Byton Castle, also known as Byton Motte, was a castle in the Herefordshire village of Byton.
Is is unclear when the castle was constructed by the Normans; some theories date it to around 1190, others to the late 13th century, when the region came under attack from the Welsh leader Llewelyn ap Grufydd. It was probably built by the de Brampton family, who owned Byton throughout the period.
Byton Castle was was a motte and bailey design. The motte, now 25 ft (7.6 m) high, was protected by a stream on its east side and a shell keep was constructed on its top. A bailey to the north was protected with earthworks and contained what is now the village church. A possible moat or fishponds ran along the eastern edge of the bailey. A stone gatehouse with two towers guarded the entrance between the bailey and the motte.
Bibliography
- Halliwell, P.R. (ed), 1992, Herefordshire Archaeological News Vol. 58 pp. 29-31.
Attribution
This page includes images from the Geograph site, attributed as follows: Byton Castle earthworks, author Fabian Musto, released under CC BY-SA 2.0.