Information for record number MWA8543:
Chesterton House (17th century park)

Summary The site of a landscape park which was created during the Post Medieval period. The layout of the park is shown on two maps from the 1700s which mark avenues and vistas. The manor house was demolished in 1802. The park is located 300m north of Chesterton church. Recommended for inclusion on Local List by Lovie.
What Is It?  
Type: Landscape Park
Period: Post-medieval (1540 AD - 1750 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Chesterton and Kingston
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 35 58
(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 Chesterton House is one of the most significant lost Houses of Warwickshire. The mansion house, which was built for Sir Edward Peyto in 1657 on a site some distance from the old Medieval manor site, was surrounded by a 17th century designed landscape, which is partly shown on an 18th century illustration and estate plan. The layout included avenues and vistas as well as a number of structures, some of which survive (eg the Listed windmill, watermill and gateway). In the second half of the 18th century there was a dispute over the inheritance of the estate, and in 1802, the House was demolished to prevent it passing to rival claimants. Detail from 18th century estate plan reproduced (p86-87).
2 The fishponds near the church are also associated with the Post Medieval landscape.
3 A Geophysical survey by David Adams shows buried remains of the mansion.
4 An area of earthworks at the south end of this park have been mapped as part of the NMP and are included in this much expanded monument. The said: Part of an early Post Medieval formal garden has been recorded from documentary evidence and field survey and is visible as earthworks on aerial photographs. The site is located at church End, surrounding the church of St Giles. The site is a water garden, with water features surrounded by walks and rectangular garden compartments. Two fishponds are defined by linear banks and one is visible as a large cut feature. Five possible pillow mounds are also visible on aerial photographs. The site has been previously recorded as a Medieval manorial moat and fishponds, and an associated settlement (see NMR Monument Number 335311). This site has been mapped from aerial photographs as part of the South East Warwickshire and Cotswolds HLS Target Areas National Mapping Programme.
5 The area is a little more complicated than indicated. The ponds certainly are associated with the 17th century House and include various other features, quite probably garden related. The possible moat still could have started as such but may have become a garden feature later. The area shows well on lidar imagery and the pillow mounds are not mostly real although one at SP 356 582 is possible.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Warwickshire Register Review Report & Recommendations
Author/originator: Lovie, Jonathan
Date: 1997
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Warwickshire Register Review Data Tables (Stratford on Avon)
Author/originator: Lovie, Jonathan
Date: 1997
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Desk Top Study
Title: SE Warwickshire and Cotswolds NMP Project
Author/originator: Amanda Dickson
Date: 2010-2012
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Geophysical Survey Report
Title: Geophysical Survey Peyto Mansion, Demolished 1802, Chesterton, Warwickshire 1650-1802
Author/originator: D Adams
Date: 2004
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Verbal communication
Title: Pers. Comm.
Author/originator: B Gethin
Date: 2013 onwards
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
technique Documentary Evidence Documentary evidence is another name for written records. The first written records in Britain date back to the Roman period. Documentary evidence can take many different forms, including maps, charters, letters and written accounts. When archaeologists are researching a site, they often start by looking at documentary evidence to see if there are clues that will help them understand what they might find. Documentary evidence can help archaeologists understand sites that are discovered during an excavation, field survey or aerial survey. back
technique Field Survey The term ‘field survey’ is used to describe all work that does not disturb archaeological deposits below the ground through an excavation. Field survey techniques involve recording measurements that help archaeologists draw plans or diagrams of archaeological features. There are a variety of different field survey techniques, including geophysical survey, building recording survey, field walking survey, landscape survey and earthwork survey. back
technique Geophysical Survey The measuring and recording of electrical resistivity or magnetism in order to determine the existence and outline of buried features such as walls and ditches. Geophysical techniques include resistivity survey, magnetometer survey and ground penetrating radar. View Image 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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technique Aerial Photograph Aerial photographs are taken during an aerial survey, which involves looking at the ground from above. It is usually easier to see cropmarks and earthworks when they are viewed from above. Aerial photographs help archaeologists to record what they see and to identify new sites. There are two kinds of aerial photographs; oblique and vertical. back
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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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 FISHPOND * A pond used for the rearing, breeding, sorting and storing of fish. back
monument SETTLEMENT * A small concentration of dwellings. back
monument WINDMILL * A tower-like structure of wood or brick with a wooden cap and sails which are driven around by the wind producing power to work the internal machinery. Use with product type where known. back
monument MANOR HOUSE * The principal house of a manor or village. back
monument FORMAL GARDEN * A garden of regular, linear or geometrical design, often associated with the traditional Italian, French and Dutch styles. 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 FEATURE * Areas of indeterminate function. back
monument GARDEN FEATURE * Unspecified landscape feature. 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 CHURCH * A building used for public Christian worship. Use more specific type where known. back
monument MOAT * A wide ditch surrounding a building, usually filled with water. Use for moated sites, not defensive moats. Use with relevant site type where known, eg. MANOR HOUSE, GARDEN, etc. back
monument WALK * A place or path for walking in a park or garden. Use more specific type where possible. back
monument WATER FEATURE * A body of water, building or structure found in a park or garden used as a water supply or ornament. Use more specific type where known. back
monument WELL * A shaft or pit dug in the ground over a supply of spring-water. back
monument PILLOW MOUND * A pillow-shaped, flat topped rectangular mound often surrounded by a shallow ditch used to farm rabbits. back
monument MANOR * An area of land consisting of the lord's demesne and of lands from whose holders he may exact certain fees, etc. back
monument GATEWAY * A substantial structure supporting or surrounding a gate. May be ornate or monumental, and have associated structures such as lodges, tollbooths, guard houses etc. back
monument MANSION HOUSE * Traditionally the chief residence of a land owner. Now used specifically to describe the residence of the Lord Mayor of London. back
monument WATER GARDEN * A garden incorporating fountains and pools in which aquatic and other water-loving plants are grown. 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 LANDSCAPE PARK * Grounds, usually associated with a country house, laid out so as to produce the effect of natural scenery back
monument STRUCTURE * A construction of unknown function, either extant or implied by archaeological evidence. If known, use more specific type. back
monument WATERMILL * A mill whose machinery is driven by water. back
monument TARGET * Any structure or object, used for the purpose of practice shooting by aerial, seaborne or land mounted weapons. 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