Coventry Castle

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Red Ditch

In the civil parish of Coventry. In the historic county of Warwickshire (Modern Authority of Coventry, 1974 county of West Midlands).

Castle in city long destroyed. Coventry castle was built in C11 by one Ranulf Meschines who was the earl of Chester. The castle was razed to the ground in C12 and then rebuilt again. After a lot of warring and fighting in mid C12 the castle fell into disrepair. It has even been suggested that the crumbling hulk of the castle was used as a quarry for stone to built other town structures and the city wall. Excavations by archeologists have found the defensive ditch to the castle. This is referred to as the Red Ditch. The castle ditch was up to 20ft deep by a similar width. There is reference to the decaying state of the castle in the time of Queen Elisabeth the first. When Mary Queen of Scots was to be imprisoned there it was thought to be unfit and so she was housed in Caesar's tower (qv).

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SP33597895

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

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 869495
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.

• Books
  • Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p256 [mention]
    Salter, Mike, 1993, Midlands Castles (Birmingham) p40
    Salter, Mike, 1992, Castles and Moated Mansions of Warwickshire (Malvern) p27
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p485
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p216
    Renn, D.F., 1973 (2edn), Norman Castles of Britain (John Baker)
    Stephens, W.B. (ed), 1969, VCH Warwick: Vol8 p118, 121-2
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co)
    Timbs, J. and Gunn, A., 1872, Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales Vol2 (London) p371-5
• Journal Articles
  • Chatwin, P.B., 1928, Birmingham and Warwickshire Archaeological Society transactions Vol53
    Webster, L.E. and Cherry, J., 1972, ‘Medieval Britain in 1971’ Medieval Archaeology Vol16 p183 [downloadable via http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/resources.html?medarch]
    1975, Medieval Archaeology Vol19 p274 [downloadable via http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/resources.html?medarch]
    Youngs, S.M. and Clark, J., 1982, ‘Medieval Britain in 1981' Medieval Archaeology Vol26 p212 [downloadable via http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/resources.html?medarch]
    Coates, B. and Rylett, M., 1986, West Midlands Archaeology CBA Regional Group 8 Vol29 p71
    Chatwin, P.B., 1947-8, 'Castles in Warwickshire' Transactions of the Birmingham and Warwickshire Archaeological Society Vol67 p6-7
• Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
  • Sewell, R.C. (ed), 1846, Gesta Stephani, Regis Anglorum et Ducis Normannorum p125 http://books.google.com/books?id=MK8KAAAAYAAJ