Greenwich FROGs Greenwich Palace report

September 2013 - November 2014

In September 2011 the Greenwich Foreshore Recording and Observation Group
(FROG), was set up to regularly monitor three key sites in Greenwich. We are
volunteers, part of the Thames Discovery Programme community archaeology
project. The Greenwich Palace key site runs from Greenwich pier to the Greenwich
power station jetty. On the foreshore here there are archaeological features dating
back to the Tudor period, relating to Greenwich Palace, as well as later 18th and
19th century features. The whole site is vulnerable to foreshore erosion which is
causing damage to the archaeological features as well as to the river walls.
In 2013 we were granted Scheduled Monument Consent by English Heritage to
continue our work after part of the foreshore in front of the Old Royal Naval College
was scheduled as an ancient monument. One of the conditions of this consent was
that we produced an annual report of our work and the changes that have been
happening to the foreshore over the last 12 months. This area is prone to erosion
which is causing damage to the foreshore surface and to the archaeological
features.

What weve done

Since September 2013, we have done 14 monitoring visits on a monthly basis, and
with the Thames Discovery Programme we carried out 4 days of fieldwork in April
2014. Several local FROG members also carried out informal visits to the site in
between our monitoring visits, which has helped to identify new and vulnerable
features and plan our monitoring and recording work.
We have shared our work with the wider community, including the Greenwich Day in
April 2014, 8 guided walks over the summer in 2014, talks to local organisation and
events, talking to passers-by at our interpretation table during the April fieldwork, and
several members of the group share our work on social media and obtaining
coverage from local and London-wide news outlets. In November 2014 we organised
the Greenwich FROGs Showcase in the Cutty Sark pub to share the results of our
work over the last 12 months, which was attended by over 30 people.
As well as monitoring visits, members of the Group have undertaken research
relating to the site, including the clay pipe makers on Crane Street, artefact
distribution and movement on the foreshore surface, monitoring the rate of erosion
across the site, and documentary and archival research on jetties and riverwall. We
have shared some of this research at the Thames Discovery Programmes annual
conference and the Greenwich FROGs Showcase, both in November 2014. Over the
next year, we plan to publish more of our results on the Thames Discovery
Programme web page and in other publications.

The Greenwich Palace key site overall site code is FGW04 and each individual
feature has an alpha number, eg: (a123). In this report, we have included the alpha
number for each feature in brackets with a link to Flickr for more photographs of that
feature.

Condition of scheduled area

From time to time deposits of fine silt are laid down over the Greenwich foreshore
but these are transient and are usually removed by the river in a matter of days. The
more permanent change seems to be continual erosion of the coarse sands and
gravels in the Scheduled Ancient Monument (and throughout FGW04) with
particularly noticeable scouring happening over the winter with the many storms we
had this year. Several timbers from the Tudor jetty area (a118) are now missing,
including the last two remaining baseplate timbers with mortice holes. Further
upstream, new timbers are now visible, which appear to be contemporary with the
Tudor timbers, including a base plate with peg holes and mortises, and a line of
small round posts running parallel to the riverwall.

Figure 1: New baseplate in Tudor jetty (a118), photo by

Helen Johnston, May 2014
There are several prominent new features in this area, which appear to be a series
of revetments and bracing timbers, relating to the curved brick feature (a120), and
are in the same area as drains marked on historic maps. These appear to be 19th
century attempts to stabilise the foreshore in this area.

Figure 2: Bracing timbers (a120), photo by John Layt, July 2014

A piece of high status Venetian glass dating to the 15th - 16th century was found in
the scheduled area and reported to the Finds Liaison Officer at the Museum of
London.

The rest of the site

The erosion has continued to affect the rest of the Greenwich Palace key site, and
this year areas of the site which had been relatively unaffected are beginning to
show signs of damage to the foreshore. Several new features are now visible,
including cruciform baseplates downstream from the Scheduled area (a334). The
four arms of the baseplates all end with sloping mortice joints, which suggests that it
supported a large upright timber, perhaps for a dolphin or a jetty pier.

Figure 3: Cruciform baseplates (a334) , photo by Helen

Johnston, March 2014
The brick and timber structure (a327) is now prominent from the foreshore, and it is
clearly evident that it continues under the current riverwall. The Tudor riverwall at
Whitehall was constructed using a similar technique of a brick structure resting on
large timber baseplates, suggesting that this feature is the remains of the Tudor
riverwall for Greenwich Palace. Detailed analysis of the bricks and mortar would
confirm whether this is the case.

Figure 4: Possible Tudor riverwall continuing

under current wall (a327), photo by John Layt,
March 2014
There has been considerable erosion around the large jetty (a302, a308, a309) this
year. We estimate it to be at least 8 centimetres in some sections based upon
measurements we have been taking from timbers across the structure. This has
caused damage to the timbers, with only one of the three baseplates still remaining
in situ, as well as scouring of the foreshore surface, increasing the erosion of small
finds.
The erosion has meant that much more of the structure is now visible, and allowed
us to develop our understanding of its construction and period. More baseplate
timbers have eroded recently which appear to be on a different alignment,
suggesting that there were at least two phases to the jetty. The majority of the wood
used is elm, including the larger timbers, and many of the timbers have been pit

sawn. Damian Goodburn has suggested that this would date the structure from
about 1560 to 1660.

Figure 5: Large jetty (a302, a308, a309), photo by Helen

Johnston, September 2014
Archival research, map regression analysis, review of the land-side archaeological
excavations, and GIS reconstructions by John Layt, a member of the Greenwich
FROGs, indicates that this structure is likely to be the "King's Bridge" associated with
Greenwich Palace and that the current visible timbers we have may be the 1631
rebuild under Charles I. This would suggest that the timbers previously identified by
Thames Archaeology Survey in the 1990s as the Kings Bridge in the currently
scheduled area are not that jetty but instead river access associated with the
buildings on Tavern Row, and so not actually part of the palace.
Further downstream, the causeway and granite platform around the Queens Stairs
(a331) is now clearly visible, and a large chalk bargebed (a332) is appearing east of
the causeway. Until this year, the stretch of foreshore from the Trafalgar Tavern to
the power station had not shown much signs of damage from erosion, however,
there does appear to be an increase in damage to this area. There are many more
timbers visible in the structure in front of the Trafalgar Tavern (a317), and the
concreted areas in front of High Bridge Wharf are now beginning to be lifted off,
revealing an earlier foreshore surface. There are some areas of damage to the
riverwall in front of Trinity Hospital, and most of the concrete slabs which were
covering the closed stairs (a102) have now gone.

Figure 4: Damage to the riverwall in front of Trinity

Hospital, photo by Helen Johnston, October 2014
Two finds found during a visit to the site with the Bexley Young Archaeologists were
reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme. A Martincamp flask dating from 15001625, (PAS ID: PAS-97C81C) and a bone die with a date of 1500-1800 (PAS9790DF).

Future plans
Over the next year we hope to continue our work, in particular focusing on:
Developing ways to monitor changes to the artefacts and animal
remains on the foreshore
Continuing to monitor the rate of erosion, and expand our monitoring to
cover the whole site
Continuing our archival research to relate the archaeological features
to the development of the Palace site and Royal Hospital
Continuing to raise awareness of the foreshore archaeology in
Greenwich through social media, talks, walks and events.

Thank you!
Wed like to say a big thank you to everyone who has supported our work over the
last year:
Gustav, Nathalie, Eliott and Courtney at the Thames Discovery Programme for their
ongoing support, guidance and encouragement.
Jane Sidell and Iain Bright at English Heritage.
Ken Jackelman at the Port of London Authority.

All the volunteers who have helped out at a monitoring visit: Marion A, Chris C, the
other Chris C, Anne D, Melvyn D, Jan D, Christopher G, Martin H, Clare H, Helen J,
Tanya J, John L, Claire M, Jeff P, and Sue R
All the many volunteers who took part in the FROG Training and fieldwork at
Greenwich Palace in April 2014.
And everyone who has come to a talk, walk or event, or contributed to our
fundraising.