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Summary

Deserted Settlement Remains of Knaith

Full description

The remains of settlement earthworks, formerly part of the village of Knaith, lie on the east bank of the river Trent, at a prominent bend in the river. The documentary evidence for Knaith from 1086 onwards indicates a settlement which, while always small, nevertheless underwent considerable fluctuations in its size and prosperity. This may be as much the result of the fortunes of its lords as of the poor sandy soils of its land. By the early 16th century there was a resident Darcy lord at Knaith and in 1553 the whole estate passed to William, 1st Lord Willoughby of Parham, and his family made Knaith its principal residence. It was, perhaps, the arrival of the Willoughbys that led to the removal of the ancient village of Knaith and its replacement by landscape gardens and park. If so, this desertion did not result in any fall in population. No desertion was officially revealed in the 1607 survey. Both the displaced inhabitants and the increased population numbers may have been accommodated in two locations, one south-east of the old village along the Gainsborough Road and the other at Knaith Park in the north-east of the parish. The settlement on the Gainsborough Road appears to date from the first half of the 17th century, while Knaith Park was a recognizably separate place by the same time. However, it may have had earlier origins as the secular settlement adjacent to Heynings Priory. By 1676 and until the beginning of the 18th century the population has plummeted, and it may be that the newly established area of settlement on the Gainsborough Road declined during this period. The remaining earthworks fall into two clearly defined groups. The first, north-east of the church, must represent at least in part, the site of medieval Knaith. These earthworks seem to illustrate the part played by the river and its utilisation in not only affecting the form of the settlement along its bank, but also perhaps in helping to sustain occupation. Former streets, surviving largely as hollow-ways, leave the Trent at right angles to run east; slight earthworks, presumably representing former close boundaries and house sites, are associated with the lanes. The south limits of this settlement are uncertain as the development of the hall and its gardens has obliterated any ground evidence for settlement east and south of the church. At the north a terraced hollow-way represents an earlier (probably post medieval) course of the road to Gainsborough prior to its realignment. The plan thus emerges as a small rectangular block with streets affording direct access to the river. The second group of earthworks lies south of terrace house farm, on the east side of the Gainsborough Road. A hollowed track which preserves earlier ridge-and-furrow in its bottom lies on the east side of a series of large enclosures with traces of internal buildings. It is probable that these are the remains of a new, secondary, village laid out along the road away from the church. This settlement is in part still perpetuated by the extant farm and cottages. Dutch Cottage in the centre of the earthworks appears to be no earlier than 1600, yet seems to be part of the layout of the new settlement. If this is correct then the new village was perhaps laid out around 1630 when work on the hall, church, gardens and park was being undertaken, to rehouse the inhabitants of the original cleared village. {1}{2}{3}
Watching briefs at SK82958479 and SK82978480 revealed no archaeological remains. {6}{7}{11}

<01> P.L. Everson, C.C. Taylor and C.J. Dunn, 1991, Change and Continuity: Rural Settlement in North-West Lincolnshire, pp 3,15,36,38,40,115-7; (Bibliographic Reference). SLI1063.

<02> P.L. Everson, C.C. Taylor and C.J. Dunn, 1991, Change and Continuity: Rural Settlement in North-West Lincolnshire, Figs 26, 85 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI1063.

<03> P.L. Everson, C.C. Taylor and C.J. Dunn, 1991, Change and Continuity: Rural Settlement in North-West Lincolnshire, ARCHIVE NOTES (Bibliographic Reference). SLI1063.

<04> Paul Everson, 1975-90, RCHM, 2982/8,1980, (Aerial Photograph). SLI196.

<05> Paul Everson, 1975-90, RCHM, 2969/23,28,1979, (Aerial Photograph). SLI196.

<06> Lindsey Archaeological Services, August 1995, Land Adjacent to Corner House Farm, Knaith: Archaeological Watching Brief, CHK95 (Report). SLI8887.

<07> LINDSEY ARCHAEOLOGICAL SERVICES, 1995, LAND OFF KNAITH HILL, - (Report). SLI5212.

<08> Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England, 1992-1996, National Mapping Programme, SK8284:LI.673.7.1-4,1995, (Map). SLI3613.

<09> COLE, C., 1993-2002, InnerVisions Business Presentations, 184/0697/9A,1997, (Aerial Photograph). SLI181.

<10> COLE, C., 1993-2002, InnerVisions Business Presentations, 220/0298/22A,1998, (Aerial Photograph). SLI181.

<11> Lindsey Archaeological Services, August 1995, Land Adjacent to Corner House Farm, Knaith: Archaeological Watching Brief, LCNCC 91.95 (Archive). SLI8888.

Monument Types

• DESERTED SETTLEMENT (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• FIELD SYSTEM (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• RIDGE AND FURROW (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• SETTLEMENT (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)

Associated Events

• Land adjacent to Corner House Farm, Knaith
• Earthwork survey of area around Knaith Hall

Protected Status

• SHINE

Sources and further reading

Related records

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