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.
Details
The monument is Bagot's Bromley medieval moated manorial enclosure. The site
includes an island measuring some 160m by 90m upon which lies a rectangular
building platform measuring 32m by 20m and 0.6m high. The island is
surrounded along much of its northern side and the northern half of its
eastern side by a waterlogged moat up to 9m wide and 1m deep. The moat has
been infilled for the remainder of its circumference but has been recut and
remains waterlogged along the eastern half of its southern arm and the
southern half of its eastern arm. The northern arm is flanked along its full
length by an inner bank 8m wide and 0.3m high, and along its western half by
an outer bank 6m wide by 1m high. A sub-rectangular waterlogged fishpond
measuring 19m by 11m and 1.5m deep is situated in the southeast corner of the
island. A low bank flanks its southern side and a short waterlogged channel
1m wide connects the pond with the recut moat.
Bagot's Bromley has been identified as the knight's fee held by William Bagot
in 1166. In the second half of the 14th century the Bagot Bromley branch of
the Bagot family moved to Blithfield resulting in a decline in status of the
manorial buildings at Bagot's Bromley. An estate survey of 1724 shows three
buildings grouped around a courtyard close to the fishpond. Today the Bagot
Monument, recording the demolition of these buildings in 1811 and the
subsequent discovery of remains of the original mansion, is situated upon the
island. A contemporary drawing of this demolition work depicts architectural
details consistent with a building dating between 1250 and 1350. Limited
excavation of the island in 1981 revealed medieval pottery datable to the
12th-15th centuries, brick paving, sandstone and/or brick walls, and post
holes. The moat's infilled western arm was investigated and found to have
originally been 8m wide and 0.9m deep.
The Bagot Monument, all field boundaries, walls, gateposts and telegraph poles
are excluded from the scheduling. The ground beneath these features, however,
is included.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
13512
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals Other
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.
End of official list entry
