Taunton Castle

In the civil parish of Taunton.
In the historic county of Somerset (Modern Authority of Somerset, 1974 county of Somerset).

Saxon site built up with a motte and bailey during the early C12 and a tall keep was added some years later. It had fallen into ruin by 1500 but it has now been restored as the County Museum, although the moat no longer exists. The castle was probably built by Bishop William Gifford between 1107 to 1129 and originally consisted of a motte and bailey. A rectangular keep was built on the site of the motte between 1160 and 1170 together with a curtain wall. This was destroyed in C17. The bailey was later divided into inner and outer wards by a ditch with a retaining wall, dated to 1170 to 1210 by excavations in 1927. The buildings of the inner ward include the Great Hall and Camera and the Constable's tower, a round tower and C15 gatehouse along with other buildings. There is a probable siege work of 1644-5 on the site of the eastern rampart.

This site has been described as a;
Timber Castle
Masonry Castle
Palace.
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 1 listed building protected by law*. (Images of England number 269653)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is ST22602464

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; 190841

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 44204

• Web site links
  • http://www.britannia.com/history/somerset/castles/tauntoncast.html
    http://webapp1.somerset.gov.uk/her/details.asp?prn=44204
• Books
  • Prior, Stuart, 2006, A Few Well-Positioned Castles: The Norman Art of War (Tempus) p68-109
    Emery, Anthony, 2006, Greater Medieval Houses Vol3 (Cambridge) p430-34
    Salter, Mike, 2002, The Castles of Wessex (Malvern) p84-6
    Thompson, M.W., 1998, Medieval bishops' houses in England and Wales (Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing) p91, 94-5, 121, 123, 186
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p224
    Dunning, Robert, 1995, Somerset Castles (Somerset Books) p47-51 [plan]
    Leach, Peter (ed), 1984, The Archaeology of Taunton: excavations and fieldwork to 1980 (Bristol: Western Archaeological Trust excavation monographs Vol8) p11-58
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p444-5
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p305
    Renn, D.F., 1973 (2edn), Norman Castles of Britain (John Baker)
    Pevsner, N., 1958, Buildings of England: S and W Somerset p319-20
    Oman, Charles W.C., 1926, Castles (1978 edn Beetham House: New York) p57-9
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co)
    Alford, 1906, Taunton Castle Notes on its Construction and History (Taunton) [poor history]
    Mackenzie, J.D., 1897, Castles of England (Heinemann) Vol2 p69-73
    Clark, G.T., 1884, Medieval Military Architecture in England  (Wyman and Sons) Vol2 p488-92
    Timbs, J. and Gunn, A., 1872, Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales Vol1 (London) p547-8
• Journal Articles
  • Youngs, S.M. et al, 1988 ‘Medieval Britain and Ireland in 1987' Medieval Archaeology Vol32 p272–3
    Dennison, E. (ed), 1987, ‘Somerset Archaeology 1987' Somerset Archaeology and Natural History 131 p221, 223
    Thompson, M.W., 1986, 'Associated monasteries and castles in the Middle Ages: a tentative list' Archaeological Journal Vol143 p316
    1981, Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol125 p99
    Webster, L.E. and Cherry, J., 1979, ‘Medieval Britain in 1978' Medieval Archaeology Vol23 p268-9
    Webster, L.E. and Cherry, J., 1978, ‘Medieval Britain in 1977' Medieval Archaeology Vol22 p177
    Aston, M. (ed), 1978, ‘Somerset Archaeology 1977’ Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol122 p130
    Aston, M. (ed), 1977, ‘Somerset Archaeology 1976’ Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol121 p121
    Taylor, R., 1974, 'Castle House, Taunton Castle' Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol118 p25-7
    Hunt, T.J., 1971, 'Some 13C building accounts for Taunton Castle' Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol115 p39-44
    Hallam, A.D., 1965, 'Excavations at Taunton Castle' Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol109 p98-103
    Brown, R, Allen, 1959, 'A List of Castles, 1154–1216' English Historical Review Vol74 [Reprinted in Brown, R. Allen, 1989, Castles, conquest and charters: collected papers (Woodbridge: Boydell Press) p249-280]
    Radford, C.A.R. and Hallman, A.D., 1953, 'History of Taunton Castle' Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol98 p55-96
    Seaby, W.A., 1950, Archaeological Journal Vol107 p98
    Vivien-Neal, A.W. and Gray, H.St.G., 1940 'Materials for a history of Taunton Castle' Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol86 p45-78
    Spencer, J.H., 1911, 'Structural notes on Taunton Castle' Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol56 p38-49 [structural notes]
    Clark, G.T., 1872, Proceedings of the Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Society Vol18 p60-76 [reprinted/adridged in MMA]
    Warre, 1853, Proceedings of the Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Society Vol4 p18-32
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • William Camden, 1607, Britannia [http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/dorseteng.html#somerset7]