Moated site 150m south-west of Brewood Lodge

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.

The moated site in Weston Park, although situated in dense vegetation, survives well. The monument is unencumbered by modern development and represents a good example of a medieval moated site. The moated island will retain structural and artefactual evidence for the house that originally occupied the island. Additionally, organic material will be preserved within the waterlogged moat ditches which will provide information regarding the environment and economy of its inhabitants.

Details

The monument includes a moated site situated 150m south-west of Brewood Lodge in Weston Park. The moated island measures 18m north-south by 28m west-east and there is evidence for ex situ sandstone blocks on the island and within the moat ditch. The moat is approximately 10m wide and up to 2.5m deep. The northern arm is waterfilled but is beginning to silt up and the western, eastern and southern arms of the moat are now dry. There are slight earthworks on the outer edge of the western arm of the moat. An external bank is visible on the southern and eastern sides of the moat, approximately 8m wide. There is a break in the outer bank at its south-eastern corner and a 3m-wide dry channel cuts across the east bank, although this feature is no longer visible beyond the bank's outer edge. The moated site in Weston Park may be connected with the park which was first mentioned in 1346 and which contained a medieval house. A house is known to have been present on the site in 1658.

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:

21520

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Hammer, M E, Staffordshire Archaeology in The Moated Sites of Staffordshire, Vol. 3, (1974), 31

End of official list entry

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