Scarborough Castle

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Castle Rock; Scardeburgh

In the civil parish of Scarborough. In the historic county of Yorkshire North Riding (Modern Authority of North Yorkshire, 1974 county of North Yorkshire).

The headland around Scarborough castle has been occupied since the Late Bronze Age, and the castle itself dates from before 1135. The castle complex is of several phases and the fabric has suffered a history of sieges and bombardments up until 1914. The inner bailey, built in the 1150s, contains the 17m sq keep, built by Henry II, and the vestiges of a former hall and service buildings around its inner perimeter. In the northern corner the presence of a further hall is suggested by joist-holes in the curtain wall. Today the area outside the keep is largely turfed over except for the preserved foundations of the ancillary buildings and a medieval well. Foundations of C14 hall in large outer bailey. Entrance protected by C14 barbican.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TA04778912

Air Photo from Air Photo and general mapping	1st edition OS Map from Mid to late 19th century maps
Modern Map from Landscape form and features	Modern Map from General location and route planning
Geograph British Isles occasionally has photos of the site and will usually give an idea of the surrounding landscape.

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 79973
This site's County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number is MNY20485 and others '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.

• Web site links
  • http://www.eng-h.gov.uk/reports/scarboro/
    http://www.castleuk.net/castle_lists_north/101/scarboroughcastle.htm
    http://www.castlexplorer.co.uk/england/scarborough/scarborough.php#castle
    http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/conProperty.381
    http://www.norman-world.com/angleterre/Patrimoine_architectural/Angleterre/Castles/scarborough/Scarboro1.htm
    http://www.geocities.com/jojogoob/Scarborough.html
    http://www.ecastles.co.uk/scarborough.html
• Books
  • Pearson, T., 2005, The archaeology of medieval Scarborough: excavation and research 1987-2004 (Scarborough: Scarborough Archaeological and Historical Society)
    Jackson, M.J., 2001, Castles of North Yorkshire (Carlise) p66-9
    Salter, Mike, 2001, The Castles and Tower Houses of Yorkshire (Malvern) p84-7
    Ingham, Bernard, 2001, Bernard Ingham's Yorkshire Castles (Dalesman) p66-9
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p297-298
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p525
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p296-7
    Renn, D.F., 1973 (2edn), Norman Castles of Britain (John Baker) p297, 306-7, 309
    Garlick, Tom, 1972, Yorkshire Castles (Dalesman) p24
    Pevsner, N., 1966, The Buildings of England: Yorkshire North Riding (London, Penguin) p324-6
    Colvin, H.M., Brown, R.Allen and Taylor, A.J., 1963, The history of the King's Works Vol2: the Middle Ages (London: HMSO) p54, 65-6, 69, 71-3, 118-9, 217, 690, 770, 780, 829-32
    Toy, Sidney, 1953, The Castles of Great Britain (Heinemann) p90-2
    Illingworth, J.L., 1938 (republished 1970), Yorkshire's Ruined Castles (Wakefield) p94-102
    Rowntree and Montgomerie, 1931, in Rowntree, A. (ed), History of Scarborough p141-8, 149-64
    Page, Wm (ed), 1923, VCH York, North Riding Vol2 p541-9 http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=64705#s2
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co)
    Mackenzie, J.D., 1897, Castles of England (Heinemann) Vol2 p252-5
    Baker, 1882, History of Scarborough (London) p52-98
    Timbs, J. and Gunn, A., 1872, Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales Vol3 (London) p163-5
    Clark, G.T., 1884, Medieval Military Architecture in England  (Wyman and Sons) Vol2 p458-67
    Young, G., 1817, History of Whitby and the Vicinity Vol2 736-9
    Bigland, J., 1812, Beauties of England and Wales Vol16 p358-65
    Hinderwell, 1798, History and Antiquities of Scarborough (York) p34-81
    Buck, Samuel and Nathenial, 1774, Buck’s Antiquities (London) Vol2 p342
• Journal Articles
  • Hayfield, C. and Pacitto, T., 2007, 'Excavation at the barbican and Master Gunner's House at Scarborough Castle, North Yorkshire' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol79 p195-229
    Hayfield, C. and Pacitto, T., 2005, 'Excavation of the great hall or 'Kyngeshallle' at Scarborough Castle, North Yorkshire' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol77 p31-92
    Moorhouse, S., 1977, ‘The Yorkshire Archaeological Register: 1976' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol49 p11
    Rutter, J.G. (ed), 1974, Transactions of the Scarborough Archaeological and Historical Society Vol17 p24
    Rutter, J.G. (ed), 1973, Transactions of the Scarborough Archaeological and Historical Society Vol16 p43
    King, D.J.C. and Alcock, L., 1969, 'Ringworks in England and Wales' Château Gaillard Vol3 p90-127
    Brown, R, Allen, 1959, 'A List of Castles, 1154–1216' English Historical Review Vol74 p249-280 [Reprinted in Brown, R. Allen, 1989, Castles, conquest and charters: collected papers (Woodbridge: Boydell Press) p90-121] http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0013-8266%28195904%2974%3A291%3C249%3AALOC1%3E2.0.CO%3B2-P
    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
    I'Anson, W.M., 1913, 'The castles of the North Riding' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol22 p377
    Stevenson, W.H., 1907, East Riding Antiquarian Society Vol14 p13-17 [unimportant]
    Hope, R.C., 1889, The Reliquary Vol3 p24-30 [excavation report and survey of 1538]
    Clark, G.T., 1884, Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol p179-97 [reprinted in MMA]
    Clark, G.T., 1866, The Builder Magazine Vol24 p921-2 [with plan of keep]
    1799, Gentleman's Magazine Vol69 pt2 p1033-4 http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015018405186
• Guidebooks
  • Goodall, J.A.A., 2000, Scarborough Castle, North Yorkshire (London: English Heritage)
    Bush, R., n.d. [c1983] Scarborogh Castle (London: English Heritage)
    anon, 1977 [my copy but certainly older than this] Scarborough Castle (HMSO)
    1960, Scarborough Castle: an illustrated guide with a short history of the castle from earliest times (HMSO) [abnormally poor]
    Garton, 1946, Scarborough Castle (HMSO)
• Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
  • Rickard, John, 2002, The Castle Community. The Personnel of English and Welsh Castles, 1272-1422 (Boydell Press) [lists sources for 1272-1422] p493-5
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • William Camden, 1607, Britannia [http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/yorkseng.html#yorks41]
    Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p547
    Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (Bell and Sons; London) Vol1 p60 http://www.archive.org/details/itineraryofjohnl01