Castle Acre Castle

Castle Acre
Castle Acre, Norfolk, England
300px Remains of Castle Acre keep and surrounding curtain wall
Castle Acre
Coordinates
Type	Motte-and-bailey castle
Site information
Owner	English Heritage
Open to the public	Yes
Condition	Ruins
Site history
Built	Completed in the mid-11th century
Built by	William de Warenne

Castle Acre Castle is the remains of a motte-and-bailey castle, with extensive earthworks, at Castle Acre, in the English county of Norfolk (grid reference TF819151). It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and a Grade I listed building.

The castle was founded soon after the Norman Conquest of 1066 by William de Warenne, the first Earl of Surrey, as his most important estate in Norfolk. The original castle was restructured around the 1140s. The settlement is strategically placed where the ancient trackway known as the Peddar’s Way crossed the River Nar. To the west of the castle was a planned town; the whole settlement was fortified. The riverside location was important both for defence and for river-borne supplies, in an age when road transport was extremely difficult.

The castle was of motte-and-bailey construction; on the summit of the motte was the residence of the owner, and the last refuge in the event of an attack. The bailey below contained living quarters, stores and workshops. A strong curtain wall with wall walks surrounds the motte summit, and a lesser wall tops the bailey banks.

The Castle is now in the care of English Heritage, along with the nearby Castle Acre Bailey Gate and Castle Acre Priory.

See also

• Castles in Great Britain and Ireland
• List of castles in England

External links

• Castle Acre Castle page on English Heritage website
• Castles Abbeys and Medieval Buildings