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Motte, 50m north of Holycross Church, Ryton, is a Norman earthwork defence consisting of a substantial mound with associated ditching. The motte dates to the medieval period, likely constructed in the 11th or 12th century as part of the network of fortified sites established across northern England following the Norman Conquest. The monument comprises a raised mound typical of motte-and-bailey fortifications, though the bailey element is not distinctly recorded in the surviving archaeological record. As a scheduled ancient monument, it represents an important example of early medieval military architecture in the Durham region.
Motte, 50m north of Holycross Church, Ryton is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1018677. View the official record →
Motte, 50m north of Holycross Church, Ryton, is a Norman earthwork defence consisting of a substantial mound with associated ditching. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1018677.
Motte, 50m north of Holycross Church, Ryton 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 1018677.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ryton village cross 160m south east of church (0.2 km), Ditched enclosure S of North View, Coalburns (5 km), Winlaton Mill ironworks, south east of Winlaton Mill village (5.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Motte, 50m north of Holycross Church, Ryton'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.
Motte, 50m north of Holycross Church, Ryton stands on Pennine Middle Coal Measures Formation And South Wales Middle Coal Measures Formation (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Moscovian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete.