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 | Anglo Saxon History |  | |
| | Town Creep - a Roman settlement ?? |
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Town Creep an interesting story
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Town Creep can be found in Creep Wood near Penhurst very close to the ancient Celtic then Roman ridgeway from Hastings
which is currently on private land.
The next few paragraphs are extracts from various historical records.
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Extracted from the Sussex Archaeological Society Thursday, Aug. 19th, 1886.
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An allusion to " Town Creep '' will exhaust our subject.
There is a large arid beautiful wood called Creep
Wood, sloping southward and overlooking the valley of
the tiny river Ashburn. Half-way down the slope, upon
an independent hillock, there is a space of some two
acres, whereon are to be found scattered building
materials.
The plateau upon which these stones lie has
always been spoken of as the ancient abode of a people
who were driven from their home by invaders at a time
anterior to the Norman Conquest; and from this
traditional cluster of buildings, the whole wood has been
named " Town Creep."
From time to time desultory diggings have been made,
but there does not appear ever to have been any systematic
examination of the spot. Certainly the tradition
with respect to this locality appears to have been continuous
and constant, while the position of the "Town "
is one that might have been selected for a Roman outpost,
commanding as it does the greater part of the
valley which leads from it towards Anderida (Pevensey).
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Extracted from the Sussex Archaeological Society 1889.
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ON THE TRADITIONAL SITE OF A TOWN IN THE PARISH OF PENHURST
Creep Wood lies in the most secluded part of Penhurst,
one of the most secluded parishes in the county. For
the name of the wood I can suggest no derivation; but
the name of the parish has both a British and a Saxon
element-the word" Pen" (meaning" bead" or "ridge")
being applied to that high portion of the great forest of
Anderida which lies at the back of what is now Ashburnham Park.
Creep Wood, which has all the appearance of primitive forest land, covers more than one of
the lower ridges to the west of the highest point. That
part of the wood which is locally known as Towncreep
occupies the summit of an elevated spur, running from
north to south, which for about half a mile is nearly
flat at the top, and then slopes downward with increasing
steepness till it reaches the lane between Penhurst
Church and Catsfield, at a point where three valleys
meet. The river Ashburn, which runs into the sea at
Pevensey, but is here a mere brook, rises near this
point, and flows out of the eastern into the southern
valley.
The southern slope of the spur is at present
covered with a thick grove of Scotch fir, reaching almost
to its foot; but the plateau at the top is only covered
with short underwood, and, according to the popular
belief, cannot be planted with large trees because of the
masonry beneath. If we suppose that the entire spur
was cleared of wood, and a walled town situated on this
plateau, it would be hardly possible to imagine a place
more suited to stand a long siege. The only approach
from the south would be up the long and exposed face of
the southern slope; for on its eastern and western sides
the spur falls almost precipitously into two deep valleys,
more than 100 feet below. The north end is not so well
protected; but if the surrounding country were forest
the only access to it open to an invader from the south
would be up one of the lateral valleys, which would be
completely covered by the defenders from the steep sides
of the spur.
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| Local Place names |
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Creep Wood
- creáp wudu a wood where you should creep - a place of the dead
Town Creep
- tún creáp a hilltop where you should creep - a place of the dead
Ashbourne
- æsc burnan the stream of the ash trees
Ashburnham
- æsc burnan ham the village in the valley of the ash stream
Penhurst
- pin hyrst the clearing in the pine forest
Kane Hythe road
- Cyne Hýþ rád the royal starting point road
Sprays wood
- Spracen Wudu the alder tree wood
Floats wood
- Flota Wudu the ship wood - probably where the shipbuilding timber comes from
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| Landscape |
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Nearby Roman
The old Roman Settlement and iron working site at Kitchenham where a Roman road has been discovered that runs back up
the Ashbourne valley along the ridge to the junction of the modern A271 and B2096.
The location is also near to the Celtic Ridgeway that runs from the old Hillfort at Baldslow Down in Hastings along the
ridges to Crowborough where it joins the London to Lewes Roman Road.
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Conjecture.
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If Pevensey had been the CLBR fleet base until Carausius was killed, then Carausius and Allectus would have needed
Villas to live in, there is a possibility that Carausius villa was near to Bodl Street as this means 'the Roman
road to the Mansion' and the road across the valley floor from Windmill Hill to Bodl Street is known as the
causeway.
And again its possible that Allectus had a mansion at 'Town Creep' as this is where the red haired
men(Roman Soldiers plumes) killed the inhabitants.
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Local Interest
Just click an image |
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