High Cross in Leicestershire was the centre of Roman England where 2 major routes met. Watling Street went from Richborough in Kent (where the Romans first landed) to Wroxeter in Shropshire before splitting, with one part continuing on to Holyhead, whilst the other turned north to Scotland. Fosse Way was an important route that went from Exeter to Lincoln. It is the only Roman road in Britain to retain its Latin name and is remarkable in that it is extremely direct (even for the Romans!). For the 182 mile stretch from Lincoln to Ilchester in Somerset, it is never more than 6 miles from a straight line. Near the joining of these 2 roads, a small defended settlement grew which was known as Venonis – “The place of poison plants”.
The cache is a small clip lock box containing a logbook and pencil. Off road parking for a couple of cars is available nearby. Standing at this point facing the cache, you will see on your right a young English Oak planted by 'Project Leaders of Monument at CORE (Centre Of Roman England)'. In 2022, the area was tidied up and a bench was added to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee. Have a read of the plaques.
If you have time, take a short walk along Bumblebee Lane to the sharp right turn, On the left you will see what looks like a stone and brick pillar. This stone monument was erected at the site in 1712 to commemorate peace between France and Britain. It replaced at least two earlier wooden crosses which gave the cross roads its name. However, the Queen Anne monument was badly damaged when it was struck by lightning in 1791.
'CORE' have campaigned for many years to have the monument restored, but to date have failed to raise enough funds to do so. Campaign co-ordinator Rachel Holloway, launching the campaign in 2012, said: "The historical significance of High Cross is indisputable. But the original monument was not restored after being struck by lightning. "There is only its ruin to mark the junction of the two major arterial roads which served Roman Britain."