Scheduled Monuments›England›Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle

Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle

England
List entry 1008761
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1008761
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
1.36 hectares
Grid reference
SE 42768 81996
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Thirsk Castle is a motte and bailey earthwork located near Thirsk in North Yorkshire, England. The castle was established in the Norman period following the conquest of 1066, representing typical early Norman military settlement in the north of England. The monument consists of a substantial mound with a surrounding ditch system, characteristic of motte and bailey fortifications of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Though the castle has not survived as a standing structure, the earthwork remains a significant testimony to Norman feudal organisation and military strategy in medieval Yorkshire.

Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1008761. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle?

Thirsk Castle is a motte and bailey earthwork located near Thirsk in North Yorkshire, England. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1008761.

Who is responsible for protecting Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle?

Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey 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 1008761.

What other scheduled monuments are near Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including A moated site 100m east of St Mary Magdalene's Church (0.3 km), Pudding Pie Hill: a bowl barrow 650m south-east of St Oswald's Church (1.4 km), Sand Hutton Cross boundary cross 600m north east of the Old Vicarage (2.6 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey 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

A moated site 100m east of St Mary Magdalene's Church
0.3 km
Pudding Pie Hill: a bowl barrow 650m south-east of St Oswald's Church
1.4 km
Sand Hutton Cross boundary cross 600m north east of the Old Vicarage
2.6 km
A bowl barrow at Howe Hill 130m south-south-west of St Felix's Church
4.7 km
Medieval settlement at Thornton-le-Street
4.7 km
Medieval Park Pale, Upsall Estate, Thirsk, North Yorkshire.
4.8 km
Medieval moated grange 160m south east of The Grange
5.1 km
Upsall Castle: a quadrangular castle
5.6 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle

Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle stands on Triassic Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Triassic. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.

The wider landscape

Around Thirsk Castle: a motte and bailey castle

AldboroughRoman town · ~9.8 milesCatterickRoman town · ~16.5 milesYorkRoman town · ~21.6 milesBattle of Myton 1319Battle (1319) · ~9.2 milesBattle of Boroughbridge (1322)Battle (1322) · ~9.4 milesBattle of the Standard 1138Battle (1138) · ~10.6 milesBattle of Northallerton 1138Battle (1138) · ~10.7 miles
Domesday entry for Thirsk, Yorkshire →
All Scheduled Monuments