Nottingham Town Wall

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Chapel Bar; Cowlane Bar; St John's Bar; Swine Bar

In the civil parish of Nottingham.
In the historic county of Nottinghamshire (Modern Authority of Nottingham; City of, 1974 county of Nottinghamshire).

Medieval town defences, which excavation has revealed to have consisted of a wall and ditch, probably built between 1267 and 1334. Short sections remain of C12 earth and stone walls based on, and expanded from saxon burh of 921. First murage granted 1267 and others were received until C15.

This site has been described as a;
Urban Defence.
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.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SK568399

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; 317520, 317611, 317599, 317602, 317605, 317907, 317910, 317916

• Web site links
  • http://www.roffe.freeserve.co.uk/phd/phd070.htm
• Books
  • Creighton, O.H. and Higham, R.A., 2005, Medieval Town Walls (Stroud: Tempus) p18, 24, 60, 65, 93, 131, 156, 174, 212, 226, 230, 237, 267
    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) Vol2 p382
    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 plan p64
    Turner, H.L., 1971, Town Defences in England and Wales (London) p120-1
    Barley, M.W., 1969, 'Nottingham' in Lodel, M.D. (ed), Historic Towns: Maps and Plans of Towns and Cities in the British Isles, with Historical Commentaries, from Earliest Times to 1800 Vol1 (London: Lovell) p1-8
• Journal Articles
  • Young, C., 1974, 'Excavations in Nottingham' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol78 p2-3
    1973, Medieval Archaeology Vol17 p170
    1972, Medieval Archaeology Vol16 p159-60
    Young, C., 1972, 'Excavations in Nottingham' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol76 p1-3
    Ponsford, M.W., 1971, 'Nottingham Town Wall: Park Row excavations 1967' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol75 p5-32
    Carter, Alan, 1971, 'Nottingham town wall: Park Row excavations, 1968' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol75 p33-40
    Young, C., 1971, 'Excavations in Nottingham' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol75 p1-2
    1971, Medieval Archaeology Vol15 p132
    Young, C., 1970, 'Excavations in Nottingham' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol74 p2-3
    [Carter] 1969, Medieval Archaeology Vol13 p266
    1968,Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol72 p1
    Dawe, 1967, Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol71 p32-5 [pre-Conquest defences]
    Barley, M.W., 1967, Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol71 p1
    Barley, M.W., 1965, 'Nottingham town wall: Park Row excavations 1964' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol69 p50-65
    Barley, M. W., 1965, ‘Medieval Town Wall, Park Row, Nottingham’ Medieval Archaeology Vol9 p164-7
    Wildgoose, 1961, Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol65 p19-26
    Barley, M. W., 1959, ‘Nottingham Medieval Town Wall, Chapel Bar’ Medieval Archaeology Vol3 p290-2
    Owen, L.V.D., 1945, 'The borough of Nottingham, 1066 to 1284' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol49 p13-27
    Heazell, E.H., 1925, 'Old Town Wall, Nottingham' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol29 p179-180
    Stapleton, A. and Dobson, 1912, 'Nottingham Town Wall' Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire Vol16 p137-149, 157-63
    Clift, 1907, Journal of the British Archaeological Association Vol13 p41-50
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • Speed, John, 1611-12, The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britain [http://faculty.oxy.edu/horowitz/home/johnspeed/Cities21.htm]
    Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p355, 357