Town Wall next to the Westgate
Laser scan of the Westgate and Town Wall taken before the repair work started (University of Southampton, Archaeology Department).
December 2022 update
The repairs to the Town Wall next to the Westgate are now complete! We removed most of the cement mortar and replaced it with a more porous and traditional lime mortar which will allow the wall to dry out without causing more damage to the stone.
Town Wall after the repair work was completed.
This is just one of many conservation projects taking place throughout the city.
October 2022 update
The repairs to the Town Walls are well underway!
Many stones in this stretch of the wall have deteriorated in recent years. New stone has arrived from Dorset which the masons have used to replace them.
The most badly affected area of the Town Wall was repaired using a traditional hot lime mix and the eroded stone has been replaced with new material.
When the Town Wall was first built in the 14th century most of the stone came from quarries on the Isle of Wight. These quarries were worked out long ago so we have used Purbeck Inland Freestone, the closest geological match available to us today.
September 2022 update
We started to repair this section of the town walls in September 2022. It needs repointing and a significant number of the stones are crumbling away. Some of this damage has been caused by the use of hard, cement mortar in the past.
We will remove most of the cement mortar and replace it with a more porous lime mortar that will allow the wall to dry out without causing more damage to the stone. Most of the stone used in medieval Southampton was from the Isle of Wight or Northern France. Some types are no longer available, but similar stone can be sourced from Dorset and other quarries in France. We will replace the most heavily eroded stone with the closest match we can find.
The wall was built to protect the south-west corner of the town after the French Raid of 1338. It was built over the top of wealthy merchants’ houses and the plots behind the new wall became gardens. In 1760, Westgate House was built along the line of the wall to the south with gardens either side. Its lodge was built up against the stretch of wall being repaired. Both the house and the lodge were demolished by 1900 to make way for a new road along the outside of the walls – Western Esplanade.
Westgate Hall is on the other side of the wall. This timber-framed building once stood in St Michael’s Square and was moved to this location in 1634. It has been used as a warehouse, banqueting hall and events venue. Today, it is mainly used for weddings. Read more about the history of Westgate Hall.
