Halford Castle

Description

The earthworks and buried remains of a motte castle. The flat-topped mound has a diameter of 28 metres at its base and stands some 4 metres high. A quarry ditch surrounds the mound, on all but the western side, and survives as a buried feature 5 metres wide. On the western side the river serves as a natural boundary. There are references to a castle at Halford in the early 14th century Subsidy Roll and the motte castle is believed to be the predecessor to the present manor house situated some 260 metres to the north east. (PastScape)

Halford Bridge ... is a small enclosure with a slight mount and a ditch at one time, no doubt, was filled with water by the river. It is a little lower down the stream than the bridge and at the place where the original pond, from which the place took its name, is situated. It is known as 'The Castle' and is presumably the site of the first manor house or 'castle' ... It is noteworthy that in the 1332 Subsidy Roll there are the names in Halford of Robert de Castro and John atte Castel, men who lived near the place then known as 'castle'. The old people in the village say they have been told that the pigeon-cote once stood in the castle enclosure. It is marked on the O.S.1:2500 but it is not called a castle (Chatwin). The mound is rectangular and was probably cut from the adjacent river terrace, by which it is overlooked. There are no traces of foundations on the mound and no associated enclosure or ditch were identified (Field Investigators Comments–F1 BHS 20-FEB-68). Scheduled as 'Motte and Bailey at Halford, 150yds (140m) NW of St Mary's Church'. (PastScape)

The motte castle at Halford survives well and is relatively undisturbed by later activities. Buried archaeological deposits relating to both the construction of the castle and the activities of its inhabitants will survive within the infilled ditch and the mound itself providing valuable information on the wealth and status of the motte castle.
The monument is situated adjacent to the River Stour on the western outskirts of the village of Halford and includes the earthworks and buried remains of a motte castle. The flat-topped mound has a diameter of approximately 28m at its base and stands some 4m high. Although no longer visible at ground level, a ditch, from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument, surrounds the mound on all but the western side where the river serves as a natural boundary. The ditch has become infilled over the years but will survive as a buried feature approximately 5m wide and is included in the scheduling. There are references to a castle at Halford in an early 14th century Subsidy Roll and the motte castle is believed to be the predecessor to the present manor house situated some 260m to the north east. (Scheduling Report)

Comments

Halford is a crossing of the Fosse Way of the River Stour.