Castle Donington

Has been described as a Possible Timber Castle (Ringwork), and also as a Possible Masonry Castle

There are earthwork remains

NameCastle Donington
Alternative NamesDonnington; Dunnington; Dunintonam; Duntonam
Historic CountryLeicestershire
Modern AuthorityLeicestershire
1974 AuthorityLeicestershire
Civil ParishCastle Donington

Site of a medieval enclosure castle with outer and inner ditches surviving as earthworks, partly infilled. Buried foundations of castle built circa 1150, destroyed in 1215, rebuilt circa 1290 and ruinous by 1565. It was demolished in 1595. The enclosure castle occupies a sub-circular area about 160 metres in diameter defined by a pair of ditches cutting off the tip of the promontory from the plateau to the south. The outer ditch has been mostly backfilled but is still visible as an earthwork feature about 2 metres deep and 15 metres wide. The inner ditch is still a major earthwork despite being infilled at various points along its circuit. To the south and south east it was 10 metres below ground level and at least 25 metres wide. To the north and west the ditch was formed by scarping the natural slopes. The outer ditch is separated from the inner ditch by a broad bank up to 4 metres above present ground level and 20 metres wide towards its south-western end. The main buildings of the castle occupied the irregularly-shaped platform in the centre of the site and it is clear from documentary references and finds made in the 1940's that the platform was surrounded by a substantial curtain wall with at least five towers. A stone lined well was found in 1978. (PastScape)

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law

Not Listed

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceSK448275
Latitude52.8437614440918
Longitude-1.33560001850128
Eastings444840
Northings327590
HyperLink HyperLink HyperLink

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Books

  • Knox, Richard, 2015, 'The medieval fortified sites of Leicestershire and Rutland' in Medieval Leicestershire: Recent research on the Medieval Archaeology of Leicester (Liecestershire Fieldworks 3) p. 123-42
  • Cantor, Leonard, 2003, The Scheduled Ancient Monument of Leicestershire and Rutland (Leicester: Kairos Press) p. 31
  • Salter, Mike, 2002, The Castles of the East Midlands (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 35
  • Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge: Boydell Press) p. 141 (slight)
  • Salter, Mike, 1993, Midlands Castles (Birmingham) p. 37
  • Hartley, R.F., 1984, The Medieval Earthworks of North-West Leicestershire (Leicester: Leicestershire Museums, Art Galleries and Records Service) p. 12, 16
  • King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 1 p. 253
  • Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p. 219
  • Renn, D.F., 1973 (2 edn.), Norman Castles of Britain (London: John Baker) p. 168-9
  • Kinross, John, 1973, Discovering Castles in England and Wales (Shire Publications) p. 102
  • Colvin, H.M., Brown, R.Allen and Taylor, A.J., 1963, The history of the King's Works Vol. 2: the Middle Ages (London) p. 628-9 (slight)
  • Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (London: Methuen and Co)
  • Wall, C., 1907, 'Ancient Earthworks' in Page, Wm, (ed), VCH Leicestershire Vol. 1 p. 256 (plan) online copy
  • Mackenzie, J.D., 1896, Castles of England; their story and structure (New York: Macmillan) Vol. 1 p. 412 online copy
  • Nichols, J., 1795, The History and Antiquities of the County of Leicestershire Vol. 3.2 p. 770, plate CVIII (opp. p. 781) online copy

Antiquarian

  • Camden, Wm, 1607, Britannia hypertext critical edition by Dana F. Sutton (2004)
  • Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England  (Sutton Publishing) p. 282
  • Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1907, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (London: Bell and Sons) Vol. 1 p. 21 online copy

Journals

  • Speight, Sarah, 2008, 'Castles as Past Culture: Living with Castles in the Post-Medieval World' Cha^teau Gaillard Vol. 23 p. 385-94 (slight)
  • Higgins, Tim, 2002, 'Archaeology in Leicestershire and Rutland 2001' Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol. 76 p. 104-5 (slight) online copy
  • Speight, Sarah, 1997-98, 'Survey Report - Castle Donington, Leicestershire SK448276' Castle Studies Group Newsletter No. 11 p. 25-6 online copy
  • Creighton, O.H., 1997, 'Early Leicestershire Castles: Archaeology and Landscape History' Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol. 71 p. 31, 34 online copy
  • King, Edmund, 1980, 'Mountsorrel and Its Region in King Stephen's Reign' Huntington Library Quarterly Vol. 44, No. 1 p. 1-10 view online copy (subscription required)
  • McWhirr, A.D. and Winter, M.J., 1978-79, 'Medieval Castles Additional Information' Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol. 54 p. 74-75 online copy
  • Cantor, Leonard, 1977-8, 'The Medieval Castles of Leicestershire' Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol. 53 p. 35 online copy
  • 1969-70, Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol. 45 p. 76 online copy
  • Brown, R. Allen, 1959, 'A List of Castles, 1154–1216' English Historical Review Vol. 74 p. 249-280 (Reprinted in Brown, R. Allen, 1989, Castles, conquest and charters: collected papers (Woodbridge: Boydell Press) p. 90-121) view online copy (subscription required)
  • Clarke, D.T.-D., 1952, Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol. 28 p. 42 online copy
  • Farnham, G. and Thompson, A.Hamilton, 1925-6, Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol. 14 p. 32-70 (history)

Primary Sources

  • Coxe, H. (ed), 1841, Rogeri de Wendover, Chronica sive Flores Historiarum (London) Vol. 2 p. 165 online copy
  • Luard, H.R. (ed), 1874, Matthæi Parisiensis: Monachi Santi Albani, Chronica Majora (Rolls Series 57) Vol. 2 p. 639 online copy
  • Madden, F. (ed), 1866, Matthæi Parisiensis, monachi Sancti Albani: Historia Anglorum (Rolls Series 44) Vol. 2 p. 171 online copy
  • Rickard, John, 2002, The Castle Community. The Personnel of English and Welsh Castles, 1272-1422 (Boydell Press) (lists sources for 1272-1422) p. 285-6

Other

  • Creighton, O.H., 1998, Castles and Landscapes: An Archaeological Survey of Yorkshire and the East Midlands (PhD Thesis University of Leicester) p. 382-3 online copy
  • Reaney, D., 1976, Excavations at Castle Donington, Leicestershire (Unpub site notebook Leics. SMR)