Monument record MBC48540 - Ridge and furrow field systems in the parish of Stoke Mandeville

Ridge and furrow field systems, with plough headlands, furlong boundaries, field boundaries and ditches medieval and post medieval date are visible on historic aerial photographs and remote sensing data as extant earthworks, levelled earthworks, cropmarks and were mapped as part of the Aylesbury Vale Aerial Investigation and Mapping project (EBC18604). Located within the parish of Stoke Mandeville and centred at SP 83214 10524. The parish of Stoke Mandeville is a long linear parish at the foot of the Chilterns escarpment and most of the furlong boundaries appear to follow the long axis of the parish boundaries, aligned north west to south east, with the ridges at 90 degrees to this orientation. The northernmost field systems have been redeveloped for housing as part of the expansion of both Aylesbury and Stoke Mandeville and the earthworks are now gone. The expansion of arable land use in the second half of the 20th century has resulted in the levelling of large parts of these earthworks and the construction of High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) has also removed any further remains. Where earthworks do remain it tends to be closer to settlements, where land use may have remained as pasture/grazing land for longer. The furlong boundaries continue across and ‘under’ the post inclosure/modern field patterns; the parish was inclosed in 1798. Where earthworks do remain they are characteristic of both medieval and post medieval ploughing. (1-30)