Scheduled Monuments›England›Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort

Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort

England
List entry 1013100
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1013100
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
1.15 hectares
Grid reference
NT 82394 38725
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Wark Castle is a motte and bailey fortification with later artillery modifications located in Northumberland, near the Scottish border. The castle was established in the twelfth century as a Norman stronghold, with its characteristic mounded earthwork and defensive palisade representing typical early medieval military architecture. The site was subsequently adapted to accommodate artillery fortifications during the sixteenth century, reflecting the evolution of military technology and border defence strategy during the Tudor period. The earthworks and structural remains survive as a notable example of a frontier fortress that served successive defensive purposes across several centuries of Anglo-Scottish conflict.

Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1013100. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort?

Wark Castle is a motte and bailey fortification with later artillery modifications located in Northumberland, near the Scottish border. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1013100.

Who is responsible for protecting Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort?

Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort 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 1013100.

What other scheduled monuments are near Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Defended settlement, 507m north west of Pawston Lake (7.4 km), Bowmont Hill camp (7.9 km), Roman period native farmstead 320m north east of Longknowe (9.1 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort'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

Defended settlement, 507m north west of Pawston Lake
7.4 km
Bowmont Hill camp
7.9 km
Roman period native farmstead 320m north east of Longknowe
9.1 km
Five shielings 620m NNE of Elsdonburn Shank
9.7 km
Roman period native settlement 250m west of Elsdonburn Shank
10.1 km
Roman period native enclosed settlement 600m north east of Elsdonburn Shank
10.1 km
Roman period aggregate village on Coldsmouth Hill, 650m south east of St Ethelrede's Chapel
10.1 km
Enclosed settlement west of Mid Hill
10.3 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort

Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort stands on Inverclyde Group, bedrock that formed in the Osagean. The rock here is sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.

The wider landscape

Around Wark Castle motte and bailey castle and artillery fort

Battle of Flodden 1513Battle (1513) · ~4.3 milesBattle of Homildon Hill 1402Battle (1402) · ~10.9 milesThe Site of The Battle of Halidon Hill 1333Battle (1333) · ~13.8 milesBattle of Ancrum MoorBattle (1545) · ~14.2 miles
All Scheduled Monuments