Bannaventa Benaventa | |
|---|---|
Settlement | |
 Plan of the site of Bannaventa | |
| Etymology: Celtic: hillfield | |
 | |
.svg)  Bannaventa Position in the county, which now has two not seven smaller divisions. | |
| Coordinates:52°16′31″N1°06′08″W / 52.2753°N 1.1022°W /52.2753; -1.1022 | |
| Country | England |
| County | Northamptonshire |
| District | West Northamptonshire |
| Civil Parishes | Norton &Whilton[1][2] |
| Established | Likely: 1st century CE, well-attested existence in certain accounts of Britain in the 2nd century. |
| Elevation | 120 m (390 ft) |
| Postal code | NN11 2NA |
| The focalOrdnance Survey grid reference is SP612645.[3] | |
Bannaventa orBenaventa was aRomano-British fortified town[4] which was on theRoman road later calledWatling Street, which today is here, as in most places, theA5 road. Bannaventa straddles the boundaries ofNorton andWhilton,Northamptonshire,England, villages highlyclustered 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) and double that away, respectively.
The road on which Bannaventa lies is thought to be the first built by the Romans in Britain. It begins in Portus Ritupis (Richborough inKent) and runs in successive north westerly directions – via many Roman towns.[n 1]
Bannaventa was a small fortified town on this road 10.9 miles (17.5 km) north-northwest of the Roman town ofLactodorum (nowTowcester). The other way, by 17.3 miles (27.8 km), was the Roman settlement of Venonis (Wigston Parva), a crossroads town – of this street which there for several miles marks the Leicestershire-Warwickshire boundary – with Fosse Way (road fromLincoln to Britain's south west).
Bannaventa is derived fromBrittonic*bannā "peak, hill" (as inModern Welshban, "top, tip, point, summit, crest, peak, beacon, height, pinnacle, turret, hill, mountain, bare hill")[5] and*wentā, of obscure origin, but perhaps "place of sacrifice"[6][7] or simply "place, field" (as in Welshcadwent "battlefield")[8][9]
Brief mention of the settlement is thrice found in EmperorAntoninus Pius’sItinerarium, Iter Britanniarum (The Road Routes of Antoninus Augustus):[10]
The sites of these names are as follows:
This emperor died in 161 CE.
Bannaventa was a staging post for Romano-Celtic travellers and would have operated along the lines of thecoaching towns of a later period along Watling Street. The town would have been a vital part of the road infrastructure ofRoman Britain. The fortified town would provide a safe, warm resting place whereprovisions for the journey could be bought and horses and other livestock could be safelystabled overnight. The town would also provide some protection for the wider local allies in times of danger. Close to the town are other Roman sites, connected in time. These include the remains of avilla on the summit of nearbyBorough Hill,[11] another smaller settlement between Thrupp Lodge and Thrupp Grounds[n 2][12] and two other smallhomesteads,[n 3] and a more westernRoman villa[n 4].[13]
It was not until the early 18th century that the site of Bannaventa was positively identified. Previously, sites at nearbyWeedon Bec,Daventry'sBorough Hill and evenNorthampton had been suggested.[14] There have been many archaeological finds across the site including the discovery of a skeleton and numerous cremations in a Roman burial ground a little south of the boundary of the fortifications. Other discoveries include Constantinian coins, some foundations, stonework, and pottery; most were found in the early 18th century and they led to the definitive location of the town.[15] More finds in the 20th century have been discovered and are listed below:
.JPG)
In 1970 the site was photographed from the air. This revealed the position of the street which was more true north-south as it bisected the town, and the outline of the town mostly to the west of the A5.[16] The settlement was enclosed by an imperfect square (distended to the south-east) with broad rounded corners, bounded by a series of three sets of banks and ditches. The enclosed town measured 13.5 acres (5.5 ha). In the enclosure lies evidence of the wooden buildings which made up most of the town.
Nothing obviously Roman now remains above ground and has no public access, and is privately owned and is a field. It is aScheduled Ancient Monument.[17]
Saint Patrick, patron saint of Ireland, tells us in hisConfession that he had been born in a settlement calledBannavem Taburniae.[18] The location is unknown, but could be a variant ofBannaventa. This led at least one historian of this county to opine that Patrick was born at Bannaventa.[19]
However an earlyLife of Patrick describes his birthplace as "near the western sea",[19] easing the rest of Patrick's confession that he was carried into slavery in Ireland by Irish raiders. Likewise, per co-authors of a scholarly national typography of 1979, the suffix "Taburniae" is likely to distinguish it from Bannaventa.[20]
