Hartlepool Town Wall

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Sandwell Gate

In the civil parish of Hartlepool.
In the historic county of Durham; County Palatinate of (Modern Authority of Hartlepool, 1974 county of Cleveland).

The town wall was built between 1326 and 1344 and consisted of a bank and ditch constructed in two phases. First murage grant in 1315 and intermittent grants until early C15. The wall was mainly of limestone and random rubble limestone. There was a watergate for fishermen. Long section of quay wall still stands. Town fortifications/retaining wall, fronting onto Commissioners' Harbour; early C14. Roughly-dressed and coursed limestone and random rubble limestone. Between 4m and 6m high; between 2m and 3m thick; approximately 380m long, including Sandwell Gate. Battered buttresses to seaward side; rampart walk above road level on landward side, behind parapet. Incorporating late C14 pointed-arched gateway, Sandwell Gate, on seaward side: arch of 2 chamfered orders, flanked by cut-water-like buttresses continued up to full height of parapet above string course. Within the arch a segmental barrel vault with chamfered ribs. Shallow triangular arch to landward side.

This site has been described as a;
Urban Defence.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Major remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*. (Images of England number 432919, 432931)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is NZ529337

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 27813

Books

Creighton, O.H. and Higham, R.A., 2005, Medieval Town Walls (Stroud: Tempus) p41, 118, 129, 151, 172, 270
Salter, Mike, 2002, The Castles and Tower Houses of County Durham (Malvern) p33
Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p29
Corfe, Tom (ed), 1992, 'The Visible Middle Ages' in An Historical Atlas of County Durhan p28-9
Daniels, R., 1991, 'Medieval Hartlepool: evidence of and from the waterfront' in Good, G.L., Jones, R.H. and Ponsford, M.W. (eds), Waterfront Archaeology: Proceedings of the Third International Conference, Bristol, 1988 (London: CBA Research Report 74) p43-50
Bond, C.J., 1987, 'Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Defences' in Schofield, J. and Leech, R. (eds) Urban Archaeology in Britain (CBA Research Report) p92-116
King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p140
Young, G.A.B., 1983, ‘Archaeology in Hartlepool' in Vyner, B.E. (ed), Recent excavations in Cleveland (Middlesborough: Cleveland County Council) p45-54
Barley, M.W., 1975, 'Town Defences in England and Wales after 1066' in Barley (ed) Medieval Towns in England and Wales (CBA research reports) pp57-71
Turner, H.L., 1971, Town Defences in England and Wales (London) p103
Page, Wm (ed), 1928, VCH Durham Vol3 p265-6
Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co) p235
Surtees, W., 1816 [1972 Reprint], History and Antiquities of Durham Vol2 p110-11 [largely repeating Hutchinson]
Hutchinson, Wm, 1785-94, The History and Antiquities of the County Palatine of Durham Vol3 p20, 25-8

Journal Articles

Daniels, R., 1986, ‘The medieval defences of Hartlepool, Cleveland: the results of excavation and survey' Durham Archaeological Journal vol2 p63-72
Youngs, S.M., Clark, J. and Barry, T.B., 1984, 'Medieval Britain and Ireland in 1983' Medieval Archaeology Vol28 p212
Webster, L.E. and Cherry, J., 1979, ‘Medieval Britain in 1978' Medieval Archaeology Vol23 p264
Pearson, N.F., 1978 Sept, CBA Group 3: Archaeological Newsbulletin Series 2, number 5

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The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of English Heritage and other individuals and organisations.

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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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