Details

The monument includes a moated enclosure set on low-lying ground. It comprises
an oval moat, the northern and western parts of which remain visible as
earthworks, enclosing an island measuring about 100m north east-south west and
about 70m north west-south east. The southern and eastern arms have become
infilled, but survive as buried features. The moat is about 12m wide at its
maximum and up to 1.2m deep with an external bank along the western arm, which
is about 1m high and 12m wide. There is a suggestion of a causeway in the
south west corner of the moat, to the west of which a very shallow ditch is
visible, which appears to indicate the continuation of the circuit. The
surface of the island is not raised above that of the surrounding ground and
is uneven, suggesting that the remains of structures will survive as buried
features.
All fences and benches are excluded from the scheduling, although 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.

Matson moated site survives well and is largely unencumbered by later
buildings. Buried deposits on the island will include the remains of
structures, which will contain archaeological information relating to the
construction and subsequent occupation and use of the site. Within the moat
waterlogged deposits will preserve archaeological remains relating to its
occupation and use, along with organic material which will provide information
about the economy of the site and the local environment while it was in use.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Bazeley, W, 'Trans. of the Bristol and Glos. Arch. Society' in Some Records Of Matson In The County of Gloucester, , Vol. II, (1877), 244

Source: Historic England