Details

The monument includes the earthwork and buried remains of a medieval moated
site situated on a north facing slope in an area of undulating ground. It lies
550m north east of a moated site south of Panson Farm, which is the subject of
a separate scheduling, and 380m north west of a moated site adjacent to
Whitley Grange.
The moat, which is essentially dry, defines a square island approximately 36m
across. The arms of the moat are about 14m wide and up to 2.8m deep. Material
excavated from the moat has been used to raise the northern part of the island
by up to 1.5m above the level of the surrounding ground in order to create a
level platform.
All fence posts 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.
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.

The moated site 400m north west of Whitley Grange is a well-preserved example
of this class of monument. The moated island will retain structural and
artefactual evidence of the buildings that once stood on the site, which
together with the artefacts and organic remains existing in the moat will
provide valuable evidence about the occupation and social status of the site's
inhabitants. Organic remains surviving in the buried ground surface, under the
raised interior and within the moat will also provide information about the
changes to the local environment and the use of the land before and after the
moated site was constructed. The importance of the site is further enhanced by
its proximity to, and possible association with, the subcircular moated site
south of Panson Farm and the rectangular moated site adjacent to Whitley
Grange.

Source: Historic England