Information for record number MWA9055:
Harbury Medieval Settlement

Summary The possible extent of the Medieval settlement at Harbury which has been identified from the Ordnance Survey first edition map.
What Is It?  
Type: Settlement
Period: Medieval (1066 AD - 1539 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Harbury
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 37 59
(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 possible extent of the Medieval settlement, based on the first edition 6" map of 1886 40SW.
2 There are 5 entries for Harbury in Domesday, in Stoneleigh Hundred. The Phillimore edition gives a grid ref of 3759. Ref6,13 (Land of Coventry Church) in Harbury 1 hide and 1 virgate of land. Land for 1 plough. It was wasted by the King's army. Meadow 2 acres. The value was 10s; now 2s. Ref 16,7 (Land of the Count of Meulan) in Harbury 4 1/2 hides. Leofwin and Alric held it and could sell but could not depart with the land. Land for 10 ploughs; in lordship 1 plough with 1 slave; 9 villagers and 6 smallholders with 4 ploughs. Value before 1066, 100s; later 60s; now 100s. Ref 17,50 (Land of Thorkell of Warwick) William holds 4 hides in Harbury. Land for 9 ploughs. 12 villagers with a priest and 5 smallholders who have 4 ploughs. Meadow, 6 acres. The value was and is 60s. Ordric held it freely. Ref 19,3 (Land of Henry of Ferrers) Wazelin holds 2 hides in Harbury. Land for 5 ploughs. In lordship 2; 2 slaves; 4 villagers with a plough. The value was 40s; now £4. Siward held it. Ref 29,2 (Land of William Bonvallet) William also holds 3 virgates of land in Harbury. Land for 2 ploughs. 2 villagers. The value was 10s; now 5s. Alwin held it freely before 1066.
3 The 1886 map shows a main street, west-east aligned, intersected fairly regularly by north-south lanes which bound areas of occupation. Most of the plots contain buildings, but some are empty or are orchards. To the east of the village, the lines of small, possibly old fields are indicated by trees. The Church dates from the C13th. Domesday suggests complicated multi-ownership of a fairly valuable village. The parish hasn't been covered by ridge and furrow plotting.
4 Probable boundary features were noted at land off Harbury Lane. No other evidence for backplot activity was recorded.
5 An archaeological watching brief at field House, The Pound revealed a possible plot boundary ditch, and other evidence of Medieval activity including pottery from the 11-13th century, animal bone and a "hone" for the sharpening of metal tools. A small quantity of pre-conquest pottery was recovered, indicating that field House lies within a part of the village that was occupied from the late Saxon peiod through to the first half of the 12th century.
 
Sources
Source No: 2
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Domesday Book Warwickshire incl Birmingham
Author/originator: Phillimore and Co Ltd
Date: 1976
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
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: 4
Source Type: Evaluation Report
Title: Archaeological Evaluation on land off Ivy Lane, Harbury, Warwickshire
Author/originator: Soden I
Date: 2012
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
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: 1
Source Type: Map
Title: 40SW 1:10560 1886
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1886
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 40SW
   
Source No:
Source Type: Watching Brief Report
Title: Field House, The Pound, Harbury, Warwickshire: Archaeological Watching Brief
Author/originator: Bryn Gethin
Date: 2012
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 1302
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Watching Brief Report
Title: Field House, The Pound, Harbury, Warwickshire: Archaeological Watching Brief
Author/originator: Bryn Gethin
Date: 2012
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 1302
   
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
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.
more -> 		back
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 SETTLEMENT * A small concentration of dwellings. 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 BOUNDARY * The limit to an area as defined on a map or by a marker of some form, eg. BOUNDARY WALL. Use specific type where known. back
monument FEATURE * Areas of indeterminate function. back
monument CHURCH * A building used for public Christian worship. Use more specific type where known. back
monument BOUNDARY DITCH * A ditch that indicates the limit of an area or a piece of land. back
monument FIELD * An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock. back
monument HIDE * A shelter, sometimes camouflaged, for the observation of birds and animals at close quarters. back
monument ORCHARD * An enclosure used for the cultivation of fruit trees. back
monument MEADOW * A piece of grassland, often near a river, permanently covered with grass which is mown for use as hay. back
monument POUND * A pen, often circular and stone-walled, for rounding up livestock. back
monument TOWN * An assemblage of public and private buildings, larger than a village and having more complete and independent local government. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record