Early British trackways, moats, mounds, camps, and sitesWatkins, Alfred
History
Early British trackways, moats, mounds, camps, and sites
Watkins, Alfred
Great Britain -- Antiquities; Leys -- Great Britain; Megalithic monuments -- Great Britain; Mounds -- Great Britain
PROOF.
The facts I have discovered, which lead up to the conclusions, can be
verified for the most part on an inch to mile ordnance map with aid of
a straight edge.
Taking all the earthworks mentioned, add to them all ancient churches,
all moats and ponds, all castles (even castle farms), all wayside
crosses, all cross roads or junctions which bear a place name, all
ancient stones bearing a name, all traditional trees (such as gospel
oaks), marked on maps, and all legendary wells. Make a small ring
round each on a map. Stick a steel pin on the site of an undoubted
sighting point, place a straight edge against it, and move it round
until several (not less than four) of the objects named and marked come
exactly in line.
You will then find on that line fragments here and there of ancient
roads and footpaths, also small bits of modern roads conforming to it.
Extend the line into adjoining maps, and you will find new sighting
points on it, and it will usually terminate at both ends in a natural
hill or mountain peak, or sometimes (in the later examples) in a
legendary well or other objective.
If you travel along the actual sighting line you will find fragments of
the road showing as a straight trench in untilled land, although these
are few and far between, as the plough obliterates it all. The line
usually crosses a river at a known ford or ferry. Sighting tumps not
marked on the map are also to be found.
Two specific proofs are illustrated in Plate IV. and explained in the
Table of Illustrations. Also from the highest point of the earthworks
of Dinedor Camp the spire of All Saints’ Church can be seen precisely
between the pinnacles of Hereford Cathedral, thus showing a sighting
tump and two churches on one ley. The Offa Street example (see under
Churches) is another three-point proof.
THE LEY.
The sighting line was called the ley or lay. Numbers of farms and
places on sighting lines bear this first name, viz., the Ley Farms,
Weobley, Grafton, Stoke Edith, and many other places. Wyaston Leys,
Monmouth, Tumpey Ley and Red Lay, near Letton, and Redley in Cusop
parish.
There were cleverly planned high level mountain tracks which, although
on an average sighting line, could not (being on the side of a mountain
ridge) keep straight, but took a serpentine course, in round the cwms,
and out round the headlands. But viewed edgeways they are a straight
line (see Plate VIII.) as keeping a uniform level or slope. Such are
found high on the Malvern ridge, the road (on three leys) through
Oldcastle to Blaen Olchon, the lovely Bicknor Walks near Symonds Yat,
the Precipice Walk near Dolgelly.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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