Repton Motte
Has been described as a Possible Timber Castle (Other/Unknown)
There are no visible remains
Name | Repton Motte |
Alternative Names | Rapendune |
Historic Country | Derbyshire |
Modern Authority | Derbyshire |
1974 Authority | Derbyshire |
Civil Parish | Repton |
In 1986, excavations in the kitchen garden of the headmaster of Repton School had uncovered a deep cut, initially interpreted as either a Viking ship-slip or a 12th century castle ditch (Biddle & Kjølbye-Biddle 1986a). Further examination in 1987 indicated that the latter interpretation was the correct one, and that the ditch, which had been recut three times, surrounded the motte of a previously unknown Norman castle. The motte appears to have occupied broadly the area of the Hall garden, while the bailey took in the church and graveyard (Biddle & Kjølbye-Biddle 1987). It has been suggested that soon after the acquisition of Repton by the Earls of Chester, the motte and bailey castle was erected to command the crossing of the Trent at the point where the road divided towards either Willington or Twyford. However, during the civil war between King Stephen and the Empress Matilda, the castle was put in a more defensible state, with the ditch being recut to a depth of about 4m at its deepest point. Material recovered from this first recut included wood, some animal and human bone, a fair amount of later 11th century pottery and an iron shield boss of conical shape (Biddle & Kjølbye-Biddle 1987). At this stage, the castle would have been in the possession of Ranulf II, whose power lay in a series of properties in northern Leicestershire, southern Nottinghamshire and southern Derbyshire along the upper Trent and who is reputed to have hoped to strengthen his power via a 'chain of fortresses securing his dominion from sea to sea' (Round 1895, quoted in Biddle & Kjølbye-Biddle 1986a). Following the accession to the throne of Henry II in 1154, however, the castle would probably have been destroyed, and the site later given by Ranulf's widow for the priory
The ditch was apparently recut twice, probably during the 12th and 13th centuries by the canons, and used as a drain, before being filled in and used, first as a farmyard and later as a garden (Biddle & Kjølbye- Biddle 1987). (Extensive Urban Survey, 2009)
Not scheduled
Not Listed
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid Reference | SK303272 |
Latitude | 52.841739654541 |
Longitude | -1.55218005180359 |
Eastings | 430300 |
Northings | 327200 |