Egglescliffe; The Devils Hill
Has been described as a Rejected Timber Castle (Motte)
There are cropmark/slight earthwork remains
| Name | Egglescliffe; The Devils Hill |
| Alternative Names | |
| Historic Country | Durham |
| Modern Authority | Stockton on Tees |
| 1974 Authority | Cleveland |
| Civil Parish | Egglescliffe |
A large mound called the Devil's Hill stands to the east of the village. There is little to say of the early history of Egglescliffe. Though a piece of land with which the manor was thought to descend was called Castle Holme, (The site is now not certainly known.) there is no record of the building of any castle here, but it has been suggested that the Devil's Hill was a fortified mound. (VCH)
NZ42561321 Devil's Hill is a small mound of earth which is supposed to have been thrown up during the civil war, but it is more likely to be a tumulus than a fortification (Object Note Book 1853 p23). Devil's Hill is a large mound 30.0m diameter at the base, 8.0m diameter at the top and 3.0m high. There are no associated earthworks or ditches near it, and no evidence that it was thrown up as a fortified mound. If it is a tumulus then it is a very fine example, although there is no ditch around it (F1 JHO 09-JUL-53). This round mound has been previously recorded as a barrow a Civil War earthwork and a motte. However a conversation with the tenant, Mr Smith, revealed that the mound takes its name from a pond on the south east side called Devil's Hole which was dug by his father in the late 19th century. He informed me that the mound is nothing but the heaped-up spoil from the digging of this pond, which the farmer was filling in when the site was visited in 1974 (Young, 1975). (PastScape)
Not scheduled
Not Listed
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
| OS Map Grid Reference | NZ425132 |
| Latitude | 54.5123405456543 |
| Longitude | -1.3438800573349 |
| Eastings | 442560 |
| Northings | 513210 |
