Reasons for Designation
Ringworks are medieval fortifications built and occupied from the late
Anglo-Saxon period to the later 12th century. They comprised a small defended
area containing buildings which was surrounded or partly surrounded by a
substantial ditch and a bank surmounted by a timber palisade or, rarely, a
stone wall. Occasionally a more lightly defended embanked enclosure, the
bailey, adjoined the ringwork. Ringworks acted as strongholds for military
operations and in some cases as defended aristocratic or manorial settlements.
They are rare nationally with only 200 recorded examples and less than 60
with baileys. As such, and as one of a limited number and very restricted
range of Anglo-Saxon and Norman fortifications, ringworks are of particular
significance to our understanding of the period.
Details
Although elsewhere recorded as a motte, this monument, sometimes known as
Mouselow Castle, is in fact a ringwork. It includes an oval earthwork,
constructed at the summit of a steep hill, enclosed on all but the south-west
side by a ditch and a substantial counterscarp bank. A bailey or outer
enclosure may originally have extended to the south-west, but this area is not
included in the scheduling as it has been heavily disturbed by quarrying.
The central earthwork comprises an area measuring c.30m by 20m surrounded by
3m wide bank. The bank stands between 1m and 1.5m above the interior but is
between 3m and 4m high above the bottom of the surrounding ditch. Low, grass-
covered mounds, visible on the north-west and south-east sides of the enclosed
area, are interpreted as the sites of buildings. The ditch, which has a V-
shaped profile, is c.6m wide and was found, by excavation, originally to have
been 2.3m deep. The upcast material from the ditch was used to construct the
counterscarp bank which is c.5m wide and up to 3m wide. A line of turf found
within the latter indicates that it was heightened at some point and that the
ditch must therefore have been recut. This shows there to have been at least
two phases to the fortification of the site. The precise function of the
ringwork is unknown but it commands wide views over the surrounding moorland
and overlooks the confluence of Dinting Vale and the valley of the River
Etherow.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
23309
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
