Magazine Gateway Traditional Cache

This cache has been archived.

Alice Band: Due to the new and rather revolting building that De Montfort University have decided to build right by the Gateway, and the fact that the cache location is now right by a busy entrance-way I shall archive this cache, perhaps replacing it with another nearby.
Thank you to all the visitors who managed to grab this cache in the meantime.

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Hidden : 11/21/2006
Difficulty:
1.5 out of 5
Terrain:
1 out of 5

Size: Size: micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:

Part of a series of caches promoting the hidden historical past of Leicester.

The Gateway


News: The Gateway has been placed on the Buildings at Risk register as it seems the city council don't care much about it. What a pity.


The Magazine Gateway is one of the handful of monuments left in Leicester that dates back to before the 16th century and now sits quietly and abandoned while traffic roars past it on the main road above. The name Newarke means 'new works' and it was once a quiet religious precinct on the edge of medieval Leicester. It was founded by the Earls of Lancaster in the 14th century and its former vast stone walls of the Newarke enclosed the church of St. Mary of the Annunciation, Trinity Hospital and several priests' houses.

St. Mary's was once seen as a very important church, housing several Lancastrians burials, briefly holding the body of Richard III before his burial and it became a point of pilgrimage as it held a thorn from Jesus's crown of thorns. Now a large Victorian brick building sited opposite the Gateway and the Newarke Houses stands on the site.

The Gateway was the main entrance into the Newarke precinct and was built around 1400. The gate had no portcullis and its main purpose was to impress visitors rather than be defensive. It is uncertain what use was made of the rooms inside the gateway during the Middle Ages, but they may have been used to house visitors to the Newarke or have been rented to townspeople.
The church of St. Mary was closed by Edward VI in 1548 and demolished soon afterwards, but before then the Newarke district had become an area where many of the richer citizens of Leicester lived to escape local taxes. After demolition the rich citizens were taxed!

In the 17th century the Gateway was used to store the weapons and gunpowder of the town militia, this use as an armoury or 'magazine' giving the Gateway its name. The Newarke was the scene of fierce fighting during the Civil War siege and capture of the town by King Charles in May 1645. The last piece of the old city wall which incorporated the original Roman wall can be seen behind the Newark Houses Museum, opposite the gate. The wall is full of holes which were made to enable the Civil War musketeers and canon to fire at the enemy attacking the town. However, the Magazine appears to have escaped serious damage. Two days after the battle of Leicester in 1645 the army quickly marched to Naseby in Northamptonshire where the most important battle of British history took place, effectively laying the foundations for modern British democracy. The Magazine continued to be used as an armoury by the county militia after the Civil War.

The first drawings of the Magazine to survive date from around 1790 and it has changed little in general appearance. However, in 1853 much of its outer stonework was replaced. In the 1890s a barracks and a drill hall were built alongside the Magazine for the Leicestershire Militia. These buildings were demolished in the 1960s as a result of new road scheme. There were also plans to demolish the Magazine itself but fortunately protests saved the building for future generations. During restoration work in the 1960s two human skulls were found wedged inside the garderobe (toilet) shaft. The date and origin of these skulls remain a mystery! Today it comes under the 'Castle Gardens' walk and if you have some time to kill I recommend you take a look at the rest of the area (signposted).

You are looking for a magnetised keybox matching its surroundings. There was no room to squeeze anything else in so bring a pen. Please replace the cache in exactly the same place where you found it to keep it hidden away from Muggle view. To get to the cache site you will need to use the underpass which can be very busy during certain times of the day as its extensively used by the nearby De Montfort University students. Follow the signs to 'The Magazine Gatehouse' in the underpass. Do not cross to it via the very busy road as its fenced in and lower down than the modern road level. The above co-ordinates will take you to the Newarke but you will need to use your cacher's radar the last few yards as the nearby buildings interfere with the GPS signal.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

"Envaqebcf xrrc snyyvat ba zl urnq..." Gur pnpur vf uvqqra ba gur bhgfvqr bs gur ohvyqvat naq abg va nal ubyr!

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)


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