Scheduled MonumentsEnglandAscott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks

Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks

England
List entry 1008401
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1008401
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
5 hectares
Grid reference
SP 30125 19002
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic England (NHLE)

Overview

History & significance

Ascott d'Oyley is a twelfth-century motte and bailey castle situated in Oxfordshire, England. The site comprises a substantial mound with an associated bailey, representing a typical example of early Norman military architecture from the post-Conquest period. The earthworks remain well preserved, demonstrating the characteristic defensive layout of such fortifications, with the elevated motte providing a dominant position over the surrounding landscape and bailey. The castle is associated with the d'Oyley family, prominent Norman settlers in Oxfordshire who held significant landholdings in the region during the medieval period.

Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1008401. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks?

Ascott d'Oyley is a twelfth-century motte and bailey castle situated in Oxfordshire, England. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1008401.

Who is responsible for protecting Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks?

Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1008401.

What other scheduled monuments are near Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Long barrow situated in Southlawn Plain Woods (5.3 km), Pair of Bronze Age bowl barrows 150m north of Roustage Wood (5.3 km), Pain's Farm bowl barrow 30m south of Pain's Farm Cottages (6.1 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Domesday
The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
LiDAR
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks

Ascott d'Oyley 12th century motte and bailey castle and associated earthworks stands on Lias Group, bedrock that formed in the Aalenian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, limestone and sandstone.