Introducing..........
THE ONLY KNOWN ROMAN CIRCUS IN BRITAIN
Scheduled Ancient Monument Number 36514.
In 2005, it gradually dawned on the archaeologists that the remains that they were discovering as part of an evaluation dig for a property developer prior to building works, was, in fact, a Roman circus. Understandably, this caused great excitement in the archaeology world as no other Roman circus is known in Britain. Over the months that followed, more and more of the foundations were uncovered and the true extent of the circus was discovered.
Sadly, there the story of discovery ended. The remains were covered over to preserve them and the weeds began to grow. Many people asked what was to become of the circus. No positive answer was forthcoming. Nobody knew. In order to make something of it, money was needed - a lot of money. Colchester Borough Council pointed out that it had no money to spare. A lottery bid was made - and it failed. At the present time, there are no road signs to lead the curious to the site; no indicators of where this unique ancient monument lies. There is no money available, we are told. But the Roman Circus of Colchester is not forgotten.
In June 2009, destination Colchester, a local action group, working with the Colchester Archaeological Trust and other interested parties, produced a 'Shared Vision' document and presented it to Colchester borough Council for their consideration. This may be downloaded and viewed here. The crux of the 'vision' rests with the purchase of a Victorian military building known as the Sergeants' Mess. This impressive building has the site of the circus starting gates located on its front lawn. If this building were to pass into private ownership, the starting gates remains would be lost to Colchester and its visitors and an interpretation of the circus site would be impossible. How would we explain that to future generations?
If you have a view on any aspect of this document, please let us know, as this is your circus and your views are important to its future. At the present time, an appeal for funds is ongoing. Please help us if you can.
A website has been set up to co-ordinate the fundraiing. Please visit the website below and offer your help:
SAVE OUR CIRCUS
See also various photographs from the ongoing campaign here.
This web page........
.......introduces you to the circus, showing you press cuttings from the earliest stages of discovery, through to the current situation. Sadly, we have had to fight to protect our circus, as this was a truly inconvenient discovery for the building company who had bought the land. Luckily, English Heritage saw the imminent threat and the importance of the site and swiftly made it into a Scheduled Ancient Monument. This was fantastic news for Colchester! Effectively, the circus has blighted the owner's prospects for building on the site. The people of Colchester are asking for a small part of the the site to be given back to them so that they can develop it as part of its unique Roman heritage.
In August 2009, the BBC did an interview with Philip Crummy of the Colchester Archaeological Trust concerning the Shared Vision. The interview can be seen here.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/8200152.stm
So, as you will see, by following the various links below, all is not well for the circus.
Please join our campaign to,
protect, take into our hands and develop the site as a visitor attraction
by sending us an email to:
or by telephoning 01206 240788, 01206 242228, 07714 250949.
Please follow the links below for more information.
