Information for record number MWA9527:
Middleton Medieval Settlement

Summary The probable extent of the medieval settlement at Middleton based on the Ordnance Survey map of 1887.
What Is It?  
Type: Settlement, Boundary Ditch
Period: Medieval (1066 AD - 1539 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Middleton
District: North Warwickshire, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 17 98
(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 at Middleton based on the OS map of 1887, 5 SW.
2 Domesday lists Middleton in Coleshill Hundred. There are 2 entries. The Phillimore ed. Has a grid ref of 1798. Ref 18,4 (Land of Hugh of Grandmesnil) In Middleton 4 hides. Land for 4 ploughs. In lordship 1 1/2 ploughs and 3 slaves. 12 villagers with a priest and 5 smallholders have 21/2 ploughs. A mill at 20s; meadow 6 acres. Value now £6. Ref 45,1 Adelaide, Hugh's wife, holds 4 hides in Middleton from the King. Land for 4 ploughs. In lordship 1 1/2 ploughs; 3 slaves; 12 villagers and 5 smallholders with 3 1/2 ploughs. Value now £6.
4 The 1887 map shows a village grouped around the intersection of roads, with few buildings and lots of empty plots. Domesday indicates a populous and valuable village, so there must have been considerable shrinkage. The parish has not been covered by ridge and furrow plotting, but an aerial photo shows only a small area of survival to the south, although the shape of other fields adjacent to it suggests medieval cultivation. The church [WA116] had a medieval foundation, and there is a medieval cross base in the churchyard [WA115].
5 The excavation of a single trial trench within the western corner of the cemetery of St John the Baptist church (SP17619833), in an area which may have overlain the remains of a medieval manor house, revealed no evidence of this possible manor. Three undated field boundary ditches were identified, which probably defined the extent of the medieval field system.
6 Archaeological evaluation off church Lane recorded a series of settlement features suggestive of 12th-13th century occupation, with abandonment during the 14th century. It is suggested that this site may lie away from the original settlement focus. See MWA13436 for full details.
 
Sources
Source No: 3
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP19NE
Author/originator: RAF
Date: 1948
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
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: 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: 5
Source Type: Evaluation Report
Title: Archaeological Evaluation at the Church of St John the Baptist, Middleton, Warwickshire
Author/originator: Gethin B
Date: 2004
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Report No 0428
   
Source No: 6
Source Type: Evaluation Report
Title: Church Lane, Middleton, Warwickshire, Phase 1 and Phase 2 Archaeological Evaluation 2012
Author/originator: Jones, A.
Date: 2012
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 12/12
   
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: 05SW 1:10560 1887
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1887
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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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 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 Trial Trench A small regular hole that is usually square or rectangular in shape. Archaeologists dig trial trenches to discover if there are any archaeological remains at a particular location. See also excavation. 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 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 SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. 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 MANOR HOUSE * The principal house of a manor or village. 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 CHURCH * A building used for public Christian worship. Use more specific type where known. back
monument ROAD * A way between different places, used by horses, travellers on foot and vehicles. 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 FIELD SYSTEM * A group or complex of fields which appear to form a coherent whole. Use more specific type where known. back
monument CEMETERY * An area of ground, set apart for the burial of the dead. 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 CHURCHYARD * An area of ground belonging to a church, often used as a burial ground. 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 CROSS * A free-standing structure, in the form of a cross (+), symbolizing the structure on which Jesus Christ was crucified and sacred to the Christian faith. Use specific type where known. 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