Details

The moated site at Empingham is situated on the north bank of the river Gwash
to the west of the village. It comprises a large rectangular moat, fishponds
to the south-west, and garden plots and enclosures to the north and east.
The moat, which lies with its longest axis parallel to the river, measures
approximately 110m x 60m with a ditch 12m wide and more than 3m deep in the
northern arm. There is a stone entrance causeway on the north west side. On
the southern side there is an external bank with a channel leading towards the
river, with less well defined signs of an outer bank on the east. Evidence of
structures exists on the island in the form of stonework foundations defining
the outline of a building. To the west is a fishpond 80m in length, 15m wide
and 1.5m deep connected by channels to the moat; a second fishpond to the
south which is 50m long, lies parallel to the river, and is part water-filled.
North of the moat, terraces cut into the hillside are identified as garden or
orchard plots which were part of the manorial complex. To the west of this, a
hollow way comes down from the north and cuts across a number of banks
identified as enclosure boundaries.
Most moats were built between 1250 and 1350, although a documentary reference
of 1221 indicates that the example at Empingham may be earlier. It refers to
Ralph de Normanville obtaining six oaks from the king for the hall.

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 moated site at Empingham is one of the best preserved and earliest sites
of its kind in Leicestershire. It comprises a manor, fishponds and garden
terrace plots whose association gives important evidence of the economic
activities of a moated manorial site.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
The Victoria History of the County of Rutland, (1911)
Hartley, R F, The Medieval Earthworks of Rutland, (1983)

Source: Historic England