More information : (SO 44659255) Brockhurst Castle (NR) (Site of). (1)
Brockhurst Castle was probably built by Henry II c 1154 AD to guard the north-south route through Shropshire, and was destroyed at some time between 1215 and 1255, possibly in 1215 when its custody was in dispute. It lies at the southern end of a ridge overlooking a level valley floor where fishponds mentioned in 1255 were probably situated. Below the castle, to the west and south, the hill-side has been artificially scarped, marking the edge of the fishponds or of a lake designed to supplement the southern defences. The earthworks consist of two plateau-like baileys separated by a ditch some 40 ft wide and 10 ft deep. The southernmost or inner bailey is 2 to 3 ft higher than the middle bailey, and greater in extent. Both are defended by a massive ditch with an outer bank, and the middle bailey is enclosed by a rampart. There appears to be an outer bailey on the east side of the castle, bounded by straight scarps on the SW and SE. At the foot of the terraced road which approaches the castle from the north is a bank that may have dammed water for defensive purposes or to drive a mill. Excavations in 1959 revealed 12th and 13th century pottery, and showed that the inner bailey had been surrounded by a curtain wall, while the defences of the middle bailey were probably of timber. Debris and burnt timber from the dividing ditch attested to the violent destruction of that part of the castle. All finds are in Rowley's House Museum, Shrewsbury. (2)
Brockhurst Castle is as described above.
The inner bailey is 53.0m by 40.0m in size, and the middle bailey, 42.0m by 26.0m. The ditch separating them is 14.0m wide and 3.0m deep; the ditch enclosing them is 8.0 to 10.0m wide and 1.0 to 2.0m deep. The baileys are 6.5 to 8.0m above the surrounding ditch. The rampart around the middle bailey, now extant only on the NW and NE sides, is 6.0 to 9.0m wide, and up to 1.3m in height.
There are traces of a curtain wall along the NE side of the inner bailey at the lip of the cross ditch. A cause-wayed entrance cuts through the N corner of the middle bailey, and a terrace way leads up the hillside to it.
The scarp, E of the castle, doubtfully bounding an outer bailey, is 6.0m long and 2.0m high. It appears rather to be a positive lynchet.
The castle site is wooded and well preserved. It stands above very steep natural slopes to the NW, SW and SE. The absence of any outer defences to the NE is surprising in view of the fact that the ridge top is level with the site in this direction for some distance.
No trace of a bank or pond bay was noted at the foot of the terrace way nor were remains of any fishponds seen.
Published 1:2500 survey revised. (3)
Scheduled listing. (4)
The earthwork remains of Brockhurst Castle were seen centred at SO 4467 9257 and mapped from aerial photographs. At the time of the source photographs the site was largely masked by trees making mapping virtually impossible. Only a fragment of the southern ramparts of the southern bailey could be seen, along with a length of bank or terrace to the north of the castle which may be the remains of bank thought possibly to have dammed water either for defensive purposes or to drive a mill (see authority (2)). (5)
Listed by Cathcart King. (6)
The origins of the castle are uncertain, but it was in royal hands in the reigns of Henry II and Richard I. King John ordered its surrender ro Hugh de Neville in 1215, at which time John fitz Alan was in rebellious occupation of the castle. It had been abandoned by 1255. (7) |