Moated site and annexe south of Gale Bay

Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places

Overview

Heritage Category:: Scheduled Monument
List Entry Number:: 1007405
Date first listed:: 24-Nov-1964

User submitted image — Uploaded by Stephanie Wiggins This photo may not represent the current condition of the site. Almost 350,000 images and stories have been added to the Missing Pieces Project so far. Share your story.
View all

Location

Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places.

There is a problem

Use of this mapping is subject to terms and conditions.

This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.

What is the National Heritage List for England?

The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.

The list includes:

🏠 Buildings
🏰 Scheduled monuments
🌳 Parks and gardens
⚔️ Battlefields
⚓ Shipwrecks

Find out more about listing

Historic England Archive

Search over 1 million photographs and drawings from the 1850s to the present day using our images archive.

Find Photos

Official list entry

Heritage Category:: Scheduled Monument
List Entry Number:: 1007405
Date first listed:: 24-Nov-1964
Date of most recent amendment:: 17-Sep-1993

Location

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

District:: Westmorland and Furness (Unitary Authority)
Parish:: Barton and Pooley Bridge
National Park:: LAKE DISTRICT
National Grid Reference:: NY 46404 23321

Reasons for Designation

Around 6,000 moated sites are known in England. They consist of wide ditches, often or seasonally water-filled, partly or completely enclosing one or more islands of dry ground on which stood domestic or religious buildings. In some cases the islands were used for horticulture. The majority of moated sites served as prestigious aristocratic and seigneurial residences with the provision of a moat intended as a status symbol rather than a practical military defence. The peak period during which moated sites were built was between about 1250 and 1350 and by far the greatest concentration lies in central and eastern parts of England. However, moated sites were built throughout the medieval period, are widely scattered throughout England and exhibit a high level of diversity in their forms and sizes. They form a significant class of medieval monument and are important for the understanding of the distribution of wealth and status in the countryside. Many examples provide conditions favourable to the survival of organic remains.

Despite erosion on the monument's western side that has obscured the surrounding moat, and infilling of the remainder of the moat, the monument's earthworks survive reasonably well. Documentary evidence indicates the site was occupied during the 14th century and past ploughing on the summit of the hill has revealed sandstone confirming that structural foundations survive.

Details

The monument is a moated site and an associated annexe south of Gale Bay. It includes Hodgson Hill, a natural feature, measuring approximately 90m by 50m and up to 8m high, that has been altered by some levelling of the summit to create a building platform and the digging of a now infilled moat up to 10m wide around its base on all sides except the west where Ullswater affords protection. Immediately to the south of the moat is a flat platform or annexe, also formed by a modification of the natural hillslope, measuring c.50m by 25m. According to local tradition the monument is known as Tristermont, home of Sir Tristram, one of the knights of King Arthur's Round Table. The site is mentioned in a 14th century document by Sir W Strickland and his son, Thomas. Past ploughing has revealed sandstone on the summit of the hill, indicative of structural foundations. All modern field boundaries are excluded from the scheduling, but the ground beneath is included.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:: 22508
Legacy System:: RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Machell, , Antiquary on Horseback, (1691)
Curwen, J F, 'Trans Cumb & West Antiq & Arch Soc. Extra Ser.' in Castles and Towers of Cumb, West and Lancs N of the Sands, (1913), 48
Hay, T , 'Trans Cumb & West Antiq & Arch Soc. New Ser.' in Ullswater Notes, , Vol. XXXVIII, (1938), 42-3
Other
Darvill, T., MPP Single Monument Class Descriptions - Moats, (1988)
RCHME, Westmorland, (1936)
SMR No. 2959, Cumbria SMR, Moated Site South of Gale Bay, (1987)
To Robinson,K.D. MPPFW, Mr Lowis (site tenant), (1992)

Legal

This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.