Castle Bank motte and bailey castle, 150m north west of Woolstaston Hall.

Reasons for Designation

Motte and bailey castles are medieval fortifications introduced into Britain by the Normans. They comprised a large conical mound of earth or rubble, the motte, surmounted by a palisade and a stone or timber tower. In a majority of examples an embanked enclosure containing additional buildings, the bailey, adjoined the motte. Motte castles and motte-and-bailey castles acted as garrison forts during offensive military operations, as strongholds, and, in many cases, as aristocratic residences and as centres of local or royal administration. Built in towns, villages and open countryside, motte and bailey castles generally occupied strategic positions dominating their immediate locality and, as a result, are the most visually impressive monuments of the early post-Conquest period surviving in the modern landscape. Over 600 motte castles or motte-and-bailey castles are recorded nationally, with examples known from most regions. As one of a restricted range of recognised early post-Conquest monuments, they are particularly important for the study of Norman Britain and the development of the feudal system. Although many were occupied for only a short period of time, motte castles continued to be built and occupied from the 11th to the 13th centuries, after which they were superseded by other types of castle.

Castle Bank motte and bailey castle survives well and is a good example of its class. The partial excavation of the site in 1965 demonstrated the presence of valuable archaeological deposits and further evidence relating to the occupation of the site is known, from these excavations, to remain within the monument. Environmental evidence relating to the landscape in which the monument was constructed will survive sealed beneath the mound and in the ditch fill. Such motte and bailey castles contribute valuable information concerning the settlement pattern, economy and social structure of the countryside during the medieval period. The proximity of the parish church, rectory and manor house to the motte and bailey is also of interest, as the three sites together illustrate the development of this type of settlement.

Details

The monument includes the earthworks of a motte and bailey castle situated on a small hill overlooking ground falling to the east. The motte is visible as a well defined mound 18m in diameter at base rising 3m to a flattened summit 9m in diameter. There is no visible trace of a surrounding ditch from which the material would have been quarried to construct the mound, though one survives as a buried feature 2m wide. The existence of this ditch was demonstrated in 1965 when a small excavation revealed a ditch with a post hole on its outer edge. Finds from this exploration indicated that the site was occupied during the 12th and 13th centuries. The roughly triangular bailey lies adjacent to the motte on its east side and is coextensive with the top of the natural hill, using the natural slopes of the hill to create a strong position. The southern side of the bailey is defined by a steep scarp slope which falls 4m to a deep hollow way which lies at its base and is occupied by the present road. Around the north side the natural slopes of the hill have been enhanced creating a steep scarp averaging 1.4m high. There is also some evidence for a counterscarp bank 0.5m high, apparently designed to strengthen the defences around this side of the enclosure. There are no visible indications of a ditch surrounding the bailey although the hollow way on its south side may follow its original line. A small underground reservoir (of unknown size), has been constructed in the north angle of the bailey, the access hatch of the reservoir and the reservoir itself are excluded from the scheduling.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

19146

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
SMR Record 230,

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