Limited space for digging

The medieval manor of Chenies has undergone many changes over the years. Both late medieval and early Tudor wings survive, but no trace is left above ground of a known extension to the manor, which was recorded in 1585. This was originally built to accommodate Henry VIII during his progress around the country, when he was accompanied by (and accommodation would have to be provided for) up to 1,000 people in his entourage.

Unfortunately for the Team, the house, which opens to the public, has such exquisite lawns and gardens that it is only possible to excavate limited areas in an attempt to find the missing accommodation. Excavations on the site are further limited by other standing buildings, including a farm.

'It was pretty difficult really,' says Time Team supervisor Kerry Ely. 'There were plenty of bits of wall foundation all over the gardens, but matching them up together wasn't easy because we were working with such small areas.'

According to Time Team regular digger Ian Powlesland: 'It's not as if we could establish where walls had been by looking at any surface marks. The whole site had been very comprehensively levelled during landscaping so we only had the geophysics and our small trenches to go on.'

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