Southampton Town Wall and Gods House Tower

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; South Castle; The Spur; Millhouse; Bargate; Polymond Tower; Arundel Tower; Windwhistle Tower; Prince Edward Tower; Catchcold Tower

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

The original defences comprised a bank and ditch, but these were replaced by circa 1200 by stone walls. Defences were constructed on the south and west sides between circa 1360 and 1385, after attacks from the French. By the late C14 to early C15 the defences included seven gates and posterns. West wall and parts of south wall survive with bastions and towers. Well preserve Bargate, West gate and South gate also survive. God's House Tower, added in reign of Henry V, projects beyond line of wall, controlled the sluices of the moat and was equipped with 8 gunports
Bargate - Built in c1180 as a town gateway, incorporating a guildhall on the upper level. It is of 2 storeys, built of stone and flint. The central archway dates to c1180-1200, while the two additional arches were added in 1764 and 1774. The towers on the north side were added in c1280-1290, though the north facade was later, dating to c1400. A 2 storey addition on the south side is probably late C13 in date. The building was restored in 1864-5.

This site has been described as a;
Urban Defence
Artillery Fort.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Major 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 135709 etc)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SU421109

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; 1354199 etc

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 8212, 8552, 8557

• Web site links
  • http://www.southampton.gov.uk/leisure/heritage/citywalls.htm
    http://www.southampton.gov.uk/leisure/heritage/mus_arc.htm
    http://viewfinder.english-heritage.org.uk/search/adv_reference.asp?imageUID=46193
• Books
  • Creighton, O.H. and Higham, R.A., 2005, Medieval Town Walls (Stroud: Tempus) p18, 24, 33, 35-6, 50, 56, 70, 89, 110-3, 115-6, 118, 130, 135, 139, 140, 147, 149, 156, 169-71, 182-3, 190, 202-3, 205, 211, 213, 223, 237, 240, 244, 246, 257
    Salter, Mike, 2002, The Castles of Wessex (Malvern) p52-3
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p89-91
    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 [plan]
    Barron, W.G., 1985, The Castles of Hampshire and Isle of Wight (Paul Cave) p42-6
    Robey, T., 1988, ‘Southampton — The Arcades, Western Esplanade' Archaeology in Hampshire: Annual Report for 1987 p22–3
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p196-7
    Saunders, A.D., 1976, 'The defences of Southampton in the later Middle Ages' in Burgess, L.A. (ed), The Southampton Terriers of 1454 (Southampton Rec Ser Vol15) p20-34
    Faulkner, P.A., 1975, 'Gatehouse' in Platt, C. and Coleman-Smith, R. (eds), Excavation in medieval Southampton, 1953-1969 (Leicester: Leicester University Press) p56-72
    Wacher, J.S., 1975, 'The town defences' in Platt, C. and Coleman-Smith, R. (eds), Excavation in medieval Southampton, 1953-1969 (Leicester: Leicester University Press) p142-8
    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 p66
    Turner, H.L., 1971, Town Defences in England and Wales (London) p165-76
    Pevsner, N., and Lloyd, D., 1967. The Buildings of England: Hampshire and the Isle of Wight (London, Penguin) p533-41
    O’Neil, B.H.St.J., 1960, Castles and Cannon: A Study of Early Artillery Fortifications in England (Oxford: Claredon Press) p11-14, 31, plate 8
    Anon, 1960, Historic Buildings of Southampton (Southampton) p5-9, 14-15, 22-6, 31-2
    O'Neil, 1951, in Grimes, Aspects of Archaeology (London) p243-57
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co) p210-14
    Page, Wm (ed), 1908, VCH, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight Vol3 p493-530
    Clark, G.T., 1884, Medieval Military Architecture in England  (Wyman and Sons) Vol2 p472-81
    Davies, 1883, History of Southampton (Southampton) p59-111
    Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p323
    Grose, F., 1756, Antiquities of England and Wales Vol2 p219-25
• Journal Articles
  • Saunders, A., 2000, 'Southampton: the introduction of gunpowder artillery to the town's defences' Europa Nostra Bulletin Vol53 p53-8
    Youngs, S.M., Clark, J. and Barry, T., 1987, ‘Medieval Britain and Ireland in 1986' Medieval Archaeology Vol31 p254-5
    Youngs, S.M., Clark, J. and Barry, T., 1986, ‘Medieval Britain and Ireland in 1985' Medieval Archaeology Vol30 p134, 136, 139
    Kenyon, J.R., 1981 'Early Artillery Fortifications in England and Wales: a Preliminary Survey and Re-appraisal' Archaeological Journal Vol138 p210-11, 212-13, 215
    Webster, L.E. and Cherry, J., 1980, ‘Medieval Britain in 1979' Medieval Archaeology Vol24 p201
    Webster, L.E. and Cherry, J., 1978, ‘Medieval Britain in 1977' Medieval Archaeology Vol22 p174
    Kenyon, J.R., 1977, ‘Artillery and the defences of Southampton circa 1360-1660' Fort Vol3 p8-14
    Webster, L.E. and Cherry, J., 1976, ‘Medieval Britain in 1975' Medieval Archaeology Vol20 p178
    Renn, D.F., 1964, 'The Southampton arcade' Medieval Archaeology Vol8 p226-8
    Wacher, 1958, Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society Vol21 p53-4
    Minns, 1898-1903, Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society Vol4 p81-95
    Lucas, 1898-1903, Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society Vol4 p131-6
    Hope, W.H.St John, 1897-9, Proceedings of the Society Antiquarians [ser2] Vol17 p221-4
    Skelton, 1888, Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society Vol1 pt2 p61-4
    Parker, 1872, Archaeological Journal Vol29 p370-7
    Clark, G.T., 1872, The Builder Vol30 p1023-5 [reprinted without plan in MMA]
    1855, Journal of the British Archaeological Association Vol11 p324-31
• Guidebooks
  • Peberdy, 1961, Bargate Guildhall Museum (Southampton)
    Peberdy, 1960, God's House Tower (Southampton)
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • William Camden, 1607, Britannia [http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/wilshireeng.html#hants5]
    Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p204
    Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (Bell and Sons; London) Vol1 p276-7