Rochford Tower

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Kyme Tower; Richmond Tower; Skirbeck

In the civil parish of Fishtoft.
In the historic county of Lincolnshire (Modern Authority of Lincolnshire, 1974 county of Lincolnshire).

The standing and buried remains of a medieval brick fortified house at Rochford Tower. The house is believed to have been built in late C15 to early C16. The building formerly included a two storey range adjoining the north side of the tower. This range was dismantled in 1807 when the present house was built to the north of the tower. The tower is rectangular in plan, measuring 9m by 8m, and stands four storeys high, with a crenellated parapet and turrets at the angles of the tower. The structure is mainly of red brick with stone window dressings. At ground floor level there is a brick vaulted chamber, or undercroft. The tower was formerly part of a larger building, shown by the bonding scars of a two storey range on the exterior of the northern wall of the tower. King rejects this as never forming part of a defensible structure.

This site has been described as a;
Tower House.
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 191948)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TF35074451

Modern Map from Good for landscape form and features	Modern Map from Good for general location
Air Photo from	1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 353869

• Web site links
  • http://www.lincsheritage.org/lincs/forts/index.html
• Books
  • Salter, Mike, 2002, The Castles of the East Midlands (Malvern) p58
    Emery, Anthony, 2000, Greater Medieval Houses Vol2 (Cambridge) p224
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p144
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p265 [reject]
    Pevsner, Nikolaus, 1964, Buildings of England: Lincolnshire (Harmondsworth) p265
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co)
    Pishey Thompson, 1856, The History and Antiquities of Boston: And the Hundreds of Skirbeck (Richard Kay Publications 1997 reprint)