Scheduled Monuments›England›Clare Castle

Clare Castle

England
List entry 1006044
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1006044
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
4.06 hectares
Grid reference
TL 77155 45349, TL 77083 45225, TL 77180 45131
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Clare Castle is a Norman motte-and-bailey fortress constructed in the late eleventh century following the Norman Conquest of England. The castle occupies a prominent position overlooking the River Stour in Suffolk and was established as a stronghold of the de Clare family, one of the most powerful Norman baronial lineages in medieval England. The monument retains substantial earthwork remains, including a well-preserved motte surrounded by multiple baileys with substantial defensive banks and ditches, demonstrating the sophisticated military engineering characteristic of early Norman fortifications. Clare Castle served as a significant administrative and defensive centre throughout the medieval period and continued to hold strategic importance until its decline in the late medieval era.

Clare Castle is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1006044. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Clare Castle?

Clare Castle is a Norman motte-and-bailey fortress constructed in the late eleventh century following the Norman Conquest of England. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1006044.

Who is responsible for protecting Clare Castle?

Clare Castle 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 1006044.

What other scheduled monuments are near Clare Castle?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Clare Priory (uninhabited portions) (0.2 km), Earthwork on Lower Common (0.6 km), Long mortuary enclosure and barrows 460m north west of Mill Farm (1.4 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Clare Castle

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Clare Castle'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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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

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Nearby

Other scheduled monuments within 10 km

Clare Priory (uninhabited portions)
0.2 km
Earthwork on Lower Common
0.6 km
Long mortuary enclosure and barrows 460m north west of Mill Farm
1.4 km
Ashen House moat and fishpond, 500m north of St Augustine's Church.
3.3 km
Ring ditches and ritual structure S of Chapel Farm
4.3 km
Moated site immediately south of Pinhoe Hall
4.7 km
West End House moated site, 640m west of St Lawrence's Church
5.8 km
Moat Farm, situated 750m south west of St Lawrence's Church
5.9 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Clare Castle

Clare Castle stands on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.

The wider landscape

Around Clare Castle

Great ChesterfordRoman town · ~16.6 milesColchesterRoman town · ~18.7 milesCambridgeRoman town · ~22 miles
Domesday entry for Clare, Suffolk →
All Scheduled Monuments