Details

The monument includes the earthwork remains of a medieval nucleated settlement
800m south of Manor Farm, lying on the western side of Milborne Brook on a
gentle south facing slope. The name of the settlement is not known, but it may
have been part of Milborne St Andrew or Milborne Church(s)ton. The name
Milborne St Andrew, first mentioned in this form in 1294, referred originally
to the southern part of the present parish, the southernmost part of which
included the manor of Milborne Church(s)ton. Abandonment of the site, at an
unknown date, may have been due to the movement of the village to its present
location adjacent to the Dorchester to Blandford road where it crosses the
Milborne Brook.
The focus of the settlement appears to be a rectangular enclosure, 165m by
90m, at the southern end of the site and defined by a bank 3m wide and up to
1m high, with a 3m wide external ditch, now largely infilled. This contained
at least six square internal plots, defined by banks and scarps, several of
which contain the remains of buildings and other features, including an oval
embanked depression. To the north of the enclosure is a series of small
rectangular paddocks, defined by banks and scarps up to 0.5m high, and two
possible building platforms are visible along the edge of the brook. These
remains are less well-preserved and the eastern edge of the monument has been
disturbed by the canalisation of the brook which has been shifted slightly to
the west. Earthworks on the western side of the site have been disturbed by a
track running diagonally across the site which has been worn down over the
years creating a hollow way. Sherds of medieval pottery have been found on the
site. At the northern end of the monument there is a large cutting,
approximately 25m wide and 2m deep, which appears to be of a later date than
the paddocks; its function is unclear, although it has been suggested that it
may be the leat of a later mill, the exact location of which is unclear.
Because of the uncertainty of its function and date it has not been included
in the scheduling. In addition, further paddocks were noted on aerial
photographs taken in 1934, extending northwards towards the present village
but, as they are no longer clearly visible and cannot be easily interpreted,
they are not included in the scheduling either.
All fence and gate posts, and water troughs 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

Medieval rural settlements in England were marked by great regional diversity
in form, size and type, and the protection of their archaeological remains
needs to take these differences into account. To do this, England has been
divided into three broad Provinces on the basis of each area's distinctive
mixture of nucleated and dispersed settlements. These can be further divided
into sub-Provinces and local regions, possessing characteristics which have
gradually evolved during the last 1500 years or more.
This monument lies in the West Wessex sub-Province of the Central Province, an
area characterised by large numbers of villages and hamlets within
countrysides of great local diversity, ranging from flat marshland to hill
ridges. Settlements range from large, sprawling villages to tiny hamlets, a
range extended by large numbers of scattered dwellings in the extreme east and
west of the sub-Province. Cultivation in open townfields was once present, but
early enclosure was commonplace. The physical diversity of the landscape was,
by the time of Domesday Book in 1086, linked with great variations in the
balance of cleared land and woodland.
The South Dorset local region is a diverse countryside comprising the South
Dorset Downs and narrow limestone ridges and clay vales which curve around the
chalk escarpments. Settlement is characterised by low concentrations of
scattered farmsteads, and small villages and hamlets: ancient settlements
whose arable fields were, on the evidence of Domesday Book, set among
substantial tracts of pasture and woodland in the 11th century.

The medieval settlement remains 800m south of Manor Farm are a well-preserved
example of their class, and will contain deposits providing information about
medieval society, economy and the environment.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Mills, A D, English Place Name Society Dorset: Volume I, (1977), 306-307
Other
Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, (1970)

Source: Historic England