A motte-and-bailey castle is a fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy to build with unskilled labour, but still militarily formidable, these castles were built across northern Europe from the 10th century onwards, spreading from Normandy and Anjou in France, into the Holy Roman Empire in the 11th century. The Normans introduced the design into England and Wales following their invasion in 1066. Motte-and-bailey castles were adopted in Scotland, Ireland, the Low Countries and Denmark in the 12th and 13th centuries. Windsor Castle, in England, is an example of a motte-and-bailey castle. By the end of the 13th century, the design was largely superseded by alternative forms of fortification, but the earthworks remain a prominent feature in many countries.
Trecastle is a village in Powys, Wales, situated on the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park (Welsh: Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog) and in the community of Llywel.
Pickering Castle is a motte-and-bailey fortification in Pickering, North Yorkshire, England.
Sycharth is a motte and bailey castle and town in Llansilin, Powys, Wales. Until 1996 Sycharth was in the historic county of Denbighshire, but was then transferred to the Shire area of Montgomeryshire within Powys. Sycharth Castle was the birthplace of Owain Glyndŵr.
Skipsea Castle was a Norman motte and bailey castle near the village of Skipsea, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Built around 1086 by Drogo de la Beuvrière, apparently on the remains of an Iron Age mound, it was designed to secure the newly conquered region, defend against any potential Danish invasion and control the trade route across the region leading to the North Sea. The motte and the bailey were separated by Skipsea Mere, an artificial lake that was linked to the sea during the medieval period via a navigable channel. The village of Skipsea grew up beside the castle church, and the fortified town of Skipsea Brough was built alongside the castle around 1160 to capitalise on the potential trade.
Mount Temple is a village in County Westmeath in Ireland, about 6.5 km northwest of Moate. The village is best noted for its golf course of the same name. It was historically called Ballyloughloe. Mount Temple and its 'sister' village, Baylin, form the only two in the parish of Ballyloughloe. Its postal address is Mount Temple, Moate, County Westmeath, Ireland.
Tretower Castle is a Grade I-listed ruined castle in the village of Tretower in the county of Powys, Wales. It was built around the beginning of the twelfth century as a motte and bailey castle and this was probably replaced mid-century by a stone shell keep. The castle was enlarged in the early thirteenth century, but later fell into ruin.
A shell keep is a style of medieval fortification, best described as a stone structure circling the top of a motte.
Pilsbury Castle was a Norman castle in Derbyshire near the present-day village of Pilsbury, overlooking the River Dove.
While there are many castles in South Yorkshire, the majority are manor houses and motte-and-bailey which were commonly found in England after the Norman Conquest.
A ringwork is a form of fortified defensive structure, usually circular or oval in shape. Ringworks are essentially motte-and-bailey castles minus the motte. Defences were usually earthworks in the form of a ditch and bank surrounding the site.
Castell Gwallter, also known as Walter's Castle and sometimes Castell Penweddig, is the remains of a Norman motte-and-bailey castle situated on a large hill above the old village of Llandre in northern Ceredigion, Wales, four miles northeast of Aberystwyth.
Portlick Castle is a late medieval tower house castle near the village of Glasson, County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located approximately 6 miles from Athlone on the shores of Lough Ree. It comprises a square late medieval 4-storey stone tower with an attached 2-storey Georgian wing and Victorian tower.
Peterborough Castle, also known as Mount Thorold and Touthill, was a medieval motte and bailey castle in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England.
Castlelost Castle is a ruined motte-and-bailey castle located in the townland of Castlelost, just north of Rochfortbridge in County Westmeath, Ireland. The castle dates to the Norman invasion of Ireland, with some sources dating its construction to the late 12th century and associating it with Hugh Tyrrel. The castle remained within the Tyrrel family through the 16th century. During the 17th century the castle and surrounding lands were lost by the Tyrrels during the Irish Rebellion of 1641 and subsequent Cromwellian conquest of Ireland.
A tower castle is a small castle that mainly consists of a fortified tower or a tower-like structure that is built on natural ground. It is thus different from the motte-and-bailey castle, which it may resemble, but whose main defensive structure is built on a motte or artificial hill. The tower castle is occasionally also described as a tower house castle or a tower house.
Drumraney is a civil parish in County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located about 28.08 kilometres (17 mi) west of Mullingar.
Kells Castle or Kells Motte is a motte-and-bailey and National Monument in Kells, County Kilkenny, Ireland.
