Scheduled Monuments›England›Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park

Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park

England
List entry 1015953
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1015953
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
4.92 hectares
Grid reference
SU 42963 66400, SU 42577 65575, SU 42474 65359, SU 42187 65597, SU 42013 65863, SU 41960 66334, SU 42166 66626, SU 42349 66815, SU 42482 66882
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic England (NHLE)

Overview

History & significance

Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park is a linear earthwork of medieval date, consisting of a bank and ditch that formerly enclosed or defined areas within the park landscape. The monument represents the physical infrastructure associated with the management of Hamstead Marshall Park, which developed around the substantial house built by the First Earl of Craven in the seventeenth century. The pale would have functioned to control access and movement through the parkland, a common feature of aristocratic estates during the early modern period. The earthwork survives as a substantial ridge and furrow formation within the modern park, preserving evidence of the designed landscape and property management practices of the post-medieval era.

Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1015953. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park?

Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park is a linear earthwork of medieval date, consisting of a bank and ditch that formerly enclosed or defined areas within the park landscape. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1015953.

Who is responsible for protecting Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park?

Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1015953.

What other scheduled monuments are near Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Round barrow cemetery on Wash Common. (2.9 km), Two bowl barrows: part of a barrow cemetery on Wash Common. (3.1 km), Deserted medieval town of Newtown (5.4 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Domesday
The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
LiDAR
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

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Nearby

Other scheduled monuments within 10 km

Round barrow cemetery on Wash Common.
2.9 km
Two bowl barrows: part of a barrow cemetery on Wash Common.
3.1 km
Deserted medieval town of Newtown
5.4 km
Cruise missile shelter complex, Greenham Common Airbase
5.9 km
Walbury camp
7.3 km
A cross dyke and bowl barrow on the northern spur of Beacon Hill
9.2 km
Large univallate hillfort at Beacon Hill
9.6 km
Round barrow on Rabbit Warren
9.8 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park

Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park stands on Lambeth Group, bedrock that formed in the Paleocene. The rock here is clay, silt, sand and gravel.

The wider landscape

Around Park Pale in Hamstead Marshall Park

SilchesterRoman town · ~13.2 milesMildenhallRoman town · ~13.4 milesDorchester-on-ThamesRoman town · ~19.5 milesWest Kennet Long BarrowArchaeological site · ~20.2 milesFirst Battle of NewburyBattle (1643) · ~1.6 milesBattle of Chalgrove 1643Battle (1643) · ~23.7 miles
Domesday entry for Enborne, Berkshire →
All Scheduled Monuments