More information : (SU 19998385) Moat (L.B.) (1)
A broad, deep moat at Wanborough Marsh (formerly called Court
Close or Old Court) encloses a rectangular space 135ft x 100ft.
Documentary evidence suggests that a chapel dedicated to St.
Catherine stood at this site from the 13th c. until 1483 when it
was abandoned. This is supported by the finding in 1903 of a large
collection of 14th c. encaustic tiles of which Passmore had a
half hundred-weight. A lead coffin was found c.1861 with human
remains near the cottage at the S.E. end. The coffin was eventually
sold for scrap. (2)
Except for a 30 metre length of bank at SU 20018380 the whole of
the moat has been filled in and the associated earthwork, at
SU 20008377, flattened. A drainage ditch along the S.W. and W.
sides is the only indication of the approximate original course.
Several amorphous undulations in the southern corner of the moat
may indicate the site of the chapel though no definite conclusions
can be drawn from ground inspection. The name "Old Court" suggests
that this was a manorial complex of which the chapel was merely
a part. (3)
St Katharine’s Chapel was founded in 1270 by Emily Longespée (died circa 1276), widow of Stephen Longespée, lord of the manor of Wanborough. She endowed it with a small estate in order to support two chaplains and a clerk. In 1280 further land was granted and another priest was appointed. In 1292 access to the Chapel was via a gate between the ‘great fishpond’ and the boundary of the warden’s house, and the Victoria County History (1970) states that it is thus likely that the chapel was situated on the moated site at Old Court, at the Marsh. Historic records indicate that Old Court included a number of other buildings, such as a chamber, a wardrobe for priests’ vestments and chapel ornaments, and a granary, suggesting it was a manorial complex. In 1329 Robert of Wanborough granted further property for the maintenance of another chaplain, and in circa 1334 there seem to have been proposals to use some of the land for a new foundation to support two chaplains, either in the parish church or in St. Katharine’s Chapel. In 1336 the Chapel’s endowments were maintaining two chaplains and a warden thus following the rules of the original foundation and celebrating mass for the Bishop of Salisbury and members of the Wanborough family. Obituaries were kept in the chapel for Emily Longespée and Robert of Wanborough. In 1483 Francis, Viscount Lovel, sold the Chapel and its estate to William Waynflete, Bishop of Winchester. In that same year he conveyed the property to Magdalen College, Oxford. College Fellows preached at the Chapel on St Katharine’s Day and at other times. An inventory of 1484 indicates the Chapel must have been of considerable size and included numerous books, a chalice with the Lovel arms, various vestments and ornaments and a casket of relics. Offerings were still made in 1535, but the Chapel was otherwise little used. It was probably demolished in 1549.
In the 1860s tiles and an inhumation were recovered from the site. During field investigations in 1965, it was found that, except for a 30 metre length of bank, the entire moat had been filled in and the associated earthworks had been levelled. A drainage ditch along the southwest and west sides was the only indication of the approximate original course. Several amorphous undulations in the south corner of the former moated island may indicate the site of the chapel though no definite conclusions could be made. In 1972 several tonnes of building rubble were dumped on the site, which were subsequently removed. In the later 20th century four bungalows were built in the south-eastern part of the moat and island. In 2008 a skeleton was found at Moat Cottage, near the site of the recovered inhumation found in the 1860s. Recently, the pond within the moated site was filled in.
As stated in ‘Annex 1: Criteria for assessing the national importance of monuments’ as incorporated within the DCMS publication on Scheduling, published in March 2010, relevant considerations for the selection of archaeological sites for national designation are archaeological potential, degree of rarity, level of documentation, group value, survival and/or condition, fragility and/or vulnerability, and the degree of diversity.
Moated sites are one of the most characteristic settlement types in the medieval period and thousands were constructed in England, many of which have survived. Given their numbers and high survival rates, greater selection is needed when assessing them for national designation with their archaeological survival and potential being key considerations.
The St Katherine’s Chapel Site is not designated for the following principal reasons:
The site has been considerably disturbed by later alteration including the infilling of the moat, redevelopment of part of the former site, and the levelling of the associated earthworks. Its survival is therefore poor.
Although there is some potential for the preservation of archaeological deposits relating to the construction and use of the chapel site, the degree of disturbance is such that the potential of the site must be considered to be low.
Despite its considerable documentary history, the site of St Katherine’s Chapel does not survive sufficiently well to be considered to be of national importance. Nevertheless, the site is clearly of local interest and as such remains an important local landmark. (4) |