The Gatehouse website record for High Wycombe, Castle Hill House

In the civil parish of High Wycombe. In the historic county of Buckinghamshire (Modern Authority of Buckinghamshire, 1974 county of Buckinghamshire).

Mount in the garden of Castle Hill House, on the slope of a hill overlooking the town, about 350' OD. The work in its present state consists only of the mount which appears from its unusual form (a crescent) to have been partly destroyed. It is 30' high and 128' in diam, at its base. The summit is 17' in diameter. In an ancient Heralds Book in the Bodleian Library is contained a return of all the Royal Castles in England which includes Wycombe. The castle was apparently an appurtenance of the Manor of Temple Wycombe and held by Robert de Vipont as lord of the manor in the reign of King John. Suggestions that there is an associated ringwork are probably confused with later landscaping of the area. (PastScape)
Watching briefs in the 1990's failed to find evidence of a ditch or medieval material and a watching brief in 2004 produced some C17 pottery and 'made up layers' and on this bases the mound is is now suggested as a prospect mound. This seems flimsy evidence for dismissing a long tradition backed up with some documentation although there is, of course, no reason why this motte could not have has some use (including some landscaping alteration) as a prospect mound. The documentary evidence may actually refer to Desborough Castle (qv).

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SU86719323

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 248758
This site's County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number is 0060700000
0060701000 'grey' literature, such as watching brief reports, held by H.E.R.s is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded in this website.

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The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of English Heritage and other individuals and organisations. All the sources given should be consulted to identify the original copyright holder and permission obtained from them before use of the information on this site for commercial purposes. I do not receive any income from this site and I fund it myself.
The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.

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