Lewes District Council

Castles

Lewes Castle and Barbican House date from the 11th century and today stand proud in the centre of Lewes town centre.

Just a few miles east of the district boundary at Pevensey, William of Normandy landed in 1066 to claim the English crown.

To the Saxon town of Lewes he sent a favourite noble, William de Warenne, who built an imposing castle and a great priory.

The Norman motte and bailey castle is unusual for its two mottes. The higher motte (artificial mound) had an elliptical keep with a rectangular gatehouse as its southern entrance.

A second gatehouse or barbican with drawbridge either side was added two centuries later. A substantial section of keep remains, giving views of Lewes and surrounding countryside, as well as an imposing fragment of the Norman gatehouse and the almost intact Barbican.

The castle's former tilting yard is the site of, perhaps, the only remaining bowling green of the type Sir Francis Drake would have played on. Political rebel Tom Paine is reputed to have had his inspiration for "The Rights of Man" after playing here.

Barbican House, close by the castle gate, is home to the museum of Sussex Archaeology. The museum charts the history of the county and its people from early beginnings to medieval times.

It also houses a fascinating display of remains, tools and artefacts from an ancient way of life, and explores the impact of invasion by the Romans, Saxons, and the Normans.

Lewes District Council

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Castles