| Summary : Castle, perhaps originating as a motte and bailey between 1066 and 1075: the keep is thought to have been built about 1095 to 1110. Drum towers and a gatehouse were added in the 13th century. From documentary sources, it is known that the castle had a southern bailey with an inner barbican, a small bailey on the north-east side, and that the whole area was bounded by Castle Fees, which may have been marked by a ditch or bank. During the Civil War of 1642-1651, Norwich was held by Parliament, when a rampart substituted for the curtain wall, and a battery was built for the city's artillery on the north-east side of the castle mound. The keep became a prison in 1789-1795, with the addition of specific prison buildings. The majority of the present buildings on the site were built circa 1824, and the complex of keep and additional buildings became a museum in 1894 [see also TG 20 NW 385]. The Castle complex is both a Scheduled Monument and listed Grade I. |
More information : (TG 23190853) Castle (NR) Castle Museum (NAT) (1)
The first castle was constructed between 1066 and 1075. From this period probably date the motte and south bailey; the small NE bailey may be contemporary or slighly later. The drum towers and three underground rooms of the 13th century gate house survive, and there is evidence that part at least of the medieval bridge is incorporated into the modern one. The only surviving building of the medieval castle is the stone keep built originally in Caen stone about 1130. It was completely refaced in Bath stone in 1834-39. The remaining buildings on the site were erected sometime after 1824, and the whole is now used as a museum. Grade I. (2-5)
From documentary sources, it is known that the castle had a southern bailey with an inner barbican, a small bailey on the north-east side, and that the whole area was bounded by Castle Fees, which may have been marked by a ditch or bank. There have been few excavations to prove the precise locations of the ditches, but they have been located at Shirehill Car Park (south bailey ditch, 1973), Castle Gardens (Barbican and part of barbican gate, 1991-2), the Castle Mall, (bailey and barbican ditches and barbican gateway ,1989-92), and in Golden Ball Street (Castle Fees terminus, 1998), and Old Cattle Marrket (north east bailey, 1979). A substantial ditch was also encountered at 18, Davey Place in 1961. Excavations have also been undertaken on the Castle Bridge in 1992. See related events for details. (6)
Norwich was one of the largest towns in England in the 11th, and with the threat of a Scandinavian invasion still present, Norwich was provided with a motte and bailey soon after the Conquest. Although temporarily occupied by rebellious magnates in 1075, 1087-8 and 1136, the castle remained in royal hands throughout the Norman period. Louis of France took the castle and town. Repairs were sporadically undertaken until the reign of Henry IV, after which repairs were only made to the Shire House. (7)
During the Civil War, Norwich was held by Parliament. The castle ditches were cleaned out and the old decayed curtain wall was demolished and and an earth rampart substituted. A battery was built on the NE side of the castle mound and all the city's artillery placed there. (8)
Recent publications [not consulted but summarised by correspondent] suggest that the latest research on Norwich Castle would appear to indicate a date of 1095 to 1110 for the building of the keep, rather than 1130. Derived from "Norwich Castle Keep", T A Heslop, Norwich, 1994; and "The Seigneurial Residence in Western Europe AD c.800 - 1600, ed. Gwyn Meirion-Jones, et al., British Archaeological Report S1088, 2002. (9)
Castle Museum still extant as at September 2006. (10) |