Information for record number MWA813:
'Monks Well' 600m W of Watergall Bridge

Summary 'Monks' Well', a rectangular Well, lined with dressed stone, which dates from the Medieval/Post Medieval period. Its top is modern. It is situated 600m west of Watergall Bridge.
What Is It?  
Type: Well
Period: Medieval - Post-Medieval (1066 AD - 1750 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Watergall
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 42 55
(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 eminence with an irregular hollow 37m across and 1.5 or 1.8m deep, in the centre of which is a 'singular rectangular pit' lined with dressed stone, having angle stones on two sides to facilitate the descent. It is 2.3m deep, 0.66m square at the top and 1.3m at the bottom, where there is a stone through which the water flows from the spring on the hill above. A pipe conveys the water away to an arched reservoir 27m to the E (see PRN 814), from where it flows to the house.
2 Description in reference
1 correct.
3 The well now has a modern top. According to oral tradition, the monks who supposedly inhabited the Manor House were sent down the well as a form of penance, hence the stone seat at the bottom and the site name.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Shakespeare's Land
Author/originator: Ribton-Turner C J
Date: 1893
Page Number: 184
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Record Card/Form
Title: OS Card 25NE6
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1968
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: SMR Card
Author/originator: PJA
Date: 1979
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: PRN 1234
   
Images:  
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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
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 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 STONE * Use only where stone is natural or where there is no indication of function. back
monument MANOR HOUSE * The principal house of a manor or village. back
monument PIT * A hole or cavity in the ground, either natural or the result of excavation. Use more specific type where known. back
monument SEAT * An external structure used to sit on. back
monument WELL * A shaft or pit dug in the ground over a supply of spring-water. back
monument BRIDGE * A structure of wood, stone, iron, brick or concrete, etc, with one or more intervals under it to span a river or other space. Use specific type where known. 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 SPRING * A point where water issues naturally from the rock or soil onto the ground or into a body of surface water. back
monument RESERVOIR * A large natural or artificial body of water, sometimes covered, used to collect and store water for a particular function, eg. industrial or public use. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record