Scheduled MonumentsEnglandRoman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard

Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard

England
List entry 1013411
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1013411
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
0.9 hectares
Grid reference
TQ 32478 81357
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic England (NHLE)

Overview

History & significance

The Roman amphitheatre at Guildhall Yard is a scheduled ancient monument located in the City of London, dating to the late first or early second century AD. Discovered during excavations at the Guildhall in the 1980s, it represents one of the few known amphitheatres in Roman Britain and provides important evidence for the urban development and monumental architecture of Roman Londinium. The structure comprised a timber-framed arena surrounded by tiered seating, with an estimated capacity of several thousand spectators. Its presence indicates the significance of Roman London as an administrative and cultural centre, reflecting both the prosperity of the settlement and the adoption of Mediterranean architectural forms in provincial Britain.

Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1013411. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard?

The Roman amphitheatre at Guildhall Yard is a scheduled ancient monument located in the City of London, dating to the late first or early second century AD.

Who is responsible for protecting Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard?

Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1013411.

What other scheduled monuments are near Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Abbey buildings, Bermondsey (2.2 km), Medieval moated manor house, 43m west of Cathay House (2.8 km), The Jewel Tower (3 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Domesday
The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
LiDAR
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard

Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard stands on Thames Group, bedrock that formed in the Eocene. The rock here is clay, silt, sand and gravel.

The wider landscape

Around Roman amphitheatre, Guildhall Yard

Battle of Barnet 1471Battle (1471) · ~11 miles