Conisbrough Castle
Also known as, or recorded in historical
documents as; Conisborough; Conisburgh; Coningsburgh
In the civil parish of Conisbrough Ward of Doncaster NPA.
In the historic county of Yorkshire West Riding (Modern Authority of Doncaster, 1974 county of South Yorkshire).
Conisbrough Castle is a castle whose main component is a 28 metre high cylindrical tower with six solid wedge-shaped buttresses. The tower consists of several floors, access presently gained via a modern outer staircase leading to the entrance floor circa 5 metres off the ground. A well shaft drops from the entrance floor down into the basement floor below. An interior staircase leads to the upper floors, the positions of which are marked by garderobes and, on the second floor, a thirteenth or fourteenth century fireplace. Surrounding the tower to the north, west and south is a curtain wall enclosing a grassed-over bailey containing well-shafts, a blocked sally-port and the wall footings of ancillary buildings. A modern ramp on the west side overlies the original walled approach to the bailey which leads from a ruined gate-tower. Surrounding the whole is a ditch circa 10 metres deep and circa 20 metres wide and a steeply scarped rampart. The castle is situated on a natural slope and is one of several that, in the Middle Ages, commanded the Don Valley. The site was part of the honour of Conisbrough given to Earl Warenne by his father-in-law William the Conqueror. The castle was built during the twelfth century and remained in the hands of the de Warennes until the reign of Edward III when it passed to Edmund of Langley, Duke of York, and to his descendants. Elizabeth I granted the castle and its demesne to her cousin, Lord Hunsden, since when it has passed through several owners. It has been in State care since 1950. (PastScape)
The earthworks belonging to Conisbrough Castle are of the motte and bailey type and are in good preservation. Motte is very large being 3/4 acre in area and 50 ft. high; whether it is artificial or formed of scarping a natural hill cannot be ascertained without excavation. The motte is large enough for a small ward as well as a keep. It is surrounded by a wide ditch, the bank on the counterscarp being very fine. The bailey has not preserved its earthworks so well and its area cannot be easily determined, but it seems to have had no defences of masonry. There is no early Norman masonry on the motte; the keep was built by Earl Hamelin Plantagenent at the end of C12. There can be little doubt that the earthwork belonged to one of the castles of the Conquest. (PastScape–ref. VCH)
Despite being in owned by Doncaster Council and being in State care the site was managed from the mid 1980's by the Ivanhoe Trust. They roofed the keep, built a highly idiosyncratic visitor centre and interpreted the site in a style like that used by Madam Tussards at Warwick Castle (but at a much smaller level). This author believes there is room for different and diverse ways of managing historic sites but finds such interpretation historical inaccurate and rather patronising of visitors. For whatever reason visitor numbers fell and the site has had to been taken back it the control of English Heritage from April 2008. Some grossly inaccurate 'set dressing' remains in the keep which will, hopefully, be removed and the poor interpretation boards will be renewed. The visitor centre is due for renewal.
This site is a scheduled
monument protected by law. This is a
Grade 1 listed
building protected by law*. (Images
of England number 334795)
The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SK51499881
This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is
318744; 318860; 318874; 318881; 318921; 318867
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
- Salter, Mike, 2001, The Castles and Tower Houses of Yorkshire (Malvern) p30-2
Ingham, Bernard, 2001, Bernard Ingham's Yorkshire Castles (Dalesman) p64-5
Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p302-4 [plan]
King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p515-6
Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p212-3
Johnson, S., 1977, ‘Conisbrough Castle' Archaeological Excavations 1976 (HMSO) p33-4
Renn, D.F., 1973 (2edn), Norman Castles of Britain (John Baker)
Garlick, Tom, 1972, Yorkshire Castles (Dalesman) p15-19
Pevsner, N. and Radcliffe, E., 1967. The Buildings of England: Yorkshire: the West Riding (London, Penguin) p167-9
Colvin, H.M., Brown, R.Allen and Taylor, A.J., 1963, The history of the King's Works Vol2: the Middle Ages (London: HMSO) p616 [late repairs only]
Toy, Sidney, 1953, The Castles of Great Britain (Heinemann) p105-7
Toy, Sidney, 1939, Castles: A short History of Fortifications from 1600 BC to AD 1600 (London) p96-8
Illingworth, J.L., 1938 (republished 1970), Yorkshire's Ruined Castles (Wakefield) p36-44
Ellis, A.S., 1913, in Page, Wm. (ed), VCH Yorkshire Vol3 p404
Ellis, A.S., 1912, in Page, Wm. (ed), VCH Yorkshire Vol2 p28-30
Ellis, A.S., 1912, in Page, Wm. (ed), VCH Yorkshire Vol1 p168-9
Thompson, A. Hamilton, 1912, Military architecture in England during the Middle Ages (OUP) p166-71
Evans, Herbert A., 1912, Castles of England and Wales (London) p186-93
Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co) p105-6
Mackenzie, J.D., 1896, Castles of England (New York: Macmillan) Vol2 p213-17 http://www.archive.org/stream/castlesofengland02mack#page/213/mode/1up
Smith, 1887, History of Conisborough Castle (Worksop)
Clark, G.T., 1884, Medieval Military Architecture in England (Wyman and Sons) Vol1 p431-35
Timbs, J. and Gunn, A., 1872, Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales Vol3 (London) p190-1
Britton, John, 1835, The Architectural Antiquities of Great Britain (London) Vol4 p119-21
Hunter, J., 1828, South Yorkshire: The History and Topography of the Deanery of Doncaster Vol1 p97-115
Wainwright, 1826, Strafford and Tickhill (Sheffield) p205-14
King, Edward, 1799-1805, Munimenta antiqua or Observations on antient castles (W.Bulmer and Co) Vol3 p43-72
King, Edward, 1782, Observations on Antient Castles (London) p58-70
Buck, Samuel and Nathenial, 1774, Buck’s Antiquities (London) Vol2 p323
Grose, F., 1756, Antiquities of England and Wales Vol6 p87-9
- Journal Articles
- Thompson M. W., 1980, ‘Conisbrough Castle' The Archaeological Journal Vol137 p416
Johnson, S., 1980, ‘Excavations at Conisbrough Castle 1973-77' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol52 p59-88
Birch, J., 1981, 'The castles and fortified houses of South Yorkshire' The Archaeological Journal Vol137 p374-6
Johnson, S., 1976, Medieval Archaeology Vol20 p185 [downloadable via http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/resources.html?medarch]
Thompson, M.W., 1969, 'Further work at Conisburgh Castle, Yorkshire' Medieval Archaeology Vol13 p215-6 and plate XXXIII [downloadable via http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/resources.html?medarch]
Thompson, M.W., 1968, 'Conisbrough castle' The Archaeological Journal Vol125 p327-8
Thompson, M.W., 1968, 'A Single-aisled Hall at Conisbrough Castle, Yorkshire' Medieval Archaeology Vol12 p153 [downloadable via http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/resources.html?medarch]
Brown, R, Allen, 1959, 'A List of Castles, 1154–1216' English Historical Review Vol74 p249-280 [Reprinted in Brown, R. Allen, 1989, Castles, conquest and charters: collected papers (Woodbridge: Boydell Press) p90-121] http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0013-8266%28195904%2974%3A291%3C249%3AALOC1%3E2.0.CO%3B2-P
Simpson, W. Douglas, 1954, 'The donjons of Conisborough and Bothwell' Archaeologia Aeliana [ser4] Vol32 p100-115
Sands, H. and Brown, H., 1934, 'Conisbrough and Mortemer' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol32 p147-59
Innocent, C.F., 1914-18, Hunter Archaeological Society Transactions Vol1 p395-8
Gould, I. Chalkley, 1904, 'Some early defensive earthworks of the Sheffield district' Journal of the British Archaeological Association Vol10 p29-42 esp41-2 http://www.archive.org/stream/journalofbritishns10brit#page/n80/mode/1up
Clark, G.T., 1889, 'Contribution towards a complete list of moated mounds or burhs' The Archaeological Journal Vol46 p197-217 esp215 http://www.archive.org/stream/archaeologicaljo46brit#page/197/mode/1up
Ellis, A.S., 1886, 'Conisbrough Castle' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol9 p399-
Brown, W., 1886, 'View of the Castles of Tickhill and Conisbrough' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol9 p221-2
Hoyle, 1886, 'The Descent of the Manor of Conisbrough' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol9 p216-
Clark, G.T., 1883, 'Conisbrough Castle' Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol8 p123-57 [reprinted in MMA]
Roberts, E., 1874, 'Coningsburgh Castle' Journal of the British Archaeological Association Vol30 p19-24 http://www.archive.org/stream/journalofbritish30brit#page/19/mode/1up
Milward, 1848, 'On the Norman keep towers of Coningsburgh and Richmond' The Archaeological Journal Vol5 p41-52 http://www.archive.org/stream/archaeologicaljo05brit#page/41/mode/1up
1801, Gentleman's Magazine p201-3 [missing from Google online copy]
King, Edward, 1782, 'Sequel to the observations on Ancient Castles' Archaeologia Vol6 p234-46 [reprinted in Antient Castles]
- Guidebooks
- Johnson, S., 1988, Conisbrough Castle (London: English Heritage)
Johnson, S., 1984, Conisbrough Castle, South Yorkshire (HMSO)
Thompson, M.W., 1959, Conisbrough Castle, Yorkshire (HMSO)
- Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents
- This section is far from complete and the secondary
sources should be consulted for full references.)
- Rickard, John, 2002, The Castle Community. The Personnel of English and Welsh Castles, 1272-1422 (Boydell Press) [lists sources for 1272-1422] p479-80
- Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
- Other sources, 'grey' literature, unpublished works, etc. (Theses, in-house reports and other such)
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for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.
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