Scheduled MonumentsEnglandPrudhoe Castle tower keep castle

Prudhoe Castle tower keep castle

England
List entry 1011647
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1011647
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
3.59 hectares
Grid reference
NZ 09164 63396
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Prudhoe Castle is a Norman fortress situated on the River Tyne in Northumberland, founded in the late twelfth century by the de Umfraville family as a motte-and-bailey stronghold that was subsequently developed with stone fortifications. The castle's most prominent feature is its substantial stone keep, erected in the early thirteenth century, which rises prominently above the surrounding curtain walls and represents a characteristic example of Norman military architecture adapted for the northern English border regions. The fortress served as an important baronial residence and strategic defensive position guarding the Tyne valley, with the keep providing both domestic accommodation and military strength. The site retains substantial medieval masonry including parts of its curtain wall, gatehouse, and outbuildings, making it one of the more intact castle complexes in Northumberland from this period.

Prudhoe Castle tower keep castle is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1011647. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Prudhoe Castle tower keep castle?

Prudhoe Castle is a Norman fortress situated on the River Tyne in Northumberland, founded in the late twelfth century by the de Umfraville family as a motte-and-bailey stronghold that was subsequently developed with stone fortifications. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1011647.

Who is responsible for protecting Prudhoe Castle tower keep castle?

Prudhoe Castle tower keep 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 1011647.

What other scheduled monuments are near Prudhoe Castle tower keep castle?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Defended settlement and field boundary on Horsley Hill (2.9 km), Ditched enclosure S of North View, Coalburns (3 km), Nafferton castle and tower house, 750m east of Nafferton Farm (3 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Prudhoe Castle tower keep castle

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Prudhoe Castle tower keep 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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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Prudhoe Castle tower keep castle

Prudhoe Castle tower keep castle stands on Pennine Lower Coal Measures Formation And South Wales Lower Coal Measures Formation (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Westphalian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete.