Scheduled Monuments›England›Wallingford Castle

Wallingford Castle

England
List entry 1006324
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1006324
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
7.54 hectares
Grid reference
SU 60924 89726
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Wallingford Castle is a Norman fortification founded shortly after 1066 by Robert d'Oilly, one of William the Conqueror's principal supporters. The castle occupies a commanding position on the Thames and comprises a substantial motte-and-bailey earthwork with multiple baileys, representing one of the most impressive surviving examples of Norman military engineering. The site remained strategically important throughout the medieval period, serving as a royal castle and later becoming a significant stronghold during the Civil War, when it was slighted in 1652 to prevent its future military use. Although the stone structures have been largely destroyed, the earthwork defences survive prominently, enclosed within a circuit of banks and ditches that once protected a castle of considerable strength and complexity.

Wallingford Castle is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1006324. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Wallingford Castle?

Wallingford Castle is a Norman fortification founded shortly after 1066 by Robert d'Oilly, one of William the Conqueror's principal supporters. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1006324.

Who is responsible for protecting Wallingford Castle?

Wallingford 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 1006324.

What other scheduled monuments are near Wallingford Castle?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Wallingford Bridge (0.3 km), Saxon town (0.4 km), Wallingford Town Walls (0.4 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Wallingford Castle

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

Wallingford Bridge
0.3 km
Saxon town
0.4 km
Wallingford Town Walls
0.4 km
Site of manor house and royal palace
3.8 km
Brightwell Barrow
3.9 km
North Stoke henge and ring ditch site
4.4 km
Motte castle immediately west of St John the Baptist's Church
5.5 km
Grim's Ditch; portion from Mongewell Park Lodge to S of Nuffield church
5.9 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Wallingford Castle

Wallingford Castle stands on Grey Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Cenomanian. The rock here is chalk.

The wider landscape

Around Wallingford Castle

Dorchester-on-ThamesRoman town · ~3.4 milesSilchesterRoman town · ~17.1 milesAlchesterRoman town · ~19.1 milesBattle of Chalgrove 1643Battle (1643) · ~5.6 milesFirst Battle of NewburyBattle (1643) · ~17.8 miles
Domesday entry for Wallingford, Berkshire →
All Scheduled Monuments