Essex Historic Grazing Marsh Project
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Essex Historic Grazing Marsh Project February 2014 1 ESSEX HISTORIC GRAZING MARSH PROJECT Adrian Gascoyne and Maria Medlycott February 2014 Contents 1 INTRODUCTION................................................................................................. 5 1.1 Background................................................................................................... 5 1.2 Methodology.................................................................................................. 7 2 THE HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT OF COASTAL GRAZING MARSHES IN ESSEX ....................................................................................................................... 8 2.1 Historic Overview of the Coastal Landscape and Economy .......................... 8 2.1.1 Mesolithic period ..................................................................................... 8 2.1.2 Neolithic period ..................................................................................... 11 2.1.3 Bronze and Iron Ages period ................................................................ 11 2.1.4 Late Iron Age and Roman period .......................................................... 11 2.1.5 Saxon period ........................................................................................ 12 2.1.6 The medieval and post-medieval periods ............................................. 12 2.2 Biodiversity character of historic coastal grazing marshes .......................... 16 2.3 Historic Environment features of coastal grazing marshes ......................... 17 2.3.1 Characteristic (contemporary) features of coastal grazing marsh ......... 17 2.3.2 Characteristic non-contemporary features associated with coastal grazing marsh ................................................................................................... 28 2.4 Intangible heritage....................................................................................... 29 2.4.1 Place-names and land-ownership patterns ........................................... 29 2.4.2 Literature and art .................................................................................. 31 2.5 The contribution of historic coastal grazing marshes to ‘sense of place’..... 36 2.5.1 Perceptions and attitudes ..................................................................... 37 2.6 The significance of historic coastal grazing marsh in Essex........................ 40 2.6.1 Archaeological Potential ....................................................................... 43 2.6.2 Archaeological (non-contemporary) Association .................................. 44 2 2.6.3 Group Value (contemporary association) ............................................. 45 2.6.4 Diversity (of characteristic features) ..................................................... 47 2.6.5 Amenity................................................................................................. 47 2.6.6 Historical Association............................................................................ 49 2.6.7 Biodiversity ........................................................................................... 50 2.7 Losses of coastal grazing marsh: former coastal grazing marsh in Essex .. 51 2.7 Vulnerabilities of historic coastal grazing marsh and drivers of change ...... 54 2.7.1 Urbanization ......................................................................................... 54 2.7.2 Green Infrastructure ............................................................................. 55 2.7.3 Natural Environment Initiatives ............................................................. 55 2.7.4 Climate Change/Sea level rise (including SMP) ................................... 56 2.7.5 Agriculture and the loss of traditional management .............................. 57 3 Characterisation of the historic coastal grazing marsh resource ....................... 60 3.1 Historic Environment Character Descriptions for surviving coastal grazing marsh in Essex ..................................................................................................... 60 3.1.1 MARSH 2 .............................................................................................. 61 3.1.2 MARSH 4 .............................................................................................. 72 3.1.3 MARSH 5 .............................................................................................. 79 3.1.4 MARSH 6 .............................................................................................. 82 3.1.5 MARSH 7 .............................................................................................. 89 3.1.6 MARSH 8 .............................................................................................. 95 3.1.7 MARSH 9 ............................................................................................ 100 3.1.8 MARSH 11 .......................................................................................... 108 3.1.9 MARSH 13 .......................................................................................... 113 3.1.10 MARSH 15 ...................................................................................... 120 3.1.11 MARSH 16 ...................................................................................... 127 3.1.12 MARSH 17 ...................................................................................... 129 3.1.13 MARSH 19 ...................................................................................... 138 3.1.14 MARSH 21 ...................................................................................... 141 3.1.15 MARSH 22 ...................................................................................... 148 3.1.16 MARSH 23 ...................................................................................... 151 3.1.17 MARSH 24 ...................................................................................... 155 3.1.18 MARSH 25 ...................................................................................... 160 3 3.1.19 MARSH 28 ...................................................................................... 167 3.1.20 MARSH 30 ...................................................................................... 175 3.1.21 MARSH 32 ...................................................................................... 178 3.1.22 MARSH 33 ...................................................................................... 183 3.1.23 MARSH 34 ...................................................................................... 192 3.1.24 MARSH 35 ...................................................................................... 198 3.1.25 MARSH 37 ...................................................................................... 202 3.1.26 MARSH 38 ...................................................................................... 206 3.1.27 MARSH 39 ...................................................................................... 208 3.1.28 MARSH 40 ...................................................................................... 219 3.1.29 MARSH 41 ...................................................................................... 222 3.1.30 MARSH 42 ...................................................................................... 225 3.1.31 MARSH 43 ...................................................................................... 229 3.1.32 MARSH 44 ...................................................................................... 232 3.1.33 MARSH 45 ...................................................................................... 235 3.1.34 MARSH 46 ...................................................................................... 241 3.1.35 MARSH 47 ...................................................................................... 243 3.1.36 MARSH 48 ...................................................................................... 250 3.1.37 MARSH 50 ...................................................................................... 252 3.1.38 MARSH 51 ...................................................................................... 256 3.1.39 MARSH 52 ...................................................................................... 260 3.1.40 MARSH 53 ...................................................................................... 264 3.1.41 MARSH 55 ...................................................................................... 273 3.1.42 MARSH 57 ..................................................................................... 276 3.1.43 MARSH 59 ...................................................................................... 279 3.1.44 MARSH 60 ...................................................................................... 281 3.1.45 MARSH 61 ...................................................................................... 285 3.1.46 MARSH 62 ...................................................................................... 287 4 ESSEX HISTORIC GRAZING MARSH PROJECT 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background As a distinctive and complex historic environment, coastal grazing marshes are a major heritage asset, contributing to the special landscape character of many parts of the English coast, and of the Essex coast in particular. They are also sensitive to change; once ubiquitous around the Essex coast, enormous losses took place in the second half of the 20th (approximately 72% have been lost since the 1930s) largely as a result