288 



as an ancient Camp, tlie second to its occupation in later times 

 as an hospital, probably on an occasion of a visitation of the 

 dreaded " Plague" to the neighbotiring town of Chepstow, 

 possibly as a " Pest-house" when inoculation of small-pox was 

 practised. There are remains of the foundations of buildings 

 near the " Plague-mound," and it is obvious that this fortified 

 point was well suited for the purpose of isolating cases of con- 

 tagious disease. 



No. 77. — At Sedbury there is a fine earthwork, the position 

 and extent of which is shown on Plate IV, fig. 77. It runs 

 from the edge of Sedbury Cliffs on the Severn for one third of 

 a mile, and consists of a mound about 25 feet wide, and in some 

 places six feet high, with a ditch on the south side ; as the 

 ground falls away on the south side, there is in some places a 

 height of 15 feet from the bottom of the ditch to the top of the 

 mound. This work is irregular, and the strength of the work 

 varies in different parts. A modern road passes the western 

 end of this earthwork, and on the west side of the road is a 

 mound known as " Buttington Tump," and a ditch-like road 

 runs from this spot down to the low land adjoining the Wye ; 

 the mound and ditch, if strengthened with stockades, would 

 have formed a line of defence reaching from the shores of the 

 Severn to the Wye, and constituting the Beachley promontory 

 a safe enclosure for cattle. Although it is heresy to doubt that 

 this Sedbury Intrenchment is the southern termination of Offa's 

 Dyke, I do not think it was originally formed by command of 

 King Offa, though this and other previously existing works may 

 have been adopted as portions of his extensive line of demarca- 

 tion. On reference to the section Plate III, fig. 40, it will be 

 seen that the plan of this work differs from the works which run 

 along the edge of the escarpment south of Modesgate, as shown 

 in section fig. 39. The ditch is placed in the Sedbviry intrench- 

 ment on the lowest side, and in the Modesgate lines on the 

 upper side, the position from which materials to form the mound 

 could most readily be obtained. The Sedbury earthworks appear 

 to be the defence of the comparatively high ground of Sedbury 

 Park from an attack directed fit-om the Beachley promontory. 



