Monument record 1160/1/24 - Inner Bailey bank, wall and ditch, Northampton Castle

The inner bailey ditch was up to c27m across and 9m deep and flanked the south, east and north sides of the bailey bank. It was still substantially open in the late 17th-early 18th century. Sections of bailey bank survived on the northern and north-eastern sides of the bailey.

{1} The castle ditch was identified during the excavation of foundations of six residential blocks in 1964.

{2} A watching brief undertaken during the construction of a exit road from the new car park on to St Andrews Road involved cutting c1m off the edge of a bank of earth which ran parallel with the main road and was 2m high. It had been assumed that it was a modern dump of material, but at the the southern end the bailey ditch of the castle survived to a width of 16m. Only the upper fills (dating to the 19th century and composed of material which had been dumped from the construction of the railway-extension). The ditch survives beneath the car park which effectively seals the earlier deposits.

{3} During excavations at Chalk Lane between 1975 and 1978, the inner bailey ditch was partially excavated at a number of locations up to 2m deep. The 1961 excavations suggested that the inner bailey ditch was c90 ft (27 m) across by c30ft (9 m) deep. A clay pipe bowl (CPI) from D28 and dated 1690-1710 indicates the ditch was still substantially open at that time. On the inner edge of the bailey ditch the remains of the bailey bank was identified. In most areas it had been almost entirely destroyed but in area C the various tip lines within the bank could be seen surviving c0.5m high. At the front of the bank was a deposit of heavier ironstone rubble suggestive of a robbed stone revetting for the bailey bank and a shallow cut 3 m wide on the lip of the ditch. A curtain wall for the bailey is known to existed and Law identified foundations c3m wide on the western side of the castle perimeter.

<1> Chapman, A, 2021, Northampton Castle Part 1: Introduction, pre-castle archaeology, and the history and topography of the castle, p. 159-162 (Article). SNN112914.

<2> SHAW M. & WILLIAMS A., 1989, CASTLE STATION, p. 29-30 (Report). SNN3620.

<3> Williams J.H., 1981, Excavations in Chalk Lane, Northampton, p. 106 (Article). SNN2964.

<4> Chapman A., Northampton Castle: A Review of The Evidence, p. 28-34 (Unpublished Report). SNN2966.

Record last edited

Apr 23 2025 5:48PM