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Totternhoe Castle is a motte and bailey castle located in Bedfordshire, England, situated within a landscape bearing evidence of medieval quarrying and field systems. The monument comprises a substantial earthwork mound with associated bailey enclosure, typical of Norman fortifications established in the eleventh century following the Conquest. The site's significance extends beyond its military function, as the surrounding cultivation terraces and quarries demonstrate the medieval exploitation of the chalk geology, indicating intensive settlement and resource use in the vicinity. The castle represents an important example of early Norman defensive architecture and settlement strategy in the English Midlands.
Totternhoe Castle: a motte and bailey castle, medieval quarries and cultivation terraces is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1020772. View the official record →
Totternhoe Castle is a motte and bailey castle located in Bedfordshire, England, situated within a landscape bearing evidence of medieval quarrying and field systems. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1020772.
Totternhoe Castle: a motte and bailey castle, medieval quarries and cultivation terraces 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 1020772.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including A slight univallate hillfort and bowl barrow on Ivinghoe Beacon Hill (5.6 km), Bowl barrow on Ivinghoe Hills, 240m south of Ivinghoe Beacon trig pillar: part of the Beacon Hill round barrow cemetery (5.8 km), Bowl barrow on Ivinghoe Hills, 460m south of Ivinghoe Beacon trig pillar: part of the Beacon Hill round barrow cemetery (6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Totternhoe Castle: a motte and bailey castle, medieval quarries and cultivation terraces'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.
Totternhoe Castle: a motte and bailey castle, medieval quarries and cultivation terraces stands on Grey Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Cenomanian. The rock here is chalk.