Monument record MDO978 - Moat at Court Close, Dewlish

Possible medieval moated manor house, visible as an earthwork in 1980. The moated rectilinear enclosure is visible on lidar imagery at this location within the medieval settlement at Court Close, Dewlish (MDO977). The site was digitally recorded during the Dorset Upper Cerne and Piddle AIM Project.

(SY 77719812) A small rectangular moat in the valley bottom at Dewlish, immediately east of the medieval settlement MDO977 probably encloses the site of a former manor house. Its ditches are 30 to 40 feet wide by 3 to 4 feet deep, and the Devil's Brook flows along the SE ditch. There is an internal bank 2 to 3 feet high along the SW side of the island, and across the centre is a ditch 25 feet wide by 2 to 3 feet deep which is probably associated with water meadows covering the valley floor. <1>

Moat generally as described by RCHM <1> dry, except for the Devil's Brook, and overgrown with bushes and trees. Re-surveyed at 1:2500 on MS.D. incorporating RCHM survey. <2>

Court Close moat badly damaged in May 1982.

The moated rectilinear enclosure is visible on lidar imagery <4> at this location within the medieval settlement at Court Close, Dewlish (MDO977). The site was digitally recorded during the Dorset Upper Cerne and Piddle AIM Project.

<1> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume III (Central) Part 1, 88 (Monograph). SDO146.

'(7) COURT CLOSE … In the valley bottom immediately E. of the E. corner of the enclosure (77679812) is a small rectangular moat (Class A 1(a))1 with ditches 30 ft. to 40 ft. wide and 3 ft. to 4 ft. deep. The Devil's Brook flows along the S.E. ditch and there is an internal bank 2 ft. to 1 ft. high along the S.W. side of the island. A ditch 25 ft. wide and 2 ft. to 3 ft. deep through the centre is probably associated with the water meadows which cover the valley floor. The moat probably encloses the site of a former manor house.'

<2> Barton, J G, Various, Field Investigators Comments JGB, F1 JGB 21-OCT-80 (Unpublished document). SDO11900.

<3> National Record of the Historic Environment, 454608 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

<4> Environment Agency, 15-DEC-2023, LIDAR Environment Agency DTM (Aerial Photograph). SDO20691.

Record last edited

Aug 22 2024 7:21PM