Medieval moated site at Ifield Court

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 at Ifield Court survives well and holds considerable potential for the recovery of evidence of the nature and duration of use of the moated manor. The presence of an extension to the rectangular moat island adds to the complexity of the monument and exemplifies the diversity of layout amongst this type of site.

Details

The monument includes a moat, its internal area and also a platform and shallow ditch to the south west. The whole area forms the site of the manor house of Ifield Court which was superseded by the present building to the east of the moated site. The moat island is nearly rectangular and measures 75m NW-SE by some 60m SW- NE. On this area the remains of the manor house itself and ancillary buildings such as a kitchen, stables and storehouses are considered likely to survive. The moat around the island averages 12m in width and is crossed by a modern bridge near its north-east corner. To the south is a raised platform 40m by 30m which forms an extension to the moat island. The moat formerly continued around this platform and is still detectable as a marshy area and as a pond in the southernmost point of the monument, although it has been infilled to the north-west of the pond to ease access to the platform area. The footings and structure of both bridges onto the moat island and the pens at the northern corner of the island are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath remains 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:

12884

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
County Monument No. 3998,
Darvill, T., MPP Single Monument Class Description - Moats, (1988)

End of official list entry

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