Little Sampford Moat

In the civil parish of Little Sampford.
In the historic county of Essex (Modern Authority of Essex, 1974 county of Essex).

Homestead moat. Moat 7m wide, 0.5m deep, enclosure flat, moat wet. Possible mill mound? Small flat circular enclosure, c90ft across, surrounded by a moat c15ft wide, in a dense plantation 1600ft west of Little Sampford Church. Not a defensive work, probably the site of Freshwell Hundred moot. The circular waterfilled ditch lies in a close copse on level ground. Overall is 35m in diameter, ditch averages c4m wide. No trace of a causeway, 1.5m deep.. Interior same level as surrounding land. Apart from coppicing, it seems to be undisturbed. 1839 tithe map shows neither copse nor enclosure. Could be they are contemporary. 1978-ditch permanently dry, circles of outer and inner slopes of ditch slightly flattened beside road suggesting layout "had to be modified to accommodate the existing feature". OS suggests probably modern ditched enclosure. Has been suggested as a Ringwork but I'm unclear if this was a loose use of the term or a serious suggestion that this might be a castle site. In 1086 Richard, son of Gilbert, held 5 hides in demesne.

This site has been described as a;
Timber Castle.
This site is rejected as a medieval fortification or palace.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TL64763363

Modern Map from

Good for landscape form and features

Modern Map from

Good for general location

Air Photo from

1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 376767

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 1473

Books

RCHME, 1916, An inventory of the historical monuments in Essex. Vol1 [north-west] p187

Journal Articles

1928, Trans Essex Archaeol Soc [new ser] p187-188

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This record last updated on Friday, April 6, 2007

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