If you have any comments or new information about this record, please email us.

Monument Types

• CASTLE (Early Medieval - 1067 AD to 1349 AD)
• DITCH (Medieval - 1067 AD to 1539 AD)

Summary

West of the church there is a large flat-topped circular motte surrounded by a dry ditch, with a ditch leading away to the north-west where there is a moat (see MLE1537).

Additional Information

Scheduled Monument description:
The earthworks at Gilmorton lie west of the church and 3km north east of Lutterworth and consist of a motte castle, a moat to the north west, house platforms to the south and two fishponds below them. A prominent motte is situated adjacent to the church and comprises a flat- topped circular mound, approximately 3m high, 38m in diameter at the base and 25m at the top. It has a surrounding ditch, 8m wide and 1m deep, which is waterlogged on the south side and has been partly altered on the church side. A channel, waterfilled at one end and about 20m long, 7m wide and lm deep, leads off the motte ditch on the western side. A rectangular moat measuring 45m by 33m overall lies to the north west of the motte. The moat ditch is shallow but the southern and eastern arms contain water. The remainder of the moat has been largely filled in. A dry feeder channel leads off to the south but cannot be identified beyond the existing field boundary. A hollow way, 7m wide and 0.75m deep, leads south from the motte. Several house platforms are visible to the east of the hollow way. At the southern end of the hollow way are two rectangular fishponds aligned east-west. The western pond measures 12m by 9m and is 1m deep, and the eastern pond measures 8m by 25m and has a depth of 0.75m.

In 1971 MC found a short cross penny probably of Henry III near the castle. (926.1974)

<1> Page, William (ed), 1907, The Victoria County History of the County of Leicester, Volume 1, p258 (Bibliographic reference). SLE1156.

W of the church is a large flat-topped circular motte surrounded by a dry ditch with a ditch leading away to the NW, where there is a 'moat' surrounded by shallow ditches. On the N side there is a prominent pond and 2 dry fishponds lie at SP 5691 8776 and SP 5694 8775. (Also OS records)

<2> 1977-8, Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society, Volume 53, Vol 53 (1977-8), p78 (Journal). SLE5951.

The Museum Survey Team surveyed the motte and moated sites at Gilmorton in 1978.

<3> Elkin, Kathleen (ed), 2015, Medieval Leicestershire: Recent Research on the Medieval Archaeology of Leicestershire, p132, "Medieval fortified sites of Leics & Rutland", Richard Knox (Bibliographic reference). SLE5149.

"A large, flat topped mound surrounded by a dry ditch and adjoined to a later shallow moat or fishpond by a linear ditch, lies immediately west of the church. The Victoria County History plan shows a bailey bank to the north (Page 1907, 258); Creighton 1997, 25) giving the dimensions of the motte as 2.6-3.1m above the bottom of the ditch, with the summit measuring 27m in diameter and suggests that the motte has been lowered to accommodate a larger building than the original keep."

<4> Hartley, RF, 2018, The medieval earthworks of south and south-east Leicestershire, p21-22 (Bibliographic reference). SLE5736.

"Immediately to the west of All Saints Church is an interesting field of earthworks, dominated by a conical mound (a), probably a Norman motte, with an outer enclosure (b) forming a small bailey to the north-west, and both features surrounded by a substantial ditch (c). Knox (2015, 132) suggests the motte has been lowered to accommodate a larger building than the original keep."

Sources

Associated Finds

• COIN (Early Medieval - 1216 AD? to 1272 AD?)

Designations

• Scheduled Monument 1010495: MOTTE, MOAT AND FISHPONDS WEST OF ALL SAINTS CHURCH

Associated Images

Search results generated by the HBSMR Gateway from exeGesIS SDM Ltd.