Baconsthorpe Castle

In the civil parish of Baconsthorpe.
In the historic county of Norfolk (Modern Authority of Norfolk, 1974 county of Norfolk).

The remains of a moated site and fortified house. Baconsthorpe Castle is built on what is thought to have been the site of the earlier manor of Wood Hall. The fortified house was built during the middle and later C15. The outer gatehouse and courtyards, with associated barn, were built during the following century. The remains of the fortified house occupy a roughly square platform 65m across, surrounded on the south, west and north sides by a water-filled moat between 13m-15m wide. The standing remains of the house on the central island , include a surrounding curtain wall rising above the inner edges of the moat, a gatehouse on the southern side, and a range of buildings along the southern part of the inner face of the wall on the east side. Licence to crenellate obtained 1561.

This site has been described as a;
Fortified Manor House.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Masonry ruins/remnants remains.

A Royal licence to crenellate was granted in 1561 Nov 24.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*. (Images of England number 224554)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TG121381

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; 131989

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 6561

• Web site links
  • http://norfolkcoast.co.uk/baconsthorpecastle.htm
    http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/conProperty.2
    http://norman.walsh.name/2004/03/12/baconsthorpe
• Books
  • Cushion, B. and Davison, A., 2003, Earthworks of Norfolk (Dereham: East Anglian Archaeology 104) p162-5 [plan]
    Dallas, Carolyn and Sherlock, David, 2002, Baconsthorpe Castle, Excavations and Finds, 1951-1972 (Dereham: East Anglian Archaeology 102)
    Salter, Mike, 2001, The Castles of East Anglia (Malvern) p42-4
    Emery, Anthony, 2000, Greater Medieval Houses Vol2 (Cambridge) p49
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p154-5
    Rogerson, Andrew, 1994, 'Castles' in Wade-Martins, P, (ed), An Historical Atlas of Norfolk (2edn Norwich; Norfolk Museums) p68-9
    Kent, Peter, 1988, Fortifications of East Anglia (Lavenham: Ternence Dalton) p175
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p310
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p181
    Wilton, J.W., 1979, Earthworks and Fortifications of Norfolk (Weathercock Press) p24
    Pevsner, Nikolaus, 1962, Buildings of England: North-west and south Norfolk (Penguin) p80
    Lord Harlech, 1955, Ancient Monuments Vol3 - East Anglia and the Midlands (HMSO) p43, 72
• Journal Articles
  • Kenyon, J.R., 1981 'Early Artillery Fortifications in England and Wales: a Preliminary Survey and Re-appraisal' Archaeological Journal Vol138 p226-7
    Rigold, S., 1980, ‘Baconsthorpe Castle' Archaeological Journal Vol137 p331-2
    1977, Fort Vol4 p76
    Cozens-Hardy, 1958-61, Norfolk Archaeology Vol32 p166-7
    1932, Norfolk Archaeology Vol24 p.lix-lxi
• Guidebooks
  • Rigold, S., 1966, Baconsthorpe Castle (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.)
  • Calendar of Patent Rolls (1560-63) p219
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p315