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Summary

The deserted medieval village of Castle Carlton, to the north-west of South Reston.

Full description

Site of the deserted medieval village of Castle Carlton. The settlement is not mentioned in Domesday. Quantities of medieval pottery have been recovered as surface finds from across the site. {1}{2}{3}

Parts of the medieval settlement remains were the subject of topographical and magnetometry surveys, conducted in March 2013 and October 2014, as part of a research project investigating the development of Castle Carlton. The village is thought to have been established by Robert Bardolf during the 1220s as a new town, distinct from the remains of the nearby motte and bailey castle (see PRN 43602), and very likely developed as a response to the growth of the early medieval salt making industry in this area. Rather than being focused on the castle, the settlement appears to have grown around a main east to west thoroughfare, that led from the coastal salt working and processing areas in the marshlands to the east, to the inland settlements and markets to the west. The village was therefore heavily reliant on this industry, and is thought to have significantly declined after the salt market in this area failed in the later medieval period. This decline was likely exacerbated by the splitting of the manor in the 15th century, and the failure to attract new inhabitants and economic prosperity. The village was not wholly abandoned, however, and some settlement activity appears to have continued, albeit with a shift of focus to agricultural production.
The surveys recorded considerable remains of the former settlement, including traces of field and property boundaries, hollow ways, ditched enclosures and building platforms, indicating the location of former tofts. The investigations allowed a greater understanding of the plan form and development of the former settlement, and also recorded the presence of several later medieval building platforms in the north-west of the site, showing the shift in the focus of the settlement at this time. {4}{5}{6}

<1> Lincolnshire County Council, Sites and Monuments Record Card Index, TF 38 SE: O, Q (Index). SLI2881.

<2> C.W. Foster and T. Longley, 1924, Lincolnshire Domesday and Lindsey Survey, PLXXXI (Bibliographic Reference). SLI893.

<3> BERESFORD, M.W. AND HURST, J.G., 1971, DESERTED MEDIEVAL VILLAGES, p.193 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI865.

<4> A.E.B. Owen, 1992, 'Castle Carlton: The Origins of a Medieval "New Town"' in Lincolnshire History and Archaeology, vol.27, pp.17-22 (Article in Serial). SLI736.

<5> University of Exeter, 2015, Castle Carlton, - (Report). SLI15570.

<6> Duncan Wright, Oliner Creighton, Michael Fradley and Steve Trick, 2015, 'Castle Carlton, Lincolnshire: the origins and evolution of a castle and medieval new town' in Medieval Settlement Research, vol.30, pp.25-33 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI15214.

Monument Types

• ARTEFACT SCATTER (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• DESERTED SETTLEMENT (Medieval - 1220 AD? to 1539 AD)

Associated Finds

• SHERD (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)

Associated Events

• Topographical Survey at Castle Carlton
• Geophysical Survey at Castle Carlton

Protected Status

• SHINE

Sources and further reading

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