Totternhoe Castle

51°53′20″N 0°34′49″W / 51.8889°N 0.5803°W / 51.8889; -0.5803Grid referencegrid reference SP978221TypeMotte-and-baileySite informationConditionEarthworks

Totternhoe Castle was a Norman castle in Totternhoe. Bedfordshire. Only earthworks survive. It is a Scheduled Monument, and part of Totternhoe Knolls Site of Special Scientific Interest.[1][2][3]

Details

Totternhoe Castle overlooks the village of Totternhoe in Bedfordshire, near the town of Dunstable.[4] Built during the Norman period, probably during the years of the Anarchy, it is of a motte-and-bailey design, with two baileys rather than the more usual one.[5] A wide ditch protects three sides of the castle, with the fourth protected by the edge of the chalk hill on which the castle is situated.[6]

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See also

References

  1. ^ "Totternhoe Knolls citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  2. ^ "Map of Totternhoe Knolls". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  3. ^ "Totternhoe Castle: a motte and bailey castle, medieval quarries and cultivation terraces". Historic England. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  4. ^ Pettifer, p.4.
  5. ^ Pettifer, p.4.
  6. ^ Fry, p.91.

Bibliography

  • Fry, Plantagenet Somerset. (2008) Castles. London: David and Charles. ISBN 978-0-7153-2692-3.
  • Pettifer, Adrian. (2002) English Castles: a Guide by Counties. Woodbridge, UK: Boydell Press. ISBN 978-0-85115-782-5.