Scheduled Ancient Monument: TWO MOATED SITES ADJOINING ALL SAINTS' CHURCH (30521)

The monument includes a moated site located immediately to the north east of the churchyard of All Saints' Church together with the buried remains of a second, smaller moated site located approximately 93m south west of the first and adjacent to the opposite, south western end of the churchyard. The larger of the two is said to have been the site of the medieval manor house, once occupied by members of the Throgmorton family, and the second was probably occupied by the medieval rectory. The moated sites and church stand in an isolated position roughly 1km from All Saints' Common which became the main focus of settlement in the village during the medieval period, as it is today. Both moated sites are rectangular in plan, aligned with their long axes approximately parallel to one another, and perpendicular to that of the rectangular churchyard between them. The larger of the two has overall dimensions of approximately 120m north west-south east by 78m. The moat, which contains water and ranges in width from around 5m on the south west side, to about 10m on the south east, surrounds all but the western corner of the central island, where it has been infilled but is thought to survive in part as a buried feature. A later pond, which is not included in the scheduling, extends over the site of the western angle itself. The western and northern quadrants of the central island and the south eastern half are separated by smaller ditches which have become partly infilled and are largely dry, varying in width between approximately 3m and 5m and with a visible depth of between 0.25m and 1m. Church Farmhouse and its associated buildings occupy the western quadrant. The house, which is dated to the 17th century, is Listed Grade II and is excluded from the scheduling although the ground beneath is included. At the eastern end of the island are two sub-rectangular internal ponds, both measuring approximately 12m by 10m which were perhaps used in the breeding and conservation of fish. One opens off the inner edge of the southern arm of the moat, and is connected to the second by a narrow channel which probably contained a sluice to control the flow of water between them. Another, external pond, measuring approximately 13m in length, extends north eastwards off the eastern angle of the moat. The second moat has been infilled but survives as a buried feature beneath the modern ploughsoil and has produced crop marks which have been recorded by means of aerial photography. It is approximately 5m in width and surrounds a rectangular central island which, on the evidence of the recorded crop marks, originally measured approximately 70m north west-south east by 57m. The original south western arm of the moat was infilled at some time, however, and was replaced by a new arm on a similar alignment but some 17m to the north east, and it is the later arm which is recorded on 20th century Ordnance Survey maps of the site, although the original western end of the north western arm is shown as a detached linear pond. The moat around the south eastern corner had become largely infilled before the end of the 19th century, but remained visible as a slight earthwork which was recorded by aerial photography before the site was brought into arable cultivation. Various features associated with the moat will also survive beneath the modern ploughsoil, including a rectangular internal pond measuring approximately 25m in length north west-south east and 10m in width in the western quadrant of the central island. Evidence for occupation between the 13th and the 17th centuries, including fragments of medieval and early post-medieval pottery, has been found on the site. The two moats were linked by a channel, also now infilled, which ran parallel to the north west side of the churchyard. It is likely that this feature and a partly infilled pond which remains visible as a depression in the ground surface around the eastern angle of the churchyard are the remains of features contemporary with the moats, and both are therefore included in the scheduling, together with the strip of land approximately 10m wide which lies between the north eastern boundary of the churchyard and the south western arm of the eastern moat. Church Farmhouse, an associated barn which is Listed Grade II, and other sheds and outbuildings and all modern paving, all modern surfaces of yards, driveways and paths, inspection chambers, a hydrant, the supports of a fruit cage, all fence posts and gates, and the remains of two wooden footbridges are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath all these features is included.