Details

The monument includes Old Hall moat and two fishponds. The moat includes a
rectangular island measuring 50m from north to south and 30m east to west. It
is enclosed by a water-filled ditch varying between 3m and 4m deep and c.12m
wide. On the west side a 10m wide causeway crosses the moat to the island and
represents the original entrance. Off the south-east corner of the moat are
two rectangular fishponds, the first measuring 20m by 10m and the other
roughly 30m by 10m. Both are now filled-in but will formerly have been joined
to the moat and each other by sluices. Records indicate that a third fishpond
and a dovecote lay to the west of the moat, but the extent and state of
survival of these is not sufficiently understood for them to be included in
the scheduling. The monument is understood to be one of the moated manors of
the three prebends of Norwell noted under Palishall and may also have been the
site of a minor siege during the Civil War of the 1640s. The field boundaries
which follow the north and eastern edges of the monument and cross the
easternmost fishpond are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground
beneath these features 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.

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.

Old Hall moat is a good example of a small homestead moat with adjacent
fishponds. Unusually for this part of the country, the moat is wet and will
contain well-preserved organic material such as wood, leather and plant
remains. Building remains from the medieval and post-medieval periods will
survive on the island which has suffered only minimal disturbance since it was
abandoned.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
The Victoria History of the County of Nottinghamshire: Volume I, (1906), 310

Source: Historic England