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Summary

Medieval moat at Brightley Barton was constructed around a house built in the 12th century which was replaced by a house to the east in the early 17th century

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II*) 1079490: STONE RETAINING WALLS FORMING MOAT CIRCA 5-10 METRES WEST OF BRIGHTLY BARTON
• Scheduled Monument 1016230: Brightley Barton moated site
• SHINE: Earthworks of the former site of a medieval manor house and surviving moat, Listed wall of walled garden and traditional farm buildings, marked on nineteenth century mapping, within the curtilege of a Listed Farmhouse at Brightley Barton

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: 34448
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SS62SW/36
• Old Listed Building Ref (II*): 443220
• Old SAM County Ref: 292
• Old SAM Ref: 30307
• Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division: SS62SW2

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• MOAT (XI to XVI - 1100 AD to 1600 AD (Between))

Full description

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

'Moat' shown on 19th century map.

Chanter, J. F., 1908 - 1909, Unknown, 8 (Article in Serial). SDV86204.

Unknown, 1938, Proceedings at the 77th Annual Meeting held at Barnstaple, 25-17 (Article in Serial). SDV83612.

The site came into the ownership of the Fitzwarrens about 1190, and by the Giffords about 1500, and it is they who built the moat. A new house was built in the 16th century. Other details: Paper by G F Tregelles.

Ministry of Works, 1953, Brightly Barton Moated Site (Schedule Document). SDV345215.

A rectangular moat on three sides about 170 feet square (52 square metres). Lined and walled with coarsed masonry and wet. The present house built circa 1600 stands to the east outside the open side of the moat.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1953 - 1970, SS62SW2 (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV345213.

A well preserved and restored moat, the inner sides stone revetted so there is some retention of water. It can never have enclosed the present house, so either represents Early Medieval Brightley or, is an 18th or 19th century ornamental feature. Provisionally accepted as Medieval.
Water filled, with near vertical drystone revetments. Average dimensions 4.2 metres wide, 1.4 metres deep. No trace of east portion. A retaining bank around the outside of the three arms. No visible remains of a building within the moat. Other details: Plan.

Andrews, J. H. B., 1962, Chittlehampton, 245 (Article in Serial). SDV82648.

Brightley is first mentioned in the 12th century. The moat which surrounded William Fitzwarrens 12th century house still partly remains.

Grinsell, L. V., 1970, The Archaeology of Exmoor, 214 (Monograph). SDV1641.

Silvester, R. J. + Higham, R. A., 1980, Domestic Enclosures of Probable Medieval Date, 63-5 (Article in Serial). SDV55518.

Other details: Map.

Gallant, L., 1986, Deer Parks and Paddocks of England (Un-published). SDV656.

Department of Environment, 1988, Chittlehampton, 52 (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV86207.

Doe/hhr:chittlehampton/(8/1/1988)52.

Department of Environment, 1988, Untitled Source (Correspondence). SDV345212.

Chittlehampton. Brightley Barton moated site. Scheduled Monument Consent granted for clearance of silt and reinstatement of damaged portions of drystone walling.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport, 1997, Brightly Barton Moated Site (Schedule Document). SDV345217.

Brightly Barton moated site. The monument includes a rectangular moated site situated on a high ridge overlooking the valley of the River Taw. The monument survives as a three sided stone-faced moat with the fourth side surviving as a buried feature. The site defines an internal area now preserved within a garden. The south ditch is 37 metres long, 4 metres wide and 0.7 to 1.1 metres deep; the west ditch is 52.2 metres long, 4.1 metres wide, 0.8 to 1.4 metres deep; the north ditch is 38.7 metres long, 3.6 to 3.8 metres wide, 0.3 to 1 metre deep. All three sides are faced with drystone walling, the heights of the walls reflecting depth of moat. Walls well built with strong quoins, especially on internal corners. Around the ditch is a surrounding bank. In the south-west corner, where external facing of outer wall of moat is visible, it measures 2.3 metres long,.9 metres wide, 0.6 metres high. Outer bank on south side is 2.6 to 4.7 metres wide, up to 2 metres high; on the west side it is up to 4.3 metres wide, 2.3 metres high, with a tarmac road lying directly adjacent to west, and to the north it is up to 3.6 metres wide and 2.1 metres high with a rear vehicular farm track lying directly to north. The east side of the moat is preserved as a buried feature. In this area is a slight lyncheted earthwork running north to south, which measures 3 metres wide, 0.4 metres high and is partly overlain by the yards connected to the present farm buildings which were built in the 16th century. The area enclosed by moat shows some slight surface undulations although these may be due to horticultural practice since this area has been a long established garden. However, the interior does survive as a raised platform and retains old surfaces and structures as buried features. A bank survives around the outside of the enclosed area which measures up to 3 metres wide and 0.6 metres high. The moat retains water, especially in winter when the standing water may be reasonably deep. The site belonged to the Fitzwarrens in about 1190. By the 1500s it was owned by the Giffords, who built the present moat.

National Monuments Record, 2010, 34448 (National Monuments Record Database). SDV345214.

A rectangular Medieval moated site situated on a high ridge overlooking the valley of the River Taw. It survives as a three sided, stone-faced moat with the fourth side surviving as a buried feature. The southern ditch of the moat measures 37 metres long, 4 metres wide and is 0.7 metres to 1.1 metre deep; the western ditch is 52.2 metres long, 4.1 metres wide and is 0.8 to 1.4 metres deep; the northen ditch is 38.7 metres long, from 3.6 metres to 3.8 metres wide nad 0.3 to 1 metre deep. All three sides are faced with drystone walling. The area enclosed by the moat shows some slight surface undulations, although these may be due to horticultural practice since this area has been a long established garden. However, the interior does survive as a raised platform, and retains old surfaces and structures as buried features. The site belonged to the Fitzwarrens in about 1190. By the 1500s it was owned by the Giffords who built the present moat. The retaining walls to the north, west and south of the moat are Listed Grade II*. There is tradition of a ruined private chapel on the site. Scheduled.

English Heritage, 2010, Historic Houses Register (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV154869.

The stone retaining walls forming the moat circa 5-10 metres west of Brightly Barton was Listed on 8th January 1988. Medieval, but difficult to date with certainty. The stone rubble retaining walls, about three metres apart, form three sides of a square, the east side, nearest to the present barton, having been infilled. The moat is believed to be about three metres deep. The house originally stood in the centre of the site, before apparently being moved probably in the 17th century to its present site. The moat is a unique survival in North Devon; Devon is a county with very few moated sites. Other details: LBS Number 443220.

Ordnance Survey, 2010, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV344030.

Three sides of moat shown on modern mapping.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events: none recorded

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