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 Cheshire Plain sub-Province of the Northern and
Western Province, a gently rolling plain of red marl covered by ice-carried
clays, sands and gravels. It is diversified by occasional sandstone
escarpments, notably the Central Cheshire Ridge east of the Dee valley. It has
lower densities of nucleated settlements than surrounding areas, and high
concentrations of dispersed farmsteads and small hamlets. In the Wirral and
the lower Dee and Weaver valleys, the settlement mix is different, with low
and medium densities of dispersed farmsteads intermixed with more frequent
villages. Domesday Book records a thin scatter of settlement in the Wirral,
the Dee lowlands and the central and southern plain in 1086, with much
woodland.
Details
The monument includes the house platforms (tofts) and the small enclosures
(crofts) of a medieval settlement situated to the north and south of
Castletown Farm. It is in two areas of protection. In the fields to the east
of the settlement are substantial remains of the cultivation strips known as
ridge and furrow.
The settlement was associated with a motte and bailey castle, Shocklach Castle
built c.1100, and a later moated site 500m to the west. A church of Norman
date stands at Church Shocklach 600m to the south.
The remains of the settlement extend across the boundary between the present
parishes of Grafton and Caldecott and consist of the tofts for at least three
houses on the southern side of the farm and three or four tofts and crofts to
the north. Originally these two areas of settlement would have been linked
but the later construction of Castletown Farm has divided the two areas and
obscured evidence of the settlement beneath it.
The well-preserved blocks of earthwork ridge and furrow to the east with
their headlands represent part of the open fields cultivated by the villagers
during the medieval period.
All post and wire fences are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground
beneath them is included.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
30391
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals
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
