Details

The monument is situated to the west and north west of Court Farm House and
includes two moated sites, a fishpond complex and an area of ridge and furrow
cultivation. The two moated sites are aligned north-south with fishponds to
the west and are located within an extensive area of ridge and furrow
cultivation. The northern moated site has external dimensions of approximately
75m square. The dry moat is up to 20m wide and is 3m deep. External banks are
visible on the northern and western edges of the moat. The banks measure
approximately 10m wide and are 0.4m high. There was originally an external
bank at the eastern edge of the moated site, however, it has been removed
and the area to the east of the moated site is, therefore, not included in the
scheduling. The moated island measures 30m square and has internal enclosure
banks on all sides. It is raised above the surrounding ground surface. There
are slight undulations in the interior, indicating the existence of buried
features beneath the ground surface, and a central depression. There is no
visible evidence for the original access onto the island. The inlet channel
for the moat is visible at the north west corner of the moated site. It is now
dry and has a slight retaining bank along its southern edge. A slight linear
depression at the north east corner of the moated site is considered to be the
remains of the outlet channel.
Approximately 20m to the south is a second moated site. It has external
dimensions of 73m east-west and up to 62m north-south. In c.1838 the eastern
arm of the moat ditch was infilled. It remains visible as a shallow depression
and is partly overlaid by Court Farm House. The western, northern and southern
arms of the moat are waterfilled and are 15m wide. The moated island measures
45m east-west and up to 31m north-south. The surface of the island is level,
except at the south eastern corner, where there is a raised rectangular area
which represents the base for a Victorian greenhouse, the remains, of which,
are excluded from the scheduling. There is no surface evidence for the
original access onto the island. The inlet channel for the moat is partly
visible as a shallow depression, entering at the north western corner.
The southern moated site is considered to be the site of a moated manor house
which is mentioned in documents of 1324 and 1392. In the latter year, the
moated island was said to contain a hall with a solar and an adjoining chapel,
as well as a byre and kitchen under one roof. Beyond the moat there was a
gatehouse with a chamber above and a stable beneath which is thought to
indicate that the site originally included an outer court to the east. The
remains of the gatehouse are thought to have been partly incorporated within
the present Court Farm House which is not included in the scheduling. By 1392
the moated manor site was in disrepair.
The two moated sites are so different in character that they are considered to
represent occupation of two different periods rather than a contemporary manor
house and a second occupied enclosure.
The earthwork remains of a small fishpond complex survive to the west of the
northern moated site. The two ponds, the supply channel and their
inter-connecting leats are now dry. The larger pond measures approximately 45m
east-west and 25m north-south. Water was originally supplied to the ponds by a
drainage channel which leads from the inlet channel at the north west corner
of the northern moated site.
The inlet channels for both moated sites originally led from a parallel
drainage channel to the west. The channel is now dry. Its northern section has
been destroyed by ploughing but it remains visible to the west of the southern
moated site. A 110m length of the surviving drainage channel is included in
the scheduling. To the west, north and south of both moated sites are the
earthwork remains of ridge and furrow cultivation. The ridge and furrow to the
north is aligned north-south and the external bank of the northern moated site
defines the southern limit of this area of cultivation, whilst the drainage
ditch, originally to the west of both moated sites, defines the western
boundary of the ridge and furrow in the southern part of the site. The
drainage channel forms the boundary between two blocks of ridge and furrow.
The headland of the block to the west of it runs parallel to the dry channel
and is included in the scheduling. The ridge and furrow to the east of the
drainage channel is aligned north-south and extends as far south as the stream
channel and as far east as Fulbrook Lane. The ridge and furrow between the
drainage channel and the western edge of the southern moated site and a 10m
wide sample area to the south of the moated site are included in the
scheduling. The ridge and furrow respects the features of both moated sites
and preserves a direct stratigraphic relationship, both between the two moated
sites and between them and the land-use in the surrounding area.
The agricultural buildings at the western edge of the southern moated site,
the foundations of the Victorian greenhouse on the southern moated island, all
modern walling, the surfaces of the pathways and all fence posts are excluded
from the scheduling but 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 monument survives well and remains largely unencumbered by modern
development. It represents a good example of two moated sites constructed
within close proximity to each other with valuable documentary information
concerning their layout. Evidence for the design and function of the manor
house which occupied the southern moated island and for structures which
occupied the northern moated island will survive beneath the ground surface.
Additionally organic material will be preserved within the waterfilled moat
ditches of the southern moated site. The site retains well preserved remains
of an extensive fishpond system, and the whole complex is set within units of
ridge and furrow, the development of which will inform discussion of the date
and character of occupation of the various parts of the site.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Styles, P, The Victoria History of the County of Warwickshire, (1945), 92
'Transactions of the Birmingham Archaeological Society' in Deserted Medieval Villages in Warwickshire, , Vol. 86, (1974), 101
Other
Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record, (1988)

Source: Historic England