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Launceston Castle
Also known
as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Terabil; Terrible; Dunheved; Llan Stefan
In the
civil parish of Launceston.
In the historic county of Cornwall (Modern
Authority of Cornwall, 1974 county of
Cornwall).
Castle
was built at Launceston, possibly as early as 1067. The original
Norman motte and bailey castle, with its wooden defences, guarded the
main route into Cornwall, and became the administrative centre for the
Earls of Cornwall. In the late C12 a circular stone keep was
constructed on top of the motte. Between 1227 and 1272, extensive
alterations made to the castle. A tower was built inside the keep and
stone curtain walls replaced the timber palisades, with substantial
gatehouses in the north and south. Ruinious by 1650. The site is
scheduled and listed, the Keep and Gatehouse are Grade 1, the
perimeter wall and 1739 water pump are Grade 2.
This site
has been described as a Masonry Castle /Timber Castle.These include
castles designed from the outset to have masonry defences and timber
castles where the fortifications or significant building have been
replaced in Stone. This includes all the classic castle types such as
Shell Keep, Great Tower and bailey, Enclosure, Concentric castles etc.
These are the buildings which are what are generally thought of as
castles and are well described in many books, web sites etc. Masonry
is stonework bounded with mortar. A few castles have dry-stone walls,
these are listed under earthwork castles, since the dry-stone walling
basically requires a similar level of expense and skill as earthwork
defences./ These are the earthwork and timber castles of the motte and
bailey or ringwork form which where the vast majority of castles of
the early conquest period, of the Marches in the 11th and 12th
centuries and of the period during the reign of Stephen known as the
Anarchy. They were generally fairly short lived, although some such
castles survived for centuries, with the timber buildings and defences
being replaced on occasions sometimes in timber and sometimes in
Masonry (Alderton Castle in Northamptonshire was shown in a Time Team
excavation to have been built about 1070 and to still have been having
high status visitors in the C15-a fine piece of enamels horse harness
being found in the gatehouse). Some of the smaller low mottes may have
been adapted into moated manor houses, whilst others where abandoned
and replaced by manor houses of a more comfortable and domestic
nature. Timber castles varied greatly in size with some being massive
constructions clearly deserving the term castle, whilst other were
small mounds of minor knights and had a similar size, function and
social status as the later pele towers. These small mottes are called
'castle' but this could be considered a rather loose use of the term.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is
Certain.
Major remains.
This site
is a scheduled
monument protected by law.
This site is a Grade 1 listed
building protected by law*. (Images
of England number 370141, 369962, 370143)
The
Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SX33068463
Sources
of information, references and further reading
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PastScape
number; 437198, 437216
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Web
site links
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Books
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Higham,
Robert A., 1999, 'Castles, Fortified Houses and Fortified
Towns in the Middle Ages' in Kain, R. and Ravenhill, W.,
Historical Atlas of South-West England (University of Exeter
Press) p136-43
Salter, Mike, 1999, The Castles of Devon and Cornwall
(Malvern) p22-5
Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties
(Woodbridge) p18-19
Higham, R. and Barker, P., 1992, Timber Castles (Batsford)
p58, 60, 130, 175, 274-6, 355
Spreadbury, I. D., 1984, Castles in Cornwall and the Isles of
Scilly (Redruth)
King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus)
Vol1 p74
Saunders, A.D., 1982, Archaeological excavations (Department
of the Environment) Vol21 p187-8
Saunders, A.D., 1981, Archaeological excavations (Department
of the Environment) Vol20 p220-1
Saunders, A.D., 1980, Archaeological excavations (Department
of the Environment) Vol19 p97-8
Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and
Charles) p251-2
Price, M. and H., 1980, Castles of Cornwall (Bossiney Books)
p88-104
Saunders, A.D., 1976, Archaeological excavations (Department
of the Environment) p24-5
Saunders, A.D., 1975, Archaeological excavations (Department
of the Environment) p19
Renn, D.F., 1973 (2edn), Norman Castles of Britain (John
Baker)
Pevsner, N. revised by Enid Radcliffe, 1970, Buildings of
England: Cornwall (Harmondsworth) p84
Renn, D.F., 1969, Three Shell Keeps (HMSO) p7-15
Colvin, H.M., Brown, R.Allen and Taylor, A.J., 1963, The
history of the King's Works Vol2: the Middle Ages (London:
HMSO) p693-4
Toy, Sidney, 1953, The Castles of Great Britain (Heinemann)
p49, 146
Toy, Sidney, 1939, Castles: A short History of Fortifications
from 1600 BC to AD 1600 (London) p58-9, 105-6
Oman, Charles W.C., 1926, Castles (1978 edn Beetham House: New
York) p105-6
Armitage, Ella, 1912, The Early Norman Castles of the British
Isles (London: John Murray) p164-5
Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England
(Methuen and Co) p121-2
Mackenzie, J.D., 1897, Castles of England (Heinemann) Vol2
p4-7
Peter, 1885, Histories of Launceston and Dunheved (Plymouth)
esp p225-32, 239-86
Timbs, J. and Gunn, A., 1872, Abbeys, Castles and Ancient
Halls of England and Wales Vol1 (London) p503-4
Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic
Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p360
Lysons, D. and S., 1814, Magna Britannia Vol3 Cornwall p.
ccxxxviii - ccxl, 187-8 [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/source.asp?pubid=403]
King, Edward, 1799-1805, Munimenta antiqua or Observations on
ancient castles (W.Bulmer and Co) Vol3 p9-14, 27-30
Buck, Samuel and Nathenial, 1774, Buck’s Antiquities
(London) Vol1 p25
Grose, F., 1756, Antiquities of England and Wales Vol8 p26-9
Borlase, William, 1754, Antiquites, historical and monumental,
of the county of Cornwall (Oxford) p358-66
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Journal
Articles
-
Harfield,
C.G., 1991, 'A Hand-list of Castles Recorded in the Domesday
Book' English Historical Review Vol106
Thompson, M.W., 1986, 'Associated monasteries and castles in
the Middle Ages: a tentative list' Archaeological Journal
Vol143 p314
Preston-Jones, Anne and Rose, Peter, 1986, Archaeological
excavations (Department of the Environment) Vol25 p135
Saunders, A.D., 1982, 'Launceston Castle excavations in 1981.
An interim report' Cornish Archaeology Vol21 p187-8
Saunders, A.D., 1981, 'Launceston Castle' Cornish Archaeology
Vol20 p220-1
Saunders, A.D., 1980, 'Launceston Castle' Cornish Archaeology
Vol19 p97-8
Saunders, A.D., 1979, 'Launceston Castle' Cornish Archaeology
Vol18 p80
Saunders, A.D., 1978, ‘A stone lamp from Launceston Castle,
Cornwall' Antiquaries Journal Vol58 p366-7, 385
Saunders, A.D., 1977, 'Excavations at Launceston
Castle1970-1976: Interim Report' Cornish Archaeology Vol16
p129-37
Saunders, A.D., 1977, 'Launceston Castle' CBA Calendar of
Excavations, summaries 1976 p3
Webster, L.E. and Cherry, J., 1977, ‘Medieval Britain in
1976' Medieval Archaeology Vol21 p233-4
Saunders, A.D., 1976, 'Launceston Castle' Cornish Archaeology
Vol15 p118
Saunders, A.D., 1975, 'Launceston Castle' Cornish Archaeology
Vol14 p116-7
1975, Medieval Archaeology Vol19 p239
Saunders, A.D., 1974, 'Medieval Britain in 1973' Medieval
Archaeology Vol18 p195
Saunders, A.D., 1974, 'Launceston Castle' Archaeological
Journal Vol130 p251-4 plan
1973, Medieval Archaeology Vol17 p161
1972, Medieval Archaeology Vol16 p179
Saunders, A.D., 1972, Cornish Archaeology Vol11 p57
1971, Medieval Archaeology Vol15 p145
Saunders, A.D., 1971, Cornish Archaeology Vol10 p95
Saunders, A.D., 1970, 'Excavations at Launceston Castle,
1965-69: interim report' Cornish Archaeology Vol9 p83-92
1970, Medieval Archaeology Vol14 p175
Saunders, A.D., 1967, 'Launceston Castle' Cornish Archaeology
Vol6 p79
1967, Medieval Archaeology Vol11 p284
1966, Medieval Archaeology Vol10 p190
Saunders, A.D., 1964, 'Launceston Castle, an interim report'
Cornish Archaeology Vol3 p63-9 plan and sections
1964, Medieval Archaeology Vol8 p252
1962-3, Medieval Archaeology Vol6-7 p320-1
1961, Medieval Archaeology Vol5 p318
Brown, R, Allen, 1959, 'A List of Castles, 1154–1216'
English Historical Review Vol74 [Reprinted in Brown, R. Allen,
1989, Castles, conquest and charters: collected papers
(Woodbridge: Boydell Press) p249-280]
Brown, R. Allen, 1955, 'Royal Castle-building in England
1154-1216' English Historical Review Vol70 [Reprinted in
Brown, R. Allen, 1989, Castles, conquest and charters:
collected papers (Woodbridge: Boydell Press)] pp19-64
Toy, S., 1933, 'The Round Castles of Cornwall' Archaeologia
Vol83 p207-17 [plans]
Armitage, E., 1904 April, 'The Early Norman Castles of
England' The English Historical Review Vol74 p234-5
Patterson, 1851, Royal Institute of Cornwall 33th report
p19-37
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Guidebooks
-
Saunders,
A.D., 1998, Launceston Castle (English Heritage)
Saunders, A.D., 1984, Launceston Castle, Cornwall (English
Heritage)
Jones, 1959, Launceston Castle (HMSO)
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Antiquarian
(Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern
writers)
-
Speed,
John, 1611-12, The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britain [http://faculty.oxy.edu/horowitz/home/johnspeed/Cities15.htm]
William Camden, 1607, Britannia [http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/cornwalleng.html#cornwall1]
Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in
Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p62-3, 87-8
Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland
in or about the years 1535-1543 (Bell and Sons; London)
Vol1 p175, 32
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