Lewes Castle
Lewes Castle is a Norman castle on two man-made hills above the English town of Lewes in East Sussex .
William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey , received large lands in Sussex from William the Conqueror after the invasion of the Normans in 1066 and began building the Motte a short time later on his instructions . For this purpose, two artificial hills were built, which were connected by an oval castle courtyard. The actual fortress on the hills and the palisades around the castle courtyard were initially made of wood. In this form, Lewes Castle served as a residence for William de Warenne.
Probably in the early 12th century, the wooden structure was replaced by a round wall made of rubble stones. Two half- octagonal towers were added to this wall about 150 years later . In the 14th century, John de Warenne, 7th Earl of Surrey, had a castle gate built. After John died in 1347 without a legitimate heir, the title and castle passed to Richard Fitzalan, 10th Earl of Arundel . It was no longer inhabited and was falling into disrepair. Lewes Castle was further devastated by a local uprising in 1382; the stones were used as building material. In 1620 those service buildings that were still standing were also demolished. The remains of the complex were converted into a summer house in 1774.
Lewes Castle is now owned by the Sussex Archeological Society. The still preserved fortress on the higher of the two hills with the towers and the castle gate can be visited. The associated Barbican House Museum houses the Society's archaeological collection and shows changing exhibitions.
On November 11, 2019, a 10 by 10 meter piece of the castle wall with an estimated weight of 600 tons collapsed and partially buried a house.
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Individual evidence
Coordinates: 50 ° 52 ′ 27 ″ N , 0 ° 0 ′ 24.5 ″ E