More information : (SU 1809 2136) Castle Mound (NR) (Remains of) The Moot (NAT) (1)
The Moot, a ringwork with twin baileys of 7 1/2 acres (see plan), now largely altered by landscape gardening of c1700. (2-4)
Presumably the castle of Downtown built in 1138 by Henry de Blois Bishop of Winchester. Rahtz suggests that Saxon occupation may have taken place on that part of the terrace now occupied by The Moot, although there is no reason to suppose that the earthwork itself is anything other than a ring-work of Norman date. (5)
Scheduled listing (6)
Listed in Register of Parks and Gardens. (7)
Surveyed during RCHME: South Wilts Project. (8)
Listed by Cathcart King. (9)
The castle have been radically modified from the 18th century as part of the gardens of Moot House. The earliest earthworks can be identified as an oval earthwork, the west side of which has been removed by quarrying. Its close proximity to Old Court bishops palace suggests it bears a strong relationship to the palace. (10) |