6 THE ANCIENT ROADS AND THE SITE 



Tlie direction of the " Doctor's Gate " through Glossop 

 during the Roman occupation is marked by the fragments 

 of Roman road in the lower town. It is, however, likely 

 that in the prehistoric Iron Age it traversed Old Glossop, 

 ascending the hill by the church, and making for Mouse- 

 low Castle, to the north of which a deeply-worn, winding 

 road, Shaw Lane, between Banks Wood and Castlewood, 

 descends into the valley at Brookfield, close under 

 Melandra. Mouselow Castle occupies a commanding 

 position. It consists of a fosse circumscribing the ir- 

 regular summit of a hill, and clearly defined, excepting 

 on the southern side, where it has been destroyed by a 

 quarry. Within it is a large mound on the northern side, 

 which may have been the site of the keep of an early 

 Norman Castle, and on the south two mounds, probably 

 formed by the debris from the quarry and of no archseo- 

 logical significance. It may have been a stronghold of the 

 Prehistoric Iron Age — or one dating back to the Norman 

 times, — or again it may be both Prehistoric and Norman." 



We may now consider the site of Melandra. The 

 fortress stands on a promontory of glacial sand and clay 

 overlooking the valleys of the Glossop brook and the 

 Etherow, at the junction of the two streams. It is^ of the 

 usual rectangular form, with the sides facing to the north- 

 east, and the corresponding quarters. Each side has a 

 central gate. The main entrance, with a double gateway, 

 is on the north-east. From this the road led into the 

 valley of the Glossop brook, down a steep descent, along 



7. All irregular fortified enclosures consisting of fosse and ramp, with 

 one large mound cut off from the rest, which were formerly considered 

 by Mr. Clarke and others to be of Saxon origin, have recently been 

 proved, by Messrs. Round and St. John Hope, to be of early Norman 

 age ; the mound represents the keep, the lower area within the fosse 

 being the bailey. Both mound and fosse were defended by palisades, 

 and at a later time by walls. 



8. [Approximately, see p. 67. Ed.] 



