Monument record MDO1888 - Deserted medieval settlement of Little Piddle, Piddlehinton

A deserted medieval village situated on the northern terrace of the River Piddle surviving as a series of earthworks extending over an area of 8 hectares. Little Piddle is mentioned in the Domesday Survey and was divided into two manors, the northern manor known as Coombe Deveral in Piddlehinton and the southern manor in Puddletown. These two manors remained as distinct land units with separate open field systems in different parishes until 1885.

These earthworks extend from the valley floor a short distance up the east and west sides. The position near a stream and construction are unlike that of a normal Iron Age/Romano-British settlement and the banked platforms and enclosures seem to indicate a Medieval deserted hamlet. <3> Fagersten recorded Coombe Deveral as an alternative name for Little Piddle Manor. Hutchen however records it as a separate manor. An examination of field boundaries suggest that the narrow strip of land now known as Little Puddle Bottom formed a separate strip of land unit, and indeed the field in this block presence the `Deveral' part of the place-name. Taylor suggests that Coombe Deveral settlement may lie at the extreme northern end of the earthwork SY 79 NW 6 and indeed be a part of them. <6> The earthworks of this deserted medieval settlement are generally as described by RCHM and in a good state of preservation. They are as depicted on RCHM plan, but the bank and ditch from SY 71649650 to SY 71739642 and at SY 71689648 has been ploughed out. Resurveyed at 1:2500 on MSD utilising RCHM survey. <9> SY 7191 9656: Deserted medieval village situated on the northern terrace of the River Piddle surviving as a series of earthworks extending over an area of 8 hectares. Little Piddle is mentioned in the Domesday Survey and was divided into 2 manors, the northern manor known as Coombe Deveral in Piddlehinton and the southern manor in Puddletown. These 2 manors remained as distinct land units with separate open field systems in different parishes until 1885. A series of low earthworks on the floodplain of the River Piddle represent water meadows characterised by a series of gullies aligned along the river valley served by a series of drainage channels. <11>

Record last edited

Sep 13 2022 4:03PM