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An unusual horse curb bit, carved stonework, a huge quantity of 11th to 13th-century pottery and some high-status finds brought Time Team on a hunt for a Norman house or hunting lodge in this former royal forest.
But it wasn't long before the stone walls and foundations, which had originally been thought to support a two-storey building, began to look rather less impressive. Gradually, as the forensic trowels of the diggers went to work, the structure started to shrink in every direction.
Royal forests were fiercely protected by the Norman monarchy, however. So if it wasn't a hunting lodge, what was it and why were there buildings here at all? Could the Domesday Book hold a clue? According to the book, it seems that this area was home to an extraordinary number of pigs…
Time Trail.
The royal forests of medieval England have given us some of the most evocative, and lasting, folk tales of any era. The stories of Robin Hood and his band of outlaws may not be entirely faithful to the reality in the Sherwood Forest of the time. But there can be little doubt that they are based on a strong element of truth – and that they accurately represent the deep hostility that was felt towards the king and his agents over the appropriation of these lands.
At their height, the royal forests accounted for three tenths of the total land surface of England. From the Forest of Northumberland in the north east to Dartmoor in the south west, William the Conqueror and his successors carved out huge chunks of land for their privileged use. The East Midlands, where Time Team carried out its Hanslope dig, included a particular concentration of forests, with an unbroken belt of them running south-westwards from the Wash to the Thames in Oxfordshire. The Hanslope site, near Milton Keynes, is towards the middle of this belt in the former royal forest of Salcey.
Very little archaeological evidence exists about life in the royal forests. Yet we do know that despite the severe restrictions imposed by forest law, large numbers of people depended on them for their living. The Hanslope site was interpreted by Time Team's experts as a likely centre of animal husbandry. A reference in the Domesday Book to the fact that there were 1,000 pigs kept in the vicinity added credence to the idea that this might have been a centre for pig farming.
If so, it is possible that one of the special courts set up to administer forest law would have had jurisdiction over the site. This was the 'swainmote', among whose jobs it was to regulate the grazing of pigs. The swainmote, which took its name from an Old English word meaning a meeting (mote or moot) of swineherds, predated the establishment of royal forests – and still exists today in the New Forest, Hampshire.
How much do you know about royal forests? Try our Time Trial quiz to find out.
Watched the programme, browsed the web pages? Now try our quick quiz to see how you get on.
As well as deer, what did 'venison' refer to in Norman times?
Wild boar
Pig
Horse
Which of these royal forest office holders still exist in certain forests?
Justiciars
Regarders
Verderers
Epping Forest, in north east London, was once part of the largest royal forest in England. What was it called?
The Forest of Essex
The New Forest
Epping Forest
Which of these was not once part of a royal forest?
Kensington Gardens
Primrose Hill
Victoria Embankment Gardens
Who introduced the harshest punishments for offenders against 'forest law'?
William I
William II
Henry I
How much of England was covered by royal forests in the 12th to 13th centuries?
Ten per cent
Twenty per cent
Thirty per cent
Answers here.
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Initial investigations carried out some years ago by Gordons Lodge Archaeological Field School had indicated the presence of a two-storey 13th-century hall in a ditched enclosure on this site. The enclosure had looked prehistoric in aerial photographs. Time Team, in consultation with city council archaeologist Brian Giggins and English Heritage inspector Glyn Coppack, had a further look at this and other cropmark features in the vicinity.
Reinterpretation of the field school's open trench suggested that the stone building was too small and too poorly constructed to support a first-floor hall. Time Team's finds expert, Paul Blinkhorn, concluded that the 11th to 13th-century pottery from this site was domestic; and Gerry McDonnell, of Bradford University, quickly dismissed theories that the site had been used for metal working.
Geophysics to the south of the open excavation corroborated the aerial photographs, indicating an enclosure about 50 metres in diameter. A trench across the north of the enclosure revealed a ditch containing pottery from the 11th to 14th centuries and a large assemblage of pig bones. A trench across anomalies in the centre revealed stone kilns and post holes, possibly associated with a structure. Another trench in the centre revealed that a depression was not a quarry, as had been surmised, but had areas of burning associated with it.
Landscape analysis indicated that a moated hall may have existed on the site of Gordons Lodge Farm and that the ditched enclosures were sub-infeudations, or grants of land within the royal forest by the king. The enclosures were interpreted as evidence for organic rural industry, possibly connected with pig farming – the first recorded archaeological evidence of this kind.
Time Team uses a variety of film directors to make its programmes. You may have noticed that some shows have more light-hearted moments while others appear more academic. It's all down to the site, the archaeology it reveals and the story the director wants to tell.
'In a lot of ways a three-day Time Team shoot is barely controlled chaos,' says Nick Metcalfe, director of the Green Island, South Perrott, Castle Howard and Hanslope programmes.
'There's an awful lot happening all the time, lots of trenches, and you need crews who can shoot what's happening and capture the essence of the story all the time non-stop. Most directors have crews they prefer to use because they know that they shoot material the way they like it. It's difficult with three crews working on each programme to follow what each of them is doing all the time, so you need guys you can rely on. Time Team is one of those shows that I love doing, it's just a really good bunch of people.'
Nick holds regular meetings with his crews and the programme's producers to make sure everyone is up to speed on how the story is developing and is aware of the areas he wants to concentrate on. The feel of the programme is carefully guided along as he directs the unfolding action.
'It's so important to stay updated with what's happening on the site,' Nick says. 'Of course you never know what you're going to find, so it can be like flying by the seat of your pants, but when something unexpected happens that nervous energy just fuels the programme. We're lucky enough to have some very experienced people on Time Team, so there's not much that could really stump us. Some sites give us a clear story to tell but others offer the possibility of telling a couple of different stories on the evidence that's found.'
'There are three sides to telling the story really, Nick says. 'Firstly, you get a real feel for the site when you're digging it. Then, after the filming, you get to see everything again by reviewing all the tapes. And finally you get to really form the feel of the programme in the edit.'
Hear Nick Metcalfe talk about directing.
Ros Ereira, cameo producer.
Alan Larsen, horseman.
Gail Brownrigg, horse-bit expert.
Ros Ereira, cameo producer.
I got quite excited when I was told that one of the best finds to have come out of this site on a previous dig was a Norman curb bit for a horse. I have a longstanding love of horses and am very interested in equestrian history. When I saw the bit that had been found, I began to wonder whether we should make it at all, as I was worried about ever putting such a horrific-looking thing in the mouth of an unsuspecting horse. However, I was convinced that it was worth a go and thought we might find out something about why such a bizarre contraption was used.
My first surprise came when I measured the bit, and realised that it was so narrow it could only have fitted a small pony. I wondered briefly about whether this meant it belonged to a child, but then John Clark at the Museum of London assured me that this was a standard size for a Norman bit. This meant that Norman horses in Britain were all very small – a view that would appear to be backed up by contemporary artwork such as the Bayeux Tapestry.
Hector Cole, our blacksmith, was able to make us two beautiful replicas of the bit. One was made in the actual size of the original and one was made to a larger fit so that Alan Larsen, our horseman, could try it out on his horse, Salome, to find out more about how it worked. Interestingly, when the grooms at the polo yard where Salome lives saw the bit, instead of looking horrified by it, they recognised it immediately as very similar to one used today in polo stables in Uruguay and Chile. They showed us that it is worn the other way around from what we had supposed. This meant that the 'stops' on the hinge allowed the bars of the bit to rotate through well over 90 degrees before any action was felt by the horse at all, instead of forcing the curve of the bit up against the roof of the mouth. This meant that, contrary to its appearance, the bit was in fact extremely gentle.
We could also see that the bit was designed for riding with one hand. This could be seen by the positioning of the reins, which were very central, and meant that the horse could only be steered through 'neck-reining' or pressure on the side of the horse’s neck to tell it which way to turn – much like the way a modern cowboy rides.
The Grafton Pony Club were able to bring along a selection of ponies for us to demonstrate the bit on an actual-sized Norman pony, and the endlessly patient pony, Murphy, allowed us to fit him with a replica bit – as well as permitting Phil to demonstrate his inexperience of riding!
One of the replica bits is now in the possession of English Heritage, and so can be seen in use at various displays around the country.
Alan Larsen, horseman.
Once again Time Team's cameo team has chosen an innovative and challenging project. The Anglo-Norman curb bit reconstruction carried out for this programme really did advance academic and practical working knowledge in a specialist but very important field. It is reasonable to say that until this project our knowledge of early medieval war bits had been largely theoretical. Perceptions of their effectiveness and severity had also I believe, been overly influenced by modern standards.
I must admit to some trepidation when first viewing the drawings of the apparently draconian device. The bit did appear, at first glance, to have a savage curb action. Furthermore, it seemed to be of such dimensions as to make it potentially uncomfortable for the horse.
In practice the bit proved to be a well-thought-through and designed piece of equipment. It was accepted by our horses without undue fuss, whilst the hinged action of the cheek pieces was a clever feature that made it difficult for the rider – accidentally or otherwise – to wrench the horse's mouth. This was well demonstrated during the filming of a very vigorous mounted combat sequence.
Equestrians who watch the programme will be impressed, I think, by the extent to which we were able to ride 'on the buckle' in that sequence whilst manoeuvring a large kite shield in the same bridle hand. Everybody else will no doubt enjoy watching Phil Harding run for his life as 'a bloody great horse' and javelin-armed rider bear down on him at the gallop.
Gail Brownrigg, horse-bit expert.
Though clearly designed for one-handed riding, the action of the reconstructed horse curb bit was not as severe as would seem at first glance. This was because the joint in the long cheekpieces allowed them to rotate as the reins were pulled, giving the horse a warning before any pressure was put on its mouth.
I had been concerned that the high, curved centre of the mouthpiece might be uncomfortable, or even cause injury. Yet even in the midst of a fight, when the rider had to manipulate the reins with the same hand that held his shield, the bit seemed to work perfectly to guide his horse, without hurting it at all.
Especially interesting was Hector Cole's reconstruction of the bit, including the missing bar that had formed part of the original mouthpiece. Not only did this encourage the horse to roll it around with his tongue, resulting in increased salivation and a 'soft' mouth, but it also meant that the whole mouthpiece lay flat on the tongue, instead of rotating to press on the roof of the mouth.
The experiment certainly showed that the early medieval bit was not an instrument of torture, but a well-designed piece of military equipment admirably suited to its purpose.
Royal forests
The Royal Forests of England by Raymond Grant (Sutton, 1991)
A History of English Forestry by N D G James (Basil Blackwell, 1981)
Royal Forests of Medieval England by Charles R Young (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1979)
Historic Forests of England by Ralph Whitlock (A S Barnes, 1979)
There are no books on medieval royal forests currently in print, but most of the above can usually be obtained from online booksellers. Ralph Whitlock's book includes a gazetteer and maps of the major royal forests, together with extensive illustrations. Raymond Grant's book is particularly detailed in relation to forest law. And N D G James describes forest management into modern times.
Charles Young's book, meanwhile, contains detailed descriptions of how the royal forests were established and then reorganised under the Angevin kings. It then has separate chapters on the Angevin system at work; how royal forests became a political issue and the subject of a number of articles in Magna Carta; the law and administration of the system at its height; the forest economy; the political and constitutional struggles from 1258-1327; and the forest in the later Middle Ages.
Other books
English Medieval Industries: Craftsmen, techniques, products edited by John Blair and Nigel Ramsay (Hambledon Press, paperback edition, 2001) £19.95
This work is intended as a modern successor to L F Salzman's English Industries in the Middle Ages (1913). The approach to each industry is by material, discussing its acquisition, working and sale as a finished product. Only industries that resulted in the production of consumer goods and where substantial numbers of artefacts survive from the Middle Ages are dealt with (fishing and brewing are therefore omitted); the text is illustrated by pictures of surviving objects and contemporary representations of medieval work.
The Medieval English Economy by Jim Bolton (Everyman, 1988)
'The book on the subject that I recommended to everyone' – Mick Aston, but unfortunately out of print.
The Rural Settlements of Medieval England edited by Mick Aston, David Austin and Christopher Dyer (Blackwell, 1989)
A wide-ranging collection of essays, written by a distinguished team of archaeologists, historians and historical geographers.
As well as deer, what did 'venison' refer to in Norman times?
Wild boar
Which of these royal forest office holders still exist in certain forests?
Verderers
Epping Forest, in north east London, was once part of the largest royal forest in England. What was it called?
The Forest of Essex
Which of these was not once part of a royal forest?
Victoria Embankment Gardens
Who introduced the harshest punishments for offenders against 'forest law'?
William II
How much of England was covered by royal forests in the 12th to 13th centuries?
Thirty per cent