Eaton Socon Castle

Last updated April 23, 2022

Eaton Socon Castle was a Norman fortification. It was constructed next to the River Great Ouse in what is now Eaton Socon, Cambridgeshire, England.

It was hastily built during a period of civil war over the succession to the throne. It was mostly destroyed after 1154 and was in a ruined state in the thirteenth century, and is now merely a derelict earthwork. It is on private land. Known as "The Hillings", it is a Scheduled Historic Monument with Historic England.^[1]

History

Hugh de Beauchamp was a Norman landowner, installed during the Norman Conquest, and based in Bedford. He acquired the manor of Eaton (present-day Eaton Socon) in about 1120 and it was probably he who built Eaton Socon castle. From 1139 to 1153 there was civil war in England as Stephen and Matilda contested the throne.

Matilda had been nominated as successor to his throne by her father, King Henry I. While many of the barons were content with this, several of them objected to the succession, partly because she was a woman and partly because they disliked her husband, Geoffrey de Plantagenet. Accordingly they called on Henry's nephew Stephen to take the throne in her place. Armed conflict was inevitable, and during this period several simple castles were hastily constructed.

Eaton Socon Castle has been tentatively dated to 1140; it was never completed, and it is concluded that it was one of the war emergency castles described that were hastily built by Stephen's supporters. It was of a simple motte-and-bailey construction with the timber-framed living quarters within the two wards of the flat bailey area and a wooden watch-tower on the top of the conical mound which was the motte. Very few pieces of stone have been found on the site, and it is probable that the primitive timber structure was never strengthened.

Nevertheless it was certainly occupied during the 12th century, and the prestige of having a castle, and of the later occupancy, resulted in Eaton being promoted to the status of Lesser Barony.

Stephen of England Stepan Blois.jpg — Stephen of England

It was Stephen who succeeded to the throne in 1135, but it was Matilda's son Henry Plantagenet who succeeded to the throne when Stephen died in 1154. One of Henry's first commands was to order the destruction of all adulterine castles, that is, those built without royal permission during the civil war.

Henry Plantagenet PlantagenetJindrich.jpg — Henry Plantagenet

It is likely that Eaton Socon Castle was demolished as part of this move, although residential accommodation may have survived: fragments of 13th-century pottery and traces of buildings from that era have been found on the site and "Lady Juliana de Beauchamp" is recorded as a resident at Eaton Socon at that time.^[2]

The castle

The castle was a Norman double enclosure, whose construction required the demolition of houses occupied by Anglo-Saxons. It was surrounded by a moat supplied with water diverted from the adjacent River Great Ouse. It was once in possession of the de Mandeville family, but by 1156 it was held by the descendants of Hugh de Beauchamp.

An early plan shows that the castle layout was complex.^[3]

Historic England describe the castle:

Castle Hills is a Norman ringwork castle overlying part of a late Saxon vill and medieval village which was deserted, at least in part, to make way for the stronghold. The ringwork was used subsequently as the site of a windmill. The monument is situated on a gravel terrace on the west bank of the River Great Ouse. The ringwork has a bailey on its north side and is surrounded to the west by a ditch enclosing an outer court. The ringwork itself is irregular in plan... A waterfilled ditch 15-20m wide by 1.5m deep runs along the western and southern sides and a slightly shallower 10m wide dry ditch separates the stronghold from the bailey on the northern side. There is a narrow causeway across the junction of these ditches at the north-west.^[1]

Its location is grid reference TL174588 .

Holding prison for suspected criminals

Pounds discusses the use of independent castles for the detention of suspected criminals:

The sheriff or his bailiffs arrested suspected felons and held them until the arrival of the justices. Suitable gaols were rare, but the sheriff had authority to use any private castle. In 1274, there was an assault at Tempsford (Bedfordshire). The suspected felon was caught and taken to Eaton Socon Castle, which lay nearby. The castle must by this date have been almost derelict, and he was held only until he could be taken to the greater security of Bedford gaol., where he awaited the next gaol delivery.^[4]

Fighting giants

As well as the remains of the Castle here, there are remains of a Roman defensive earthwork at Coneygeare, in Eynesbury. There was a popular legend, that a giant, stationed upon the mound at Coneygeare, was accustomed to throw a weapon to another giant posted on the Norman keep at Eaton Socon, a distance of three-quarters of a mile. The weapon was thrown back and forth by the two giants.^[5]

Remains

Only earthworks now remain. The site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, recorded as The Hillings.^[6]^[1]

Related Research Articles

Huntingdonshire is a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire and a historic county of England. The district council is based in Huntingdon. Other towns include St Ives, Godmanchester, St Neots and Ramsey. The population was 169,508 at the 2011 Census.

St Neots is a town in the Huntingdonshire District in Cambridgeshire, England. It lies about 50 miles (80 km) north of London and about 18 miles (29 km) west of Cambridge. The districts of Eynesbury, Eaton Ford and Eaton Socon were formerly independent but nowadays are considered merged into St Neots.

Eynesbury is an urban area forming part of St Neots in Cambridgeshire, England. It mainly consists of housing, although there is an area of light industry, and a large supermarket. Eynesbury is home to Ernulf Academy and a fitness centre called One Leisure. In addition there is a large area of open grassland and a caravan park. In earlier times Eynesbury was a distinct area, but nowadays it is considered to be a subdivision of St Neots.

Eaton Ford is an area of St Neots, Cambridgeshire, England. It is a mainly residential area also containing Riverside Park, a large area of riverside parkland. Much of the housing stock dates from the period of London overspill during the 1960s and subsequently. The former village green is still in place.

Eaton Socon is a community in south-west Cambridgeshire. Eaton Socon is a component of the town of St Neots, located on its south-west margin. Eaton Socon lies on the west side of the River Great Ouse, and is bounded on the west by the A1 road and on the south by the A428 road. On the north side Duloe Brook delineates the boundary with Eaton Ford, which is also part of St Neots.

St Neots is one of the largest towns in Cambridgeshire, England, after the cities of Cambridge and Peterborough. There is evidence of very early occupation in the area. In Roman times a fortified settlement was established, and present-day Eynesbury in particular became important, in addition to scattered settlements west of the River Great Ouse. A holy man named Saint Neot had died about the year 877 AD and his relics were held for a century in a parish in Cornwall. About 974 AD a Priory was established in the northern part of Eynesbury; the landowner took the relics of Saint Neot from the Cornish church and conveyed them to Eynesbury. This brought fame to the Eynesbury Priory, and gradually that part of the town became known as St Neots.

Motte-and-bailey castle Medieval fortification

A motte-and-bailey castle is a European 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. 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.

Cambridge Castle, locally also known as Castle Mound, is located in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England. Originally built after the Norman conquest to control the strategically important route to the north of England, it played a role in the conflicts of the Anarchy, the First and Second Barons' Wars. Hugely expanded by Edward I, the castle then fell rapidly into disuse in the late medieval era, its stonework recycled for building purposes in the surrounding colleges. Cambridge Castle was refortified during the English Civil War but once again fell into disuse, used primarily as the county gaol. The castle gaol was finally demolished in 1842, with a new prison built in the castle bailey. This prison was demolished in 1932, replaced with the modern Shire Hall, and only the castle motte and limited earthworks still stand. The site is open to the public daily and offers views over the historic buildings of the city.

Castle Acre Castle and town walls are a set of ruined medieval defences built in the village of Castle Acre, Norfolk. The castle was built soon after the Norman Conquest by William de Warenne, the Earl of Surrey, at the intersection of the River Nar and the Peddars Way. William constructed a motte-and-bailey castle during the 1070s, protected by large earthwork ramparts, with a large country house in the centre of the motte. Soon after, a small community of Cluniac monks were given the castle's chapel in the outer bailey; under William, the second earl, the order was given land and estates to establish Castle Acre Priory alongside the castle. A deer park was created nearby for hunting.

Ashton Keynes Castle was in the village of Ashton Keynes, near to the town of Cricklade in Wiltshire, England. It is also known as Hall's Close, while locals call it The Battlefield. The scheduled monument consists of a ringwork and bailey 100 metres (330 ft) west of Kentend Farm.

Biggleswade Castle was a castle in the market town of Biggleswade in Bedfordshire.

Bletchingley Castle is a ruined castle and set of earthworks partly occupied by three buildings. The Scheduled Ancient Monument is directly beside the Greensand Way below it to the south in the village of Bletchingley in Surrey. The site's tower standing from c.1170 to 1264 had a panorama from one of the narrower parts of the Greensand Ridge, which runs from mid-Kent to south-west Surrey.

Castlethorpe Castle stood in the village of Castlethorpe, to the north of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire.

Castle Neroche is a Norman motte-and-bailey castle on the site of an earlier hill fort in the parish of Curland, near Staple Fitzpaine, Somerset, England. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

Thetford Castle is a medieval motte and bailey castle in the market town of Thetford in the Breckland area of Norfolk, England. The first castle in Thetford, a probable 11th-century Norman ringwork called Red Castle, was replaced in the 12th century by a much larger motte and bailey castle on the other side of the town. This new castle was largely destroyed in 1173 by Henry II, although the huge motte, the second largest man-made mound in England, remained intact. The motte, recognised as a scheduled monument, now forms part of a local park, and the remains are known variously as Castle Hill, Castle Mound and Military Parade.

Pilsbury Castle was a Norman castle in Derbyshire near the present-day village of Pilsbury, overlooking the River Dove.

A ringwork is a form of fortified defensive structure, usually circular or oval in shape. Ringworks are essentially motte-and-bailey castles without the motte. Defences were usually earthworks in the form of a ditch and bank surrounding the site.

Worcester Castle was a Norman fortification built between 1068 and 1069 in Worcester, England by Urse d'Abetot on behalf of William the Conqueror. The castle had a motte-and-bailey design and was located on the south side of the old Anglo-Saxon city, cutting into the grounds of Worcester Cathedral. Royal castles were owned by the king and maintained on his behalf by an appointed constable. At Worcester that role was passed down through the local Beauchamp family on a hereditary basis, giving them permanent control of the castle and considerable power within the city. The castle played an important part in the wars of the 12th and early 13th century, including the Anarchy and the First Barons' War.

Denham Castle, also known as Castle Holes, is a medieval motte and bailey castle near the village of Gazeley, Suffolk, England. The castle was also known as Desning Castle at the time of building and occupation.

References

1 2 3 The Hillings, Castle Hills, at Historic England
↑ Rosa Young, St Neots Past, Phillimore and Co Ltd, London, 1996, ISBN 1-86077-025-8, page 29
↑ James Dixon Mackenzie, The Castles of England: their story and structure, Macmillan, New York, 1897, page 187
↑ N J G Pounds, The Medieval Castle in England and Wales: a Social and Political History, Cambridge University Press, 1990, ISBN 978-0-521-38349-3, Page 98
↑ G C Gorham, The History and Antiquities of Eynesbury and St Neot's in Huntingdonshire and of St. Neot's in the County of Cornwall, Harding, Mavor and Lepard, London, 1824, page 7
↑ St Neots Conservation Area Character Assessment, Huntingdonshire District Council, October 2006, page 6