Cusop Castle (The Gatehouse Record)

In the civil parish of Cusop.
In the historic county of Herefordshire.
Modern Authority of Herefordshire.
1974 county of Hereford and Worcester.
Medieval County of Herefordshire.

OS Map Grid Reference: SO23904139
Latitude 52.06564° Longitude -3.11152°

Cusop Castle has been described as a certain Timber Castle, and also as a probable Masonry Castle.

There are earthwork remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

Description

Earthwork and buried remains of Cusop Castle, a ringwork located on a natural promontory above a stream with steeply sloping sides in all directions except to the north east. The natural topography suggests that the ringwork is formed from a natural out crop enhanced by quarrying and the construction of the earthen ramparts. The castle includes a raised irregular oval earthwork enclosure orientated east to west forming a platform 2m-3m high and measuring 60m to 80m in diameter around its summit. There are the remains of a ditch measuring 3m to 5m wide and up to 2.5m deep on the north eastern and eastern sides which are less steeply defended. The course of the ditch has been partially obscured by the modern lane in the north western quadrant. A berm constructed on the southern and south western sides enhance the natural slope of the ravine. The construction of Castle House has removed the westernmost defences of the monument. The interior of the enclosure is divided into two levels by an irregular low bank and slope aligned east to west. Traces of an entrance causeway survive to the east of the subdivision. Although no longer visible above ground, 19th century records of standing fabric including a gateway, and later references to masonry foundations, suggest that Cusop Castle included buildings constructed from stone, the buried remains of which will survive. The ringwork is one of a number of medieval defensive sites located in strategic positions above the Wye Valley, the land belonging to the King at the time of Domesday survey. The castle is believed to have been constructed by the Cianowes or Clarowes family who were prominent in the county during the 12th to 14th centuries. (Scheduling Report)

'The present earthwork itself is of a design more suited to that of a fortified-site than a castle. This view is strengthened by the angular form of the mound and lack of any separation ditch between the mound and the bailey, although, the possibility that a motte may have been removed from the site, thereby covering the ditch during levelling operations should be considered. The matter might be resolved by geophysical survey or excavation. The interpretation of the site, based on actual remains, topographical survey and location suggests that this site is a late construction with a function as a fortified-site probably associated with land tenure and agricultural holdings.' (Phillips)

Sources of information, references and further reading

National Heritage List for England Scheduled Monument Number 1017253, Legacy Scheduled Monument Number 30078
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s) 104937.
County Historic Environment Record (or Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) 1229.

Websites (Gatehouse is not responsible for the content of external websites.)
- Herefordshire Through Time
  The History of Ewyas Lacy
Books
- Shoesmith, Ron, 2009 (Rev edn.), Castles and Moated Sites of Herefordshire (Logaston Press) p. 97
  Phillips, Neil, 2005, Earthwork Castles of Gwent and Ergyng AD 1050-1250 (University of Wales) p. 172-4 Download from ADS
  Salter, Mike, 2000, Castles of Herefordshire and Worcestershire (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 25 (plan)
  Stirling-Brown, R., 1989, Herefordshire Castles (privately published) p. 3
  King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 1 p. 204
  1981, Herefordshire Countryside Treasures (Hereford and Worcester County Council) p. 42
  RCHME, 1931, An inventory of the historical monuments in Herefordshire Vol. 1: south-west p. xxxv, 47 (Plan) no. 2 online transcription
  Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (London: Methuen and Co)
  Gould, I. Chalkley, 1908, in Page, Wm (ed), VCH Herefordshire Vol. 1 p. 225-6 (plan)
  Mackenzie, J.D., 1896, Castles of England; their story and structure (New York: Macmillan) Vol. 2 p. 101 online copy
  Robinson, C.J., 1869, The Castles of Herefordshire and Their Lords (London: Longman) p. 40-1 online copy
Periodical Articles
- Shoesmith, R., 2000, 'Archaeology, 2000, Report of Sectional Recorder' Transactions of the Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club Vol. 50.1 p. 101
  Sterling Brown, R., 1988, 'Preliminary Results of Castle Survey' Herefordshire Archaeological News Vol. 50 p. 41
  Hogg, A.H.A. and King, D.J.C., 1970, 'Castles in Wales and the Marches (Additions and corrections to lists published in 1963 and 1967)' Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol. 119 p. 119-124
  Hogg, A.H.A. and King, D.J.C., 1963, 'Early castles in Wales and the Marches: a preliminary list' Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol. 112 p. 77-124 (possible)
  Lilwall, C.J., 1899, 'Cusop, its Church and Castles' Transactions of the Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club p. 138-9
  Trumper, Rev T.W. Walwyn, 1889, 'Cusop Castle, site of' Transactions of the Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club p. 368 (plan only)

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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