ULAS News

Marston Trussell: life in a medieval village

Situated halfway between Market Harborough and Husbands Bosworth, on the Northamptonshire side of the River Welland, is the sleepy little village of Marston Trussell. The village is first mentioned in the Domesday Book (AD 1086) as Mersitone, meaning marsh settlement; the Trussell family presumably adding their name to the village after they became lords of…

Medieval hospital revealed in Leicester’s Cathedral Gardens

In 2013 and 2014 archaeologists from ULAS carried out a series of watching briefs during the construction of ‘Cathedral Gardens’ a new public open space located to the south and west of Leicester Cathedral. As part of this development, various ground-works were undertaken within both the graveyard of Leicester Cathedral and the St Martins House…

Iron Age settlement found near Brixworth in Northamptonshire

In 2014, archaeologists from ULAS investigated a 7 hectare area of agricultural land situated between the A508 and Pitsford Reservoir, just south of Brixworth in Northamptonshire. The evaluation was undertaken as part of an archaeological impact assessment in advance of proposed residential development. Work targeted previously identified geophysical anomalies and revealed an array of archaeological…

Archaeologists return to Pineham, Northamptonshire

In 2014, ULAS archaeologists returned to Pineham in Northamptonshire to carry out a second season of excavation. Now, with two seasons of fieldwork completed, the large-scale excavation has investigated a total of 12 hectares of land in advance of major residential development for Taylor Wimpey (East Midlands). The excavations have focused on two fields, targeting…

Secrets beneath Jubilee Square revealed

First published 13/04/2015, Updated 14/02/2024 In 2013 and 2014 archaeologists from ULAS carried out archaeological monitoring during construction of Leicester’s new Jubilee Square. The site, at St Nicholas Place, was at the historic heart of the Roman city and later medieval borough. In the Roman period much of the site was occupied by the southern…

‘Grant me the carving of my name’

What a week! Leicester rose to the occasion and reburied King Richard III with style; a perfect blend of solemnity and pageantry, mixing the old and the new with dignity and honour. I’m not one for writing a sentimental eulogy for the project that has dominated the last two and a half years of my…

King Richard III’s mortal remains depart from University of Leicester

In a short and moving ceremony the University of Leicester and guests marked the departure of Richard III’s mortal remains after nearly three years of research and guardianship. Those present included many of the research team and their families – from the volunteers who helped during the excavation to the lab technicians who worked tirelessly…

The house that Herrick built

By now, the history of the Grey Friars and its role as the burial place of King Richard III is widely known, but what happened after the friary closed in 1538? Over the next 30 years the church was pulled down and the remaining buildings were left to gradually decay, providing a useful quarry of…

Timelapse offers unique insight into Richard III burial site dig

The University of Leicester has released a unique insight into the archaeological dig that has captured the imagination of the world, with new film footage of a second excavation at the site where the remains of King Richard III were discovered in 2012. The sequence – an 11 minute time-lapse video – documents the month-long…

FIND SPOTLIGHT: The Grey Friars tile

This late 13th century floor tile is one of many found during the excavation of Grey Friars in Leicester in 2012. The tile is of a ‘Stabbed Wessex’ style, commonly found across the English midlands, and it would have originally been laid in the chancel of the friary church, most likely in the choir area….

Secrets of other Grey Friars skeletons revealed…

King Richard III was not the only person to be buried inside the Grey Friars church in Leicester. Over the course of the 2012 and 2013 excavations, archaeologists identified a further ten potential graves inside the chancel of the church including a mysterious stone sarcophagus found close to the site of Richard III’s hastily dug…

Grey Friars Phase II: The 2013 excavation

The discovery of the lost friary of Grey Friars and the remains of King Richard III in 2012 was by no means the end of the Grey Friars Project. In July 2013, archaeologists returned to the site to carry out a second, month-long excavation as part of the site’s ongoing interpretation as a heritage asset….