The Gatehouse website record for Truro Castle Hill

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

The castle stood at the head of the town on a raised circular area, but by circa 1270 it is described as a vacant plot. The site was levelled in 1840 for the construction of the cattle market and the foundations of the castle were revealed. These consisted of a circular wall of unmortared local slate stone 3ft thick and 75ft in diameter. There was a small room adjoining the entrance at the SE. (PastScape) The site of the castle is occupied by new County Courts, currently under construction. A watching brief, carried out by the County Museum and Cornwall Archaeological Unit, found no masonry or other material relative to the castle and it is presumed that these were swept away previously, perhaps when the former cattle market was made. (PastScape–ref. Field Investigators Comments–F1 NVQ 30-JUL-86)
The castle is dated either as post-Conquest and the work of the Count of Mortain or as an 'adulterine' castle of the Anarchy. The, one time, tendency to suggest almost all undocumented as adulterine castles of the Anarchy is probably at work here and it was most likely founded in the post-Conquest period, although the stone work may be of a later period. There is absolutely no reason to consider it, in any way, as adulterine. Clearly this was the Count's administrative centre. Truro was small but was to become a stannery town which suggests the castle may have been founded to protect this trade and its revenue. At some undetermined time, the residential aspect of the castle of the Counts may have moved to Moresk Castle, St Clement (qv).

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SW823450

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 428730
Further information may be available from the holder of the county Historic Environment Record. In particular '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, or elsewhere.

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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.
Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.

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