Poundstock Castle

In the civil parish of Poundstock.
In the historic county of Cornwall (Modern Authority of Cornwall, 1974 county of Cornwall).

Earthwork remains of a Motte and Bailey castle. A low motte with banks on the south and east rims to circa 6.5m wide, 0.7m high internally and external ditches to the south and east circa 4.5m wide and 0.6m deep. There is a central platform defined on the north and west by a curving scarp circa 6m wide and 1.6m high. internally 21m in diameter. A possible bailey is situated to the east. Appears to have been discovered in May 1993 presumably as a result of the Historic Landscape Characterisation Programme pioneered by Peter Herring, Nick Johnson et al.

This site has been described as a Timber Castle.

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.

Cropmarks/slight earthworks remains.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SX19999941

Modern Map from

Good for landscape form and features

Modern Map from

Good for general location

Air Photo from

1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 912014

Books
- 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 [mentioned in text but not on maps]

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The comprehensive gazetteer of the medieval fortifications and castles of Cornwall

With thanks to Philip Davis

Poundstock Castle

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SX19999941

Sources of information, references and further reading