Newhouse Castle

Description

Castle marked on map by Roffe, in An Histroical Atlas of Lincolnshire but with no other information.

Newhouse: one of those short-lived efforts from Stephen's reign. The primary ref is BL Harley Charters 55 E. 12, 43 H. 10, printed Mon. Ang, vi, 865: grant by Peter de Goxhill to Newhouse of gifts, incl capitalem curiam ubi castellum suum fuit. For a discussion of the signficance of the castle and fee, see P. Dalton, 'Aiming at the impossible: Ranulf II Earl of Chester and Lincolnshire in the Reign of King Stephen', The Journal of the Chester Archaeological Society, 71 (1991), 116. I haven't studies the site in any detail, so cannot sensibly comment on the site. the priory itself, though, must be a possibility. (Roffe, 2006, pers. corr.)

Sciatis nos benigne concessisse ex nostra parte donationem quam Petrus de Golsa donauit ecclesie dei et sancti Marcialis de Newehus et seruintibus ibidem . scilicet medietatem quam habuit in eadem uilla exceptis rusticis de domino suo . et hoc liberaliter in elemosinam . et capitalem curiam ubi castellum suum fuit . et feudo quod de me tenet ...
Know that we have confirmed the grant made by Peter de Golsa to the church of St Martial of Newhouse, ziv. a moiety which he had in Newhouse al. Newsham (the rustics of the demense excepted), with the chief court where his castle was, and of the fee which he holds of the earl (Derived from Warner and Ellis. This is the same charter as in Dugdale but a more modern transcription and a translation and dated c. 1144)

Comments

Renn suggested the document refers to a castle at Newhouse Abbey also suggested that this charter refers to The castles at Barrow on Humber, although the mention of the later in a later C12 charter must exclude that possibility.
The 'castle' of Peter Goxhill, a tenant of the Earl of Lincoln, can not have been a large affair and may, indeed, have been little more than a ditched timber house. This is one of a number of such castles used as the base for monastic foundation, or as grants to monasteries, done at a time, the Anarchy, when traditionally castles were being built by smaller tenants not destroyed by them. The building of the Newhouse Abbey or to quote the PastScape record for Newsham Abbey "During the long history of this house further undocumented building campaigns can be presumed to have taken place, among which the building work at the end of the fifteenth century perhaps represents a particularly extensive campaign" and "The site was in use as a private residence after the dissolution and incorporated into a landscape park during the 18th century". Although their are earthwork visible of the site, some of which are medieval it is unlikely the early C12 castle can be identified within the earthworks.