Monument record MDO134 - Deer park, Athelhampton

A deer park encircled by a bank and ditch. The surviving bank is substantial, in places 14 feet wide and up to 6 feet high, and the ditch about 10 feet wide. The circuit cannot be traced fully, but is thought to have enclosed a park of around 160 acres.

(Centred SY 775936) Athelhampton Park appears in the Patent Rolls of 1495 when licence was granted to William Martyn and his heirs to fortify their manor of 'Adlampston' and to impark and enclose with pales 100 acres of their lands called 'Adlampston Parc' and 60 acres called 'le Est' and 'le Mydel Closes'. 'Adlampston Parc' appears to have been in existence before 1495, and on this evidence Cantor and Wilson thought it reasonable to assume that a Medieval embarked park was augmented by the additions not necessarily embanked or ditched, but enclosed by paling and fencing only. (For extent of park boundary and conjectured portions see plans 1 and 2.) <1>

SY 771940 - 776933. A deer pale is marked by a length of bank and ditch extending from the south east corner of the parish, across Park Hill, towards the parish church. The bank is 14ft wide and from 3ft to 6ft high with a ditch about 10ft wide. Although the circuit cannot be fully traced, the pale probably enclosed about 160 acres. <2>

'Parci de Athelamstone' is mentioned in 1270 and again as 'Adlampston Parc' in 1495. <3>

Well defined portion of park boundary visible from SY 77179354 to SY 77379337 on available RAF air photographs. <4>

Athelhampton Park pale remains generally as described above and on Plan 2. The ditch between SY 77149361 and SY 77569325 is only intermittently visible now. Surveyed at 1:2500 on MSD. <5>

<1> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1967, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1966, 177-180 (Serial). SDO66.

<2> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume III (Central) Part 1, 13 (Monograph). SDO146.

'(3) Deer Pale (771940 - 776933) is marked by a length of bank and ditch extending from the S.E. corner of the parish, across Park Hill, towards the parish church. The bank is 14 ft. wide and from 3 ft. to 6 ft. high; the ditch is about 10 ft. wide. Although the circuit cannot be fully traced the pale probably enclosed about 160 acres, including a small part of Burleston parish (Dorset Procs., 88 (1967), 177-80)'.

<3> Mills, A D, 1977, The place-names of Dorset, Part 1: the Isle of Purbeck, the hundreds of Rowbarrow, Hasler, Winfrith, Culliford Tree, Bere Regis, Barrow, Puddletown St George, 300 (Monograph). SWX972.

<3.1> 1372, Cartulary of Christchurch Priory (1372) in BM (Cotton Tib. D V1) (Unpublished document). SDO20173.

<4> Royal Air Force, 17-JAN-1947, RAF/CPE/UK/1934 4072-3 (Aerial Photograph). SDO13354.

<5> Barton, J G, Various, Field Investigators Comments JGB, F1 JGB 23-JAN-81 (Unpublished document). SDO11900.

<6> National Record of the Historic Environment, 454936 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Sep 27 2023 10:50AM