Information for record number MWA699:
Medieval fishponds, Radway.

Summary Fishponds, used for the breeding and storage of fish, which date to the Medieval period. They were associated with Radway Grange. They remain as earthworks, and are situated to the north west of Castle Wood, Edge Hill.
What Is It?  
Type: Fishpond
Period: Medieval (1066 AD - 1539 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Radway
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: 00
(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 A grange belonging to a Cistercian Abbey appears to have existed on the slopes of the lower part of Edge Hill. Four fishponds survive nearby - 'Mount Pool', near the site of the old house on the edge of the woods, 'Long Pond' about halfway down the Park, 'Bitter Gutter' between the Park and the adjoining fields on the S side, now dried up and grown over, and the larger Pond close to the house.
2 Admittance to the Park refused, and fishponds therefore not checked.
3 Three of the Ponds were inspected. The Mount Pool and Long Pond were both silted up, but set in quite deep hollows. The Pond close to the house still contains water and is maintained as a fishpond.
4 One of the Ponds is located some distance away from the other two and has been given a new site number (WA 1005). This Pond is the one located closest to the grange.
 
Sources

Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: The History of Radway
Author/originator: Hunt, Dickens and Land
Date: 1937
Page Number: 113-4
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Record Card/Form
Title: SMR card : text
Author/originator: JMG
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: OS Card, 15SE2
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1968
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 15SE2
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Verbal communication
Title: EJJ personal comment
Author/originator: EJJ
Date: 1993
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
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
source SMR Card Sites and Monuments Record Card. The Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record began to be developed during the 1970s. The details of individual archaeological sites and findspots were written on record cards. These record cards were used until the 1990s, when their details were entered on to a computerised system. The record cards are still kept at the office of the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. back
technique Earthwork Earthworks can take the form of banks, ditches and mounds. They are usually created for a specific purpose. A bank, for example, might be the remains of a boundary between two or more fields. Some earthworks may be all that remains of a collapsed building, for example, the grassed-over remains of building foundations.

In the winter, when the sun is lower in the sky than during the other seasons, earthworks have larger shadows. From the air, archaeologists are able to see the patterns of the earthworks more easily. Earthworks can sometimes be confusing when viewed at ground level, but from above, the general plan is much clearer.

Archaeologists often carry out an aerial survey or an earthwork survey to help them understand the lumps and bumps they can see on the ground.
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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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monument POOL * A small body of water, either natural or artificial. back
monument GRANGE * An outlying farm or estate, usually belonging to a religious order or feudal lord. Specifically related to core buildings and structures associated with monastic land holding. Use specific term where known. back
monument HOUSE * A building for human habitation, especially a dwelling place. Use more specific type where known. back
monument HOLLOW * A hollow, concave formation or place, which has sometimes been dug out. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument FISHPOND * A pond used for the rearing, breeding, sorting and storing of fish. back
monument PARK * An enclosed piece of land, generally large in area, used for hunting, the cultivation of trees, for grazing sheep and cattle or visual enjoyment. Use more specific type where known. back
monument POND * A body of still water often artificially formed for a specific purpose. Use specifc type where known. back
monument ABBEY * A religious house governed by an abbot or abbess. Use with narrow terms of DOUBLE HOUSE, MONASTERY or NUNNERY. back
monument CASTLE * A fortress and dwelling, usually medieval in origin, and often consisting of a keep, curtain wall and towers etc. back
monument FIELD * An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock. back
monument WOOD * A tract of land with trees, sometimes acting as a boundary or barrier, usually smaller and less wild than a forest. back
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record