Ossett Civic Trust | Did the Romans colonise Ossett? (original) (raw)

Historian Stephen Wilson has kindly written this fascinating article regarding Roman Coins found in Ossett. Read more interesting Ossett history articles on Stephen's website by clicking www.larkshill.org.uk

In 1963, 10 year-old Andrew Lister moved with his family to a new house in Deneside, off Kingsway in Ossett. Some readers will remember Andrew's father, Ken Lister who ran a popular gentleman's barber shop on Bank Street in Ossett.

The gardens at the Listers' modern new home were littered with builders' debris and the previously untouched farmland had been turned upside down by diggers when the house footings were constructed. Andrew and his father Ken made a start on laying out the gardens and young Andrew was given the job of digging out the bricks, stones and rubbish left by the builders. One day, among the stones and soil, Andrew found two very old bronze coins or folles, which subsequently turned out to be of Roman origin.

Andrew has kept quiet about his find until very recently. Understandably, as a ten year-old he was worried that his "treasure trove" would be taken away from him. I'm grateful to him for sharing details of his discovery all of 45 years later!

Constantine the Great was proclaimed emperor in York in 306 A.D. Later on, he became the first Christian Roman emperor, but by then he was well into his forties. His sons also all followed the Christian faith. However, in early 326 A.D. Constantine had his eldest son Crispus seized and poisoned to death at Pula in Croatia for treason. In July 326, Constantine then had his wife, the Empress Fausta, killed at the behest of his mother, Helena, reputedly for being unfaithful. Poor Fausta was left to die in an over-heated bath.

Both the Ossett coins were minted at the Treveri mint at Trier in Germany. In the early 320s A.D., with the provinces of Britain now secure for the time being, much of the Roman garrison was withdrawn to reinforce the Rhinelands. Consequently, the London mint was closed in 325 A.D., just before these coins were produced. Sadly, the coins have no great value and similar specimens can be bought cheaply on Ebay or at coin fairs around the country. Had the coins been minted from gold, as some Roman coins were, they would have been worth several thousand pounds each. However, in one sense they are priceless because they prove the existence of the Romans in Ossett.

Roman Coin Roman coins were reputed to have been found at Streetside and the Roundwood areas of Ossett and of course, Deneside is not far from Streetside. One theory is that Love Lane, which joins the Ossett - Dewsbury road at Pildacre, was a carting track in Roman times, passing the area where Deneside was eventually built and then onwards to Streetside. If that was the case, there may have been a few settlements along Love Lane or perhaps the coins were simply lost from a tired traveller's purse? In the event, they lay in the Ossett soil for 1700 years until Andrew Lister dug them up in 1963.

It is thought that Streetside was a small hamlet alongside Via Vicinalis, the Roman road from Dewsbury westwards towards Wakefield, and provided amenities required by travellers. However, it is unlikely that there was any large scale Roman settlement at Ossett.

Photographs show : The first, slightly misshaped Roman coin, which has been identified as a commemorative coin was minted early 334 - 335 A.D. to celebrate the founding of the city of Constantinople between 324 and 330 A.D. by Constantine the Great, who reigned as Roman Emperor until 337 A.D. Constantinople, which is located in modern day Turkey was renamed as Istanbul in 1930, but was the capital of the Roman Empire between 330 - 395 A.D.

All photographs and words © Stephen Wilson. Anyone wishing to contact Stephen Wilson regarding Ossett history, then please send an email to swilson@theiet.org

Ossett Civic Trust would like to thank Stephen Wilson for supplying this excellent article. Should anyone wish to submit an article for this website then please send it to info@ossettcivictrust.co.uk

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