Pilsbury Castle

Pilsbury Castle
Derbyshire, England
Earthworks of Pilsbury Castle
Pilsbury Castle
Coordinates	53°10′15″N 1°49′46″W / 53.1709°N 1.8294°W / 53.1709; -1.8294Coordinates: 53°10′15″N 1°49′46″W / 53.1709°N 1.8294°W / 53.1709; -1.8294
Type	Motte-and-bailey
Site information
Open to the public	Yes
Condition	Earthworks only remain
Site history
Materials	Wood
Scheduled monument
Official name	Pilsbury Castle Hills motte and bailey castle
Designated	13 October 1937
Reference no.	1011199

Pilsbury Castle was a Norman castle in Derbyshire near the present-day village of Pilsbury, overlooking the River Dove.

Pilsbury Castle occupied an area of high ground approximately 175 by 150 yards (160 by 137 m) overlooking the River Dove, near the village of Pilsbury. The castle was probably originally an Iron Age fortification before being used by the Normans, and indeed the name "Pilsbury Castle" forms from the Celtic pil, the Saxon bury and the Norman castel, all meaning "fortified site". In early medieval times, the site would have been located along the River Dove routeway, and would also have overlooked a key crossing point.

The Normans built a substantial motte-and-bailey castle on the site, and several theories have been put forward as to when and who did so. One theory is that the castle was built in the years following the Norman conquest of England. The area around Pilsbury was granted to Henry de Ferrers by King William; the area was devastated during the harrying of the North, and the castle may have been built in the aftermath by Henry to establish control. Henry built other castles at Tutbury and Duffield, making Pilsbury part of this set of 11th-century fortifications. An alternative suggestion is that the it was built by Robert de Ferrers or his father, around the period known as The Anarchy for, while the de Ferrers supported Stephen of England, the neighbouring Earl of Chester supported Empress Matilda.