Gannock Castle
Gannock Castle is an Outbound castle in the village Temps Ford in the English county of Bedfordshire . It is 10 km east of Great Barford Castle and 14.5 km east of Bedford Castle .
history
It was a fortified moth- style mansion built by the Normans in the late 12th or early 13th centuries. It was created as a rectangular courtyard, which was enclosed by a moat with a circular wall for defense. A watchtower or a wooden tower is said to have stood on the small mound in the northeast part of the complex.
There is speculation that the castle was built on the site of a 10th century Viking fortress because the Vikings who landed in East Anglia in 865 participated in the Battle of Tempsford in 921, which took place where Gannock Castle was later built.
today
Today remains of the castle in the form of earthworks can still be seen and the moat is still preserved. The site, which is a Scheduled Monument , belongs to the administration of Central Bedfordshire .
A geophysical survey of the castle grounds and the adjacent playing field was organized by the Friends of Gannock Castle and carried out on June 29, 2004 in the form of a measurement of the specific resistance and a magnetometer measurement.
A second geophysical survey of the surrounding fields to the west and south of the site was carried out on December 1, 2006 with a fluxgate gradiometer .
restoration
Restoration of Gannock Castle began in 1998, and an inaugural Medieval Festival was held on June 19, 2006. Local MP Alistair Burt was the guest speaker. A medieval re-enactment group performed at the festival, as well as wandering menestrels and dancers. Many booths were set up in which handicrafts, archery and medieval exhibition fights were shown.
Other work included the installation of benches and nesting boxes for birds and bats, the restoration of a wildflower field, the planting of trees and bushes, the setting up of information boards and the creation of a “Heritage Trail” brochure.
A dam was built over the moat, which has water all year round. Access to the site was improved. The dam has been raised so that it can be removed at a later date without damaging the monument.
The Friends of Gannock Castle , Tempsford villagers and volunteers from the Ivel & Ouse Countryside Project removed the heavy undergrowth from the site.
The castle grounds are freely accessible during the day.
Web links and sources
- Gannocks Castle, Tempsford . Gatehouse Gazetteer.
- Gannocks Castle . CastleUK.net.
- Tempsford Parish website.
Coordinates: 52 ° 9 ′ 45 ″ N , 0 ° 18 ′ 17.6 ″ W.