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Upper Aldress Moated Site is a medieval moated site located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference MG118. The site sits upon bedrock of Llanvirn Rocks formation, consisting of undifferentiated mudstone, siltstone and sandstone deposits laid down during the Whiterock period. The geology provides the foundation for understanding the landscape in which this medieval settlement was established.
Moated sites such as Upper Aldress typically comprised a residential enclosure surrounded by a water-filled or damp ditch, often associated with a modest manor house or substantial farmstead. The site's location in Wales places it within the context of medieval settlement patterns in the region, where such fortified domestic sites served both defensive and status-conveying functions for their occupants during the medieval period.
The Llanvirn bedrock underlying the site would have influenced drainage patterns and the availability of water for maintaining the moat itself. This geological setting shaped the practical and strategic considerations of those who selected this location for settlement, making Upper Aldress a testament to how medieval communities worked within their natural landscape whilst establishing order and protection through the distinctive moated enclosure form.
Upper Aldress Moated Site is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MG118. View the official record →
Upper Aldress Moated Site is a medieval moated site located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference MG118.
Upper Aldress Moated Site dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a moated site. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Upper Aldress Moated Site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Cadw — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Wales. The official designation reference is MG118.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Bishop's Moat Mound & Bailey Castle (6.2 km), Offa's Dyke: Section from Road Junction near Drewin to County Boundary (6.8 km), Offa's Dyke: section 1/2 mile (800m) long, SE from county boundary to River Unk Also in Powys: Wales (7.1 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Upper Aldress Moated Site's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Upper Aldress Moated Site stands on Llanvirn Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Whiterock. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.