Scheduled Monuments›England›Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa

Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa

England
List entry 1011072
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1011072
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
0.26 hectares
Grid reference
NZ 34606 12312
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Tower Hill motte castle is a medieval fortification located near Dinsdale Spa in County Durham. The site comprises a motte, a characteristic earthwork of Norman castle design, and dates to the medieval period when such fortified settlements were established across northern England. The monument survives as an earthwork feature that demonstrates the defensive and administrative strategies employed by medieval lords in this region. Its construction and use reflect the pattern of motte-and-bailey castle building that followed the Norman Conquest, though the specific dating and historical associations of this particular site remain within the broader context of medieval Durham's settlement and lordship patterns.

Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1011072. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa?

Tower Hill motte castle is a medieval fortification located near Dinsdale Spa in County Durham. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1011072.

Who is responsible for protecting Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa?

Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa 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 1011072.

What other scheduled monuments are near Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Anglo-Saxon cross in St John the Baptist's churchyard (1.1 km), Medieval moated manorial site of Low Dinsdale at the Manor House (1.3 km), Deserted medieval village of West Hartburn, 100m north-east of Foster House (2.1 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa'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

Anglo-Saxon cross in St John the Baptist's churchyard
1.1 km
Medieval moated manorial site of Low Dinsdale at the Manor House
1.3 km
Deserted medieval village of West Hartburn, 100m north-east of Foster House
2.1 km
Newsham deserted medieval village
3.9 km
World War II bombing decoy control shelter 600m south east of Great Burdon Farm
4.3 km
Shrunken medieval village at Sadberge
4.8 km
Medieval settlement and associated field system and post-medieval chapel, adjacent to Manor House Farm
4.9 km
Pre-Conquest and post-Conquest church and graveyard and medieval and post-medieval manors at Sockburn
5.3 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa

Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa stands on Permian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Permian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.

The wider landscape

Around Tower Hill motte castle, 370m north-east of Dinsdale Spa

CatterickRoman town · ~11.1 milesBattle of Northallerton 1138Battle (1138) · ~8.9 milesBattle of the Standard 1138Battle (1138) · ~9.1 milesBattle of Neville's Cross 1346Battle (1346) · ~19.5 miles
Domesday entry for Dinsdale, Yorkshire →
All Scheduled Monuments