Scheduled MonumentsEnglandTutbury Castle

Tutbury Castle

England
List entry 1006112
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1006112
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
7.75 hectares
Grid reference
SK 20949 29209, SK 20797 28982
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Tutbury Castle is a Norman fortress founded by Henry de Ferrers in the 1070s, occupying a commanding position on a hilltop near the River Dove in Staffordshire. The castle retains substantial remains of its motte-and-bailey earthworks and displays masonry from multiple periods, including Norman foundations and later medieval stonework, though much of the structure was damaged during the English Civil War and subsequently slighted. The site is particularly significant as a stronghold of the Ferrers family and their successors, and as a royal residence where Mary, Queen of Scots was imprisoned during her captivity in England. Today the castle stands as an important example of Norman military architecture and remains a scheduled ancient monument of considerable archaeological and historical value.

Tutbury Castle is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1006112. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Tutbury Castle?

Tutbury Castle is a Norman fortress founded by Henry de Ferrers in the 1070s, occupying a commanding position on a hilltop near the River Dove in Staffordshire. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1006112.

Who is responsible for protecting Tutbury Castle?

Tutbury 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 1006112.

What other scheduled monuments are near Tutbury Castle?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Three sections of medieval town boundary located to the south and west of Tutbury (0.7 km), Anglo-Scandinavian cross, St Mary's churchyard (3 km), Hoon Mount platformed bowl barrow (3.3 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Tutbury Castle

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

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