Scheduled Monument: A good example of a Norman motte castle.
Motte 18ft high, with level top 27ft in diameter. Surrounding ditch 5ft deep on N, less pronounced on the S <1a>
Early castle <1b>
Small motte with base diameter of 24m to 26m, and height of 4.7m. Flat summit 10m across. remains of a ditch on the SW and NE 8m wide and 1.3m max depth. OS FI 1972 <1>
It was postulated in 1977 that present property boundaries indicated a bailey running WNW from the motte to the village green 80m from the motte. I Burrow comment 6/4/77. Following inspection of the site it was concluded that a bailey could not be confidently traced. C Ryan FI 1977 <3>
Siting is not one of high defensive potential. The bank which at present flanks the motte and the road is quite small and is probably a hedge bank. I Burrow FI 1977 <4>
Evaluated for MPP in 1990-1, High score as one of 43 Motte castles <10>
Scheduling revised in 1994. Scheduling description: ->
->The monument includes the earthworks of a motte castle situated on a foothill of the Long Mynd overlooking ground falling to the east. The motte is visible as a well defined mound 25m in diameter at base rising 4.7m to a flat topped summit 10m in diameter. Traces of a ditch 8m wide and up to 1.3m deep can be seen around the south west and north east sides of the motte. This is the visible part of a surrounding ditch from which material would have been quarried for the construction of the mound. The ditch will however survive as a substantial buried feature all around the motte mound. <11>
Visited during a condition survey by the English Heritage Field Monument Warden, in 1998. Condition recorded as bad, with mound almost devoid of grass cover and unmanaged scrub, with some unauthorised drainage channels dug in the moat. <13>
Photographed during aerial survey in 2008 (at risk). <14>
[00] | SSA20722 - Card index: Shropshire County Council SMR. Site and Monuments Record (SMR) cards. SMR record cards. SMR Card for PRN SA 01251. |
[01b] | SSA1163 - Article in serial: Hogg A H A & King D J C. 1963. Early Castles in Wales and the Marches. Archaeologia Cambrensis. Vol 112. p77-124. p98. |
[01a] | SSA178 - Volume: Victoria County History. 1908. Victoria County History 1. Victoria County History of Shropshire. Vol 1. p386 with plan. |
[01] | SSA5153 - Card index: Ordnance Survey. 1972. Ordnance Survey Record Card SO49SW14 . Ordnance Survey record cards. SO49SW14 . |
[02] | SSA5158 - Field Monument Warden Report: Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission (HBMC). 1987-Aug-11. Scheduled Monument Report on SAM 33021 (11/08/1987). |
[02a] | SSA928 - Monograph: Rowley R T. 1972. The Shropshire Landscape. The Making of the English Landscape. p74, plate 7. |
[03] | SSA5160 - Site visit report: Ryan Carole. 1977-Apr-14. Visit Notes, 14/04/1977. |
[04] | SSA5159 - Site visit report: Burrow Ian. 1977-May-10. Visit Notes, 10/05/1977. |
[05] | SSA5151 - Volume: Anon. 1894. Transactions of the Caradoc & Severn Valley Field Club. Trans Caradoc Severn Valley Fld Club. Vol 1. p69. |
[06] | SSA5152 - Volume: Anon. 1900 ca. Transactions of the Caradoc & Severn Valley Field Club. Trans Caradoc Severn Valley Fld Club. Vol 3. p89-91 (with plan). |
[07] | SSA5157 - Photograph: Burrow Ian. 1977. View from East. Colour. |
[08] | SSA5156 - Photograph: Anon. 1977. Motte Minton. Colour. |
[09] | SSA5154 - Scheduled Monument notification: English Heritage. 1990. Map of Scheduled area, 1990. |
[10] | SSA20084 - TEXT: Horton Wendy B. 1990/ 1991. MPP Evaluation File. |
[11] | SSA5155 - Scheduled Monument notification: English Heritage. 1994. Scheduling Papers (Revised Scheduling, 19/05/1994). 19147. |
[12] | SSA21690 - Oblique aerial photograph: Musson Chris R. 2000-Mar-05. CPAT 00/MB/2054. Black and White. Medium. |
[13] | SSA20802 - Field survey report: Leigh Judith. 2001. Scheduled Ancient Monuments in the Shropshire Hills ESA: Brief Condition Survey. |
[14] | SSA25422 - Oblique aerial photograph: Shropshire Council. 2008-Nov-25. SA0812_106 to SA0812_110 (5 photos) Flight: 08_SA-12. Colour. Digital. |