Rochdale Castle was a motte-and-bailey castle in

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tam ...

, England (). It was built in the period shortly after the Norman conquest of England. In the 12th century many charters refer to 'the vill of the castle of Rachedal'. A charter dated c.1238 gave details of the castle standing on rising ground commanding the valley of the Roche and still known as Castle Hill. The castle was abandoned in the early 13th century. It was documented in 1322. In 1626 a Gabriel Tayor had a house, known as Castle Hill, on the site, described as being on the 'reputed site of a castle standing there, but now clean defaced'. Buildings have been erected over the castle bailey and in the 19th century a house was built on the motte.Newman (2006), p. 140. The motte is at the base; the bailey is rectangular and lies to the south and measures by . The defences consisted of an earth

rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * "O'er the Ramparts We Watched" is a key line from "The Star-Spangled Banner", the national anthem of the ...

and ditch.

References

;Bibliography * * {{coord, 53.611987, -2.164396, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Castles in Lancashire Buildings and structures in Rochdale Castles in Greater Manchester

See also

References