2010

SK2507 : Seckington Castle

taken 14 years ago, near to Seckington, Warwickshire, England

This is 1 of 5 images, with title Seckington Castle in this square
Seckington Castle
Seckington Castle
Looking north from near the churchyard. This Norman motte and bailey would have been built in 1067 or 1068. Many such castles were constructed in England at that time. A wooden structure at the top of the mound would have been cheap and quick to construct and provided the conquerors with a defensive base in a hostile environment. Seckington was very small and as such would have been used for less than 100 years. Unlike nearby Tamworth, it did not have a stone castle built and thus was abandoned in favour of other locations.

In the year 757, Ethelbald, king of the Mercians for over 40 years, was defeated in a nearby battle by the West Saxons, led by Cuthred. Ethelbald retreated to Seckington where he was murdered. According to Bede's 'Ecclesiastical History’, he was ‘treacherously murdered at night by his own bodyguards’, although the reason for this action was unrecorded. This site may be his burial ground.
SK2507 : Seckington castle motte and bailey
SK2507 : Defensive ditch at Seckington castle
SK2507 : Motte at Seckington

Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Trevor Rickard and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Category: Castle > Motte and bailey
1:50,000 Modern Day Landranger(TM) Map © Crown Copyright
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1:50,000 Modern Day Landranger(TM) Map © Crown Copyright
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Grid Square
SK2507, 15 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
Trevor Rickard   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Saturday, 27 March, 2010   (more nearby)
Submitted
Friday, 2 April, 2010
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! SK 259 075 [100m precision]
WGS84: 52:39.8760N 1:37.0819W
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! SK 259 074
View Direction
NORTH (about 0 degrees)
Clickable map
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Image classification(about): Geograph
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