ROUGEMONT CASTLE

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Rougemont Castle consists of the remains of a ringwork and its surrounding system of ditches, a large outer enclosure or bailey, and an outwork. The remains of a group of fishponds lie west of the main earthwork complex. The site is alleged to represent the remains of a 13th to 14th century fortified manor house.

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[SE 2969 4624] Rougemont [GT] (Site of) (1)

The De l'Isle (or De Insula) family, Lords of Harewood for part of the 14th cent. is described as 'of Rougemont' (or Robeomonte) from early 13th cent to middle 14th cent.

'Rougemont' is a high cliff of reddish clay at the confluence of the Weeton Beck and the Wharfe. On it is a moat, about 80 yds. E-W by 60 yds N-S, outside which an area about 320 yds E-W and rather less N-S is enclosed on W, N and E by a bank and ditch (the bank being in places up to 40 ft across and 10 ft high) and on the S by the river and the beck.

The De L'Isle dwelling is likely to have been of timber, since there are no vestiges of masonry. The site was probably abandoned, soon after 1365, when the Lordship of Harewood was transferred to William of Aldborough, who built Harewood Castle as his residence. (2-3)

Surveyed at 1/2500.
The site is generally as described above, and is clearly of a defensive nature. It is sited in a position of some natural strength on the high and near precipitous northern bank of the River Wharfe which at this point is composed of reddish clay, thus suggesting the derivation of the name Rougemont, though the site is not raised. The earthwork bounding the inner enclosure is a bank and ditch system rather than a wet moat, with a general fall of level towards the S., and four drainage outlets on that side.
The outer enclosure is similarly bounded by a strong bank and ditch except on the south, where the Weeton Beck forms the border. The site is now heavily overgrown and obscured by vegetation, but the whole seems to amount to a cliff side ring-work castle and bailey. (4)

It is unlikely that the place-name 'Rougemont' supplied the de L'Isle family name suffix, as they did not come into possession at Harewood until 1293 and were known as 'of Rugemont' (Ridgmont in Bedfordshire) as early as 1216. On the other hand a 'Rugemond in Harewood' is mentioned in 1263. The place-name therefore is either derived from the family name (so confirming the earthworks as medieval and dating them to c. 1300) or merely coincidental. (5)

There has been some reduction of the inner enclosure since the previous report, due to replanting with conifer. The ditch here is still 10.0m. wide on average and up to 1.2m. deep, but the inner bank is well spread. Nothing has affected the outer earthwork, however, the bank of which is from 8.0m. to 10m. wide and 1.0m. high, with a ditch largely cut away by a modern drain. The postulated dating of the earthworks as a whole, together with their construction, particularly the inner enclosure where the ditch system appears to be primary feature, suggests that they represent a fortified manor house rather than a 'ring-work' castle and bailey'. Certainly, examples of reused lintels and stones in nearby farmsteads may signify the former existence of a substantial masonry building in the vicinity, although there is
now no evidence of one on the site. (6)

SE 2954 4630. Rougemont Castle ringwork and bailey and associated fishponds and outwork. Scheduled RSM No 13296. The monument includes the remains of a ringwork and its surrounding system of ditches, a large outer enclosure or bailey, an outwork and the remains of a group of fishponds located west of the main earthwork complex. The D-shaped enclosure of the ringwork is a multi-phase site, possibly with (as yet unsubstantiated) prehistoric origins. Masonry of the wall that encircled the top of the ringwork bank is still visible in places. North of the outwork, alongside Weeton Beck, a sunken marshy
area represents one or more fishponds that formerly served the manor. The remains of ridge and furrow cultivation overlie the outwork and the eastern half of the bailey and postdate the abandonment of the manorial site in c.1366 when Harewood Castle became the seat of the de Lisles. (7)

Listed by Cathcart King. (8)

A Medieval ringwork, outer enclosure, and a fishpond are centred at SE 2966 4627. They are visible as earthworks on air photographs. Although the site is heavily wooded there is a period between 1966 and 1967 when the vegetation overlying the ringwork is cut back. This is visible on Meridian Airmaps Limited vertical photographs. However, the site is somewhat denuded allowing only the broadest features to be plotted at 1:10000 scale. The outer enclosure is obscured at all times by trees, but could be plotted in part because of a thinning in vegetation over the bank, and by comparing it to the Ordnance Survey model. The ringwork measures 103m by 67m, but is eroded on the south side. A potential fishpond is situated at SE 2931 4642. This feature measures 61m by 45m and has a short length of bank abutting it on its north-east side. (9)

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 6" 1956

( 2) General reference

J Jones (1859) The History and Antiquities of Harewood, pp32 and 248

( 3) General reference

W Grainge (1871) History of Harrogate, pp296-300

( 4) Field Investigators Comments

F1 ECW 08-JUL-63

( 5) The Yorkshire archaeological journal

Colonel John Parker 22, 1913 Page(s)152-3

( 6) Field Investigators Comments

F2 RE 16-JUL-81

(7) Scheduled Monument Notification

English Heritage Scheduling Amendment 6/11/92

(8) David J Cathcart King 1983 Castellarium anglicanum : an index and bibliography of the castles in England, Wales and the Islands. Volume II : Norfolk-Yorkshire and the islands

2 - 1983 Page(s)518

(9) Vertical aerial photograph reference number

NMR MAL/67057 0142 13-Jun-1967

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