Rothwell Castle: Difference between revisions

'''Rothwell Castle''' was a timber castle or fortified manor house, which was built by Ilbert de Lacy in the 11th century. <ref name="castleuk.net"> Castleuk.net. n.d. ''Rothwell Castle Leeds West Yorkshire England English''. [online] Available at: <http://www.castleuk.net/castle_lists_north/104/rothwellcastle.htm> [Accessed 18 December 2020].</ref> The manor, given its close proximity to [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontefract_Castle Pontefract Castle], would have only been a satellite but would have been important as an administrative centre. <ref name="Rothwell Castle Book" /> The remains of the site are now a scheduled monument. <ref name="ENG Heritage Risk"> Historic England, 2021. ''Heritage at Risk Register 2021, North East & Yorkshire.'' London: Historic England.</ref>

{{Infobox place

| name = Rothwell Castle

| image = Leodis-ID-201861 176700.jpeg

| alt = A picture of the front of Rothwell Manor before being demolished.

| caption = Rothwell Manor (undated) before being demolished.

|attribution = By kind permission of Leeds Libraries, [https://Leodis.net Leodis.net].

| aka =

| category = Castle

| heritage-cat = Scheduled Monument<ref name="ENG Heritage Risk" />

| times =

| telephone =

| website =

| open = 11th Century (timber castle/fortified manor house first built)

| closed = 1976 (last building on the site demolished)

| purpose =

| link =

| location = Rothwell Castle Ruins

| street = Woodlane/Church Street

| postcode = LS26 0QL

| nearby = [[Holy Trinity Church]]

| zoom = 17

Some notable nobles stayed in or owned the castle, with both King John and King Edward II staying at the manor and [[John of Gaunt]] owning it. <ref name="geocaching">Guy, M., 2010. ''Rothwell Castle''. [online] Geocaching.com. Available at: <https://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC2CNP4_rothwell-castle?guid=81ce214b-4313-4c8a-b984-7543b1950684> [Accessed 18 December 2020].</ref> Over several centuries, it fell to ruin and was rebuilt or modified, until eventually the last building on the site was demolished in 1976. <ref name="geocaching" />

== History ==

After John de Rothwell died, the occupiers of the house are unknown but there is evidence that some buildings were used by tenants. The castle deteriorated and, at some point, the motte was abandoned while the bailey remained in use, however by the mid 15th century the stone built manor house was in need of repairs. In 1484, Roger Hopton was granted "pannage of pigs" in the park and, later, became tenant of the farm and manor. On the 27th August 1485, Hopton was was given a king's warrant to build another house on the site, which noted the manor was "in great ruyne and decay". The main manor house was constructed below the motte, incorporating the 14th century manor house or some of its buildings. It was built by in a half-timber style, which was popular at the time. <ref name="Rothwell Castle Book" />

[[File:Leodis-ID-2018817 176837.jpeg|alt=A picture of Rothwell Manor partially demolished in 1977.|left|thumb|Rothwell Manor being demolished in 1977. By kind permission of Leeds Libraries, [https://Leodis.net Leodis.net].]]

[[File:Rothwell_Castle_3_26Mar2021.png|alt=The ruins of Rothwell Castle in 2021 in a field heavily overgrown with trees.|right|thumb|Rothwell Castle ruins in 2021.]]

In 2018, Leeds City Council had plans to re-erect the stored timber from the demolition of the manor building, along with that of other buildings demolished in the 1970s. <ref>Heritagegateway.org.uk. n.d. ''Rothwell Castle/Manor House''. [online] Available at: <https://www.heritagegateway.org.uk/Gateway/Results_Single.aspx?resourceID=105&uid=MWY1458> [Accessed 16 July 2022].</ref> However in 2021, the Coach House, on Park Lane in Rothwell, was renovated using the original timbers from the manor as after "several consultations, it was agreed that the ideal new home for the historical timbers would be at the reconstructed Coach House" <ref>Manning Station. ''Park Lane, Rothwell, LS26 0EP.'' [online]. Available at: <https://web.archive.org/web/20210325143350/https://manningstainton.co.uk/property-for-sale/rothwell/park-lane/rps_mns-NHO190394> [Accessed 25 March 2021] </ref> However, some local people dispute that such consultations happened. {{Citation needed|date=March 2021}}

As of 2021, the site of Rothwell Castle, which is a scheduled monument, is on the 'Heritage At Risk Register' produced by Historic England owing to its poor state and the lack of a solution to halt the site's "slow decay".<ref name="ENG Heritage Risk" />

== References==

<references />

==Your Memories==

<comments />

<!-- Unless you are an experienced user, leave the PageInfo template below here -->

| seo keywords = rothwell castle, leeds castle, rothwell manor house, leeds manor house, castles in leeds, castles in yorkshire, medieval castle rothwell leeds, medieval house rothwell leeds

| seo description = Rothwell Castle is a Scheduled Monument in Rothwell, Leeds. Once a manor house visited by kings and nobles, it now stands a ruin, having been largely dismantled in the 1970s.

| seo image = Leodis-ID-201861 176700.jpeg

}}