From Temples to Thames Street – 2000 Years of Riverside Development:
Archaeological Excavations at the Salvation Army International Headquarters,
99–101 Queen Victoria Street, City of London
Timothy Bradley and Jonathan Butler
Pre-Construct Archaeology Limited, Monograph No. 7
Substantial Roman remains were recognised in the area of Queen
Victoria Street as early as 1841, by the antiquarian Charles Roach
Smith who recorded ‘a wall of extraordinary strength’,
incorporating fragments of sculpted and moulded stone and marble.
A watching brief carried out in the 1960s and a series of excavations
on adjacent sites had revealed two major phases of Roman monumental
masonry, the latter forming part of a vast building complex extending
for over 150m along the river frontage, linked to the construction
of the 3rd-century riverside wall.
The area remained peripheral to the Roman City until late in the
1st century, and subsequent development was influenced by its challenging
topographic location; the ground sloped steeply to the edge of the
Thames and spring lines made for frequently-flooded terrain, traversed
by natural channels, a situation which was repeatedly to affect
attempts to develop the area.
The Headquarters building provided an opportunity for Pre-Construct
Archaeology to carry out a series of excavations, augmenting previous
investigations in the area. These have significantly advanced our
understanding of the dating and form of the earlier complex. Much-modified
over time, the river frontage was flanked by substantial apses with
ambulatories between and further buildings extending to the north,
terraced into the hillside.
Vast foundations, piling and terracing associated with the later
complex testify to attempts to control the steeply sloping and unstable
ground, whilst the sheer size of the culverts incorporated into
the masonry demonstrates the need for serious drainage. The new
buildings included at least two temples of classical form; but these
may not have been finished.
The redevelopment also provided a rare opportunity to examine a
sequence of medieval road surfaces and buildings at the junction
of Thames Street and Lambeth Hill, including evidence for the Great
Fire of 1666, which scorched the road surface and destroyed buildings
north of Thames Street.
‘From Temples to Thames Street’ 150pp, colour throughout,
price £18.95 is available through Oxbow Books (www.oxbowbooks.com).
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