| Where | Great Broughton Village Hall | Type of Event | Illustrated Talk |
| When | Monday 19th January 2026 at 7.30pm | Tutor | Robin Daniels and Brian Barker |
The lectures on this evening were delivered by Robin Daniels and Brian Barker. The presentations were in two parts. The first was delivered by Robin, who has given talks to the LHG in the past. Robin was formerly Archaeology Officer with Tees Archaeology and has had involvement with the site for 20 years. The second lecture was given by Brian, a LHG member, who was a university history lecturer specializing in medieval documents. The presentations were lively and well organised and they were well-researched and mastered subjects. The LHG had an expectation of a substantial audience and in that we were not disappointed. A quick count revealed an attendance of about 50, possibly 60, including several visitors. That was to be expected, perhaps, given that it was following the Annual General Meeting and the general interest of the members.
The first part was to give an update on the progress of investigation of the site. Various plans were displayed commencing with the older, aerial view. This was followed by a LIDAR scan. This is based on laser technology and produces a digital picture of the ground largely unaffected by vegetation. The two surveys gave impressions of buildings and the ridge and furrow landscape. When the village became deserted is not known but the late 14th century was bad for a lot of settlements. A time of Scottish wars, plague and bad harvests.
In the Spring of 2025 a magnetometer survey was conducted by archaeologists with the assistance of volunteers from LHG. The survey formed part of a wider archaeological investigation of the site which might reveal remains or deposits buried beneath the surface. The survey revealed farmsteads and cottages. There might be impressions of a chapel and manor house. This type of survey can provide a lot of information but it is not necessarily easy to interpret. More recently there has been a drone LIDAR survey, results awaited. Future plans include an earthworks survey and augur samples. Archaeology involves several techniques. To get the fuller picture it can be necessary to put spades into the ground!!
The lecture given by Brian was essentially a brief history of the manor of Little Broughton. The maps available, such as the Tithe Map of 1840, a valuable source, are not clear as to the boundaries of the various parishes in the vicinity of the manor. The relevant parishes are Little Broughton, Great Broughton, Easby, Great Ayton and Ingleby Greenhow.
A manor was a unit of social organization. In this the majority of the population were subservient to the lord. The manor had existed for a long time but became more significant under the Normans. The manor was traced from the Conquest in 1066 when it was in the hands of an English nobleman. The Domesday Survey of 1086 provides a lot of information, particularly its loss of value in the preceding 20 years. From then it passed through many hands by way of gift, purchase, inheritance and marriage settlement. For several centuries after 1190 it belonged to Hexham Abbey until the Dissolution. From then there were numerous landowners with whose names, owing to documentary research, we are quite familiar. These include Eure, Wyvell, Meynell, Hustler, Grenside and Duck.
The material was absorbing and the audience was attentive. The time passed easily and the audience was informed and entertained. There were questions. An enjoyable evening.