Cole's Tump (The Gatehouse Record)

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Condie Castle

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

OS Map Grid Reference: SO46292822
Latitude 51.95000° Longitude -2.78237°

Cole's Tump has been described as a Timber Castle but is rejected as such.

There are earthwork remains.

Description

Cole's Tump - Natural mound in location that 'would have offered a superb strategic advantage for a motte, a fact which along with the name drew its attention' (Phillips)

Condie Castle SO465283 - A place name from the Tithe Award (Shoesmith ref. Sprackling and Lesser)

"Within living memory Condie Castle was an earthwork which children played in, with a ladder to get into it. It was dismantled at about the time the pillow mounds were ploughed under. Condie Castle is to the east of Coles Tump, just west of the trig point." (Barry Cooper, pers corr. 12-7-2011)

Comments

Recorded in Herefordshire SMR as natural mound and site of pillow mounds.
No serious question of a medieval fortification here. The nearby presence of pillow mounds might just suggest a warreners lodge. Is 'condie' a dialect word for rabbit? cf. coney. Ironic use of the term castle to refer to a warren with a superficial form to a motte and bailey. Although 'Condie Castle' is a distinct from Coles Tump there is a possibility of some name transfer between these two mound.
If medieval castles in the marches were built for pure military reasons then this certainly is a site that one would expect to be fortified, controlling a pass through hills. However, castles in marches were, most often, in military terms, residences for knights. What was required of a 'castle' was an attached manor that provided sufficient income to fund the military equipment of a knight. This is why generally castles are in villages surrounded by fields, not on isolated hilltops.

Sources of information, references and further reading

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s) 107635.
County Historic Environment Record (or Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) 6800.

Books
- Shoesmith, Ron, 2009 (Rev edn.), Castles and Moated Sites of Herefordshire (Logaston Press) p. 227
  Phillips, Neil, 2005, Earthwork Castles of Gwent and Ergyng AD 1050-1250 (University of Wales) p. 165 Download from ADS
  RCHME, 1931, An inventory of the historical monuments in Herefordshire Vol. 1: south-west p. 52 no. 12 online transcription
Periodical Articles
- Sprackling, G. and Lesser, I., 1996, 'Field-Names as archaeological indicators of defensive sites' Transactions of the Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club Vol. 48.3 p. 475

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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.

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