Details

The monument includes a moated site situated in the grounds of Old Rectory
Farm and probably represents the site of the manor house associated with the
medieval village of Woughton on the Green. The moat visibly survives around
the north, west and east sides of the island, averaging 10m wide and 1.6m
deep, but is overlain in the south by the modern farmyard. The internal
platform is slightly raised above the surrounding natural land surface and is
rectangular in shape, measuring 22m east to west by 30m north to south. To
the immediate east of the moat is a rectangular pond 30m long by 10m wide
orientated east to west. All buildings and fences are excluded from the
scheduling but the ground beneath them is included.

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

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

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 Old Rectory Farm moated site is part of an important group of related
sites which include the extensive earthwork remains of the deserted medieval
village of Woughton on the Green, the parish church and a well preserved open
field system. Considered as a whole they provide a very complete example of
the economy and structure of a substantial medieval settlement.

Source: Historic England