Totternhoe Castle

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Totternhoe Castle

Bedfordshire


Earthworks of Totternhoe Castle
Type: Motte-and-bailey
Location
Grid reference: SP978221
Location: 51°53’20"N, -0°34’49"W
History
Information
Condition: Earthworks

Totternhoe Castle was a Norman castle in Totternhoe in the south of Bedfordshire near Dunstable. Only earthworks survive, which are a Scheduled Monument, and part of Totternhoe Knolls, a nature reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest.[1][2]

Details

Totternhoe Castle overlooks the village of Totternhoe in Bedfordshire. It was 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.[3] 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.[4]

Outside links

("Wikimedia Commons" has material
about Totternhoe Castle)

References

  1. SSSI listing and designation for Totternhoe Knolls
  2. National Heritage List 1020772: Totternhoe Castle: a motte and bailey castle, mediæval quarries and cultivation terraces
  3. Pettifer, p.4.
  4. Fry, p.91.

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