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Motte Castle 400 metres north-east of Upper Gwarthlow Farm is a scheduled monument in Shropshire, England, protected by Historic England under reference 1013500. The castle occupies 0.13 hectares of land at grid reference SO 25215 95454. Its earthwork stands upon Caradoc Rocks, a bedrock formation of Caradocian age composed of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone, typical geology of the Shropshire borderlands from the Ordovician period.
The motte, or mound, represents a form of fortification widespread across Norman England and Wales from the eleventh century onwards. Constructed by piling earth into a steep-sided artificial hill, the motte would have supported a timber or stone tower, with defensive ditches typically surrounding its base. The surviving earthwork demonstrates the strategic importance of this location within the Shropshire landscape.
This scheduled monument survives as a testament to medieval defensive architecture and settlement patterns in the English-Welsh borderlands. Its designation protects the site from damage or development, preserving evidence of the social and military structures that shaped medieval Shropshire. The motte remains a notable feature within the local topography and continues to inform understanding of Norman military expansion into the Welsh Marches.
Motte castle 400m north east of Upper Gwarthlow Farm is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1013500. View the official record →
Motte Castle 400 metres north-east of Upper Gwarthlow Farm is a scheduled monument in Shropshire, England, protected by Historic England under reference 1013500.
Motte castle 400m north east of Upper Gwarthlow Farm 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 1013500.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Offa's Dyke: Section from Road Junction near Drewin to County Boundary (5.9 km), Offa's Dyke: section 1/2 mile (800m) long, SE from county boundary to River Unk Also in Powys: Wales (6.3 km), Bowl barrow 1km south east of Hopton Bank (6.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Motte castle 400m north east of Upper Gwarthlow Farm'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 castle 400m north east of Upper Gwarthlow Farm stands on Caradoc Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Caradocian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.