The Bower 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 Bower moated site is a well-preserved example of this type of monument. Subcircular moated sites are relatively uncommon nationally and such sites are thought to date to the early medieval period. Moated sites occupying elevated positions are also unusual and it would appear that for these sites defence was a key element in their construction. The moated island will retain buried evidence of the structures that once stood on the site, which together with the associated artefacts and organic remains, will provide valuable evidence about the occupation and social status of the inhabitants of the site. Organic remains surviving in the buried ground surface beneath the raised interior and deposited within the moat will also provide information about the changes to the local environment and the use of the land before and after the moated site was constructed.

Details

The monument includes the earthwork and buried remains of a medieval moated site located in an area of undulating land and occupying an elevated position, with the ground falling away in all directions. The moat defines a polygonal subcircular island, between 50m and 60m across. The arms of the moat are between 8m and 12m wide. The eastern and northern arms are dry and steep-sided, and are up to 3.3m deep, while much of the southern arm retains water. A later drainage channel extends from the south western corner of the moat and is not included in the scheduling. The western arm has been infilled, but survives as a buried feature. This part of the moat is shown as having been infilled on the earliest large scale Ordnance Survey map, published in 1885. Material excavated during the construction of the moat has been used to raise the surface of the north western part of the island by about 1.8m above the level of the surrounding land. This part of the island is occupied by The Bower, a farmhouse of mainly 18th century date which incorporates an earlier timber-framed building. The original means of access onto the island was via a causeway, about 7m wide, which crosses the northern part of the eastern arm. The farmhouse and outbuildings, all paths, driveway and yard surfaces, a shed and the concrete base of a former pig sty, all modern walls and fences, all ornamental garden features, a cast iron water pump and an electricity pole are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath all 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:

33847

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Title: County Series map Source Date: 1885 Author: Publisher: Surveyor: Sheet IV.13

End of official list entry

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