The Gatehouse website record for Hemyock Castle

In the civil parish of Hemyock. In the historic county of Devon (Modern Authority of Devon, 1974 county of Devon).

Ruined castle gatehouse and curtain walls. Circa 1380: in this year Sir William Asthorpe was licensed to erect a 'wall of stone and lime'. There was already a structure of some sort on this site, referred to in a C13 document as a 'court'; the early work on the gatehouse (see below) may date from this period. Random chert rubble. The curtain wall enclosed a roughly rectangular site; the principal remains are the circular towers flanking the main (east) entrance, and a corner tower at the north-east angle. There are remains of 4 other circular mural towers and stretches of curtain wall. No dressed stone or detailing survive, and it is not clear where the entrances to the towers were originally; clearly they were not at ground level. To the rear of the gatehouse towers is a vertical masonry joint probably indicating that part of the structure ante-dates the 1380s work. Beseiged in 1642 when it was garrisoned by Parliamentarians but probably demolished circa1660. The remains of the gatehouse, walls and towers survive. The moat is well defined, from 1 to 2.5m deep around the southern and western sides, and from 0.7 to 1.2m deep on the northern side. Historical note: Sir William Asthorpe was a courtier, and appointed by Richard II as Sheriff of Devon in the 1380s in the face of considerable local hostility; he had married into the Dynham family, a connection that led to protracted family litigation in the Court of Chivalry; after his year in office as Sheriff, about a dozen cases of embezzlement and other corrupt practices were brought against him by numerous members of the local nobility. He was temporarily imprisoned in The Fleet prison, but pardoned by Richard II. His vulnerability probably explains in part the erection of the castle, but it was doubtless also intended to impress the local gentry. (Images of England)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is ST13511328

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 188945
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 listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.