Monument record 0132500000 - NE of North Middle Lodge

Dimensions - Length 0022 m Width 0016
Plan Form - OBLONG
SMALL OBLONG BANKED ENCLOSURE & OTHER BANKS; SMALL EMBANKED, WATERFILLED POND AT NGR IS SURROUNDED BY MARSHY GROUND INTO WHICH 2 SPRINGS FLOW. THIS WAS FORMERLY FLOODED TO CREATE A MOAT-LIKE FEATURE AROUND THE POND, THE WATER BEING CONTAINED BY AN EARTHEN BAY ON NW SIDE, WHICH IS NOW BREACHED. THE FEATURE WAS OF AN ORNAMENTAL NATURE BUT PROBABLY ALSO SUPPORTED WILDFOWL. IT IS OF NO GREAT AGE (B1).
SHOWN AT NGR (B2).

A post-medieval system of ponds and water channels are visible on historic aerial photographs and remote sensing data as earthworks and were mapped as part of the North Buckinghamshire Aerial Investigation and Mapping project (EBC18304). Located within a small meadow in a narrow valley opposite Great Brickhill Manor and centred at SP 90155 31090, the features comprise a small subrectangular pond, surrounding which is an earthwork bank, on the northeast corner of which there is an opening. The pond sits within a much more extensive system of interconnected water channels that extend along the valley NW-SE for 370 metres, next to which are a series of earthwork banks, mounds and platforms that may be the upcast from construction of the ditches or pond. The function of these features is uncertain. If ornamental, then possibly it is associated with Great Brickhill Manor. Whilst none of the features are recorded on the 1881 1st edition OS map, a private gasworks and ‘tank’ are identified on the boundary of the manor grounds opposite the site, with a hydraulic pump/ram and another tank in the woodland a few metres to the north of the pond, so perhaps these water management features are associated with more industrial activity? On aerial photographs taken in 2019 and recent remote sensing data, the features remain visible (3-7).