What is a fishpond (medieval)?

What a fishpond (medieval) is

Fishponds were dug into the ground, built up with embankments, or made by damming a narrow valley, and groups of ponds were linked by channels and sluices so that water levels could be controlled. Historic England notes that the tradition began in the medieval period and peaked in the 12th century, and that construction declined after the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century. About 2,000 examples are recorded in England, thought to be only a small proportion of those that existed. Ponds were placed close to villages, manors and monasteries, or within parks, so that they could be watched to prevent poaching.

How fishpond (medieval)s look on LiDAR

A dry fishpond shows as a flat-bottomed rectangular or square hollow with straight sides, often one of a series of ponds stepped down a valley or set side by side, with banks or dams between them and channels feeding them. Sky-view factor and negative openness show the hollows and channels clearly, and a local relief model shows the dams and leats. Ponds that still hold water appear as flat surfaces with no detail, because water returns little or no laser signal.

See LiDAR visualisations explained for what each method shows.

What can look like one

Marl pits, clay and gravel pits, mill ponds, flax-retting ponds, ornamental garden ponds and natural hollows can look like fishponds. Fishponds usually have regular shapes, level bases and a planned inflow and outlet.

Protection

Many medieval fishponds are scheduled monuments, often as part of a monastic site, manor or deserted village, protected in England by the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 and in Wales by the Historic Environment (Wales) Act 2023.

Examples on the LiDAR

Where they are

Counties with the most fishpond (medieval)s that have a page here.