Chichester to Silchester Way

The Chichester to Silchester Way is a Roman Road between Chichester in South-East England, which as Noviomagus was capital of the Regni, and Silchester or Calleva Atrebatum, capital of the Atrebates. The road had been entirely lost and forgotten, leaving no Saxon place names as clues to its existence, until its chance discovery through aerial photography in 1949. Only 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) of the 62 kilometres (39 mi) long road remain in use.

Discovery

The existence of this road was unknown until 1949 when the archaeological division of the Ordnance Survey, while examining aerial photographs of the Milland area, noticed earthworks the size and shape of a Roman mansio, similar to those on Stane Street at Hardham and Alfoldean. Because the mansio stood on the shortest of the road's alignments this gave few clues to the overall route, and much further investigation of aerial photographs and remains on the ground was needed to establish the whole route.

Dating evidence

The road must be later than the Winchester to Silchester road, which it joins.

Design and construction

A single alignment between the two cities would have taken the road across many feeder streams of the River Rother, crossing the river itself twice. A more easterly route was therefore taken using four alignments of straight sections of route, which crossed the Rother once at Iping and joined the Winchester to Silchester road about one mile south of Silchester, avoiding two stream crossings close to that city.

The road was wider than average for Britain and well constructed, with a layer of flint or gravel on a cambered agger. A section excavated at Milland had a 2 to 3-inch layer of gravel on a substantial cambered foundation.