Whichford Castle

In the civil parish of Whichford.
In the historic county of Warwickshire (Modern Authority of Warwickshire, 1974 county of Warwickshire).

Earthwork and buried remains of a moated site believed to have been built by Reginald Mohun in the early C13. By the mid C14 the estate passed to the Stanleys, Earls of Derby, who held it for approximately 200 years. It was during this latter period that the moated site is thought to have fallen into disrepair and was abandoned. The moated site is roughly square in plan with external dimensions of approximately 100m by 90m. Moat ditches are dry, with the exception of part of the west arm, and some 4.6m wide. There are intermittent traces of an inner bank around the perimeter of the moated island which itself retains evidence of slight earthworks. An excavation in the western half of the island in the early 1950s uncovered the foundations of stone buildings, believed to date from the early C13, and fragments of painted glass, fine quality pottery and stone-lined drains. The remains of a curtain wall of large ironstone blocks was also located along the inner edge of the moat ditch.

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

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SP30983457

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; 335131

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 5268, 2342

• Web site links
  • http://timetrail.warwickshire.gov.uk/detail.aspx?monuid=WA5268
    http://timetrail.warwickshire.gov.uk/detail.aspx?monuid=WA2342
• Books
  • Emery, Anthony, 2000, Greater Medieval Houses Vol2 (Cambridge) p343
    Salter, Mike, 1993, Midlands Castles (Birmingham) p92
    Salter, Mike, 1992, Castles and Moated Mansions of Warwickshire (Malvern) p54
    Salzman, L.F. (ed), 194?, VCH Warwickshire: Vol5 p144
• Journal Articles
  • Chatwin, P.B., 1947, Transactions of the Birmingham and Warwickshire Archaeological Society Vol67 p34
    IRM, 1984, Moated Site Research Group
    Chatwin, P.B., 1940, Transactions of the Birmingham and Warwickshire Archaeological Society Vol63 p63-4, 69-70
• Other sources and unpublished works (Theses, in-house reports and other such)
  • Crutchley, A., 1997, Whichford Castle [unpublished]
    Jones, T.L., 1954, Whichford Castle Excavation Report