Ballands Castle was a
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
near the village of
Penselwood,
Somerset, England.
History
Balland Castle was a
motte and bailey
A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or Bailey (castle), bailey, surrounded by a protective Rampart (fortification ...
castle, probably built after the
Norman conquest of England
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, Duchy of Brittany, Breton, County of Flanders, Flemish, and Kingdom of France, French troops, ...
in 1066, near the village of Penselwood in Somerset.
[Creighton, p.62.] The castle sits close to the contemporary Norman castles of
Cockroad Wood and
Castle Orchard, and may have been built as part of a system of fortifications to control the surrounding area.
[
The motte of the castle is now around 5 m high, and up to 9 m wide.]
Balland's Castle, Penselwood
', Somerset County Historic Environmental Record, accessed 18 July 2011.[Creighton, p.62; ]
Balland's Castle, Penselwood
', Somerset County Historic Environmental Record, accessed 18 July 2011.
Today the castle site is a scheduled monument.
See also
* Castles in Great Britain and Ireland
* List of castles in England
Bibliography
*Creighton, Oliver Hamilton. (2005) ''Castles and Landscapes: Power, Community and Fortification in Medieval England.'' London: Equinox. .
References
{{Authority control
Castles in Somerset
Former castles in England
Scheduled monuments in South Somerset
Buildings and structures completed in the 11th century