Aldingham Moat Hill

In the civil parish of Aldingham.
In the historic county of Lancashire (Modern Authority of Cumbria, 1974 county of Cumbria).

Earthwork remains of a motte and bailey castle. Excavations in 1968 showed that this castle overlay a C12 ringwork, was modified in late C12/early C13 and was abandoned in mid-C13. Aldingham motte is 30ft high with a surrounding ditch 10ft deep on the south side and 8ft deep on the morth, varying from 15 to 20ft wide at the bottom. Some 40yds north of the mound there is a broad straight ditch 250ft long and 18ft wide at the bottom, extending at almost right angles to the sea cliff.

This site has been described as a;
Timber Castle.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Earthworks remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SD27786983

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; 37622

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 2613

• Web site links
  • http://www.castleuk.net/castle_lists_north/96/aldinghamcastle.htm
• Books
  • Perriam, Denis and Robinson, John, 1998, The Medieval Fortified Buildings of Cumbria (CWAAS) p375
    Salter, Mike, 1998, The Castles and Tower Houses of Cumbria (Malvern) p12
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p274 [slight]
    Higham, R. and Barker, P., 1992, Timber Castles (Batsford) p61, 355
    Jackson, M.J.,1990, Castles of Cumbria (Carel Press) p27
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p244
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p176-7
    Gibson, Leslie Irving, 1977, Lancashire Castles and Towers (Dalesman Books)
    (Davison), 1969, Archaeological Excavation 1968 (HMSO) p24
    Curwen, J.F., 1913, Castles and Fortified Towers of Cumberland, Westmorland and Lancashire North of the Sands p34-6, 142 [plan questionable]
    Cowper, 1908, in Farrer, Wm and Brownbill, J.(eds), VCH Lancaster Vol2 p556-8
    West, T., 1805, Antiquites of Furness p388-91
• Journal Articles
  • Higham, Mary, 1991, 'The Mottes of North Lancashire, Lonsdale and South Cumbria' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol91 p79-90
    Davison, B.K., 1969, 'Aldingham - Motte' Current Archaeology Vol2 p23-4
    Wilson, D.M. and Hurst, D.G., 1969, Medieval Archaeology Vol13 p258-9
    Kelly, 1924, Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol24 p260-5, 271-7
    Collingwood, 1909, The Antiquary Vol45 p252-8
    1906, Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol6 p320-1
    Cowper, H. Swainson, 1893, Archaeologia Vol53 p422-4
    Ferguson, 1888, Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol9 p404-11
    1879-80, Proceedings of the Barrow Naturalists Club Vol3 p119-20