Information for record number MWA5010:
Site of Possible Searchlight Battery

Summary Approximately 500m west of Little Kineton are four ring ditches that are visible as cropmarks on aerial photographs. They appear to lie over the Medieval ridge and furrow. The ring ditches are similar in appearance to the World War II searchlight battery at Snowford Hill.
What Is It?  
Type: Searchlight Battery?
Period: Unknown
Where Is It?  
Parish: Butlers Marston
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 32 50
(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 Four ring ditches, one large and three small. The three small examples are grouped in a triangular form. The ring ditches appear to overlie ridge and furrow.
2 Morphologically this site is almost identical to a World War II searchlight battery at Snowford Hill (PRN 1364) and a number of other sites in Warwickshire. Some of the marks at the S of the cropmark complex PRN 4769 may be related to these WWII defences.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: RCHM
Author/originator: RAF
Date:
Page Number: 3149: 1: 5096
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: SMR Card
Author/originator: Hingley R C
Date: 1986
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: PRN 4103
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
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
technique Cropmark Cropmarks appear as light and dark marks in growing and ripening crops. These marks relate to differences in the soil below. For example, parched lines of grass may indicate stone walls. Crops that grow over stone features often ripen more quickly and are shorter than the surrounding crop. This is because there is less moisture in the soil where the wall lies.

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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 SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. 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 SEARCHLIGHT BATTERY * A site in which one or more searchlights were positioned to locate enemy aircraft or surface vessels for the benefit of batteries and night fighter aircraft. back
monument DEFENCE * This is the top term for the class. See DEFENCE Class List for narrow terms. back
monument RING DITCH * Circular or near circular ditches, usually seen as cropmarks. Use the term where the function is unknown. Ring ditches may be the remains of ploughed out round barrows, round houses, or of modern features such as searchlight emplacements. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record