North Elmham Castle
North Elmham Castle , also North Elmham Bishops Castle or North Elmham Bishops Chapel , is a ruined castle in the village of North Elmham in the English county of Norfolk .
history
The castle was built in the 11th century on the site of the Anglo-Saxon cathedral at Elmham . It was the episcopal see of Herbert de Losinga , the first bishop of Norwich .
On December 29, 1387, Henry Despenser , Bishop of Norwich, received royal permission to fortify the church (English: License to Crenellate). He then had it converted into a castle with a double moat .
In the course of the 16th century the castle fell into disrepair and in the 19th century nothing of it could be seen above ground.
today
English Heritage , which now manages the property, had excavations carried out in the 1970s, which unearthed earthworks and ruins. Remains of a kitchen stove, arches, the cathedral towers and walls are visible again today. The site is open to the public and can be visited free of charge all year round. The castle ruin is a historical building of the first degree and is considered a Scheduled Monument .
dispute
There is a dispute over the ruins on the property. It is known for sure that part of the ruins of the castle and the church date from the 11th century, but opinions differ as to which building stood there before. It was thought that there was an Anglo-Saxon stone and flint cathedral that served as the bishopric of the bishops of East Anglia in the late Anglo-Saxon period until 1075 . However, architectural historians now think that although an Anglo-Saxon wooden church existed on the site, the stone remains actually came from a Norman chapel built after the conquest of England .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b North Elmham Bishops Castle . Gatehouse Gazetteer. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
Web links
- North Elmham Bishops Castle . Gatehouse Gazetteer.
- North Elmham Castle . ECastles.
- The Mystery of the Two Elmhams . Wuffings.co.uk.
Coordinates: 52 ° 45 ′ 19.8 ″ N , 0 ° 56 ′ 40.6 ″ E