Caerwent

Coordinates: 51°36′41″N 2°46′06″W / 51.6113°N 2.7684°W / 51.6113; -2.7684

Caerwent
Welsh: Caer-went
Roman building foundations and the tower of the parish church at Caerwent
Caerwent  Caerwent shown within Wales
OS grid reference	ST470905
Principal area	Monmouthshire
Ceremonial county	Gwent
Constituent country	Wales
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	CALDICOT
Postcode district	NP26
Dialling code	01291
Police	Gwent
Fire	South Wales
Ambulance	Welsh
European Parliament	Wales
UK Parliament	Newport East
List of places: UK • Wales • Monmouthshire

Caerwent (Welsh: Caer-went) is a village and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, located about 5 miles west of Chepstow and 11 miles east of Newport. It is famous for its Roman remains.

A former Royal Navy Propellant Factory, later Royal Air Force/USAF storage base is located at Caerwent, immediately north of the A48.

History

Roman times

It was founded by the Romans in 75AD as Venta Silurum, a market town for the defeated Silures tribe. This is confirmed by inscriptions on the "Civitas Silurum" stone, now on display in the parish church.^[1] Large sections of the Roman town walls are still in place, rising up to 5 metres high in places. The walls have been described as "easily the most impressive town defence to survive from Roman Britain, and in its freedom from later rebuilding one of the most perfectly preserved in Northern Europe."^[2] In 1881 a portion of a highly intricate coloured floor mosaic or Tessellated Pavement, depicting different types of fish, were unearthed during excavations in the garden of a cottage.^[3]

Excavations in 1971 dated the north-west polygonal angle-tower to the mid-300s.^[4] Modern houses are built on top of half the site of the old Roman market place. The ruins of several Roman buildings are still visible, including the foundations of a 4th century Roman temple.^[5] The fact that most of the houses lacked mosaic or hypocaust-heated floors, however, suggests that despite its size, Caerwent never achieved the cultural level of other Romano-British tribal capitals.^[6]

Roman Caerwent was the subject of a Time Team episode first broadcast on 25 January 2009, featuring previously unexcavated parts of the town which were investigated in Spring 2008, including shops and a villa.

Early Christian times

Caerwent acted as a centre for the Kingdom of Gwent after the Roman occupation. Although the name Caerwent translates from Welsh as "fort of Gwent", the name Gwent itself derived from the Roman name Venta (Silurum) which meant "market" (of the Silures). (The English town name of Winchester has a parallel derivation, ultimately from the combination of the Latin words Venta, in that case, Venta Belgarum, and castra).^[7]

Caerwent remained an important centre, where the road between Gloucester and Caerleon met the north-south road from Shrewsbury, via Monmouth and Trellech, to the sea at Portskewett. It has been suggested that it may have been the birthplace of St. Patrick.^[8]

Arthurian claims

It has also been suggested that Caerwent was the location of the court of King Arthur, or what is popularly known as Camelot^[9] or alternatively Celliwig. In the 5th century, King Caradoc, or Caradog Freichfras of Gwent, is believed to have had his court at Caerwent, before moving it to Portskewett or Sudbrook, a few miles away on the Severn estuary, and leaving Caerwent in the hands of St. Tathyw to found a monastery. According to Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur, Camelot was "called in English, Winchester", where twelve of Arthur's defeated enemies "were buried in the Church of St. Stephen's". William Caxton, Malory's publisher, clearly states in the book's introduction that Camelot was in Wales, and Chrétien de Troyes, who first coined the name Camelot, stated that Arthur moved his court there from Caerleon, implying the proximity of the two. It is possible that Malory misinterpreted references to the identification of Camelot with the Roman town of Venta to mean Winchester rather than Caerwent. Alternatively, later readers may have misinterpreted his reference as, in fact, the names Winchester and Caerwent have the same original derivation and it would have been reasonable for Malory to use the name "Winchester" as an English translation of Caerwent. On the basis of this theory, Caradoc would have inherited Caerwent after Arthur's death at the Battle of Camlann.^[9]

Excavations at Caerwent have revealed remains and everyday objects from the post-Roman period. Metalwork, including elaborate penannular brooches and fastening pins, have been dated to the 5th-7th centuries. A large number of Christian burials, some stone-lined, dating from between the 4th and 9th centuries have also been discovered, both around the town's East Gate and close to the parish church of St. Stephen - a dedication which matches that indicated by Malory.^[9] Caerwent is also known to have had a monastery before the 10th century, and a pre-Norman cross head was discovered in 1992.^[2]

The current church is dedicated to St. Stephen and St. Tathan, the latter name probably having arisen through confusion with St. Tathyw. Tathyw, Tathan and Stephen all had feast days on 26 December.^[9] The oldest existing part of the church dates from the 13th century.^[2]

The village today

Caerwent is now a small village, largely bypassed by the busy A48 road running between the city of Newport to the west and Chepstow to the east. It has two pubs, the Coach and Horses and the Northgate Inn.

References

External links

Images

• Geograph: Photos of Caerwent and surrounding area

Local History

• 1891 Census Transcript for Caerwent
• Monumental Inscriptions for Caerwent Evangelical Baptist Church
• Monumental Inscriptions for St Stephan and St. Tathen Church
• Parish Registers for Caerwent
• War Memorial

Local Information

• Caerwent community website
• Caerwent Church (St. Stephen & St. Tathan) on the Caerwent Parish Group website
• Caerwent live weather and webcam

Roman Caerwent

• Antiquarian's Attic: Caerwent Roman shops (2 July 2008) Retrieved 25 January 2009.
• BBC News: 'Stylish' Roman life found on dig (30 June 2008) Retrieved 25 January 2009.
• CADW: Time Team unearths new evidence at Caerwent (1 July 2008) Retrieved 25 January 2009.
• Plans, history, and information on the ancient Roman city
• Time Team: Toga Town - Caerwent