Fit for a king? A post-medieval stable and horse bone assemblage from Bradgate Park, Leicestershire.

In 2018, the Bradgate Park Fieldschool (2015–19) investigated the remains of a large building to the south of Bradgate House, located close to the River Lin. Excavations confirmed the presence of a sizeable two-storey stable, with an elaborate porch, and containing stalling for at least 25 horses. The archaeological and architectural evidence supports a date of construction in the early to mid[1]seventeenth century, with evidence for modest later remodelling. Historical evidence indicates the site was in use until the mid-nineteenth century, albeit with a reduced function from the eighteenth century. The paucity of in-situ deposits and demolition debris indicates the structure was thoroughly dismantled, with building materials recycled, in the mid-nineteenth century. The structure forms part of a tradition of ‘great house’ stables that emerges as a building type from the late sixteenth century and testifies to the importance of horses as markers of elite status. Evidence of the horses that may have been stalled in the structure was recovered from a revetted platform to the immediate north of the building, which contained the skeletal remains of at least 24 animals that had been knackered before being used as building material.