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Historic England Research Records

Chapel Walls

Hob Uid: 20090
Location :
County Durham
Wolsingham
Grid Ref : NZ0769037690
Summary : Rectangular enclosure containing an earthen platform, alleged site of 14th century moated manor house. Site now overgrown. A possible medieval platform is visible as an earthwork on air photographs.
More information : NZ 0769 3769. Chapel Walls (NR) Moat (NR). (1)

Walls 9 feet thick a stone trough (or font) and several coins not
traced were found during the construction of Mr Metcalfe's bungalow
(c.1910). (2)(3)

Wolsingham: Chapel Walls. A rectangulalr enclosure 220ft N-S by 200
feet E-W surrounded by a bank and ditch with a low outer bank in
places. A rectangular site in the SW corner appears to mark the
position of a building and near it is a well. (4)

Chapel Walls was examined in 1904 and found to be a strongly
entrenched `camp' enclosing 1.7 acres. The height from the bottom of
the ditch to the top of the rampart on the E side to 20 feet. Two
cross walls of the chapel were found evidently destroyed by fire and
also Medieval pottery. Bishop Hatfield's survey between 1345 and
1381 states that there was a manor house and lands on this site with
a park 8+ miles in circuit. (5)

Owing to recent mutilation the only remains at the site are those of
the `rectangular site' referred to by Authority 4. This is a
platform of earth and stones measuring 13 m by 9 m and with heights
of 1.7 m to the S 1 m to the E and 0.7 m to the W. It evidently
represents the foundations of a building and may when complete have
indicated the site of the Bishop's Manor House. The well near it is
walled with modern brick and is still in good condition. There are
no visible remains of the N W and E sides of the enclosure although
a scarped bank may represent the inner slopes of the ditch at the SE
angle. It is possible that the bank of Waskerley Beck was used as
the SW boundary of the enclosure. (6)

Previous report confirmed. The single surviving mound forms no
intelligible remains. Published survey (25") revised. (7)

The site was visited by RCHME during a survey of scheduled
monuments in County Durham.

The area containing the platform mentioned by Authorities 6 and 7 is
totally overgrown and covered by piles of pallets and building
materials. The well is visible and as described by Authority 6.
The area scheduled by English Heritage is in a pasture field to the
SW which contains some low and amorphous mounds and hollows. The
river cliff which runs between the two areas has been quarried and
there are dumps of material in the adjacent field to the north. It is
unclear whether the overflowing well mentioned in the English
Heritage Field Monument Warden database is the one depicted by OS or
a trough built into an old field wall (now removed) about 20 m to the
south. (8-8a)

NZ 076 376. Medieval settlement. Scheduled No DU/96. (9)

A possible medieval platform is visible as an earthwork on air photographs situated in the pasture field, at NZ 0764 3761.
(10)



Sources :
Source Number : 1
Source :
Source details : OS 6" map 1924
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Source Number : 2
Source :
Source details : EJ Hildyard 1951 OS Hon Correspondent 6" map
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Source Number : 10
Source :
Source details : RAF/540/570 4173 30-JUL-1951
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Source Number : 3
Source :
Source details : Archaeol of Weardale Research Summary 1947 9 (E J WHildyard)
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Source Number : 4
Source :
Source details : Victoria County History, Durham 1 1905 360
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Source Number : 5
Source :
Source details : Proc Soc Antiq Newcastle 3rd S 1 1904 139 (Wooler)
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Source Number : 6
Source :
Source details : F1 DADavies/28-JUN-1957/OS Archaeology Division Field Investigator
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Source Number : 7
Source :
Source details : F2 RE/23-SEP-1974/OS Archaeology Division Field Investigator
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Source Number : 8
Source :
Source details : Mark Bowden/03-SEP-1991/RCHME: Durham SAMs Project
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Source Number : 8a
Source :
Source details : Pearson, N F. Wolsingham Excavations 1977 CBA Group 3 News Bull Ser 2 5 1978 (6)
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Source Number : 9
Source :
Source details : English Heritage SAM List Durham March 1994 12
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Monument Types:
Monument Period Name : Medieval
Display Date : Medieval
Monument End Date : 1540
Monument Start Date : 1066
Monument Type : Enclosure, Platform, Well, Manor House, Moat
Evidence : Documentary Evidence, Earthwork, Structure
Components and Objects:
Related Records from other datasets:
External Cross Reference Source : Scheduled Monument Legacy (County No.)
External Cross Reference Number : DU 96
External Cross Reference Notes :
External Cross Reference Source : SMR Number (Durham)
External Cross Reference Number : 2505
External Cross Reference Notes :
External Cross Reference Source : National Monuments Record Number
External Cross Reference Number : NZ 03 NE 6
External Cross Reference Notes :
Related Warden Records :
Related Activities :
Associated Activities :
Activity type : EXCAVATION
Start Date : 1904-01-01
End Date : 1904-12-31
Associated Activities :
Activity type : FIELD OBSERVATION (VISUAL ASSESSMENT)
Start Date : 1957-06-28
End Date : 1957-06-28
Associated Activities :
Activity type : FIELD OBSERVATION (VISUAL ASSESSMENT)
Start Date : 1974-09-23
End Date : 1974-09-23
Associated Activities :
Activity type : EXCAVATION
Start Date : 1977-01-01
End Date : 1977-12-31
Associated Activities :
Activity type : MEASURED SURVEY
Start Date : 1991-06-01
End Date : 1991-12-01
Associated Activities :
Activity type : AERIAL PHOTOGRAPH INTERPRETATION
Start Date : 2007-04-11
End Date : 2007-08-31