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Summary

The lower ward of Tintagel castle is an approximate rectangular structure enclosed on the North East and South East by a curtain wall

Protected Status: None recorded

Other References/Statuses

• National Mapping Programme (Morph No.): 1062.29.5-6
• Primary Record No. (1985-2009): 23165.31
• SMR No. (OS Quarter-sheet and SMR No.): SX08NE 2.3

Monument Type(s):

• CASTLE (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)

Full description

The lower ward of Tintagel castle is an approximate rectangular structure enclosed on the North East and South East by a curtain wall 1.5M thick, with two staircases leading to a narrow landing giving access to an upper storey. The other sides of the ward were protected by the cliff on which the upper ward (23165.32) stands, and by the precipice (b8). Excavation by Hartgroves in 1986 (h9) revelead significant details about the construction of the Norman castle and also brought to light a post - Roman phase of domestic occupation (23165.2). The castle had been constructed by first enclosing the sloping ridge of the promontory with a stone wall set in a substantial foundation trench. The enclosed area was then levelled by cutting back the slate bedrock on the higher western side to provide material for infilling the lower eastern side. Additional material may have come from re - cutting the ditch on the landward end of the lower ward, and after levelling of this infill the construction of the curtain wall to its full height was resumed (b14). Radford suggested that two towers were built outside the curtain wall to the east in the fourteenth century. The southern OS suggests these are visible as a slight foundation but the remains of the northern structure is so slight as to be improbable as a defensive measure (b14). The lower ward was initially defended by a deep ditch or gully 6.0M wide and 3.0M deep, sloping steeply to the edge of the valley. A narrow road gave access at the top of the gully to a gatehouse and the eastern flank of the lower ward was protected by a manor bank and ditch (b14). The Lower Ward is clearly visible on aerial photographs (p4-6). The monument was included in the Schedule on 9/10/1981 and the scheduling updated on 18/11/1996.
Clark (1988: 205/88)Trial trenching close to the outside face of the wall of the lower ward of Tintagel castle revealed a series of superimposed stone and clay hearths. Archaeomagnetic measurements on the clay gave a date of cal AD 450-500 at the 68% confidence level (21).
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Site history:
2: 1976. QUINNELL, NV / OS
3: 1976. SHEPPARD, PA / DOE
5: 1982. DARK, K / UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD
7: 1984. RCHME
8: 1985. PRESTON JONES, A AND HARTGROVES, S / CAU
10: 1986. THOMAS, C / RCHME
12: 1988. THORPE, C / CAU
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O'Mahoney, C, 1988, Medieval Pottery from Tintagel: a Summary (Article in Journal). SCO4040.

<1> Leland, J, 1535, The Itinerary of John Leland (Bibliographic reference). SCO3862.

OSP, 1973, 73 / 005/ 235 - 6 (Photographic Record). SCO15480.

<2> WILKINSON, JJ, 1602, CAREW'S SURVEY OF CORNWALL, 191 (Unedited Source). SCO5417.

CUC, 19, CORNFILM 2/23A,26A,28A,29A (Photographic Record). SCO9318.

<3> WHITLEY, HM, 1871, TINTAGEL CASTLE, VOL 3, 231 (Unedited Source). SCO6288.

JAT, 19, VARIOUS (Photographic Record). SCO9337.

<4> WHITLEY, HM, 1885, NOTES ON GRENVILLE'S PLOT OF TINTAGEL CASTLE (Unedited Source). SCO6437.

NMR, 1959, SX0589/19-21 (Photographic Record). SCO13687.

<5> Ordnance Survey, 1900s, 2nd Edition 6 Inch Map (Cartographic materials). SCO4051.

CAU, 1987, F10/114-5 (Photographic Record). SCO17049.

<6> Radford, CAR, 1935, Tintagel, Castle and Monastery, VOL 15, 4, 415 (Article in Journal). SCO5143.

NMR, 1999, SX0588/45 (Photographic Record). SCO18815.

<7> RADFORD, CAR, 1963, 6-INCH MAP (Unedited Source). SCO7879.

<8> THOMAS, AC, 1977, TINTAGEL CASTLE (DOE GUIDE) (Unedited Source). SCO8387.

<9> Browse, RG, 1981, Provisional List of Imported Pottery from West Britain and Ireland (Bibliographic reference). SCO2925.

<11> Thomas, AC, 1984, Tintagel Site Report, 25/5/1984 (Bibliographic reference). SCO4640.

<12> Hartgroves, S, 1986, Tintagel Castle (English Heritage Guide Book) (Bibliographic reference). SCO3456.

<14> Thomas, AC, 1988, Excavations in the Lower Ward, Tintagel, VOL 16, 9-30 (Article in Journal). SCO4609.

<15> Thomas, AC, 1988, Minor Sites at Tintagel Island, VOL 16, 31-48 (Article in Journal). SCO4627.

<16> Thomas, AC, 1988, CAU Excavations at Tintagel Island in 1988: The discoveries and their implications, VOL 16, 49-60 (Article in Journal). SCO4600.

<17> Padel, OJ, 1988, Tintagel in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries, VOL 16, 61-66 (Article in Journal). SCO5135.

<19> Thomas, AC, 1988, Incised Pictorial Slates from Tintagel, VOL 16, 69-78 (Article in Journal). SCO4622.

<20> THOMAS, AC, 1989, LECTURE TO CAS, 20 JAN 1989 (Unedited Source). SCO8919.

<21> Clark, AJ, 1988, Archaeomagnetic dating of stone and clay hearths: Tintagel castle, Lower ward, Cornwall 205/88 (Report). SCO25986.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events: none recorded

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