Bryan Hugh St. John O’Neil (7 August 1905 - 24 October 1954) was a British archaeologist who became Chief Inspector of Ancient Monuments for England and Wales.
Bryan O'Neil was born in London. His father was Charles Valentine O'Neil, and his mother was Mabel Meliora (nee Rowe)
He was educated at
Merchant Taylor's School, at that time in London, and
St John's College, Oxford
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its founder, Sir Thomas White, intended to pro ...
. He obtained his degree in
classics
Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
in 1928. He was a member of the Oxford University Archaeological Society, becoming its president in 1926.
In 1939 he married
Helen Donovan of
Bourton-on-the-Water
Bourton-on-the-Water is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, that lies on a wide flat vale within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The village had a population of 3,296 at the 2011 census. Much of the village ...
, daughter of Charles Donovan MD, who was noted for her work on Gloucestershire archaeology.
[
In 1930 O'Neil was appointed to the ]Office of Works
The Office of Works was established in the England, English Royal Household, royal household in 1378 to oversee the building and maintenance of the royal castles and residences. In 1832 it became the Works Department forces within the Office of W ...
, later the Ministry of Works as an Assistant Inspector of Ancient Monuments, with responsibilities in Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. He became Inspector for Wales in 1934, and Chief Inspector for England and Wales in 1945. As Inspector, he was responsible both for the care and protection of ancient monuments in the guardianship of the state, and for scheduling of monuments in private hands that were worthy of protection. During the war, he remained in London, and was much involved with the archaeological consequences of war damage and the organisation of rescue excavations.[ As Chief Inspector he was involved with the drafting of the 1953 Historic Buildings Act and the setting up Historic Building Councils.
]
O'Neil was extremely active in field archaeology, publishing over 200 papers. He was noted for his expertise in the analysis of structural sequences, evident both in his work on iron-age sites in the Welsh borderland, for example Titterstone Clee Hill Fort, Breidden Hill
Breidden Hill is an extinct volcanic hill in Powys, Wales, near the town of Welshpool. It is immediately surrounded by the villages of Trewern, Middletown, Criggion, Crew Green and Llandrinio. The peak of the hill reaches to . Footpaths which ...
Fort, and the Ffridd Faldwyn Camp, as well as in his work on later mediaeval stone castles, such as Dartmouth and Rushen
Rushen ( ; gv, Rosien), formally Kirk Christ Rushen, is one of the seventeen historic parishes of the Isle of Man.
It is located in the south of the island (part of the traditional ''South Side'' division) in the sheading of the same name.
A ...
.[ At Dartmouth, the ‘Guntower’ building of 1481-1494 is the earliest surviving English coastal fortress specifically built to carry guns. His interest in early artillery fortification developed, and he became a leading expert in this field. He published a study of the work of Stefan von Haschenperg, an engineer to King Hentry VIII, and his book ''Castles and Cannon; A study of Early Artillery Fortifications in England'', has become a standard work. This was published in 1960, six years after his premature death at the age of 49.] Other important archaeological investigations included studies of the town layout of Llanidloes
Llanidloes () is a town and community on the A470 and B4518 roads in Powys, within the historic county boundaries of Montgomeryshire ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn), Wales. The population in 2011 was 2,929, of whom 15% could speak Welsh. It is the third ...
, the castle site at Castle Caereinion
Castle Caereinion ( Welsh: ''Castell Caereinion'') is a small village and community in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales upon the River Banwy, around 8 miles west of Welshpool, and 4 miles east of Llanfair Caereinion.
In 2011 the ward had a populat ...
, and the excavations and survey of the Montgomery Town Wall. He also worked on the fortifications at Rhodes.
O'Neil wrote a series of official guide-books to ancient monuments, mostly of castles, published by H.M. Stationery Office, including:
* Dartmouth Castle (1934)
* Criccieth Castle (1934)
* Peveril Castle (1934)
* Clifford's Tower, York Castle (1936)
* Talley Abbey, Carmarthenshire (1938)
* Castle Rushen, Isle of Man (1947)
* Scalloway Castle, Shetland (1949)
Ancient monuments of the Isles of Scilly
(1949)
* Walmer Castle (1949)
Audley End, Essex
(1955)
* The Brochs of Mousa and Clickhimin (1950)
* Castle Cornet, Guernsey (1950)
Caerlaverock Castle
(1952)
Deal Castle
(1966)
and also some more general introductions:
* Regional Guide to ancient monuments in North Wales (1939)
The History of Britain in Stone
(1950)
* Castles: An Introduction to the Castles of England and Wales (1954)[
O'Neil was interested in coins, becoming a Fellow of the ]Royal Numismatic Society
The Royal Numismatic Society (RNS) is a learned society and charity based in London, United Kingdom which promotes research into all branches of numismatics. Its patron was Queen Elizabeth II.
Membership
Foremost collectors and researchers, bo ...
. He catalogued the finds from a number of excavations, particularly of Roman coins. These included the Terling Treasure, consisting of Roman gold and silver coins and rings discovered at Terling Place
Terling Place is the Georgian family seat of Baron Rayleigh and the largest house in the village of Terling, Essex, England.
It was built for John Strutt, MP between 1772 and 1777 to the designs of John Johnson. The wings, a new porch, a two ...
, Essex, and the Sproxton hoard of silver Roman coins from Sproxton, Leicestershire
Sproxton () is a village and civil parish within the Borough of Melton in Leicestershire, England, close to the border with Lincolnshire. It has approximately 80 occupied dwellings (2021) and a population of 480, rising to 658 (including Cost ...
. Both of these collections had been discovered over a hundred years earlier. O'Neil was a member of the Cambrian Archaeological Association
The Cambrian Archaeological Association ( cy, Cymdeithas Hynafiaethau Cymru) was founded in 1846 to examine, preserve and illustrate the ancient monuments and remains of the history, language, manners, customs, arts and industries of Wales and the ...
from 1931, later serving on its general committee.[ He was secretary and editor of the Congress of Archaeological Societies, predecessor of the ]Council for British Archaeology
The Council for British Archaeology (CBA) is an educational charity established in 1944 in the UK. It works to involve people in archaeology and to promote the appreciation and care of the historic environment for the benefit of present and futu ...
and from 1935 a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London
A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Societ ...
of which he became Vice-President from 1947-1950.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:ONeill, B. H. St. John
British military historians
1905 births
1954 deaths
Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford
English archaeologists
Welsh archaeologists
Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London
Members of the Cambrian Archaeological Association