Moated site 80m west of Blymhill Grange

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 monument 80m west of Blymhill Grange is a good example of a medieval moated site and is unencumbered by modern development. The monument will retain important structural and artefactual evidence for the type and period of occupation and for the economy of its inhabitants.

Details

The monument is situated 80m west of Blymhill Grange and includes a rectangular moated site. The moated island measures 26m NW-SE by 34m NE-SW and is raised up to 1m above the surrounding ground surface. The moat is approximately 11m wide and up to 1.5m deep and is now dry. There is no surface evidence of the original access onto the moated island but it is considered to have been via a wooden bridge. An external bank is visible on the outer edges of the south-western and south-eastern arms of the moat. The outer bank on the south-eastern edge of the site has been cut into the adjacent hillslope.

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:

21521

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Hammer, M E, Staffordshire Archaeology in The Moated Sites of Staffordshire, Vol. 3, (1974), 32

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