial photographs. It measure 255m long and curves sharply at its north west end by the cliff. |
More information : [ST 0618 4329] DAW'S CASTLE [G.T.] (Site of). (1)
Daw's Castle, St. Decuman's: remains of an enclosure which may once have been very extensive, but much has been lost through landslips. The principal remaining feature is a scarp about 200 yards long running in a curved line from E. to W., with its
convexity pointing S. At both E. and W. ends, there is a bank
running along the crest of the scarp for a short distance. Two
further portions of bank are visible just above the cliff.
Listed under unclassified earthworks (2) Plan: See photo:
AO/63/376/7
The enclosure apparently extended for 300 yards east, as there is a small piece of bank remaining by the road at this distance
further towards Watchet. (3). (2-3)
The name "Daw's Castle" seems a recent corruption of "Dart's Castle" which appears on the O.S. 1" Edn. It is a cliff top
enclosure in a commanding situation half a mile from Watchet. The northern half has been eroded by cliff falls and the
southern half consists principally of a rather weak scarp with
some evidence of a stone bank or wall along the top. There are unsurveyable traces of a berm at the foot of the scarp but no
indications of a ditch. In the east the work has been
obliterated by limestone digging and the construction of a
former golf course and the small piece of bank mentioned by Burrows has disappeared with land-slip.
The enclosure does not appear to be of I.A. origin, and Wedlake (4) suggested that it might be the remains of a Burghal Hidage fort. Ralegh-Radford (5) examined the site and expressed the opinion that it was almost certainly Saxon, confirming
Wedlake's suggestion. Brooks in his article on unidentified
forts (6) of the Burghal Hidage does not go into the problem of
Watchet but quotes the Chronicle of 914 which suggests that temporary defences were constructed along the southern side of the Severn estuary. In correspondence (7) he has reservations about the inclusion of Daw's Castle as a burh, partly from its
position away from the present town and partly from the lack of
documentation of a move from Daw's Castle to the present site of Watchet. Brooks notes however that Halwell, Devon, is a presumptive emergency fort detached from the present settlement.
Only excavation can resolve the problem but it seems quite
possible that Daw's Castle was of a temporary nature, like
Halwell, and part of Edward the Elder's Severn estuary
defences. See ST 04 SE 28 for Saxon Mint.
Surveyed at 1/2500. (4-8)
Numbers of E-W oriented but findless graves were found in or near Daw's Castle in the 19th century, and are thought to be
5th century and possibly of Irish origin.
The remains were first found when excavating for the lime-kilns at Daw's Castle (presumably those published on OS 1:10 000 at ST 06284331), and more bones were discovered later. These (? both lots) were re-interred 'higher up the field' by the Charcoal-burner. (9-11)
"Daw's Castle near Watchet has various features which suggest it would repay further studies in this context (Post-Roman Irish settlement in Somerset). Sited on the cliff, the defences
at present consist of a scarp about 2m high, forming a half
circle, with the ends of the rampart ending at the cliff top,
and enclosing about two hectares. This device is not common on pre-Roman sites generally, and is very rare in Somerset. In
addition, there are accounts of a number of east-west findless graves being discovered there in the nineteenth century (Page 1890 241-2) which might point to a use in the period under
discussion". (12-13)
Lime kilns are situated to the east of Daws Castle (see ST 04 SE 112) (14)
Excavation in 1982 revealed two phases of defence, both with mortared stone walls and banks. The first phase, much slighter in nature, is possibly the Alfredian Burh of Watchet recorded in the Burghal Hidage. The second phase, a large stone wall with a bank and ditch, may have been commisioned by Edward the Elder or Aethelred II. A radiocarbon date of 730 +- 140 (HAR 5279) was obtained from a layer sealed by the defences. There is no evidence apart from residual sherds to suggest a Roman date for the site, while the pottery and and constructional details of the defences preclude an Iron Age date. When the details of the later defences are considered, this form of defence work is directly comparable to other Saxon burhs.
Phase I. The earlier wall was 0.85m wide at its base, 0.6m high with a bank behind it ca 7.0m wide (similar to Lydford burh).
Phase II. The later wall was 1.42m wide, probably at least 3.5m high with a bank 7.9m wide behind it. In front of the wall was a small ditch 1.52m wide separated from the wall face by a berm 10.7m wide.
It is suggested that since the Watchet mint did not strike any coins between 1056-80 a break unique among Wessex mints, and also since no reference to a fort at Watchet is recorded in Domesday, the site had been abandoned after the Conquest and the mint re-established within the present town. (See also ST 04 SE 28 for details of the burh).
(15)
The bank defining the southern part of the enclosure is visible as earthworks on aerial photographs. It measures 255m long and curves sharply at its north west end by the cliff. It is centred at ST 0617 4314.
(16)
ST 06194320. Remains of fortified site of Saxon date, known as Daw's Castle. Scheduling amended. (17)
The remains of Daw's Castle were archaeologically surveyed and investigated by English Heritage in 2004. The report on this work complete with a large-scale survey are lodged in the NMRC. This guardianship site, now mostly under close -cropped permanent pasture - with a fringe of dense vegetation around the southern and western sides- lies on high ground which on its northern side is delinated by a high crumbling and slumping cliff edge. Traces of footings that indicated the extent of walling on the southern and western sides, as well as some ploughed-down earthworks survive. The north-east corner of the site is overlaid by the earthworks of a tramway and its associated buildings. This tramway was used haul materials up and down the precipitous cliff-face to supply the adjacent limekilns. Daw's Castle was extensively damaged during agricultural improvements in 1982 and the threat of further damage prompted the purchase of this important monument by English Heritage (18).
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