Wymondley Castle, also known as Great Wymondley Castle, is a ruined castle in the village of

Great Wymondley Great Wymondley is a village and former civil parish situated near Hitchin, now in the parish of Wymondley,Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842. History Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce peopl ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

, England. It has been seen as being part of a group of unlicensed (adulterine) castles in Hertfordshire, including Pirton and

Therfield Therfield is both a small village of approximately 4,761 acres (19 km²) and a civil parish which sits upon the chalk range, three miles southwest of Royston, and six miles (10 km) northeast of Baldock and within the English county of ...

. The castle was possibly erected by the Argentein family, who were of Norman origin. They were lords of the manor and are associated with St Mary's church near the castle which dates from the 12th century.

Description

Only earthworks remain. The castle is of the "motte and bailey" type. It is set in a rectangular feature which

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked wit ...

describes as a "manorial enclosure". This feature possibly dates from Roman times (there is evidence of Roman occupation). Historic England suggests archaeological investigation is needed to establish its use.

Conservation

The remains are protected as an ancient monument, "Great Wymondley Castle: a motte and bailey castle and associated manorial enclosure 20m east of St Mary's Church, Great Wymondley".

References

{{Reflist Castles in Hertfordshire Motte-and-bailey castles Scheduled monuments in Hertfordshire