A short section of the offset foundation to a buttress associated with the 12th century north aisle of St Nicholas' Church, New Romney, was revealed during a watching brief carried out in 2011 at the church. Originally forming a clasping buttress on the north-west corner of the earlier church, its later adaptation during the construction of the west tower and the westward continuation of the north aisle means it now forms a traditional inline pilaster type buttress. Exposed both during the initial
ground reduction and the excavation of an adjacent drain trench, the buttress foundation consisted of a series of coursed moderate sized pale bluish white rounded beach cobbles bonded using a creamy white coarse gritty lime mortar. Continuing below the level of the excavation, the exposed portion of the foundation extended beyond the face of the standing masonry above by 0.28m forming an offset step foundation. Above this, the wall face of both the buttress and the adjoining walling had been heavily affected by its restoration in the late nineteenth century, which allegedly involved the demolition and reconstruction of this section of walling. Closer examination revealed the wall had not been demolished as previously thought, but instead had been reduced in height and the surviving upper section of its external facing heavily redressed with new stonework. Below this, the original wall and its facing survived, albeit heavily repointed with coarse cement render. (1) (information summarised from source)

<1> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 2011, Archaeological watching brief at St Nicholas' Church, Church Road, New Romney (Unpublished document). SKE24853.