CLITHEROE CASTLE

Lancashire

Usually described as the smallest keep in England, this tiny Castle occupies a natural high point in the town, which was converted into a motte by Roger de Poitou by the time of the Domesday Book. In 1102 Roger lost his lands after he rebelled against Henry I and the Castle passed to Robert de Lacy.  Soon afterwards the de Lacy's built the tiny square keep as well as curtain walls, some of which remain today.

An unsual method of entry was added by means of a movable bridge from the curtain wall to halfway up the keep.  The keep can never have been very comfortable, and it is most likely it was never much more than a look out tower and refuge, with the residential areas being constructed in the bailey.

In 1311 the last de Lacy, Henry, died and the land passed into the Earldom and subsequently the Duchy of Lancaster.  When the Tudors reached the throne the Castle fell into disuse and it was deliberately dismantled before the Civil War to stop its use.

The Castle is open to the public during the summer months.

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2018