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Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument () NY442: Harlsey Castle

Monument Type(s):

• CASTLE (Medieval to 19th Century - 1066 AD to 1900 AD)
• MOAT (Medieval to 19th Century - 1066 AD to 1900 AD)

Other References/Statuses

• AMIE Reference / HOB UID: 55698 HARLSEY CASTLE
• National Monuments Record: SE49NW8
• Old Sites & Monuments Record Number: 194

Full description

Originally a complete moat now the NW angle has farm buildings, incorporating the structural remains of the castle. 3 rubble barrel vaults (Harlsey Castle farm stable) may be the remains of the keep basement and further masonry survives in the farmhouse (1,5,6,7). The remains of the keep tower was apparently demolished in the early 19th century after being damaged by lightning (2). The remains look 14th century in date (3,10). The site was taken over by Sir James Strangeways in 1423 and probably fell into disuse when the manor was forfeited to the crown in 16th C (9).
The rectangular enclosure is 4.5 acres and has a 30' ditch on 3 sides Outer bank on S and SW sides. Terraces on the outside of the ditch on the west were probably intended for cultivation rather than defence (5,6). Inside the moated area earthworks survive suggesting a division into two areas - ponds and orchards to the east and an inner court containg the buildings in the NW. The castle complex was most probably superimposed on the former village, the earthworks of which survive to the east (3).
Form: Earthwork (11/1972) (1 - 7)
A journal article was produced for the Castle Studies Group Journal which gives a detailed summary of the information recorded during survey and research work at Harlsey Castle between 2007-2012. The article includes a history of the ownership of the castle, descriptions of the remains of the castle its precinct and the farm house. (11)

<AP1> Meridian Airmaps Ltd, 14/11/71, Aerial Photograph (Aerial Photograph). SNY2442.

<1> 1985, The Buildings oF England: Yorkshire The North Riding, P151 (Monograph). SNY1841.

<2> Colin Hinson, Yorkshire CD Books, 1859, History and Topography of the City of York and the North Riding of Yorkshire Volume II, P329 (Monograph). SNY2153.

<AP2> Meridian Airmaps Ltd, 13/07/72, Aerial Photograph (Aerial Photograph). SNY2443.

<3> Ed Dennison Archaeological Services, 2007, Recent Work on Some North Yorkshire Castles (Article). SNY11768.

<4> English Place Name Society, 1928, THE PLACE NAMES OF THE NORTH RIDING OF YORKSHIRE, P212 (Series). SNY2001.

<5> Ordnance Survey, Various, Ordnance Survey Record Card, SE48NW8 (Card Index). SNY1.

<6> Yorkshire Archaeological Society, 1977 - 1980, Yorkshire Studies Card, SE49NW 4048 (Card Index). SNY2.

<7> Yorkshire Archaeological Journal, 1954, The Lost Villages of Yorkshire: Part 4, p 299 (Article). SNY1308.

<8> Pre 1998, Allan Aberg Cards (Card Index). SNY8269.

<9> 1914, Victoria County History Yorkshire North Riding, 434 - 435 (Monograph). SNY2126.

<10> 2007, HARLSEY CASTLE, NORTH YORKSHIRE: SOME PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS (Report). SNY15284.

<11> The Castle Studies Group Journal, 2012, Harlsey Castle, West Harlsey. (Article). SNY22139.

Sources and further reading

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