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RIPPLE MANOR

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DESCRIPTION

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Medieval moated manor house, depicted on maps. Earthworks of the moat with a building platform within the interior survive. Earthworks of a deserted settlement, asssociated with the manor are also present.

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[TQ 8188 5665] Moat [GT] (1)

On an estate map dated 1707, the site of the moat is described
as the site of the old manor house of Ripple dated approximately
to the thirteenth century.
[See TQ 85 NW 2] (2).

Homestead moat in good condition and water-filled. (3)
Survey of 23.11.61 revised. (4)

TQ 819566. Ripple. Listed as a medieval moated site. (5-6)

The Country Records Office has two estate maps, (7-8), showing
holdings adjacent to the Ripple estate. Both depict, in isolation,
the position of the moat with the legend "Site of the Old Mansion
House of Ripple". Additionally the Biss map relates the tradition
that it was one of the "lurking places" of Jack Cade after the
failure of the 1450 rebellion. (7-8)

A moated enclosure originally about 80m. long and 50m. wide overall,
formed by cutting into a slight S.W. slope, necessitating embanking
on the lower S.W.side. The moat is now so heavily silted that
the retaining bank, 7m. wide is merely 0.6m. high, whilst on the
NE side the moat base is 1.3m. below field level outside. The
moat is seasonally dry, but may be fed by a spring as well as modern
land drains which protrude from the field to the N.E. An old
concrete sluice is set into the bank on the S.E. side.
The moat varies in width from 7m. to 15m. Cattle and erosion seem to
have distorted the plan of the house platform which is now off-centre
and of irregular out-line. Its maximum length (N.W. to S.E.) is 50m., and its width 30m; its height is from 0.5m to 0.7m. The
platform is level and exhibits a series of excavations which were
never backfilled, one long trench and three squarish patches. In
one, at a depth of 0.5m the footings of a building have been exposed,
2.5m. long and 0.5m. wide, formed of roughly shaped stone blocks
and mortared flints. A quantity of broken roofing tiles is in
upcast debris.

Both platform and moat are overgrown with oak,hazel and hornbeam,
an extension of the coppiced wood to the S.W.

As the site of the manor of Ripple, the earthwork seems well attested
the name continuing in a 17th and 18th century house of some
pretension, 200m. to the S.E.,
(TQ 85 NW 2).

The old manor house was situated at the head of a broad shallow
valley. On higher ground immediately S.W. of the present Ripple
there are two ha. of pasture which, on a western slope, show a number
of undulations, hollows and amorphous earthworks. These are mostly
visible in low light and while not readily surveyable suggest the
possibility of an area of minor desertion, centered at TQ 81955657,
and probably associated with the medieval manor. (9).

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 6" 1961

( 2a) General reference

C E Fisher, Assistant curator, Maidstone Museum.

( 2) General reference

O N B May 1907 revised Aug 1939 3 & 48

( 3) Field Investigators Comments

F1 CFW 25-NOV-61

( 4) Field Investigators Comments

F2 ASP 27-JUN-63

( 5) Kent Archaeological Society Archaeologia Cantiana : being contributions to the history and archaeology of Kent

T Tatton-Brown 93 (1977) Page(s)221

( 6) Moated Sites Research Group report

6 (1979) Page(s)47

( 7) General reference

Survey of Land of the Hon Wm Belford 1755 by Benjamin Biss

( 8) General reference

Survey of Land by John Cage 1707 John Watts with additions 1746 Thos Hogben

( 9) Field Investigators Comments

F3 NVQ 10-OCT-86

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