Portskewett, South Wales
First screened 30 March 2008

Portskewett – Background

Harold's Field in Portskewett, Monmouthshire, has long been rumoured (and referenced in The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles) as a site where Harold Godwinson, later to become King Harold, built a hunting lodge in 1065 after defeating the Welsh. Before that, this same hill may have been the location of a Welsh royal palace reported as having been built in the 6th century. As if that isn't enough, pottery finds nearby suggest the hill may also have been utilised in Roman times too.

The site was declared a scheduled ancient monument back in the 1920s but no one has ever investigated the numerous large earthworks in the field. Nowadays the area is used by the villagers to walk their dogs.

In 2006 local archaeology graduate Dr Kate Smith rallied the locals to sign a petition asking Time Team to come and investigate. The site, close to the Severn Bridge, lies approximately a mile inland from the River Severn, on a stretch that has been used as a major crossing point since at least Roman times. This is supported by numerous references to Portskewett in historical texts. The name Portskewett is generally accepted to mean 'the harbour below the woods', and the idea that this site was once the location of a thriving harbour was something that Stewart and other members of the Team would be investigating over the three days.

One possible complication was that the earthworks showing in Harold's Field could turn out to belong to a medieval manor house, which might make it difficult to get at any of the earlier history associated with the site. However, no one could be sure what the dig might reveal: the lumps and bumps could be the remains of King Harold's hunting lodge, a Welsh royal court, or even a Roman Travelodge. Time Team had just three days to sort it out…

 

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