Monument record 1160/1/4 - The Inner Bailey, Northampton Castle

The central inner bailey contained the royal apartments and other major buildings. There are early photographs of the well preserved western wall and of a tower on the southern side. The eastern side was partly excavated by Dr Alexander in the 1960s. Both the bailey bank and ditch were investigated. The royal apartments of Henry III were set against the bank. These buildings had been destroyed during a fire of 1318. A further building investigated may have been part of the great hall and another served as a kitchen range, at least in its later life.

{1}Post medieval plans indicate that inner & outer baileys contained about 3.5 acres each; survey of 1322-3 mentions six small towers as well as new tower; evidence from 1960s excavation of bailey bank indicates its construction at early C12th although later date possible; at point where bank was sectioned it was 13m wide x up to 3.7m high although it had been cut back in C19th; originally it probably measured 18m wide x 6m high; surrounding ditch was about 27m wide x 9m deep; surviving remains of castle above ground include small section of inner bailey bank & walls revealed by 1960s excavations

{2}Shows inner & outer bailey enclosed by stone walls & with four large towers positioned along curtain wall of inner bailey; south tower shown as rectangular but was in fact circular

{3}Shows bailey walls

{4}Details of inner bailey circa 1800 shown in particular; indicates where curtain walls survive & where replaced by fencing; surrounding ditch 18ft wide at base; inner bank maximum of 30ft wide & outer bank 20ft wide; states inner bailey dimensions as 486ft east-west x 324ft north-south; shows location of north gate & causeway across ditch; surviving remains of south tower also indicated on plan & illustrated

{5}On south side of inner ballium are remains of round tower with narrow looped lights

{6}Inner ballium was nearly circular & surrounded by wall with bastion towers at irregular distances; wide fosse encompassed this

{7}In 1251 sheriff ordered to repair wall of castle & bailey on side towards river

{8} {9} {10} Between 1258-60 reports that west wall collapsing & towers roofless; orders given to re-roof towers & prop walls with timber until repairs could take place

{11} {12} {13} In 1266 Henry orders that defective wall on west side be repaired & instructed that stone wall built in place of palisade outside castle on same side; £22 spent on works

{14}Chamber in new tower & six small towers in circuit of wall in need of repair; costs of repair of walls & two old gates in need or repair in 1323

{15}In August 1643 stone supplied for paving 'the ring of the castle'; south turret known as The Ring; amount of stone provided adequate for covering area of this bastion as given in 1800 in Gentleman's Magazine; probably used to create solid floor for cannon; 1645 record of "....brasse gun on ye Ring...."; plastering work carried out on Ring & sentry house there

{16}Inner balium was nearly circular & surrounded by lofty wall with bastion towers at irregular distances; this again encompassed by deep & wide foss

{17}Sketch of Ring Turret & inner bailey ditch & remains of principal gateway to north side

{18}Enough of castle still traceable to show outline of bulwarks where bastions stood out from curtain wall & now dry moat which completely enclosed inner bailey & separated it from outer; moat was filled with water from River Nene; inner bailey would have contained keep probably on north-east side; boundary wall would have been flanked occasionally by circular towers; enclosed area would have contained domestic buildings usually built of wood; plan & drawings accompanied paper

{19}Inner bailey enclosed by ditch; shows remains of substantial wall on west & south sides; two massive buttresses supported wall on west side & remains of projecting circular bastion visible in south wall; also substantial mound about 30m across shown in north-west quarter of bailey; earthworks of barbican to north of inner bailey moat

{20}New Northampton Station stands in moat of old castle remains of which may be seen on mound above; ruin gradually dwindling; encroachment of modern dwellings; round bastion along with postern gate is only substantial portion of castle building left; latter in perfect state; parts of curtain wall on west retain their facing but bastions have gone

{21}Short description of ruin with view of south tower; there remains portion of inner wall & south bastion which was formerly county prison; parts of bastions to east & west were pulled down few years ago; deep fosse surrounds with outer bank

{22}Published view of bastion (presumably south tower)

{23}Foundations discovered in lowering eastern boundary of castle area; wall & fragments of C14th mouldings from probable doorway; in keeping with site of bastion along curtain wall but rather more substantial than would be expected

{24}Letter complaining about loss of castle to development; states that some ruins still remain in 1877 & moat earthwork can still be traced

{25}Visible remains consist only of lower part of mural tower....fragments of walls & piers etc....earthworks clearly mark outer ward & inner ward....during removal of earthworks last year piece of curtain wall around postern gate was excavated to it proper level....& stratification of earthworks revealed with remains of ashes & bone & pottery fragments

{26}Letter to railway company pleaing for retention of best preserved part of west wall of inner bailey; letters also from Lord Alwyne Compton to Society with regard to their good work in overseeing excavation works; also letter from same to railway company pleading for retention of west wall

{27}Plea to save fragment of west wall of inner bailey

{28}Observations & questions relating to excavation & interpretation of west wall

{29}Record of rare wild plants about to be lost through demolition of remainder of castle

{30}Report on visit to excavation of castle wall by Oxford Architectural & Historical Society

{31}Excavation now cuts section through castle from one side to other; castle mound found to be almost entirely artificial; partly built of upcast from digging moat & then filled in with debris to depth of circa 3m; established that earthwork older than stone wall on west side of bailey; part of earthwork dug away to create face against which wall was built

{32}Most important of remains revealed was considerable extent of wall set on plinth courses; photographs & drawings made throughout work; on outer face of wall were two well constructed buttresses of massive proportions; bonded into wall; further three pieces of massive but rude masonry two of which exactly opposite & abutting buttresses & third positioned halfway between; discussion as to possible dating & phasing of features; Law interprets three pieces of masonry as remnants of structure outside excavated inner bailey wall eg possible earlier inner bailey wall or barbican; rude arch in wall beneath postern gate interpreted as relieving arch over faulty foundations; plinth or battering face of south-west bastion revealed; detailed drawings taken; later discusses find of portion of wall marked O on plan which appears to form part of south-west bastion

{33}Considerable portion of west wall exposed & recorded in detail; plinth courses revealed along whole length; two well constructed buttresses of massive proportions contemporary with west wall; three other pieces of massive masonry of rude construction revealed two of which abutted buttresses; third structure lay between other two & no sign of it ever having abutted buttress; discussion of possible date & function of features; parallels discussion in unpublished report of 1879

{34}Puts forward explanation of development of east wall of inner bailey

{35}West wall destroyed in 1881; mason's marks noted

{36}Architectural details included concerning mouldings & mason's marks

{37}Original ground surface of slightly rounded hill falling towards river & to north; deep ditch surrounding ring of upcast 10-15ft above original ground surface; originally steep counterscarp towards interior which gradually filled with occupation debris; deduces from other remains that original castle earthwork earlier than medieval in date; notes value of survey represented in Gentleman's Magazine 1800; inner bailey defined as enclosed area of about 3.5 acres defended by high bank & ditch of corresponding dimensions

{38}Shows remaining earthwork of inner bailey area & marked as "Castle Orchard"

{39}Watercolour sketch of Doddridge Chapel also shows portion of moat surrounding castle on that side; painting held in Doddridge Chapel

{40}Early C14th survey revealed that chamber in new tower & six small towers in circuit of castle wall were in poor state; notes cost of repairs to walls including one between gate & new tower

{41}Area within walls measured 486ft x 324ft; surrounded by ditch or moat 18ft wide; inner bank about 30ft wide whilst outer did not exceed 20ft; along circuit of walls were Falkes' Tower & New Tower & six other smaller towers mentioned from time to time; one of these may have been the bastion measuring 20ft x 15ft which was still used as prison when rest of castle in ruins & which was not entirely destroyed until 1879

{42}1251 reference to walls of castle & bailey on west side next to river

{43}Castle appears to have started as motte & bailey castle typical of important castles of time; bailey was roughly circular covering 3.5 acres & fortified by rampart & ditch; remains of moat still to be seen in garden of St Peter's Rectory; suggests south-eastern entrance originally; position of curtain wall known on south & west sides [Law's survey]; these remaining structures including circular bastion on south wall were destroyed by railway development

{44}Repeats detail from VCH/3; photographs exist of wall & bastion on south side; also reports finds of late Saxon pottery in pits & C11th coins sealed in castle earthwork

{45}True width of ditch established at about 90ft with depth of about 30ft; filled in to depth of 16ft in early C19th & resulting ground surface clearly visible in fills; prior to this three phases of infill recognised earliest dating for ditch set at C12/13th; ditch cut through sandstone to underlying Upper Lias clays & may therefore always have held water; excavated bank only mutilated remnant of original; cut back & re-inforced in early C19th & spoil used to backfill ditch; prior to this probably 84ft wide & minimum of 20ft high; upcast from digging moat clearly visible as tip lines in bank; width of medieval bank no more than 60ft including width of curtain wall in front of it; curtain wall was not traced in trenching nor was there any evidence of any earlier timber fortification; old ground surface under bank revealed pottery of C11/12th date; whole of surface on inner side of bank stone-covered & presence of C17th pottery sherds may indicate it as demolition rubble from sleighting of walls after Restoration

{46}During C12th/early C13th bailey bank was revetted internally on both sides of north-eastern angle to make room for buildings

{47}Rampart removed mechanically; more details of defences recovered later in year by Mr Frost in area of Rectory garden; inner lip of bailey ditch established on north side & section through northern rampart drawn

{48}Repairs of wall of castle & bailey on side next to river authorised in 1251; reports in middle of C13th stated that west wall was on point of collapse & that certain towers were roofless; orders given to prop walls with timber until such time as could be repaired; castle incapable of serious defence during 1264 rebellion of Simon de Montfort; fortnight later Henry ordered substantial repairs; west wall finally collapsed in 1266 & heavily buttressed section of wall revealed in 1879 probably dates to substantial repairs of this period; accounts of later repairs given

{49}C12th castle defences much larger than suspected; evidence of re-cutting & cleaning out of ditch most recently in C17th

{50}C12th defences sectioned to east & north

{51}Castle sited on large mound bounded on three sides by moat & fourth side by river; wall rising over moat known to have contained at least 8 towers along its length

{52}Bailey bank was represented by ironstone spread over most of main trench; to south-west observable tip-lines surviving to height of 0.5m; heavier ironstone rubble at front of bank may represent robbed stone revetting for bailey bank; possible curtain wall foundation trench or robber trench was observed in section; cut on lip of ditch in Trench F may suggest position of bastion at this point; small section of moat was excavated to depth of 2m; indicates ditch was about 27m across x 9m deep; a clay pipe bowl recovered of 1690-1710 date indicates that ditch was still substantially open at this time

{53}At south end of bank bailey ditch of castle could be seen to survive to width of 16m; at this level fill contained C19th material dumped at time of construction of railway extension but ditch could be seen to survive below level of car park & hence earlier levels now sealed below car park development

{54}Watching brief during construction of car park on site of Northampton Castle located inner bailey ditch surviving to width of 16m

{56}Medieval fortifications;

{57}25m length of north-south orientated earthwork bank survives in area of public open space; previously identified as fragment of inner bailey eastern bank; round mound at south end of bank is of modern origin; towards base of slope of bank on west side is longitudinal section of mortared ironstone wall 5m long; presumably exposed by Alexander in 1960s; Giggins interprets wall as revetment to rear of inner bailey bank; part of wall's inner face visible; rubble & other material identified in erosion of earthwork; finds gathered held in Northampton Museum; recommendations for maintenance of surviving remains

{58}No additional details;

{59}Large & well-defended inner bailey containing all major buildings; when inner bailey wall was added to original earthwork ramparts not known; not mentioned in documents post 1173 but probably not earlier than 1153 when borough reverted to king following death of Senlis II; construction date between 1153 & Becket's trial in 1164 most probable; records of repairs to bailey wall from 1248 but work did not prevent eventual collapse of west wall in 1266; probably accounts for ease with which Henry III recaptured castle from Simon de Montfort in 1264; it may have taken another 30 years before west wall was properly repaired; towers along wall in disrepair by 1321; in its final form inner bailey was sub-rectangular; major features examined in 1879 destruction of castle was west wall of inner bailey & south tower & remnants of buildings across western half of inner bailey; inner bailey bank constructed of ironstone rubble & some clay into which bailey ditch was cut; core of bank convex & loosely packed mound 8m wide x 0.9m high; main body of bank built up over this core; later broadening & probably heightening of bank on north-east side; formation & development of ramparts (bank & ditch & curtain wall) given in detail; although ditch originally crossed by drawbridge causeway was built later; discussion of bastions as recorded by Speed

{65} A topographic survey of land to the east of St Andrews Road, which is where the eastern end of the central inner bailey of Northampton Castle lay, was undertaken and the results compared to a survey undertaken of the same area in 1956. The 1956 spot heights were digitised and although the 1956 data was at a much lower resolution a number of broad trends could be discerned, with some areas having been built up and other areas cut down. In particular, the bailey bank was noticably higher, where it is likely that it has been enhanced by recent dumping of spoil and the steep drop-off of the ground surface to St Andrews Road was not suggested by the 1956 data, suggesting this area has been landscaped in the intervening period.

{66} Geophysical survey in 2017 identified a number of wall foundations, including possible traces of the inner bailey’s north gate, under the St Andrews road site.

{67} A test pit was excavated on land east of St Andrews Road that uncovered sections of a surviving wall foundation relating to the castle.

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Record last edited

Mar 21 2025 10:40AM