Downton Bishops Palace

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; The Old Court; King John's Stables

In the civil parish of Downton. In the historic county of Wiltshire (Modern Authority of Wiltshire, 1974 county of Wiltshire).

Possible Bishops palace documented during early C13. It is thought to have been situated on the west bank of the River Avon. Excavations in 1957 located part of a Medieval wall. Building material was also dredged from the river in 1962. (PastScape)
Henry de Blois episcopal castle, The Moot (qv), was demolished in 1155 and never seemed to recover; was this a replacement on a new site?. Creighton writes that "the distinct possibility that the castle was conceived as an appendage to an extant archiepiscopal (sic) palace site, and thus represented the temporary transfer of functions to a fortified nucleus as opposed to the creation of a new seat of Lordship."
It is known that by the later 11th century an episcopal residence stood at Downton (Elrington 1980), and documentary and historical evidence has identified the site at Old Court, just west of The Moot, as the location – a premise confirmed by archaeological research which also discovered that the site had probably been bisected by a Post-medieval mill stream. The 1734 estate map of Joseph Windham shows standing walls marked ‘The Ruins’ on an island created by the mill stream, but cannot be trusted for accuracy. The size of such a site has been estimated (based upon the body of recorded sites) at between 0.5ha and 3ha (English Heritage 1990, Magnates’ Residences (Medieval). Monuments Protection Programme, Single Monuments Class Description.). (Mcmahon p13)
I'm not entirely convinced by a story of a palace superseded by a castle and then another palace. It may be that it is better to think of the Downton palace and castle as one large episcopal site with use over a long period and many rebuilding in various styles, with older building being abandoned, demolished or reused in different ways. In effect this would put the palace in a third bailey, defined by the river, to the west of the castle ringwork. Before the insertion of a post-medieval mill leet and probable changes to the river course, this area may have been rather more clearly defined by the river than is now apparent.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SU17812126

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 217911
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
  • Mcmahon, Phil, 2004, The Archaeology of Wiltshire’s Towns An Extensive Urban Survey Downton (Wiltshire County Archaeology Service) http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/adsdata/arch-906-1/dissemination/pdf/EUS_Texts/Downton.pdf
    Thompson, M.W., 1998, Medieval bishops' houses in England and Wales (Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing) p185
    James, T.B., 1990, The Palaces of Medieval England (London; Seaby) p88
    Elrington C.R. (ed). 1980, VCH Wiltshire, Vol11: Downton Hundred, Elstub & Everleigh Hundred. (Institute of Historical Research, University of London) http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=115483#s5
    Hoare, Sir Richard Colt, 1822-44, The history of modern Wiltshire: Hundred of Downton (London) p18
• Journal Articles
  • Creighton, O.H., 2000, 'Early Castles in the Medieval Landscape of Wiltshire' Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine Vol93 p108
    Musty, J., 1966, 'Old Court, Downton, and the Moot earthworks' Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine Vol61 p98-99
    1965, Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine Vol59 p124-5
    1961-3, Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine Vol58 p116
    1787, Gentleman's Magazine Library Vol57 pt2 p951-52 http://books.google.com/books?id=TE4DAAAAMAAJ
• Other sources, 'grey' literature, unpublished works, etc. (Theses, in-house reports and other such)
  • Payne, Naomi, 2003, The medieval residences of the bishops of Bath and Wells, and Salisbury (PhD Thesis University of Bristol) Appendix B: List of Medieval Bishop's Palaces in England and Wales [available via http://ethos.bl.uk ]