The Gatehouse website record for Cholsey Grange

In the civil parish of Cholsey. In the historic county of Berkshire (Modern Authority of Oxfordshire, 1974 county of Oxfordshire).

David Nash Ford writes "Near Cholsey Church are some ancient earthworks believed to be the remains of a Norman siege-castle. It would have been one of those built by King Stephen to harass to the Empress Matilda who was opposing his claim to the throne from nearby Wallingford Castle. Being on Reading Abbey lands, it may have been the castle, mistakenly called Reading Castle, that was destroyed by the Empress' son in 1153. Alternatively, it may have fallen two years earlier and been replaced by the fortification at South Moreton." PastScape report as "Site of Medieval moated grange and abbot's house, attached to Reading Abbey, represented by earthworks." The VCH mentions the moat near the church and gives some history of the abbot's house but does not draw the conclusion that the moat is the site of this house, although this seems entirely likely, nor does it mention any possibility of this being a siege work, which seems a rather less likely suggestion although not one that can be entirely dismissed.
The Oxfordshire HER records, at least some of, these earthworks as medieval fishpounds.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SU58448686

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 237538
This site's County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number is 2717 'grey' literature, such as watching brief reports, held by H.E.R.s is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded in this website.

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The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.
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