Details

The monument is a moated site and an associated annexe situated in the valley
of the River Lowther east of Setterahpark Wood. It includes a raised island of
rhomboidal shape, measuring c.84m by 60m, with traces of an inner bank up to
3m wide and 0.5m high on its western side. Surrounding the island is a dry
moat 9-13m wide that is flanked on all sides except the north by an outer bank
up to 8m wide and 1m high. Access to the island is provided by a rough stone
causeway across the moat's southern arm close to the south-west corner. A
narrow dry ditch 1m wide and 0.7m deep separates the outer bank from a raised
annexe up to c.45m in width located adjacent to the moat's eastern side. A
narrow ditch and low outer bank 2.5m in total width flank the annexe's
southern side. At the moat's north-east corner is a seasonally wet well.
The monument is thought to be associated with a deerpark recorded in
documentary sources of 1290 as being at Robert L'Engley's Setterah Park.
All gateposts and modern field boundaries are excluded from the scheduling,
but 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.

Despite some erosion the moated site and annexe east of Setterahpark Wood
survives reasonably well. The monument remains unencumbered by modern
development and will retain evidence for the buildings that originally
occupied the island. The monument is a rare example in Cumbria of a moated
site associated with a medieval deer park.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Darvill, T., MPP Single Monument Class Descriptions - Moats, (1988)
RCHME, Westmorland, (1936)
SMR No. 2880, Cumbria SMR, Earthwork East of Setterah Park Wood, (1985)

Source: Historic England