Medieval moat, site of St Mary's Church, North east of Chignal Hall (EHER 990)

Homestead moat at supposed site of St Mary's Church, 0.75 miles north west of St James's Church.

Original HER entry merged with NRHE data import. Homestead moat at supposed site of St Mary's Church, 0.75 miles north west of St James's Church. <1> Roughly triangular site, apex of two longest sides being to the east. In 1923 Miller Christy wrote of the manor of Chignall Tany, that the church had fallen into decay early in the 16th century but the site was still obvious, on a piece of high ground, around 190ft, around 0.75 acres in extent, at a sharp angle of the road nearly a mile north west of Chignal St James Church, opposite the present Chignal School. Christy refers to the school headmaster `recently' finding a bronze Nuremberg token, probably 15th century, on the site which was presented to the Colchester Museum. House was presented to the Colchester Museum. House on site is around 1930 and within living memory there were some old cottages, including a shop. <2> <3> <6> Rough sketch on back of SMR sheet shows moat, ditch to north and uneven ground suggested as the church site. <4> The only water feature is an isolated pond. This, with field drainage ditches, forms garden boundary of St Mary's Cottage (modern). Doesn't form part of a moat but enclosed an irregular, slightly raised area without traces of building. No trace of supposed chapel here or within former field called St Mary's Croft (centred TL 666105). <5> <6> Moat around 20ft , up to 6ft deep. Surface finds included a fragment of carved stone, part of window? Enclosure slightly raised at east end. Moat wet, located opposite disused school. <7> <11> Other refs: <7> - <11> Site Assessment = Moat on south side is wide and deep. Present owner and family are clearing it of old trees and rubbish. Only threat would seem to be from the ordinary operations of gardening. <2> Accession number if jetton in Colchester Museum? Watching brief, 1978 TL 665107. A ditch, backfilled in the mid-late 19th century was discovered when machine trenches were dug as soakaways at Hillside Cottage, adjacent to St Mary's Cottage. The ditch is presumably associated with the moat. <13> The Church of St Mary had been demolished by the 18th century; the parish was united with Chignall St James and Chignall Smenly in 1888, to form simply Chignal. The site of St Mary's Church was formerly laid out as a garden called `St Mary's Croft', but a house has been built within the area of the churchyard in recent years. The exact position of the church is uncertain. <14>