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Summary

A 13th century quadrilateral moat at the site of Southcote Manor, Southcote, Reading.

Monument Type(s):

• MOAT (Medieval - 1201 AD to 1400 AD)

Description

Scheduled on 26 January 1962 as SM 96, but descheduled in October 1992. Whilst under scheduling it was described as follows " House demolished in c.1920; contained two late C15 brick towards with cusped, freestone, single-light windows - a substantial one at the NE and a lighter one at the NW, but was largely of early C17 and later work. Only the quadrilateral moat remains, with entrance from the north where the main facade was. It has high retaining walls (C18-C19), doubled on the S and W to form a terrace and on it are stumps, now quite featureless, of the two towers, two brick cellars with C18 detail and footings of at least the W range of the house, with ovolo plinth moulds. Feeding channels to moat at S side. Are also various lengths of garden wall C16-19)…Central raised part now carries small block of flats (built in late 1960's) with a grassy surround <1>. The moat was about 10m wide and enclosed a platform some 55m square and about 3m higher than the land surface beyond the moat. The sides of the platform had been strengthened by brickwork. Some of 2 in. brick. The moat was drained of water sometime after 1963. In 1964 the site of the former house was to be developed for housing, and an archaeological excavation was under by C.F. Slade. The excavation revealed a number of cellars and chalk footings. A section was dug into the mound and the existing surface was shown to consist of compacted soil or of chalk and the cellars had been dug into the build-up. Other features revealed included a well and three brick features. In the north-east of the site was the Tudor Tower. This was built of 2 in. brick but investigation outside the south and east walls showed repairs below ground done with 3 in brick. A fragile building of Tudor date construction was found with 18th or early 19th century pottery in its fill. Suggesting that it had probably been filled in at this time. The third feature was a large drain or sewer. The earliest find it contained was a Nuremberg token of early seventeenth century date. There were also sherds of 18th and 19th century pottery, metal, bone and glass. The drain seemed to be part of the early Stuart reconstruction and to have run from the kitchen, draining into the moat. The excavation suggests that the moat is of 13th century date and was constructed a short time before the first house was presumably built. The mound, the stump of the Tudor Tower and the moat still survived, after the housing was built <2>. The remains of the tower were demolished in 1982.

RCHM(E) EXCAVATIONS INDEX NMR NO OS/SU67SE20 (Bibliographic reference). SRD6826.

1901, Berks, Bucks and Oxon Archaeological Journal, Page 94 (Bibliographic reference). SRD6823.

1904, BERKS A S 10, Pages 9-15 (Bibliographic reference). SRD6821.

1904, Berks, Bucks and Oxon Archaeological Journal, Page 9 (Bibliographic reference). SRD6822.

1967, Medieval Archaeology, Page 297 (Bibliographic reference). SRD6824.

24/06/54, RAFF2158/1472 117-8 (Photograph). SRD454.

<1> 1962, Southcote Manor moated site (Scheduling record). SRM13335.

<2> Berkshire Archaeological Society, 1977-8, Berkshire Archaeological Journal (Bibliographic reference). SRD6825.

Sources

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