Reasons for Designation
The village, comprising a small group of houses, gardens, yards,
streets, paddocks, often with a green, a manor and a church, and with
a community devoted primarily to agriculture, was a significant
component of the rural landscape in most areas of Medieval England,
much as it is today. Although the sites of many Medieval villages have
been occupied continuously down to the present day, many others
declined in size or were abandoned throughout the Medieval and post-
Medieval periods, particularly during the 14th and 15th centuries. As
a result over 2000 deserted Medieval villages are recorded nationally.
The reasons for desertion were varied but often reflected declining
economic viability, changes in land use such as enclosure or
emparkment, or population fluctuations as a result of wide-spread
epidemics such as the Black Death. As a consequence of their
abandonment these villages are frequently undisturbed by later
occupation and contain well-preserved archaeological deposits.
Around 6,000 moated sites are known in England many being contemporary
with, and occurring within or adjacent to, Medieval village sites.
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 or, in some cases, which were
used for horticulture. Where they occur in association with villages
they are likely to be sites of manorial rank.
Villages and moated sites were important elements of the Medieval
landscape. Both types of site were occupied throughout the Medieval
period and are widely scattered across England. As such they
illustrate the diversity of Medieval settlement between the regions
with moated sites being particularly valuable in the understanding of
the distribution of wealth and status in the countryside, and village
sites providing important information on settlement patterns and the
farming economy through time.
Details
The monument includes a moated site, the site of a chapel and deserted
medieval village earthworks 150m north-west of Manor Farm, Marten. The
moat survives as a rectangular earthwork orientated SW-NE and with
dimensions of 80m x 50m respectively. To the north-east the southern
arm of the outer earthwork extends beyond the limit of the moat to
provide an additional earthwork. Beyond this are traces of a third
earthwork, probably a narrow bank. The interior of the site is c.40m
square surrounded by ditches 3-4m deep and 20m wide. The central
mound is flat and stands about 0.7m above the surrounding ground
level. The sides are still very steep. Surrounding the moated site
are a complex series of earthworks. To the south-east of the moated
site these comprise the surviving portion of a deserted village.
Earthworks clearly visible on the ground include building platforms, a
hollow way and pond.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
12045
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
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
