More information : [Name ST 6933 6401] ST. LOES CASTLE [NR] (Remains of) [NAT]. (1)
To the SW of Newton Park is the much remodelled keep of the St. Loes, possibly 13th century, with restored 16th century windows. The Gatehouse to the SW of the keep is probably 15th century Two long ranges of Tudor outbuildings to the SW of the keep have been modernised. (2)
[ST 6935 6397] Gatehouse.
[ST 6940 6397] Keep. (3)
Newton St. Loe Castle. Scheduled. (4)
'St. Loe's Castle' is the accepted form. The buildings now form part of a teacher training college.
The "Tudor" blocks are centred at ST 69316395 and ST9346388. Ground photographs: see AO/62/20/7 for the gatehouse from the NE, AO/62/20/8 for the keep from the south, and AO/62/25/2 for "Tudor" block from the NE
Probable vestiges of a curtain wall survive in the lower part of the garden wall adjoining the NW corner of the gatehouse, and the south of the keep where a fragment of wall footing has recently been discovered in line with its east face; while at ST 69376401 there is a mound so positioned as to suggest that it marks the site of a corner tower. (5)
No change. (6)
(ST 654639) St. Loe's Castle (NR) (remains of) (NAT)
(ST 69376401) Mound (NR). (7)
The manor of Newton was given to the Bishop of Coutances in 1065 from whom it passed to Roger St. Loe in Normandy, remaining in that family until 1375. The property was sold to Joseph Langton in 1666 and the new house (see ST 66 SE 26) was built in 1760. The landscaping of the park entailed laying a gravel drive which ran through the manor house, and all standing structures except the keep and gatehouse were demolished.
Excavation, field-work and investigation of standing medieval structures have been carried out between 1975 and 1979 and are continuing, see plans (8).
The fortified manor house consisted of a rectangular courtyard with square corner towers and connecting ranges behind a curtain wall, surrounded on at least three sides by a ditch.
Three main medieval building phases have been identified, the principal one being during the first quarter of the 14th
century, and a ceramic sequence from the 12th/13th centuries to the 18th century. The gatehouse was built in the mid 15th
century; in the 16th century alterations were made to the
defences and domestic buildings. The mound lying north of the keep was proved by excavation to be the remains of a tower at the termination of the east curtain wall.
The keep and gatehouse HHR Grade 1.
There was a medieval deer park at Newton Park (2). (8-12)
ST 69366398: Excavations by C J Arnold for Bath College of Higher Education continued on the castle site from 1981. (13)
Excavations in 1982 on the W part of the site located 14th century walls and structures, including part of a barrel vault of a cellar. (14)
Excavations continued on the NW section on 1983. (15)
Castle 'keep' actually part of a fortified manor house, 14th century.
Grade I.
Gatehouse, 15th century. Grade I. (16)
Listed. (17)
There is an oval gunport in the gatehouse. (18)
Final excavation report on the excavations of 1975-84. (19)
Currently [as at 2007] still in use as the Newton Park Campus of Bath Spa University, used for teacher training. (20) |