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Bescot Hall
Also known as, or recorded in historical
documents as; Berkmondescote
In the civil parish of Walsall.
In the historic county of Staffordshire (Modern Authority of Walsall, 1974 county of West Midlands).
The original manor-house was moated. Along much of the north-west side the ditch was double. It stood in what is now Pleck Park between the park entrance from Bescot Drive and the M6 motorway, which crosses the south-west corner of the moat. In 1972 the site was marked by a group of trees, the moat having been almost obliterated. The house existed by 1311 when William Hillary was besieged there by Thomas le Rous and over fifty others, and in 1345 Roger Hillary was licensed to crenellate. In at least the later C14 it contained a chapel. By 1666 the house was a substantial building taxable on fourteen hearths, and fourteen rooms are mentioned in 1672. In C18 it was demolished and rebuilt on a new site northeast of the moat on what is now the west side of Bescot Drive. The old site was laid out as a garden connected with the new house by a bridge over the moat. The bridge survived the demolition of the hall but was ruinous by 1937; it has since been removed.
This site has been described as a;
Fortified Manor House.
The confidence
that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Nothing visible remains.
A Royal licence
to crenellate was
granted in 1345 Feb 13.
The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SO99809667
PastScape number;
118786
Books
- Emery, Anthony, 2000, Greater Medieval Houses Vol2 (Cambridge) p343
Salter, Mike, 1997, Castles and Moated Mansions of Staffordshire (Malvern) p15
Salter, Mike, 1993, Midlands Castles (Birmingham) p30
Currie, C.R.J., Greenslade, M.W. and Johnson, D.A., 1976, VCH Staffordshire Vol17 p171-3
Lynam, C., 1908, in Page, Wm. (ed), VCH Staffordshire Vol1 p368
Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p414
Shaw, Stebbing, 1801, The History and Antiquities of Staffordshire (J.Nichols abd Son) [Republished 1976 by EP Publishing] Vol2 p81-2
Journal Articles
- Larkham, P.J., 1982-3, Transactions of the South Staffordshire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol24 p15,49
Palliser, D.M., 1972, 'Staffordshire Castles: A Provisional List' Staffordshire Archaeology Vol1 p5-8
Le Patourel, H.E. Jean, 1967 March, Current Archaeology vol 1 no 1 p31
Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents
- This section is far from complete and the secondary
sources should be consulted for full references.)
- Calendar of Patent Rolls (1343-45) p438
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