The Gatehouse website record for St Leonards Tower, West Malling

In the civil parish of West Malling. In the historic county of Kent (Modern Authority of Kent, 1974 county of Kent).

Tower keep castle built between 1077-1108 by Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester. The castle survives as a ruin and in the form of associated earthworks and buried remains. Its most prominent feature is a tall, square keep constructed of course Kentish ragstone rubble in which some herringbone work is visible, with tufa ashlar dressings. The remains of the keep survive up to a height of 20m. Associated with the keep are two low stretches of medieval walling incorporated within a later post-medieval garden boundary wall. Considered to be one of the best examples extant of an Early Norman Keep. Built of stone with tufa dressings, 32ft square at the base, 60ft high on its north and east faces and 70 ft on the 2 other faces, the difference due to the inclined surface of the rocky shelf on which it is built. Corner buttresses. 3 stages. The 1st stage has traces of herringbone-work. Central buttress to left side elevation. 2nd stage has 5 round-headed arches on the east side, only the central one open, the rest blank. 2nd stage has 2 round-headed arches to east side and one to south side. West side has round-headed entrance to ground floor, round-headed arch to first and second floors and loop lights to buttresses. North side has 1 round-headed window. Internal evidence to suggest there were upper and lower floors, the lower only about 5ft above ground level. Some debate exists as to function since has ground floor entrance and no bailey but is too grand to be just a bell tower as is sometimes suggested.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TQ67595708

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 412468
This site's County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number is MKE36161 '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 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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*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.