Scheduled Monuments›England›Piel Castle

Piel Castle

England
List entry 1009097
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1009097
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
1.61 hectares
Grid reference
SD 23288 63594
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Piel Castle is a fourteenth-century fortress constructed on Piel Island in Morecambe Bay, Lancashire, serving as a strategic stronghold for the defence of the nearby port of Barrow and the maritime trade routes of north-west England. The castle comprises a substantial rectangular keep with corner towers, characteristic of late medieval military architecture, surrounded by defensive curtain walls and gatehouse structures that reflect its importance as both a garrison and administrative centre. Built under the jurisdiction of the Duchy of Lancaster, the castle remained in use throughout the medieval period and into the early modern era, though its strategic significance diminished with changing patterns of coastal defence and trade. The substantial stone ruins that survive today, positioned prominently on the island, represent one of the most intact examples of a medieval coastal fortress in the North West of England.

Piel Castle is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1009097. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Piel Castle?

Piel Castle is a fourteenth-century fortress constructed on Piel Island in Morecambe Bay, Lancashire, serving as a strategic stronghold for the defence of the nearby port of Barrow and the maritime trade routes of north-west England. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1009097.

Who is responsible for protecting Piel Castle?

Piel 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 1009097.

What other scheduled monuments are near Piel Castle?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Moat Hill, motte and bailey castle and earlier ringwork (7.7 km), Moat Farm moated site (7.9 km), Bow Bridge medieval multi-span bridge (7.9 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Piel Castle

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Piel 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

Moat Hill, motte and bailey castle and earlier ringwork
7.7 km
Moat Farm moated site
7.9 km
Bow Bridge medieval multi-span bridge
7.9 km
Enclosure castle known as Gleaston Castle
8.4 km
Furness Abbey Savignac and Cistercian monasteries: precinct wall, great gatehouse, 'chapel outside the gates', south west gateway and earthworks.
8.4 km
Lime kiln and associated lime shed 680m south east of Scales Green Farm
9.6 km
Lime kiln 320m south east of Scales Green Farm
9.6 km
Lime kiln 100m east of Scales Green Farm
9.7 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Piel Castle

Piel Castle stands on Triassic Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Triassic. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.

Domesday entry for Roose, Yorkshire →
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