Details

The monument includes a moated site situated on a west-facing slope
overlooking the River Stort, immediately north of Glebe House, 225m north-east
of St Giles' Church. The monument includes a sub-rectangular moated site of
which the eastern arm has been infilled but will survive as a buried feature.
The remaining moat ditches describe a horseshoe shape enclosing an area 63m
east-west by about 55m north-south. The ditches measure between 13m and 3m in
width and approximately 1.5m to 5m in depth and are waterlogged except the
western arm which remains water-filled. An external retaining bank 2m wide and
0.5m high runs along the western arm. A causeway 2.5m wide across the
southern arm gives access to the island which has earthworks indicating the
subsurface remains of earlier buildings on the site.
The tennis courts, sheds, fences, kiln and aviary, which occupy the site at
present, are excluded from the scheduling, though the ground beneath 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.

Old Rectory moated site remains essentially undisturbed and will retain
archaeological information relating to the occupation of the site. The
water-filled ditches will retain environmental evidence pertaining to the
economy of its inhabitants and the landscape in which they lived.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
SMR No: 4290, Information from SMR (No: 4290),

Source: Historic England