Scheduled Monument: A good example of a Norman motte castle.
Small motte 19ft high. Ditch almost filled in <1a>
Steep sided motte with base diameter of 24m, height 5.5m and summit diameter of 5m. No traces of surrounding ditch. OS FI 1973 <1>
Apart from the W side the motte is in good condition. The ditch on the N side has been completely filled in but is still visible at the SW corner of the mound. The motte still retains its original steep sided profile. M. Watson FI 1984 <5>
Evaluated for MPP in 1990-1, Medium score as one of 43 Motte castles. <10>
Scheduling affirmed in 1995. Scheduling description: ->
The monument includes the remains of a small motte castle situated in the valley bottom on the west side of a tributary of the River Kemp in the village of Colebatch. It includes a well defined steep sided mound with a base diameter of 22m rising 5.5m high to a rounded summit with a diameter of 5m. The surrounding ditch, from which material would have been quarried for the construction of the mound, has been almost completely filled in but remains visible as a slight surface depression up to 2.5m wide around the south west quarter of the motte and will be preserved as a buried feature of similar proportions around the remaining sides of the motte. <11>
Photographed during aerial survey in 2009. <12>
| [00] | SSA20722 - Card index: Shropshire County Council SMR. Site and Monuments Record (SMR) cards. SMR record cards. SMR Card for PRN SA 00146. |
| [01a] | SSA178 - Volume: Victoria County History. 1908. Victoria County History 1. Victoria County History of Shropshire. Vol 1. p383 with plan. |
| [01] | SSA713 - Card index: Ordnance Survey. 1973. Ordnance Survey Record Card SO38NW5. Ordnance Survey record cards. SO38NW5. |
| [02] | SSA16138 - Oblique aerial photograph: Musson Chris R. 1987-Jan-03. CPAT 87/01/0032 to 0033 (2 photos). |
| [03] | SSA717 - Field Monument Warden Report: Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission (HBMC). 1986. Scheduled Monument Report on SAM 20096. |
| [04] | SSA475 - Monograph: Bird A J. 1977. History on the Ground. p100. |
| [05] | SSA718 - Site visit report: Watson Michael D. 1980/ 1989. Visit Notes, 1984. |
| [06] | SSA716 - Photograph: Anon. 1984. Colebatch Motte. Colour. |
| [07] | SSA714 - Scheduled Monument notification: Department of the Environment (DoE). Map of Scheduled area. |
| [08] | SSA712 - Correspondence: Department of the Environment (DoE). 1988. Correspondence, 1988. |
| [10] | SSA20084 - TEXT: Horton Wendy B. 1990/ 1991. MPP Evaluation File. |
| [11] | SSA715 - Scheduled Monument notification: English Heritage. 1995. Scheduling Papers (Affirmation, 19/05/1995). 19186. |
| [12] | SSA25879 - Oblique aerial photograph: Shropshire Council. 2009-Jan-6. SA0901_229 to SA0901_232 (4 photos) Flight: 09_SA_01. Colour. Digital. |
| [13] | SSA22230 - Online database: National Monuments Record (NMR). Pastscape (National Record for the Historic Environment - NRHE). https://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=107121. |