Gidleigh Castle
Also known as, or recorded in historical
documents as; Gidley
In the civil parish of Gidleigh.
In the historic county of Devon (Modern Authority of Devon, 1974 county of Devon).
Keep tower, the only standing remains of a castle built circa 1300 by the Prouze family. Granite stone rubble laid to rough courses with open putlog holes and large roughly-shaped quoins, ashlar detail of hard sandy magnesium limestone. Plan: square in plan there is an undercroft and first floor hall. It is built on a slope facing downhill to the east-south-east, say east. Entrance on left (south) side and stairs in the thickness of the wall round the south-west corner. Second stair, a stone newel, projecting forward from left end of font. Disused fireplace serving the hall in centre of front wall. The hall is no longer roofed and the newel stair turret has partly collapsed. Exterior: 2-window front to right of the stair turret; narrow slit windows with deep internal splays and with relieving arches over, the right first floor one has some of its ashlar window frame still in situ. A buttress projects square in the centre of the wall. Left side has a segmental pointed (almost triangular-headed) arch doorway, and the right side has a plain doorway at first floor level towards the back. Interior: the undercroft has a vaulted roof supported on square ribs. The doorways from both stairs to the hall have chamfered surrounds with bar-broach stops. The fireplace has been much rebuilt. The floor shows the bases of columns which presumably supported a corbelled hood. The construction and detail of this building are remarkably similar to the contemporary phase of Okehampton Castle. (Images of England)
This site is a scheduled
monument protected by law. This is a
Grade 1 listed
building protected by law*. (Images
of England number 94729)
The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SX67058841
This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is
443533
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.
- Web site links
- Books
- Emery, Anthony, 2006, Greater Medieval Houses Vol3 (Cambridge) p565-6
Grumley-Grennan, T. and Hardy, M., 2000, Gidliegh: A Dartmoor Village Past and Present
Higham, Robert A., 1999, 'Castles, Fortified Houses and Fortified Towns in the Middle Ages' in Kain, R. and Ravenhill, W., Historical Atlas of South-West England (University of Exeter Press) p136-43
Salter, Mike, 1999, The Castles of Devon and Cornwall (Malvern) p64
Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p58-9
Pevsner, Nikolaus and Cherry, Bridget, 1989, Buildings of England: Devon (Harmondsworth) p456
Mildren, James, 1987, Castles of Devon (Bossiney Books) p30-33
King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p116
Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p234
Mackenzie, J.D., 1896, Castles of England (New York: Macmillan) Vol2 p32 http://www.archive.org/stream/castlesofengland02mack#page/32/mode/1up
Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p354
Lysons, D. and S., 1822, Magna Britannia Vol6 Devon p. cccxlv-cccxlviii [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/source.asp?pubid=406]
- Journal Articles
- Bradley, J and Gaimster, M. (eds), 2004, 'Medieval Britain and Ireland in 2003' Medieval Archaeology Vol48 p254 [downloadable via http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/resources.html?medarch]
[Blaylock, S.R.], 1992, Medieval Archaeology Vol37 p255-7 [downloadable via http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/resources.html?medarch]
Higham, R.A., 1988, 'Devon Castles: an annotated list' Proceedings of the Devon Archaeological Society Vol46 p142-9
Amery, J.S., and Worth, R.H., 1925, 'Gidleigh Castle' Transactions of the Devonshire Association Vol57 p267-271
- Other sources, 'grey' literature, unpublished works, etc. (Theses, in-house reports and other such)
- Blaylock, S.R., 1992, Gidleigh Castle: A survey of the Standing Remains (Exeter Museum Archaeology Field Unit)
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and permission to visit a site must always be sought from the landowner
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may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of English
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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.
Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link. |
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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.
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