Huddersfield Hill House
Has been described as a Certain Timber Castle (Motte)
There are earthwork remains
| Name | Huddersfield Hill House |
| Alternative Names | Castle Hill; Ark Hill |
| Historic Country | Yorkshire |
| Modern Authority | Kirklees |
| 1974 Authority | West Yorkshire |
| Civil Parish | Huddersfield |
Earthwork remains of a possible Medieval or earlier motte and bailey castle. A field inspection in 2004 supports the possibly that this is a motte and bailey castle with the bailey extending to the north. Beacon Street marks the line of the western rampart as the ground to its west is 2-3 metres lower. Its northern extent is probably marked by a break of slope between the rear of 2 King Cliffe Road and Hill House Methodist Church. The eastern extent is less clear but is possibly marked by Old Halifax Road. The mound survives to minimum height of 5 metres, but it has been truncated on all sides except for its frontage onto Beacon Street. This area, however, has been masked by soil dumping. The mound is tree covered and has the footings of a small brick building, possibly a greenhouse, on its southern flank. A section dug into the mound revealled a double rock cut ditch, remnants of a palisade wall and timber revetting. (PastScape)
The motte at Huddersfield Hill House on Beacon Street has also shown these constructional layers. The motte at Hill House also revealed evidence for a palisade wall around its crown and a timber revetment against its side. These are features which would indicate the castle in Huddersfield is very likely to have resembled the highly decorated examples shown on the Bayeaux Tapestry. (Constable, 2007)
Not scheduled
Not Listed
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
| OS Map Grid Reference | SE142180 |
| Latitude | 53.658390045166 |
| Longitude | -1.78603005409241 |
| Eastings | 414237 |
| Northings | 418010 |
