Castlefacts³

Hornsea Hermitage

Has been described as a Possible Timber Castle (Motte)

There are uncertain remains

Name	Hornsea Hermitage
Alternative Names	Beacon
Historic Country	Yorkshire
Modern Authority	East Riding of Yorkshire
1974 Authority	Humberside
Civil Parish	Hornsea

Site of a possible motte. (PastScape ref. King 1983)

Situation: The mound rises from an area of marshy, low-lying ground on the north side of Hornsea Mere.

Preservation: A minor earthwork now under permanent pasture.

Description: The earthwork known variously as the ‘Beacon’ or ‘Hermitage’ comprises a small artificial mound raised c. 1.5m above the surrounding terrain, with traces of an associated earthen causeway on the landward (north) side. Although the feature has been claimed as a motte, post-medieval origins as a hunting stand have also been suggested.

Excavation: Excavations on the summit of the mound in 1961 revealed traces of a building of ‘wattle and daub’ construction with vestiges of plaster. The results are otherwise unknown. (Creighton 1998)

Gatehouse Comments

Shown as a steep mound, on northern edge of Hornsea Mere, on 1854 map labled 'Hermitage'. Actually a low mound but part of a larger raised area of lumpy ground with some suggestion of infilled ditches. The site was excavated over 5 days by school children in 1962. The report in a school magazine reports finds of plaster and wooden building 28' x 18' with a hard packed mud floor. How much of the site could be excavated in 5 days? Probably the found building was part of a larger complex.Although granted to St Marys Abbey York, soon after the Conquest, Hornsea was an important possession for the house and usually had a man of rank for its seneschal. The mere, in particular, was a source of revenue from fish and fowl. Was this motte like mound a form of 'hunting lodge' for the mere, a house of some status for the seneschal and a safe place to store revenue from the mere?

- Philip Davis

Not scheduled

Not Listed

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)

1390900

County Historic Environment Record

www.hullcc.gov.uk/portal/page?_pageid=221,105102&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

OS Map Grid Reference	TA186473
Latitude	53.9086494445801
Longitude	-0.194759994745255
Eastings	518680
Northings	447340