| Ivan D Margary Roman roads near Southampton - revisited |
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The Roads |
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The roads I will be looking at are M422 Otterbourne to New Forest(Stoney Cross) and M42b Winchester to Bitterne.
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M42b Winchester to Bitterne |
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The following in italics are from Margary's entry for this road:
Here the modern road diverges to the west following the course of the branch road (422) which runs south westwards to the New Forest, but the main route continued southwards upon the same alignment, and the agger, heavily laid with pebbles, can be clearly seen through Otterbourne Park wood.
This is the last point at which it is actually visible, for although a straight hedge line and cart track upon the same alignment seem definitely to mark its course for 1/2 mile between Boyatt's Farm and the outskirts of Eastleigh there is no trace of the road itself left there.
It is probable that the route continued near the course of the present road through Middle and North Stoneham to a ferry point on the Itchen at South Stoneham for direct connection with Bitterne (Clausentum) on the opposite shore.
So we have the road going to Otterbourne, and the rest is conjecture. If the sea/high tide levels were 4.5 metres higher, then its likely that the river was tidal to Otterbourne, which would make somewhere nearby the main port for Winchester.
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![Norman archer](javascript:launch_resize("/images/1066AD/norman_archer_lft.png",900,1000);)
