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Desborough Castle is a motte-and-bailey castle located near Desborough in Buckinghamshire, dating to the Norman period following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The site comprises a substantial earthen mound with an associated bailey, representing a typical example of early Norman fortification in the region. The castle would have served as a defensive stronghold and administrative centre for the local Norman lord, though it appears to have been abandoned or significantly reduced in importance by the later medieval period. Like many motte-and-bailey castles, Desborough Castle has survived primarily as an earthwork monument, with its original timber or stone superstructures no longer extant.
Desborough Castle is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1020863. View the official record →
Desborough Castle is a motte-and-bailey castle located near Desborough in Buckinghamshire, dating to the Norman period following the Norman Conquest of 1066. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1020863.
Desborough 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 1020863.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Castle Hill, a motte and bailey castle and Saxon burial 50m west of Castle Hill House (1.9 km), St John the Baptist's Hospital (2.3 km), Camp on Church Hill (2.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Desborough Castle's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Desborough Castle stands on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.