Multon Hall moated site

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 remains of the moated site known as Multon Hall survive well as a series of earthworks and buried deposits. The artificial raising of the moated island above the prevailing ground level will preserve a buried land surface which will provide evidence of land use prior to the construction of the moat. Waterlogging in the base of the moat will preserve organic remains, such as timber, leather and seeds, which will give an insight into domestic and economic activity on the site. The availability of documentary evidence for the manorial complex means that the establishment and ownership of the manorial complex are quite well understood.

Details

The monument includes the remains of a medieval moated site, known as Multon Hall, 500m north east of Sandholme House, on the eastern side of Sandholme Lane.

The monument is situated on flat, low-lying ground with the moated complex covering an area measuring approximately 230m by 200m. The platform, or island, measuring 190m by 170m, is enclosed by water-filled moat ditches up to 7m wide. Part of the eastern moat arm has been infilled but survives as a buried feature. Water was formerly supplied to the moat via a stream flowing in at the south west corner with an outlet at the north western corner of the moat. The moat arms are now isolated from the surrounding drainage system.

The general level of the enclosed platform lies above that of the surrounding ground to the north and west. The southern half of the platform forms a prominent mound raised above the level of the enclosed area and is thought to include the remains of the house called Multon Hall. Medieval pottery and fragments of building materials have been identified at the site, including rubble found on the mound. Old maps represent a roughly rectangular pond at the eastern side of the platform, and although this has now been infilled, it will survive as a buried feature. Access to the island is via an earthen causeway which crosses the western moat arm and may represent the original access to the island. The earthen causeway at the south east corner has provided access in more recent times.

Multon, or Moulton, is thought to have been established by Thomas de Multon in 1100. Documentary evidence shows that the Multon family had a moated manor house which they occupied until 1313. The college of St Mary Magdalene, Oxford, held the manor of Multon in Kirton and Frampton in 1539 and for the following three centuries.

All fences are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath them is 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:

31610

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Li 12616, (1998)

End of official list entry

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