Kyloe Tower

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; East Kyloe; Kylay; Kilo

In the civil parish of Kyloe.
In the historic county of Durham; North (Modern Authority of Northumberland, 1974 county of Northumberland).

The ruins of a late C14or early C15 medieval tower house which now forms part of a complex of farm buildings. The tower is rectangular in shape and measures 10m by 11.7m externally with walls of ashlar blocks about 2.5m thick. The tower stands to first floor level, marked by a chamfered plinth and chamfered set-back with walls 4.5m high. The original entrance to the ground floor lies at the west end of the south wall. It is now concealed externally by C19 farm buildings. Internally, there is evidence of a possible loft structure at the springing of the vault, with the corbels which supported the wooden beams visible on the interior of the north and south walls. Access to the upper floors was by means of a newel stair in the south west corner entered through a small lobby. The south wall of the stair is the only part to stand above first floor level and has two square-headed window loops.

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

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Grade 2 listed building protected by law*. (Images of England number 237770)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is NU05913975

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; 6055

County Sites and Monuments Record number; N3739

• Web site links
  • http://www.keystothepast.info/durhamcc/K2P.nsf/K2PDetail?readform&PRN=N3739
    http://www.sine.newcastle.ac.uk/view_structure_information.asp?struct_id=92
• Books
  • Dodds, John F., 1999, Bastions and Belligerents (Keepdate Publishing) p58-9
    Salter, Mike, 1997, The Castles and Tower Houses of Northumberland (Malvern) p72
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p200 [slight]
    Pevsner, N., 1992 (revised by Grundy, John et al), The Buildings of England: Northumberland (London, Penguin) p370
    Rowland, T.H., 1987 [reprint1994], Medieval Castles, Towers, Peles and Bastles of Northumberland (Sandhill Press) p23
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p336
    Graham, Frank, 1976, The Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Frank Graham) p223
    Long, B., 1967, Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) p129-130
    Hugill, R.,1939, Borderland Castles and Peles [1970 Reprint by Frank Graham] p142-3
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co)
    Bates, C.J., 1891, Border Holds of Northumberland (London and Newcastle: Andrew Reid) p19
    Raine, J., 1852, History and Antiquities of North Durham (London) p194-5
• Journal Articles
  • Craw, 1923-5, History of the Berwickshire Naturalist Club Vol25 p367-8
    Hodgson, J.C., 1916, 'List of Ruined Towers, Chapels, etc., in Northumberland; compiled about 1715 by John Warburton, Somerset Herald, aided by John Horsley' Archaeologia Aeliana [ser3] Vol13 p9
• Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
  • 1415 list of Northumberland Castles [Click here]