Newtown Bastle, Tosson

Has been described as a Certain Bastle

There are masonry footings remains

NameNewtown Bastle, Tosson
Alternative NamesNewtown near Rothbury
Historic CountryNorthumberland
Modern AuthorityNorthumberland
1974 AuthorityNorthumberland
Civil ParishTosson

The ruined walls of the only remaining bastle house of the hamlet, stand on a knoll overlooking a small stream (Dixon 1903).

NU 03550059 The remains are of a building measuring approx 7m x 7m. Part of the west and south walls remain, the other two sides being represented by turf-covered banks. The two remaining walls vary in thickness from 1m to 1.4m with a maximum height of 1.4m and are constructed largely of rubble masonry but with a few roughly dressed stones. Some of the stones are very large. To the south are traces of a small attached outbuilding. In the south wall and extending across most of its width is a partly buried dressed stone with a vertical rebate on each side and two square holes, one above the other, running east-west through its thickness. The purpose of this stone is obscure but it may part of a door jamb with drawbar holes. The remains have features characteristic of the defended houses found in the region and which have been dated to the late 16th/early 17th century. The remains occur within the area of a depopulated village (F1 EG 07-FEB-1957).

The fragmentary remains comprise the footings of an east-west wall including rebated west jamb of a doorway, with a drawbar tunnel, and at its west end a later length of wall running north. Insufficient remains to allow the building to be identified as a bastle, but it seems likely it was a defensible building of some sort (Ryder 1990). (Northumberland HER)

Not scheduled

Not Listed

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceNU035005
Latitude55.2994003295898
Longitude-1.9456399679184
Eastings403550
Northings600590
HyperLink HyperLink HyperLink

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Books

  • Dodds, John F., 1999, Bastions and Belligerents (Newcastle upon Tyne: Keepdate Publishing) p. 191-2
  • Salter, Mike, 1997, The Castles and Tower Houses of Northumberland (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 119 (slight)
  • King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 2 p. 359
  • Graham, Frank, 1976, The Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Frank Graham) p. 281
  • Ramm, H.G., McDowall, R.W. and Mercer, E., 1970, Shielings and Bastles (London: HMSO) p. 92, no. 69
  • Long, B., 1967, Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) p. 140
  • Dixon, D.D., 1903, Upper Coquetdale Northumberland: Its History, Traditions, Folk-lore and Scenery (Newcastle-upon Tyne: Robert Redpath) p. 467-8 online copy

Journals

  • Christopherson, R., 2011, 'Northumberland bastles: origin and distribution' Medieval Settlement Research Vol. 26 p. 21-33 (listed in appendix)
  • Hadcock, R.N., 1939, 'A map of mediaeval Northumberland and Durham' Archaeologia Aeliana (ser4) Vol. 16 p. 148-218 esp 182

Other

  • Ryder, P.F., 1990, Bastles and Towers in the Northumberland National Park (Report for Northumberland National Park Authority) p. 58