Monument record 0022600000 - WOTTON UNDERWOOD

Summary

Seventeenth century records of village deserted in the eighteenth century on building of country house - Settlement of Wotton Underwood deserted during the 17th and 18th century as a result of emparking of Wotton House. The village is shown on a plan of 1649 plan as a linear development extending over a distance of 1.5 miles from Yeat Farm to All Saint's Church which is now the nucleus of the modern village. Field investigations carried out in 1977 located slight earthworks possibly associated with the village.

Protected Status/Designation

Archaeological Notification Area: Earthworks of Medieval village of Wotton Underwood, deserted in the eighteenth century (DBC8977)

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Type and Period (1)

SHRUNKEN VILLAGE (Medieval to Post-Medieval - 1066 AD to 1798 AD)

Description

Map of 1649 shows a more-or-less linear shaped village running approx NE to SW under present Wotton House & probably part of lake (B1).
C17 map probably shows this village (B2).
C18 desertion. Grenvilles Manor house lies over part of village; church still remains. A late emparking (B3).
Part of Wotton Underwood village lies under manor house, part under lake & more in parkland; a few model cottages & a farm seem to have been built on another part (B4).
Parkland given its present pattern between 1704 & 1714. The 1649 plan shows 65 houses but there are now fewer than 10, all near the church. Shape of old village bears the strong imprint of its origin in a woodland clearing. Houses set along forest edge. Now little signs of where old village lay, though irregularities in paddocks near church visible & others at N end of park (B5).
Some house closes etc visible in aerial photos (B6).
A few probable house platforms visible to SE of track between Middle & Yeat Farms; also some amorphous earthworks in field centred SP68501580. Extent of original village plotted from above sources, especially the 1649 map (B7).

(Centred SP 685168) DMV of Wotton Underwood, excellent documentation with fairly good street and confused earthworks. Deserted as a result of emparking, mainly during the 17th and 18th centuries (B5, B14, B15, B16).

Medieval Wotton is shown on the 1649 plan as a linear development extending 1 1/2 miles from SP 689178 (Yeat Farm area) to SP 688159 (All Saint's Church) which is now the nucleus of the modern village.
The 18th century emparking, the later re-allocation of ground to arable, to allotments, and the recent uprooting of all parkland trees has produced insignificant minor earthworks but no clear evidence of the former village the linear centre of which was at SP 685170 (B17).
NRHE inseet 1998 (B18).

This record includes National Record of the Historic Environment Information provided by Historic England on 4 June 2025 licensed under the Open Government Licence.

Sources (25)

---SBC17265 Aerial Photograph: 01/07/75. BCM A1/3/15. SP\684167. Yes.
---SBC17358 Aerial Photograph: 01/11/88. BCM A13/8/7. SP\684158. Yes.
---SBC17359 Aerial Photograph: 01/11/88. BCM A13/8/8. SP\682158. Yes.
---SBC17386 Aerial Photograph: 05/02/90. BCM A14/7/23. SP\683158. Yes.
---SBC18040 Aerial Photograph: 23/01/76. GAS 218.3447. SP\689176. Yes.
---SBC18041 Aerial Photograph: 23/01/76. GAS 218.3448. SP\690171. Yes.
---SBC20719 Aerial Photograph: Michael Farley. 2001. 2001 Michael Farley oblique AP. SP68151609. Yes.
<1>SBC4657 Map: 1649. WOTTON UNDERWOOD ESTATE MAP 1649.
<2>SBC4664 Map: ESTATE MAP OF DODDERSHALL ?PRE-1600.
<3>SBC1646 Bibliographic reference: BERESFORD M W 1953 NOTES ON BUCKS DMV'S(CAS FILE O 000);BERESFORD M W & HURST J G 1971 DESERTED MEDI.
<4>SBC1637 Article in serial: BERESFORD M W 1951 LOST VILLAGES OF MEDIEVAL ENGLA ND IN GEOGRAPHICALJOURNAL117PP142-143"".
<5>SBC1649 Bibliographic reference: BERESFORD M W 1957 HISTORY ON THE GROUND PP226-228.
<6>SBC118 Bibliographic reference: A/P'S AT BCM.
<7>SBC7355 Bibliographic reference: LAWS D & PIKE A R,15 SEPT 1977,FIELD VISIT;COMMENT BY A R PIKE,JAN 1978.
<8>SBC19524 Article in serial: David Thorpe. 2001. 'Wotton Underwood, Professor Beresford and the search for lost villages', in BAS Newsletter, Spring 2001.
<9>SBC22238 Verbal communication: 1978. June Strong and Mike Farley (BCM) pers comm Oct 1978.
<10>SBC22237 Unpublished document: Ordnance Survey Field Investigator. Ordnance Survey record card SP 61 NE:1.
<11>SBC22929 Unpublished document: John Moore Heritage Services. 2007. An Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment of South Pavilion, Wotton House, Wotton Underwood. p 16.
<12>SBC23316 Unpublished document: John Moore Heritage Services. 2007. Archaeological Evaluation Report: The South Pavilion, Wotton Underwood.
<13>SBC23774 Unpublished document: John Moore Heritage Services. 2008. Groundworks for a New Tennis Court, the South Pavilion, Wotton Underwood: Archaeological Comments.
<14>SBC28488 Unpublished document: Moated Sites Research Group. 1957. Moated Sites Reaserch Group Report, 1957.
<15>SBC28489 Aerial Photograph: J K St Joseph. Aerial photograph - J K St Joseph, AFL 65 RZ 84.
<16>SBC28490 Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1947. RAF CPE/UK/2159 4095-7, 13.6.47.
<17>SBC28491 Verbal communication: Norman Victor Quinnell. 1977. Field Investigator Comments - F1 NVQ 07-FEB-77.
<18>SBC27441 Digital archive: Historic England. National Record of the Historic Environment (NRHE).

Location

Grid reference	Centred SP 68659 16779 (1219m by 2243m) (2 map features)
Civil Parish	WOTTON UNDERWOOD, Aylesbury Vale, Buckinghamshire

Finds (0)

Related Monuments/Buildings (3)

Related Events/Activities (1)

Event - Intervention: Archaeological Intervention: SOUTH PAVILION, WOTTON HOUSE (Ref: WUSP07) (EBC17513)

Record last edited

Dec 1 2025 1:45PM