The Roman Road. That had a Significant Kink 

As a farmer I suggest you ask the farmer. Why? If you are plowing farmland you can always "feel" the tractor and plow are reacting a little different if the underground is different. I am farming on farmland that's about a 1000 year old and when working on the land can always "feel" where the old roads were. (Sorry for my english, I am from the Netherlands)

I bet when you said to Rebecca " let's do something kinky this weekend" she wasn't expecting Roman roads!

Greetings from New Zealand. We have done a survey about why your road has a kink in it. First was the Legionaries spotted a pub selling genuine warm English beer. Second was they spotted a Roman sandal repair shop giving away free walk socks which could come in handy during the marching season.

One option is that there already was a pre-roman road going around the hill with accommodation etc on it. A good inn. When the Roman roads hit this road they surveyed the hill and did some work but decided that following the line of the earlier road was more profitable and easier. Rome's coffers were not infinite and Roman roads had to pay. Like most projects they bought or claimed the land and resold it at a profit to pay for the project. If something is really valuable they may have made a road to it but if they only discover the high value resource, mine, inn, or sacred site after laying most of the road diverting from the course may be required. Where there are junctions in Roman roads they merge into the pre existing road systems. Are we looking at one Roman road with a kink in it or a node between two roman roads and a forgotten settlement of some significance?

Perhaps the path could have split: those on foot and horseback went straight on and those with cargo took the diversion. Perhaps the intention was for all traffic to go straight but erosion damage from heavy rain meant the diversion became more appropriate for those with heavy carts. It seems very likely to me that those on foot would mostly cut corners and take a more direct route even if the official road was diverted. So perhaps both you and the current maps are correct.

Tip from my rabbits for filming subtle geophysical features on camera - waft the camera up and down a bit - this helps differentiate the height of things in the foreground and background. (Rabbits move their head up and down I assume to give them some dept perspective to make up for their peripheral vision morphology).

Thank you for following up on this. It is nice to see how invested you both are. How nice that the landowner allowed you to look around. I hope we will hear about this again - maybe after some archeological research has been carried out.

A wonderful insight into something which 99% of the population would never think about! I love the editing and light-hearted delivery. I'm sure that if History lessons were taught like, this we'd be a much 'richer' nation!

Since we’re watching this 2D on our gadget screens it is much more difficult to make out than for you with binocular vision and 3D at the scene. Your demonstration was very helpful, thank you. Making it plain by walking along the different paths was brilliant.

Oh this got me laughing right from the start - you are a terrific double act. Oh and nice jumper Paul! My mum still knits them, I've put an order in.

Thanks for the mention! I realise that my work was only “armchair theory” pulled together from studying the map and other sources, but so far your site investigations continue to back it up. I still recon the exceptionally steep hill climbing out of the valley on the far side is key to all this. As you rightly say, only a proper archeological investigation will sort this one out! I was glued to this video, so thank you for taking the time to get permissions and film it in such careful detail! Cheers!

So glad you are both OK and that was a really fascinating video. Thank you.

Omg……I’ve just found your channel and love the history and alignment of Roman Roads. I’m starting to watch everything you’ve done.

Nice upload. Great land survey of the Roman Rd,, drone shot, narration and video editing. Interesting to watch. Tnx4sharing 🙋

I believe there was a strong relationship between the Roman roads and more ancient trackways that have an origin way back in the past, along ley lines. Not in the pseudo-science sense that that name brings up nowadays, but in the sense that Alfred Watkins intended when he first coined the name - of ancient cross-country trade routes when Britain was first being recolonised after the last ice age finished. Those ancient tracks often remained long after the area was settled, marking routes from horizon to horizon, over significant hilltop points. As such, the ancient route may well have gone directly over the hill, and the old hill fort you mention may have been developed at one of those significant hilltop points. Then the Romans came, found a long straight track already heading much where they wanted to go, and they re-used it - but bypassed the hilltop to avoid having to march over the top, taking a more graded route below that point. Then, as the area was settled, the valley area became farmland and the Roman road disappeared under the plough. Maybe the Roman road had already fallen out of use because the long-distance track was no longer needed, and new roads were developed that linked the local settlements and villages. Then later we found a need for a long-distance road again, but the Roman route had by then disappeared, so they linked the gap by adopting the newer, village routes and turning them into a new main road. Maybe this route is even more well-graded than the old Roman road was, and that with more wheeled traffic it was better to travel a longer, flat distance than a shorter, more hilly route - hence the current deviation off a straight route and back again? I believe there is another example of this on the Fosse Way (A429) just north of the junction with the A40. The old Roman Road goes for some distance in an almost perfect straight line from this junction, northeast to where it crosses the Windrush River near Bourton on the Water. But one mile north of the A40 junction it deviates off this line to the right, and descends the side of a hill towards the bottom of a valley where it crosses a small stream, then turns left and climbs the other side of the valley, where after deviating for about two miles in length it rejoins its original line. I believe the stream crossing point had been established long before the Romans came, and the two legs of the deviation path already existed, with trackways to and from that crossing point. The Roman surveyors marked out the overall route, but re-used the existing tracks for the deviation off it, down the valley to the crossing point and back up, because it was well graded and reasonably direct (only 1/3 mile) off their route. So when you mark it on a map, the deviation looks strange, but I believe I can make a good case for why the Romans chose to do that. And our modern road still follows that old route - maybe 10,000 years since that deviation down to the stream crossing was first defined.

9:38 They couldn't possibly build that road straight, there is a fence! But seriously, thanks for uploading. I was pinned to my monitor for almost 13 minutes flat. Very interesting content!

Interesting. I'm amazed at the history there. I'm in Colorado and you don't find much over 150 years old here, except for native American artifacts. I'm impressed with lidar!

Anyone who remembers the 80s documentary series "Chelmsford 123" knows the real reason for that kink - the road was diverted to avoid demolishing a brothel that was in the way.

Now that Time Team is back in production, perhaps they should have a look at the site. Geophys might be able to see something.

Ivan Margary did a lot more than just catalogue the Roman roads. For example, he financed the very expensive excavation of the fabulous Roman palace at Fishbourne, near Chichester in Sussex during the 1960s. I was at the official opening of the site where he was present, and if I remember correctly his name was pronounced with the accent on the first syllable (a bit like Margaret), not as you said it. A great piece of research by the pair of you, and a pity that there was no definite conclusion. Carry on the good work!

Very glad to see you both well again stay safe and thanks for the interesting kink.

I stumbled onto your channel. Being a history buff from Canada, I must say your episodes are very well done. It’s like watching a BBC documentary. They keep me interested from the start to the end. Drone footage is great along with the LiDAR. I’m now a subscriber.

Another roman road with a kink in it is Oxford Hight Street. When the Romans got to near the bottom of what is now the High Street, they were approaching the Thames at an angle. So the put a kink in it so it they crossed the river at right angles. This was done because it was cheaper to build a bridge at right angles because it used less material. Check it out :)

By looking at you and Martin Zero, I know way more about England then I know about Sweden where I live... :-D

I love your conspiratorial presentation style and all these interesting locations. But your drone vid last week was OUTSTANDING! I've watched it a bunch of times and continue to find it both beautiful and relaxing, and your choices of music are perfect as well. Thanks so Much!

Makes me wonder that if in the height of the dry summer, drone footage might show up parch marks where the road ran through the fields.

You two are a hoot as well as being informative. Glad I found you. 👍🏻👍🏻

Love the video. I tend towards the idea that the straight way over the hill was the original path, mainly for foot and horseback traffic, while the kink developed over time as being more suitable for heavier loads, wagons etc, and probably more often usable in bad weather. So the kink prevailed. Just a small point about your text at 1.45 … I think it should be "cite" rather than "Site".

That was fabulous it really was. Just watching you two carry on really makes me laugh. Love that area it is so pretty and you even looked like you knew what you were doing, lol. Thanks for taking me along. Please stay safe and take care

Wow, fascinating! Worthy of a watch. I love how you guys put this together and the research. Very entertaining and educational as well. Thanks!

The modern OS map gives a hint. The slope was quite steep and would have been tricky for horse drawn wagons especially in bad weather. Perhaps the deviation was to avoid the worst of the slope.

Well done! You really got me with this further talk of the kinks. Thanks to the time diff, I'll likely ponder this the whole sunny afternoon. Maybe all day and all of the night.

The algorithm just brought me to your channel. It’s fabulous. Looking forward to seeing more. 👍

I bloody love youtube when its feeding me stuff like this! Great to share in your nerdy passion!

Much clearer this time round, the lines either side of the pathways really helped show what you were seeing in person 👍🏻

Another SO interesting video. Many thanks and well done.

There's a similar kink in a Roman road I used to use in northern France. It was done to cross a sharp valley, without steep gradients.

Awesome. Thank you. Exploring...always so much fun. Layers of history to be found . I remember rediscovering an abandoned road up high in some very rugged bush in NZ when were trapping opposums( pests over here) . It was the original road into a remote (at the time valley) In less than 50 years it had been almost forgotten. It was very exciting. Then we have you guys who are dealing with thousands of years.. incredible!

Fascinating stuff. As a relative local (Newbury) I drive around this area quite a bit to give the kids a taste of the wonderful countryside on the doorstep. They love seeing all the ancient monuments nearby. Really interesting content and really well presented. Love the overlays and projections. Outstanding work.

You guys have a great standup comedy act. Cheers

Fascinating! Thanks for sharing and job well done. :)

It's nice that you've found each other...

It would be interesting to know what the landscape was like at the time the Roman Road was being constructed. It is tempting to assume that this would have been a mix of woodland and open fields as per today, but I suspect it would have been very different. If the bottom of the valley had been dense woodland or seriously waterlogged, then the intended course may have been abandoned as being too difficult. Perhaps the direct line passing so close to the hill fort is also significant. Great editing by the way. I loved the presenter jump cuts. Just watch out for those branches ...

I did say that this road was originally in a straight (ish) line last time your were there. The "almost immediate" deviation could have been made for many different reasons but I think "time" is important to consider here. The original straight route may have been in use for say 20 or 40 or 70 years (that's quite a long time) but the deviation maybe have been in use for say 200 years. that's a lot longer. We're talking about 2500 year old Roman roads. When they built them, 10 years in the future for them was probably a long time. I really feel "time" is the key to this one.

Always interesting and appreciated - Thanks 🙂

When you mentioned "dig" my mind went to Time Team as they are coming back soon with all new episodes! Wouldn't a trench put across the roman road and Grim's ditch be interesting! Great Video!

Your proposed route would have been extremely difficult during the wet times. I propose they built it as you suspect, but quickly rerouted the road after continual problems with drainage.

So interesting! The maps are a great resource and your research thorough ! And the drone shots really bring it all together!

Very interesting. Thank you for your efforts.

Rebecca is very cute and English. Really enjoying these shows on the Roman influence upon the English country side.

Really fascinating! I enjoying learning about something I really have no idea about, those Romans eh 😂

This is the first video of yours that I’ve seen. I’m 2 minutes in and already subscribed

Thanks very much for this fascinating update.

Superb. Thank you. Love the humour too. :)

Ya‘ll are having so much fun I love it

Loved your intro. Very interesting vlog. Fascinating stuff. Thank you

Intriguing. And mystifying. And entertaining. Thank you.

I just watched this video and have to say, this is the very first ever video by you two that I have seen and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Why am I here? Well, sometimes I just get a thought in my head and I fancy going off on a tangent and this afternoon, after seeing a TV programme about ancient Rome and the building that have been found underneath the streets, at some points you are able to go underground by a couple of stories in depth and look at, and walk into a whole ancient group of buildings or a street or large building, literally built and stil standing underneath where another building was built directly on the top of it! Anyway, I found this to be very fascinating and I suddenly was faced with the realisation that my knowledge of the ancient Rome city and ancient Romans was so severely lacking that I immediately felt the need to start filling in this gaping hole in my knowledge! I typed into youtube 'roman roads in Britain' as a starting point of interest. I ended up right here at your video. I am subscribing now. Thank you, you are great presenters and will help me to fill some holes!

You peeps are great! Loved the video!

Go to the other end and see if there is evidence of a deviation onto the straight line. Just a thought. However, in archaeology, if you don't know why something has occurred or what something is, you always fall back on - 'it would have been for ritual reasons'. (passed my exams with that!!)

Great video. I remember cycling along Chute Causeway when I lived in Hampshire.

That makes sense that they built it then changed their mind. That bit of road was steep. It makes loads of sense to follow the already existing road around the hill.

In America we have 16,17, and 1800’s historical places, you guys have 500 b.c. spots, super jealous. Happy trails

Thank you for another interesting video, I hope you both have been fine. Looking forward to seeing some more informative videos

Just re looked at the OS map on my pad. Looking on satellite, you can clearly see a shadow going straight from tidcombe down towards the southern section of the road, and a short bit up from the Andover side towards tidcombe. Looks to me like they started each end, saw how hilly it was, changed the route for easier gradients and the 2 short bits were abandoned.

I've just found this and I am fascinated that someone is as curious about the Chute Causeway as I was when I cycled this area over forty years ago. I now live in Italy but miss exploring ancient British tracks immensely. My particular project was tracing Roman stuff around Leicester, especially Gartree Road, Via Devana (?) as it is now identified as. I will follow your progress from now on.

Another interesting video Paul and Rebecca. Hope you’re recovering well and look forward to seeing your next video!Take Care both of you 👍🏼👍🏼

One of the best yet! Keep on with the Stirling performances. And, keep on with the health precautions... would really hate to lose even one episode. Paul M. Portland, Oregon.

Thanks, very well done & entertaining. The roman road mystery was one of my entry point to your channel, so much appreciated to see you revisiting that place. Did you ever check for signs of the old road coming from the north to the kink?

You are a such good team. Nice, funny and informative to watch. :) Greatings from Germany

Once again well researched and planned. A credible conclusion.

Most interesting thank you!

Really interesting, thanks.

Always enjoy your videos. I too seem to get attacked by branches and things LOL! Interesting to see where the old Roman roads went and knowing why there was a deviation in the road. May be as you point out the lay of the land made it easier to go around especially with transporting goods and equipment perhaps. It is interesting to see where old roads and pathways went and what settlements were along the way, all part of our history. Thank you again.

I would love to join you on one of your adventures. You always find good walks with lots of history.

Thanks for this. I saw your earlier video on this subject. I didn't say anything, but I could not quite see what you were seeing. It is much clearer this time.

Awesome video! You two are a great pair

Hi, I just found your channel by accident, and am very pleased to have done so. Great teamwork and a great video. Very interesting. I recently moved house and now live right next to a 'minor' Roman road which is for the most part elevated above the surrounding fields. It's very difficult to find on maps and appears not to have been documented much at all. It is wooded, and has a more 'modern' 'B' road running alongside it, which is itself called 'Roman Road'. Of course, the ancient route was probably being used before the Romans. The ground for miles around is pretty much entirely flat, but 100m or so from our house the land and both Roman and modern roads, drop steeply and there's a natural spring before the land rises again. Both roads start at a major Roman town, pass beside the spring, (with the Roman road ALMOST passing THROUGH it, then continue for a mile or so before APPARENTLY disappearing at a small village. HOWEVER, the modern 'Roman Road' has a kink in it. Intrigued, I looked on Google Earth, and I could see a dark strip running across a ploughed field in direct continuation of the original Roman road and it appears to end on the banks of a narrow river, although of course, that river will have meandered over the millennia, but not by a huge amount. The villages around and about have Roman and Saxon origins. I can't see any further signs of the Roman road continuing onwards after the river, but I imagine it did. There is a 'Salt Way' or 'Lane' not too far beyond, and if I understand correctly, that was most likely used by the Romans to transport salt from Worcestershire to the south coast for export. My question is............ what are the chances that the 'spring' near me, and the 'crossing' at the river were actually the sites of Pagan, and then Roman temples? It seems odd that the Roman road should pass directly through this quite steep and very localized 'dip' in the land, where there is a spring.

FINALLY AT 8min and 12seconds I SEE IT NOW!

Fascinating! Archeologists/ anthropologists share that the hardest thing to disguise and the most enduring thing is a depression, i.e hole in Earth. Greetings from southwest Arizona !

I had an English teacher (a teacher from England, that is, not a teacher who taught the subject of language) back in primary school who said something I've always remembered. She said that in England, you could easily tell whether a road had been built by Romans or by the Britons; If the road was straight, she said, it was definitely built by the Romans. I don't really know why I've always remembered that. I guess it could be because I've always been fascinated by the ancient Romans and since we don't have any Roman constructions/ ruins in Australia, her story was a way for young-me to feel connected to these ancient people...

I do not know if anyone in the comments have mentioned this...BUT, how about doing some metal detecting in the farmers field, if the road was there, there should be Roman coins, etc under the farm land... They do that all over the farms in the UK... 👍

Hi both, great video, and so interesting. I guess it could be something as simple as a Roman road improvement. The hill is quite a feature of the landscape there, so maybe the original road went over the hill and the newer one went round as the gradients were more favourable to the army and any wagons. Years ago I remember working as a coach driver and we always used to point out interesting things in a journey. I used to tell our passengers that you could tell where the Romans camped at night when they were building there roads. In the daytime the road would be perfectly straight, then the construction teams would camp out and have a good meal and a few drinks. Next morning, still a bit worse for wear from the night before the first few miles of road would be a bit wobbly until they all sobered up. Yeah silly I know, but it passed the journey for everyone.

My new favourite channel

"Anyway, sorry you had to pause this. As you were!" Lol Thanks but no apology needed.

Great work. Thank you. Subscribed.

There were accessory roads around many villages and towns. It gave large columns and migratory groups a chance to go around without having to enter. Drovers, soldiers, guys in wagons hauling tin or wool, would live to have a way around, that let them retain their marching order and provided camp sites not in the middle of an urban center.

I was picking up what you put down. I have a keen eye, even with video.

Just a thought, the 'loop' chute diversion route maintains a pretty much level high ground, with only a few meter altitude difference all the way around the loop. Where as the cross section of the straight path reveals at least two deep valleys and two or three hills to navigate with up to 80 meter inclines. Perhaps a straight line walk along the straight course with an app or gps that measures how much altitude has to be climbed. In fact, set someone off along the loop and someone else along the straight at the same time and see who gets to the other end first. I reckon the roman builders set of to build the straight and had made a start in construction when it was noted by someone that by keeping to the high ground but maybe for the price of an extra kilometer or two, the journey would be an awful lot easier. Oh the other thing, probe's! The Viotores Roman Roads of the South East Midlands set off with long metal rods, which they reached and pressed down into the soil onto the possible agar to probe a buried metaled surface. Apparently one of the tools of the roman road explorers. Nice one, love a roman road mystery.

Interesting video as always!

Interesting tidbit of history!

I love the way you both swap over explaining what's going on. More videos should do this as it shows both men and women can take an interest and explain things that otherwise might just stereotypically appeal to one gender.

Interesting groundwork, and love the talking head switches for the narration.

earned my subscription with one video!

When Rebecca walks the terrace I can see it! Also the first lidar immage was pretty clear :)

As someone who looks out for abandoned railroad infrastructure like small cuts and slightly elevated spurs I was able to see the road before you showed it exactly.

As I'm French by descent although many centenaries ago I agree most roads in France run straight especially from Nantes to Angers which is as straight as an arrow. Keep going. I wish my late history Tutor Kevin Jolly was still with us he'd have been fascinated. RIP Sir

Nice work Roman around the countryside

I reckon that you're right that the roman road was built straight and their mind was later changed. As for why I guess we will never know but it seems most likely the inclines caused a hassle for traffic , especially troops with heavy equipment ect, as you said, and so the diversion was created fairly early on to flatten it out. I agree that something like this is odd as the lack of foresight is unusual for Romans but it doesn't mean mistakes were never made. Just think you could be walking in evidence of some roman road planner having a really bad day a few thousand years go 😅 anyway it seems to wrap everything up nicely and I believe you should be confident in the idea you've solved it.

One can't help but love you two. The chemistry is still amazing. Keep that going. As for the Roman Rd and the Terrace. I guess an exploratory trench under proper archaeological conditions as you mentioned would be the answer. Keep safe and well. Covid, don't mention that word.😉.