More information : (SX 84617194) Castle Dyke (NAT) Motte & Bailey (NR) (1)
Castle Dyke at Highweek is the remnant of a motte bailey castle on the summit of a hill known as Castle Field. The top of the mount is surrounded by a rampart with an entrance on the southwest. A plan of 1821 shows the bailey completely surrounding the motte, with an entrance to the north, but half the outer rampart has disappeared, leaving only that part to the south-west. (2-3)
The motte, which is steepest on the east and has a shoulder on the SW is surrounded by a very shallow ditch, hardly visible on the north. There is a trace to the north of an outer bank round the motte. To the SW is a kidney-shaped barbican bailey with four bastion-like hummocks on the perimeter. The enclosed space slopes steeply down from the counterscarp bank of the motte ditch, which is here well-defined. The true bailey probably lay to the NE and SE of the motte in an area which is now very heavily built up. A wide gully running right up to the motte at the north end of the barbican bailey may indicate the abuttment of the true bailey ditch against the motte. The presumed bailey is above the level of the road, and faint traces of a bank are visible in the grounds of the modern houses. On the SE is a broad shallow ditch which ends abruptly just short of the barbican bailey, but the inner bank continues nearly to the counterscarp bank SE of the motte. At this point a banked way leads from the motte, skirting the barbican, down to the "Watering Place". (See plan from VCH. It seems probable that the entrance to the barbican bailey from the bailey was at this junction of the defences. There are no traces of masonry on the earthwork. Diameter of motte top 32 feet. Height of motte about 122 feet (measured from the bottom of the ditch). Circumference of base of motte 330 feet. Greatest dimesions of barbican bailey 170 feet by 100 feet. Greatest dimensions of
presumed bailey about 690 feet by 335 feet. (4)
The motte is a prominent feature, grass-covered and surmounted by a clump of pine trees.
The bailey has been pratically obliterated, but seems to have followed the line of the present hedge on the west and south. The suggested bank bordering the road on the east and north is not tracceable on the ground, most of its supposed course now being covered by modern houses or modern banks. This course for the bailey would cause it to lie in an unusual positon in relation to the motte. The ground slopes gradually on all sides, and such a bailey appears unnecessarily large and irregular. It is the opinion of the investigators that the bailey is small, to conform with the motte, and is as delineated on accompanying plan (see illustration card). The internal slope of the bank is weak but perceptible having been mutilated in the construction of the garden of Castle Dyke house. It is however quyite clear at the junctions of bailey and motte, particularly on the south (see photograph).
Castle Dyke motte and bailey is now a paddock extension to a private garden and is in fair condition.
The motte is the summit of a natural knoll which probably required little scarping to attain its present diameter of 33.0m and height of 4.2m. The former surrounding ditch is now represented mainly by a cropmark of lush grass 2.0m to 3.0m wide.
The small bailey, 40.0m by 15.0m slopes to the south west, possibly the result of slighting, though it appears to be the natural hillside. Surrounding gardens have encroached upon the scarped face of the bailey and destroyed its outer ditch save for about 17.0m to each side of the motte.
Surveyed at 1:1250 (see annotated plan) on MSD. (5) |