Michaelston-super-Ely Deserted Medieval Village

Disgrifiad

Set adjacent to St Michael’s is a large field used today to pasture horses. If you look closely, within that field there are a number of earthwork platforms – the building platforms of abandoned crofts (Medieval houses). Another, probably the remains of a post-medieval house of two rooms is in the field to the north of the church, and the remains of a small cottage (now just a mound) are located to the south. Further remains of a longhouse (the Green House) are located around 150m east of the church

The whole complex represents an abandoned Medieval village that once surrounded the church and overlooked the River Ely. The village was bounded on the west by the Church and east by a moated manor house (The Court). The settlement originated as a small mense manor held of the Chief Lords of Glamorgan. In the 14th century it was in possession of the Fleming family and in the 15th century by the Malefant family. The existence of the church by 1254 suggests the village was established by the mid 13th century. There appears to have been depopulation in the later medieval period and in 1801 the population of the parish was only 53. The shrinkage was probably due to amalgamation of small farms into larger units.

However, local folklaw has it that a village farmer sold his soul to the devil so that his fields would produce bountiful harvests. Unfortuntely he reneged on the deal and the devil cursed the land around the village causing the villagers to starve and eventually leave the land!!