Medieval settlement of Priors Hardwick

Reasons for Designation

Medieval rural settlements in England were marked by great regional diversity in form, size and type, and the protection of their archaeological remains needs to take these differences into account. To do this, England has been divided into three broad Provinces on the basis of each area's distinctive mixture of nucleated and dispersed settlements. These can be further divided into sub-Provinces and local regions, possessing characteristics which have gradually evolved during the past 1500 years or more. This monument lies in the Inner Midlands sub-Province of the Central Province, an area characterised by large numbers of nucleated settlements, both surviving and deserted, many of which are thought to have been established in Anglo-Saxon times. Most of the sub-Province's thinly scattered dispersed settlements were created in post-medieval times, but some of the local regions are characterised by higher proportions of dispersed dwellings and hamlets, which probably mark the patchy survival of older landscapes. The Stour-Avon-Soar Clay Vales local region is dominated by village and hamlet settlements. It was once characterised by large townfields under communal cultivation, traces which survive as ridge and furrow earthworks. It contains the sites of many depopulated villages and hamlets, perhaps up to one third of the total number of such settlements which existed in the Middle Ages.

Medieval villages were organised agricultural communities, sited at the centre of a parish or township, that shared resources such as arable land, meadow and woodland. Village plans varied enormously, but when they survive as earthworks their most distinguishing features include roads and minor tracks, platforms on which stood houses and other buildings such as barns, enclosed crofts and small enclosed paddocks. They frequently included the parish church within their boundaries, and as part of the manorial system most villages included one or more manorial centres which may survive also as visible remains as well as below ground deposits. In the central province of England, villages were the most distinctive aspect of rural life, and their archaeological remains are one of the most important sources of understanding about rural life in the five or more centuries following the Norman Conquest. Medieval villages were supported by a communal system of agriculture based on large, unenclosed open arable fields. These large fields were subdivided into strips (known as landes) which were allocated to individual tenants. The cultivation of these strips with heavy ploughs pulled by oxen-teams produced long, wide ridges, and the resultant `ridge and furrow' where it survives is the most obvious physical indication of the open field system. Individual strips or landes were laid out in groups known as furlongs defined by terminal headlands at the plough turning-points and lateral grass balks. Furlongs were in turn grouped into large open fields. Well-preserved ridge and furrow, especially in its original context adjacent to village earthworks, is both an important source of information about medieval agrarian life and a distinctive contibution to the character of the historic landscape. It is usually now covered by the hedges or walls of subsequent field enclosure. The medieval settlement at Priors Hardwick survives well, with little recent disturbance, preserving the earthwork and buried remains of a variety of settlement features. These are complemented by a series of documentary sources, ranging from the Anglo-Saxon to the post-medieval periods, providing an outline of the development of the settlement over time. Relatively few settlements have surviving Anglo-Saxon documentation providing information about the earliest phases of their development. It is believed that the settlement's buildings were partly constructed from stone, which is relatively rare among villages in Warwickshire. The remains of a variety of buildings of different status, ranging from the manor to common village housing, will provide information about the relative wealth and activities of the members of the community. Changing methods and forms of housing and building techniques will also be illustrated, as well as the development of the technologies of agriculture and changing patterns of subsistence in the associated fields. Artefactual evidence will add to our knowledge about the sources of materials and technologies for the production of every day items. The relationship of the medieval village to the later re-populated 17th or 18th century village is also of interest.

Details

The monument includes the buried and earthwork remains of the medieval settlement of Priors Hardwick, within three areas of protection. The settlement includes the remains of the house sites, gardens and allotments of the medieval village, and its associated hollow ways, field boundaries and enclosures, as well as medieval ridge and furrow cultivation remains. A settlement at Priors Hardwick is first recorded as one of 24 vills given by Earl Leofric to found the monastery at Coventry. The grant was confirmed by Edward the Confessor in 1024, and the settlement remained listed among the priory estates in the Domesday Survey. The estate rendered rents worth 11 pounds 8 shillings and 4 pence at the Dissolution and was granted to Sir Edward Knightly, passing to Lord Spencer in 1633. The population of the village was falling during the 16th century, and it is believed that desertion, in favour of sheep pastures, soon followed. The present village contains buildings largely of the 18th century and results from a later re- growth of the settlement on a different alignment. Within the first area of protection are a number of irregular enclosures defined by deep ditches and platforms. The ditches are up to 2m deep and 4m to 5m wide and represent both hollow ways and property boundaries, although some may have been water-filled and may have acted as leats to fishponds. The uneven surfaces of the platforms indicate that the buried remains of buildings survive. These are believed to include a manor house and its associated agricultural and ancillary buildings. Within the second area are further earthwork remains of house enclosures (or tofts) and allotments and gardens (crofts) defined by banks and ditches, which represent the remains of the eastern extent of the settlement. Six linear enclosures, each between 20m and 30m wide, are defined by shallow ditches and aligned north west to south east. The enclosures are also sub-divided by transverse ditches to form an irregular grid of enclosed platforms. Within the enclosures are the remains of at least five building platforms between 7m and 9m wide, and 10m to 20m long. Close to Home Farm are the remains of a pond which is still in use and has been dug out in modern times. The southern and eastern extent of the settlement is defined by the survival of the medieval ridge and furrow cultivation remains surrounding the settlement earthworks. A sample of the ridge and furrow is included in the scheduling in order to preserve the relationship between the village and its field system. The third area of protection includes several further tofts and crofts, defined by banks and ditches. The regularity of these remains suggest that the layout of this part of the settlement was planned. Linear banks and ditches, measuring 0.5m deep and up to 1m wide, oriented north west to south east run from the lane, dividing the area into approximately ten linear enclosures aligned up the slope of the hill. Houses were sited within these enclosures and several building platforms survive, with those located next to the lane opposite Hill Farm being best preserved. The enclosures measure between 15m and 20m wide and vary in length, with transverse banks and ditches sub- dividing some of the plots upslope from the lane. Further platforms, within the sub-divided plots, suggest that the buried remains of buildings survive higher up the hill. A cottage or small farmstead survived, at the eastern edge of the field, parallel with the more recent vicarage buildings up to the beginning of the 20th century. The building platforms, foundations and ponds associated with this last remnant of the medieval village survive and are included in the scheduling. Towards the western edge of the field is a pronounced hollow way running north west to south east, up the hill from the lane, forming part of a public footpath and is, in places, 2m to 3m deep and 7m to 10m wide. Half way up the hill, it divides in order to pass either side of a large platform, which measures at least 30m long north to south, and 8m wide. The platform's uneven surface indicates that the remains of buildings survive below ground. The hollow way formed a route between the village on the hillside, the church and manor at the foot of the hill, and the village fields and quarries which lay at the top of the hill. All modern surfaces and post and wire fences are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath these features is included.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

30046

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
unpublished notes in SMR, SMR officers, Various notes,

End of official list entry

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