Alverstoke Motte, Gosport (The Gatehouse Record)

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Alder Moor; Grange Farm; Apple Dumpling

In the civil parish of Gosport.
In the historic county of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
Modern Authority of Hampshire.
1974 county of Hampshire.
Medieval County of Hampshire.

OS Map Grid Reference: SU584001
Latitude 50.79762° Longitude -1.17228°

Alverstoke Motte, Gosport has been described as a certain Timber Castle.

There are cropmark/slight earthwork remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

Description

The motte and bailey castle near Apple Dumpling Bridge is well-preserved, remains largely undisturbed and is a good example of its class. The site will contain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to the date and method of construction of the castle, its period of use and subsequent abandonment.
The monument includes a motte and bailey castle overlooking the River Alver south of Rowner, near Gosport, and set on ground which falls from the north towards a drain or stream at the southern edge of the site. The motte is on the higher ground, the mound rising only 2m above the general ground level to the north, but up to 4.5m above the bailey to the south west. The top of the motte is 15m in diameter. A bank, up to 3m wide and rising up to 1.5m above the surrounding ground level, loops around the bailey from the north eastern side of the motte, terminating at a track along the west side of the site. There is slight evidence of a ditch around the north eastern side of the motte, but it is not visible further west and here survives only as a buried feature. The monument was first marked on early Ordnance Survey maps as a 'windmill mound' but was subsequently identified through fieldwork as a motte and bailey castle. Its position overlooking the River Alver, and a probable river crossing, is a typical location for this type of castle. There are no known records of archaeological or other excavation of the site. (Scheduling Report)

The first known defenisve monument in Gosport is a motte and bailey castle known as Castle Mound, perhaps of 11th century date, which probably overlooked an important crossing over the River Alver. It survives today as a motte, over 15m in diameter, which rises to a height of 4.5m above the bailey which is partly embanked. There is also slight evidence for a ditch around part of the motte. Little is known about the relationship of this castle with the surrounding area but it clearly points to the strategic importance of a crossing point over the River Alver. (Hampshire AHBR)

Sources of information, references and further reading

National Heritage List for England Scheduled Monument Number 1008694, Legacy Scheduled Monument Number 24322
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s) 234418.
County Historic Environment Record (or Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) 22561.

Books
- Osborne, Mike, 2011, Defending Hampshire: The Military Landscape from Prehistory to the Present (Stroud: The History Press) p. 243 (listed in Appendix)
  Salter, Mike, 2002, The Castles of Wessex (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 32
  King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 1 p. 195 (possible)
  Williams, G H., 1979, The Western Defences of Portsmouth Harbour 1400-1800 (Portsmouth City Council: Portsmouth Papers 30) p. 7
  Williams, G.H., 1974, The Earlier English Fortifications of Gosport
  Page, Wm (ed), 1908, VCH Hampshire and the Isle of Wight Vol. 3 p. 218 online transcription
Periodical Articles
- Hughes, Michael, 1989, 'Hampshire Castles and the Landscape 1066-1216' Landscape History Vol. 2 p. 27-60
  Civil, Capt G., 1951-3, Proceeding of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society Vol. 18 p. 42
  Brune, F., 1890-3, Proceeding of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society Vol. 2 p. 343
Other sources: Theses; 'grey' literature; in-house reports; unpublished works; etc.
- Dave Hopkins, 2004, Extensive Urban Survey - Hampshire and the Isle of Wight (English Heritage) Download copy

Most of the sites or buildings recorded in this web site are NOT open to the public and permission to visit a site must always be sought from the landowner or tenant.
It is an offence to disturb a Scheduled Monument without consent. It is a destruction of everyone's heritage to remove archaeological evidence from ANY site without proper recording and reporting.
Don't use metal detectors on historic sites without authorisation.

The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of Historic England, County Historic Environment Records and other individuals and organisations. It may also contain information licensed under the Open Government Licence. All the sources given should be consulted to identify the original copyright holder and permission obtained from them before use of the information on this site for commercial purposes.
The author and compiler of Gatehouse does not receive any income from the site and funds it himself. The information within this site is provided freely for educational purposes only.

The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.

Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere, but some suggestions can be found here.

The possible site or monument is represented on maps as a point location. This is a guide only. It should be noted that OS grid references defines an area, not a point location. In practice this means the actual center of the site or monument may often, but not always, be to the North East of the point shown. Locations derived from OS grid references and from latitude longitiude may differ by a small distance.
Further information on mapping and location can be seen at this link.

Please help to make this as useful a resource as possible by contacting Gatehouse if you see errors, can add information or have suggestions for improvements in functality and design.
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