Details

The monument is a well preserved moated site situated in a valley bottom. The
site includes a raised grassy island c.49m square possessing a low inner bank
c.6m wide x 0.2m high along its E side and a low mound c.0.1m high at its NW
corner. A seasonally wet moat 13m wide x 4m deep surrounds the island and was
fed by an inlet channel c.3.6m long x 2.5m wide and now dry that enters at the
NW corner. Outer banks exist on three sides - that to the E measures 10m wide
x 2m high at its S end diminishing to 0.2m high at its N end, that to the S is
c.18m wide x 0.4m high and follows the edge of the moat around the SW corner
and along the W side for some 25m in the process of which it diminishes to
c.13m wide x 0.2m high. Faint traces of an outer bank 0.05m high flank the
remainder of the W side.
Worked sandstone blocks removed during the demolition of the building
occupying the island at this site have been used as foundations for the brick-
built Garshall Green Farm some 700m to the N.

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 monument survives in good condition, its earthworks being particularly
evident. The site is unencumbered by modern development and will retain
considerable evidence of the structural foundations of the building that
originally occupied the island.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Darvill, T., MPP Single Monument Class Description - Moats, (1988)
Mr Mainwaring (Site Owner), To Robinson, K.D. MPPFW, (1990)
PRN 181, Staffordshire SMR, Garshall House: Milwich,

Source: Historic England