From Bridgehead to Brewery: The Medieval and Post-Medieval Archaeological Remains from Finzel’s Reach, Bristol

This richly illustrated book presents the fascinating results from a major project to examine the heritage of Finzel’s Reach, the site of the former Courage and Bristol Breweries near the centre of one of England’s greatest port cities. Archaeological, geoarchaeological and historic building investigations have revealed a fascinating story of change and urban evolution at the site. Naturally a tidal marsh, the area played an important role in the late Saxon defensive system protecting the settlement of Brycg Stowe. From the twelfth century large-scale land reclamation provided the conditions for speculative urban street and tenement development, promoted and administered under the ownership of the Knights Templar, and from the fourteenth century by new owners, the Knights Hospitaller. These medieval urban landlords oversaw the growth of an established and densely populated area full of life, trade and production on one of the town’s principal roads, Temple Street, and crossroads, Temple Cross. Later medieval and early post-medieval decline gave way to new enterprises in the age of Empire, leading to the site’s long-standing association with sugar production and brewing. The accompanying DVD contains documentation that formed the basis of the heritage strategy and guided its implementation, along with a complete set of full specialist reports on the artefacts and ecofacts recovered, and reports on the historic building recording of the brewery structures as they survived before modern redevelopment. A photo gallery and short film illustrate the work of the archaeologists who undertook the excavations.