Bulwark, Chepstow

Bulwark is a predominantly residential area of Chepstow, Monmouthshire, Wales, largely developed during the twentieth century. The area is so named because of its Iron Age fort, which is now maintained as a public open space. Substantial development in the area began during the First World War, with housing being provided for the military and civilian workforce brought to the area for the National Shipyard no.1 at Chepstow.

History

Bulwarks Camp

Bulwarks Camp, also known in the past as Hardwick Camp and locally as the Warren, is a small defensive hill fort, on top of cliffs overlooking the River Wye, the Beachley peninsula and the Severn estuary. It was probably built around the first century BC or the first century AD. The Romans called the inhabitants of the area the Silures; they would have spoken the language that became Welsh. The fort had cliffs to the east, a ravine to the south, and earthworks comprising a double rampart and ditch on the other two sides. Excavations in 1968 revealed traces of three buildings inside the ramparts, and indicated that it had remained inhabited after the start of the Roman occupation. The site is now in the care of Cadw and is used as a public open space.

Hardwick House and nineteenth-century development

Until the nineteenth century, the Bulwark area was generally known as Hardwick, a name given to areas of cattle farming in Saxon times. It may be the "hardwick" mentioned in the Domesday Book under the name of Lamecare, though other sites have also been suggested.