Monument record 677 - Kirby (aka Kirby Grounds)

Kirby deserted medieval village. Converted to pasture in 1487. The main street, some steadings and enclosures are still visible on the ground.

{1} Field name: Kirby Grounds

{2} Documentary reference: Kirby deserted medieval village is not mentioned in Domesday by name but is possibly the small manor under Blakesley, with a recorded population of two. The manor was granted to the St. Johns Hospitallers in about 1194. It is mentioned on the Nomina Villarum of 1316 and in 1361 the Hospitallers' manor was described as '1 messuage and 1 carucate in Kirby'.
The earthworks of the village are in good condition, though most of the site has been ploughed in ridge and furrow following abandonment. The remains of this ploughing, in two main blocks, are very slight and cannot represent more than one or two years' cultivation. Plan.

{4} Kirby (in Blakesley) DMV SP 636 495. In 1487 a lessee from St John's Hospitallers who had been granted the site in 1194, destroyed 5 houses and enclosed and converted 300 acres to pasture but possibly not all in Kirby itself. In 1547 the pastures in the vicinity were grazed by 1,000 sheep. Now one farm survives. The earthworks were in good condition in 1958.

{5} The limits of the village and its remaining features are clearly visible at Kirby Grounds.

{6} The "main street" some steadings and enclosures are still visible on the ground. See annotated 25" survey.

<1> 1958, OS 6 INCH MAP, SP64NW (unchecked) (Map). SNN14082.

<2> Royal Commission on The Historical Monuments of England, 1982, An Inventory of The Historical Monuments in The County of Northampton, p.173-74 Site 1 (checked) (Series). SNN77382.

<3> Ordnance Survey, 1950s/1960s, Ordnance Survey Record Cards, SP64NW1 (unchecked) (Index). SNN443.

<4> Allison K.J.; Beresford M.W.; Hurst J.G. et al, 1966, The Deserted Villages of Northamptonshire, p.41 (unchecked) (Report). SNN39628.

<5> Aerial Photograph, APs (RAF CPE/UK/1926 1046, 7 16.1.47) (Photographs). SNN112974.

<5> Ryland, W, Adkins, D, and Serjeantson, R M, 1902, The Victoria History of the Counties of England: Northamptonshire, p.332 (checked) (Series). SNN100368.

<6> Seaman, B H, 1970, Field Investigator's Comments, F1 BHS 10-FEB-1970 (Notes). SNN111541.

<7> Aerial Photograph, AP (CUAP XT40-1) (Photographs). SNN112974.

Record last edited

Jan 31 2025 2:56PM