Information for record number MWA1101:
Post Medieval Tower 300m SW of Manor House, Claverdon

Summary A tower dating to the Post Medieval period. It may be all that remains of what was once a larger building. The tower is situated 100m north west of Layland Plantation.
What Is It?  
Type: Building, Tower
Period: Post-medieval (1540 AD - 1750 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Claverdon
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 20 65
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

 
Source Number  

1 An isolated rectangular tower of three storeys said to have been the NW of four angle towers of the great house begun by Thomas Spencer (d1630). There are no traces of this house above ground and no indications of where the tower joined with the ranges of the house. The house was never completed, as a survey of 1650 indicates that part of the site was occupied by a large timber house which even then was ruinous (PRN 6283). A moulded string-course at second floor level passes right around the tower, while a lower string-course appears only on the NW and SW sides. The walls of the tower are mostly of local stone, but the lowest five or six courses in the NE and SE are of good ashlar. In the S half of the SE side is a doorway flanked by two projecting piers. The face of the left pier has footings for the low walls which connected with a house of two stories. The roof and parapets of the tower are modern.
2 It is doubtful if any other structure, apart from low walls, was intended to abut on the tower. The string courses around the building show the walls to have been exterior walls. A garden area consists of areas levelled out of earlier ridge and furrow and enclosed by flat-topped banks.
4 Drawing by H Beighton.
5 Early C17 probably, and of a type very rare in the Midlands; for this is a tower house in the N English sense. The windows are mostly on one side.
6 Listed Building description.
7 Newpaper cutting about the building before its possible sale.
8 The stone building was probably built by Thomas Spencer soon after 1590 and the part which survives is likely one of the towers of the original building. This was probably a seemi-fortified house, and Dugdale's map of Barlichway Hundred shows a square building with towers at each corner.
 
Sources

Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Victoria County History, vol 3, Warwickshire
Author/originator: Salzman L F (ed)
Date: 1945
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 3
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: The Buildings of England: Warwickshire
Author/originator: Pevsner N and Wedgwood A
Date: 1966
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Warwicks
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Drawing
Title: Antiq of Warwickshire
Author/originator: Dugdale W
Date: 1730
Page Number: 1081
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 8
Source Type: Descriptive Text
Title: Stone Building, Claverdon
Author/originator:
Date: 1949?
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 6
Source Type: Descriptive Text
Title: LBL
Author/originator: DoE
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 7
Source Type: Newspaper/Magazine Article
Title: Stone Building, Claverdon
Author/originator: Stratford upon Avon Herald
Date: 1977
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Plan
Title: OS Card. 26NE9
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1961
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 26NE9
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Record Card/Form
Title: OS Card 26NE2
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1961
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 26NE2
   
Images:  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
designation Listed Building Buildings and structures, such as bridges, that are of architectural or historical importance are placed on a statutory list. These buildings are protected by planning and conservation acts that ensure that their special features of interest are considered before any alterations are made to them.

Depending on how important the buildings are they are classed as Grade I, Grade II* or Grade II. Grade I buildings are those of exceptional interest. Grade II* are particularly important buildings of more than special interest. Those listed as Grade II are those buildings that are regarded of special interest.
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source LBL Listed Building List. Buildings and structures, such as bridges, that are of architectural or historical importance are placed on a list. Buildings placed on the list are protected through various planning and conservation acts which ensure that their special features of interest are considered before any alterations are made to them. The Listed Buildings List is compiled and maintained by English Heritage. It includes details of where the building is, when it was built, a description of its appearance, and any other special features. back
source OS Card Ordnance Survey Record Card. Before the 1970s the Ordnance Survey (OS) were responsible for recording archaeological monuments during mapping exercises. This helped the Ordnance Survey to decide which monuments to publish on maps. During these exercises the details of the monuments were written down on record cards. Copies of some of the cards are kept at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. The responsibility for recording archaeological monuments later passed to the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historic Monuments. back
period Modern The Modern Period, about 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
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period Medieval 1066 AD to 1539 AD (the 11th century AD to the 16th century AD)

The medieval period comes after the Saxon period and before the post medieval period.

The Medieval period begins in 1066 AD.
This was the year that the Normans, led by William the Conqueror (1066 – 1087), invaded England and defeated Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings in East Sussex.
The Medieval period includes the first half of the Tudor period (1485 – 1603 AD), when the Tudor family reigned in England and eventually in Scotland too.

The end of the Medieval period is marked by Henry VIII’s (1509 – 1547) order for the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the years running up to 1539 AD. The whole of this period is sometimes called the Middle Ages.
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period Post Medieval About 1540 AD to 1750 AD (the 16th century AD to the 18th century AD)

The Post Medieval period comes after the medieval period and before the Imperial period.

This period covers the second half of the reign of the Tudors (1485 – 1603), the reign of the Stuarts (1603 – 1702) and the beginning of the reign of the Hannoverians (1714 – 1836).
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period modern About 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
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monument HOUSE * A building for human habitation, especially a dwelling place. Use more specific type where known. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument ANGLE TOWER * A fortified tower found at the angle of a castle wall. back
monument BUILDING * A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known. back
monument RIDGE AND FURROW * A series of long, raised ridges separated by ditches used to prepare the ground for arable cultivation. This was a technique, characteristic of the medieval period. back
monument STONE * Use only where stone is natural or where there is no indication of function. back
monument GREAT HOUSE * A large house dating from the 16th century onwards, built as a symbol of the wealth and status of the owner but not intended to be defensible unlike the castles and manor houses it replaced. back
monument FLOOR * A layer of stone, brick or boards, etc, on which people tread. Use broader site type where known. back
monument TOWER * A tall building, either round, square or polygonal in plan, used for a variety of purposes, including defence, as a landmark, for the hanging of bells, industrial functions, etc. Use more specific type where known. back
monument PIER * A structure of iron or wood, open below, running out into the sea and used as a promenade and landing stage. back
monument FORTIFIED HOUSE * A house which bears signs of fortification. These often include crenellated battlements and narrow slit-like windows. back
monument SQUARE * An open space or area, usually square in plan, in a town or city, enclosed by residential and/or commercial buildings, frequently containing a garden or laid out with trees. back
monument GARDEN * An enclosed piece of ground devoted to the cultivation of flowers, fruit or vegetables and/or recreational purposes. Use more specific type where known. back
monument STRUCTURE * A construction of unknown function, either extant or implied by archaeological evidence. If known, use more specific type. back
monument TOWER HOUSE * A multi-storey, fortified hall house with one of the crosswings being raised in the form of a crenellated tower. Permanently occupied, they date from the mid 14th to the 17th century and are found mainly in the border counties of the North of England. back
monument PLANTATION * A group of planted trees or shrubs, generally of uniform age and of a single species. back
monument WALL * An enclosing structure composed of bricks, stones or similar materials, laid in courses. Use specific type where known. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record