Virtual Tour

Monkton Tower

As you come out of the Western Hall you pass from the Inner Ward to the Outer Ward and as you make your way towards the outer curtain wall and Monkton Tower you walk over the foundation, which is all that remains, of the Inner Gatehouse. At one point the ground falls away and a small portion of limestone bedrock on which the castle was built can be seen.

Before the Outer Ward was built the origional castle buildings - the Keep, the Dungeon Tower, Norman Hall, Inner Gatehouse, etc, would be approached via the main street of the town which at the time would have come right up to the Inner Gate. When the Outer Ward was built the pathway was obliterated and the new outer curtain wall was built over it. A new entrance was created and this was called the Water Port. Hard by is Monkton Tower. From now on you can approach the towers either from the ground or by way of an upper walkway. There is much to be seen in the rooms and passages between here and the gatehouse.To see the rest of the tower you have to approach it from the other side. A short flight of steps leads into a small room which may at one time have housed prisoners. Some graffiti can be seen etched into the stone work. Some of the doodling looks heraldic.

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