Information for record number MWA8968:
Long Compton Medieval Settlement

Summary Probable extent of Medieval settlement in Long Compton as indicated on the Ordnance Survey map of 1886.
What Is It?  
Type: Fair, Market, Settlement, Hollow Way
Period: Medieval (1066 AD - 1539 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Long Compton
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 28 32
(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 The probable extent of the Medieval settlement, based on the first edition 6" map of 1884, 57SW.
2 Charter granted 15 May 1231 by Henry III to Hubert de Burgh, earl of Kent, Justiciar. Mandate to Sheriff of Warwickshire 15th May 1231 for market to be held on Mondays. Fair Charter vigil feast morrow for John the Baptist (24 June) by Henry III to Hubert de Burgh 15 May 1231 Mandate to Sheriff of Warwickshire 15 May 1231
3 Listed in Domesday. In Barcheston Hundred. The Phillimore edition gives a grid ref of 28.32. Ref 30,1 Geoffrey de Mandeville holds (Long Compton) from the King. 30 hides. Land for 20 ploughs. In lordship 7; 25 slaves. 45 villagers with a priest, 13 smallholders and 2 men-at-arms have 10 ploughs. A mill at 10s; meadow, 3 furlongs long and as wide; woodland 2 furlongs in length and width. The value was £15; now £30. Asgar the Constable held it.
4 A huge settlement and very valuable in 1086. The 1884 map shows settlement mostly to the east of the main road, intersected Fairly regularly by lanes running west/east. In the north end the settlement spreads both sides of the road. In the south there are lines of trees around The Hollow that look like old field boundaries or perhaps shrunken settlement. The parish has not yet been covered by ridge and furrow plotting. The church [WA2367] dates from the C13th, and WA2371 is the site of a possible deserted Medieval settlement.
5 52 fragments of 12th to 13th century pottery and a single fragment of possibly 15th or 16th century monochrome floor tile were recovered during the excavation of a new foul sewer extending north from the church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Long Compton. Although many of the sherds were residual, 26 came from a possible early ground surface.
6 Possible Holloway apparent on aerial photographs was mapped as part of the English Heritage National Mapping Project
7 A single sherd of 11th century pottery was recovered from the settlement during fieldwalking and reported to Portable Antiquities Scheme in 2005.
8 Earthworks recorded by topographical survey at Barncroft, Clarks Lane included two banks and two possible platforms. Geophysical survey confirmed the likely presence of archaeological features below these Earthworks.
9 Trial trenching at Barncroft, Clarks Lane uncovered the footings of three stone buildings, confirming suggestions arising from the preceding geophysical and toporgraphical survey. Pottery recovered from one of the buildings suggested domestic occupation into the early 13th century, and two other buildings were interpreted as being agricultural due to a general lack of finds. The pottery had a restricted date range from the 11th to the early 13th century, broadly similar to a site excavated 400m to the south in 2012, which together might suggest that the southern end of Long Compton grew up at this time.
10 "Long Comptons Medieval settlements had a special character…. The other large estates in south Warwickshire (eg. Brailes, Tredington and Ilmington) split up as they developed into nucleated villages (Upper and Lower Brailes for example) or they formed (presumably from earlier hamlets) a number of nucleated villages. Apart from the hamlet of Wymel, the apparent manorial site ar Coates and the mill with an associated house, Long Compton remained as a single very large settlement, and the observation of an area of settlement remains at the Hollows at its southern extremity strengthens the impression that the village had a remarkably elongated plan with its ladder of side streets."
11 An evaluation carried out at Maryvale on East Street in April 2015 confirmed Medieval and later features.
12 An observation carried out at Maryvale on East Street in December 2015 further confirmed the extent of Medieval and later features there.
 
Sources
Source No: 6
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: CPE UK 1929 Frame 3132
Author/originator: RAF
Date: 16 Jan 1947
Page Number: Frame 3132
Volume/Sheet: CPE UK 1929
   
Source No: 11
Source Type: Archaeological Report
Title: Maryvale, East Street, Long Compton, Warwickshire. Archaeological evaluation
Author/originator: Gethin B & Jones L
Date: 2015
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Report No: 1524
   
Source No: 12
Source Type: Archaeological Report
Title: Maryvale, East Street, Long Compton, Warwickshire. Archaeological evaluation
Author/originator: Coutts C
Date: 2015
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Report No: 1593
   
Source No: 8
Source Type: Archaeological Report
Title: Barncroft, Clarks Lane, Long Compton, Warwickshire: Archaeological Geophysical and Topographical Surveys
Author/originator: Sabin, D., Donaldson, K. & Rann, C.
Date: 2013
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 1351
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Domesday Book Warwickshire incl Birmingham
Author/originator: Phillimore and Co Ltd
Date: 1976
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Desk Top Study
Title: Comments on villages and towns in the Medieval Settlement study.
Author/originator: Hester Hawkes.
Date: 2002/3
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 9
Source Type: Evaluation Report
Title: Land at Barncroft, Clarks Lane, Long Compton, Warwickshire: Archaeological Evaluation
Author/originator: Gethin B
Date: 2013
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Report No 1377
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Internet Data
Title: Gazetteer of Markets and Fairs to 1516 (Warwickshire)
Author/originator: Institute of Historical Research (CMH)
Date: 2005
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Warwickshire
   
Source No: 7
Source Type: Internet Data
Title: Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) Database
Author/originator: British Museum
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Map
Title: 57SW 1:10560 1884
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1884
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 57SW
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Map
Title: 1st edition 6" maps. Medieval settlement evaluation.
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1880s
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Observation Report
Title: Archaeological Observation at the Church of St Peter and St Paul, Long Compton, Warwickshire
Author/originator: Palmer S & Coutts C
Date: 2004
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Report 0432
   
Source No: 13
Source Type: Serial
Title: West Midlands Archaeology Vol 57
Author/originator: CBA West Midlands
Date: 2015
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: No 57
   
Images:  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source Domesday Book The Domesday Book was commissioned in December 1085 by William the Conqueror, who invaded England in 1066. It contains records for about 13,000 medieval settlements in the English counties south of the rivers Ribble and Tees (the border with Scotland at the time). The Domesday Book is a detailed record of the lands and their resources that belonged to the king. It also records the identity of the landholders and their tenants. 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.
 		back
technique excavation Archaeologists excavate sites so that they can find information and recover archaeological materials before they are destroyed by erosion, construction or changes in land-use.

Depending on how complicated and widespread the archaeological deposits are, excavation can be done by hand or with heavy machinery. Archaeologists may excavate a site in a number of ways; either by open area excavation, by digging a test pit or a trial trench.
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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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monument HOUSE * A building for human habitation, especially a dwelling place. Use more specific type where known. back
monument VILLAGE * A collection of dwelling-houses and other buildings, usually larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a simpler organisation and administration than the latter. 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 ARCHAEOLOGICAL FEATURE * Use only for features assumed to be archaeological but which cannot be identified more precisely without further investigation .Use more specific term where known back
monument SETTLEMENT * A small concentration of dwellings. back
monument HAMLET * Small settlement with no ecclesiastical or lay administrative function. 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 SEWER * A large drain or conduit for carrying away wastes. 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 FLOOR * A layer of stone, brick or boards, etc, on which people tread. Use broader site type where known. back
monument BURGH * A civil and administrative area incorporating a town of medieval origin. back
monument MILL * A factory used for processing raw materials. Use more specific mill type where known. See also TEXTILE MILL, for more narrow terms. back
monument FEATURE * Areas of indeterminate function. back
monument MARKET * An open space or covered building in which cattle, goods, etc, are displayed for sale. back
monument CHURCH * A building used for public Christian worship. Use more specific type where known. back
monument FAIR * A site where a periodical gathering of buyers, sellers and entertainers, meet at a time ordained by charter or statute or by ancient custom. back
monument ROAD * A way between different places, used by horses, travellers on foot and vehicles. back
monument FIELD * An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock. back
monument PLATFORM * Unspecified. Use specific type where known. back
monument HIDE * A shelter, sometimes camouflaged, for the observation of birds and animals at close quarters. back
monument MEADOW * A piece of grassland, often near a river, permanently covered with grass which is mown for use as hay. back
monument TOWN * An assemblage of public and private buildings, larger than a village and having more complete and independent local government. back
monument DOMESTIC * This is the top term for the class. See DOMESTIC Class List for narrow terms. back
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back
monument HOLLOW WAY * A way, path or road through a cutting. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record