Details

The monument, which lies on the east side of a medieval drove road and 220m
south east of St Lawrence's Church, is situated on fenland marine silt
deposited after the Roman period. It includes two joined, rectangular,
ditched enclosures on a line north-south, the southern of which contains
raised terraces and two ornamental ponds. Also included are linear hollows
which run close and parallel to the western side of the two enclosures, on the
eastern boundary of the drove. These moats and associated earthworks are on
the site identified as Broughton's Manor in a survey dated 1685 and on an
inclosure map of 1798, and the manor is recorded in the later 15th century as
being held by the Broughton family from the Abbot of St Edmundsbury.

The overall dimensions of the southern enclosure are c.120m east-west by
108m north-south, and the northern enclosure measures c.108m east-west, with
an estimated overall length north-south of 100m. The ditch which defines the
western boundary of the two enclosures is visible as a relatively slight
linear depression up to 0.5m deep and between 8m and 9m wide, with a possible
causeway c.10m wide opposite the north western angle of the southern
enclosure. The east-west ditch which divides the northern from the southern
enclosure is more substantial, measuring c.1m in depth and 16m in width. The
outer part of the ditch on the south side of the southern enclosure has been
recut and is in use as a modern field drain, as is the outer part of the ditch
which defines its eastern boundary, so that only the inner edges of the
original feature remain visible. The modern drain continues along the
southern part of the east side of the northern enclosure, where there are also
traces of the original ditch, and it is probable that the eastern moat ditch
extends as a buried feature to the north of the modern drain, opposite the
visible ditch on the western side. The line of the northern boundary of the
northern enclosure is indicated by anomalies in the modern field boundaries at
either end.

The surface of the southern enclosure is raised between 0.5m and 1m above the
prevailing ground surface level, in a series of terraces and platforms. A
rectangular platform, measuring c.78m north-south by 70m east-west,
occupies the greater part of the area. On the west side of this is a
slightly lower terrace, c.18m wide, to the north of which, in the north
western angle of the enclosure, is an isolated rectangular platform, measuring
c.18m east-west by 9m north-south, separated from the rest by irregular
hollows and projections from the adjacent ditches. On the south western part
of the higher platform is a flat-topped rectangular mound, up to 0.4m high
and measuring c.34m north-south by 14m east-west, with a slightly lower,
semicircular mound adjoining it on the east side. In the middle of the
southern side of the platform there is also a well head. Immediately to the
south of all these features are two rectangular ponds, aligned east-west and
parallel to the southern ditch of the enclosure; and between the ponds and the
southern ditch is a flat-topped bank c.5m wide. The ponds are between 1.6m and
2m in depth below the level of the adjacent platform and are linked by a
shallower depression. The eastern pond, which measures c.12m by 42m, now opens
into the eastern ditch of the enclosure. The western pond is of similar width
and measures c.40m in length. The ponds and the terraces and mounds to the
north of them appear to be the remains of ornamental water features, raised
walkways, platforms and prospect mounds characteristic of 16th and 17th
century formal garden landscaping, and a survey dated 1685 refers to `a
cappitall mansion' on or adjacent to the site, to which such gardens might
have been attached.

All boundary fences and also the farm buildings and yard surfaces in the
northern part of the north enclosure 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.

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 manorial site at Aylmer Hall survives well and is one of the best
preserved examples of its class in the marshland area of the Fens of west
Norfolk, south of the Wash. It will retain important archaeological
information concerning the construction and use of the site during the
medieval and early post-medieval periods, and evidence of earlier land use
will be preserved in soils buried beneath the raised surface of the central
platform in the southern enclosure. The location of the monument alongside a
medieval drove road, and also the remains of early post-medieval formal garden
features within the southern of the two enclosures, make it of additional
interest.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Leah, M, Mathews, M, Fenland Evaluation Project: Norfolk, (1990), 3
Silverster, R J, 'East Anglian Archaeology' in The Fenland Project 3: Norfolk Survey, Marshland and Nar Valley, (), 60
Silverster, R J, 'East Anglian Archaeology' in The Fenland Project 3: Norfolk Survey, Marshland and Nar Valley, (), 60
Other
Dossier for H B M C, Davison, A, Fenland Evaluation Project, Norfolk, (1990)
Dossier for H B M C, Davison, A, Fenland Evaluation Project, Norfolk, (1990)

Source: Historic England