Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

The earthworks of a 9th century burh and a mid 13th century fort lie on a tongue of land projecting into the low marsh land between the river Rother and its tributary the Hexden Channel. It consists of a ditch and rampart, now greatly reduced by agriculture, excavations and rabbit burrowing. The earthwork has every appearance of being Saxon or Danish in origin with the exception of the north-east corner where there appears to be a Norman "mount and bailey" fortification known as Castle Toll. The motte and bailey is in fair condition whereas the 'earlier' work has been extensively reduced by cultivation. The defences appear to have been abandoned unfinished: this supports (though it does not prove) an identification of the site with a half-finished 'work' mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 892 attacked by the Danes known as Eorpeburnan.

Monument Types

• BURH (Early Medieval or Anglo-Saxon - 600 AD? to 892 AD?)
• MOTTE AND BAILEY (Medieval - 1200 AD? to 1299 AD? (at some time))

Full description

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(TQ 85172840) Castle Toll (NAT) Motte & Bailey (NR) (1) Castle Toll. This earthwork occupies the extreme end of a tongue of land projecting east-north-east into the low marsh land between the river Rother and its tributary the Hexden Channel and about 20 ft above sea-level. The entrenchments are simple, consisting of a ditch and rampart, now greatly reduced by agriculture, excavations and rabbit burrowing. According to some authorities this is the site of Anderida but there is no evidence of Roman work or occupation and C.R.Smith is quite positive that it is not. The earthwork has every appearance of being Saxon or Danish in origin with the exception of the north-east corner where there appears to be a Norman "mount and bailey" fortification known as Castle Toll. The VCH lists it under unclassified Earthworks. Listed under Castles in the DOE scheduled list. (2,3,4)

Apart from the mutilation of the motte by excavation and rabbit burrows, the motte and bailey is in fair condition. The 'earlier' work has been extensively reduced by cultivation, and without excavation, it is impossible to determine its relationship to the motte. Published 25" survey revised. (5)

A detailed contour-survey and trial excavation was carried out by the Minstry of Buildings and Works during the autumn of 1965 at Castle Toll. The site comprises two distinct earthwork enclosures. The earlier of these is 1500 ft by 600 ft and was defended by a rampart and ditch of considerable size. Very little is now left of these defences except in the south-west corner, and the date of this work isunknown. Sited on a spur commanding the river Rother it is possible that it represents the 'missing' Burghal Hidage town of Eorpeburnam. The northern earthwork (the Castle Toll proper) is sub-rectangular, defended by a rampart 4 to 8 ft high with a much mutilated mound in the north-east corner. It seems to have been a small, 13th century military post against riverine attack, without permanent domestic habitation and occupied briefly during two periods which may be described as 'invasions scares'. (6)

47. Newenden [TQ 853285] S. The defences of the 16-acre enclosure set on the end of a peninsular jutting into Romney Marsh were found to have been abandoned unfinished. This supports (though it does not prove) an identification of the site with the half-finished 'work' mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 892 as having been attacked by the Danes, and hence possibly with the hitherto-unidentified Burghal Hidage site of Eorpeburnan. (Mr B.K. Davison) (7)

TQ 852284. The earthworks at Newenden occupy the end of a mile long penisula jutting ENE into the Romney Marsh. The entire end of the peninsular seems to have been enclosed, the defences surviving for themost part merely as a low scarp. Only to the west, along the neck of the peninsular, is the approach easy and here the defences are more marked. Even so the total relief is not more than 1.0m and ploughing has completely obliterated part of the work. Set within this larger enclosure is a smaller, but much stronger, work with ramparts 2.3m high. This Castle Toll, sub-rectangular in plan with a low motte-likemound in the NE corner. Excavation in 1965 indicates two periods of construction for Castle Toll; the early and mid-13th century. The site was provisionally interpreted as a military post. Excavations in1971 of the SW side of the larger enclosure show that the defences were not completed in the form intended. A strong possibility remains that this is the unfinished fort of the Burghal Hidage list called Eorpeburnan. (8)

TQ 852284. The earthworks at Newenden occupy the hooked end of a milelong peninsula jutting ENE into the Romney Marsh. The entire end of the peninsula seems to have been enclosed, the defences surviving for the most part merely as a low scarp. Only to the west along the neck of the peninsula, is the approach easy and here the defences are more marked. Even so the total relief is not more than 1.0m and ploughing has completely obliterated part of the work. Set within this large enclosure is a smaller, but much stronger, work with ramparts 2-3 m high. This is Castle Toll, sub rectangular in plan with a low motte-like mound in the NE corner. Excavation in 1965 indicates two periods of construction for Castle Toll; the early and mid-13th century and the site was provisionally interpreted as a military post. Excavations in 1971 of the SW side of the larger enclosure show that the defences were not completed in the form intended. A strong possibility remains that this is the unfinished fort of the Burghal Hidage list called Eorpeburnan. (9)


From the National Heritage List for England: “The monument at Castle Toll includes two defensive sites of different dates. The earlier of the two has been identified as a burgh, or defended settlement, belonging to the 9th century AD. This burgh took the form of an 8 hectare enclosure on a low peninsula which was defended primarily by the marshland of the former River Rother on three sides and by a broad bank and ditch on the southern side. Partial excavation of this southern ditch in 1971 showed that it was not completed in its intended form but was reduced in scale and remained unfinished. For much of its circuit, the ditch is now visible only as a shallow depression 8-10m across, the feature having been infilled by repeated ploughings between 1965 and 1988. One of the documentary sources for this period, the Anglo-Saxon chronicle, describes the storming of an unfinished fort by Viking raiders in 892, and it has been suggested that the unfinished fort was that at Castle Toll. Set within this larger enclosure is a smaller but much stronger defensive work some 100m square with banks up to 2.3m high and a 2m deep ditch on the southern side. Part of the circuit of banking on the north side has again been lost to agricultural activities but over three-quarters of the circuit survives. A broad elevated platform of earth at the north-east corner of this enclosure is interpreted as the site of a look-out post. Evidence recovered during partial excavations in 1965 suggested that this was a fort dating from the early to mid-13th century, positioned to deter French raids up the River Rother. The fencing within the protected area is excluded from the scheduling.” (10)

Additional bibliography (11-13)

<1> OS 6" 1961 (OS Card Reference). SKE48369.

<2> VCH Kent 1 1908 442-3 (I C Gould) (OS Card Reference). SKE50914.

<3> Anc Mon Eng & Wales 1961 59 (OS Card Reference). SKE33047.

<4> Arch Cant 13 1880 488-91 (Newenden Not Anderida - C R Smith) (OS Card Reference). SKE34703.

<5> F1 ASP 05.03.63 (OS Card Reference). SKE41927.

<6> Arch Cant 80 1965 liii (B K Davison) (OS Card Reference). SKE35705.

<7> Arch Excav (DOE) 1971 31 (B K Davison) (OS Card Reference). SKE36492.

<8> Md Arch 16 1972 123-7 (B K Davison) (OS Card Reference). SKE46582.

<9> Md Arch 16 1972 123-7 (B K Davison) (OS Card Reference). SKE46582.

<10> English Heritage, Register of Scheduled Monuments (Scheduling record). SKE16191.

<11> Field report for monument TQ 82 NE 1 - March, 1963 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4303.

<12> Feakes, Lesley, 1998, Castle Toll and the Lossenham Peninsular Walk-over Survey (Unpublished document). SKE7317.

<13> Flinders Petrie, W. M., 1880, Notes on Kentish Earthworks (Article in serial). SKE7926.

Sources and further reading

Related thematic articles

• Kent's Castles (Thematic Essay)