Catterlen Old Hall, Newton Reigny

Has been described as a Certain Pele Tower

There are earthwork remains

NameCatterlen Old Hall, Newton Reigny
Alternative Names
Historic CountryCumberland
Modern AuthorityCumbria
1974 AuthorityCumbria
Civil ParishCatterlen

Prominent grass covered building platform with boulder foundations, this is the site of C12 tower house, cross hall and south wing which preceeded the present Catterlan Hall. (PastScape)

Despite the lack of upstanding medieval fabric, the site of Catterlen Old Hall tower house survives reasonably well and remains unencumbered by modern development. It is a good example of the site of an early tower house which was subsequently abandoned in favour of a nearby replacement, and will contain evidence for the buildings which were occupied from the 12th to the 15th centuries.

The monument includes the remains of the 12th century Catterlen Old Hall tower house, the precursor of the 15th century Catterlen Hall tower house which stands a short distance to the south. It includes a prominent grass covered building platform up to 1m high and measuring approximately 30m by 20m. At the northern end of this platform are the boulder foundations of the tower. It measures approximately 17m by 13m and contains a large central hollow considered to have been the cellar or basement. At the southern end of the platform there are further boulder foundations indicating the position of a south wing which measured approximately 15m by 10m. There are also faint traces of the foundations of a cross hall which would have connected the tower with the south wing. The building is thought to have been constructed c.1170 by John Vaulx, Knight of Catterlen. It was replaced c.1460 by the present Catterlen Hall tower house which was built by William de Vaulx. This abandonment of an existing medieval tower house in favour of the construction of a nearby replacement is paralleled elsewhere in the locality, notably at Blencow and Hutton John. (Scheduling Report)

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law

Not Listed

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceNY477321
Latitude54.6816596984863
Longitude-2.81106996536255
Eastings347790
Northings532140
HyperLink HyperLink HyperLink
Photograph by Matthew Emmott. All rights reservedView full Sized Image

Most of the sites or buildings recorded in this web site are NOT open to the public and permission to visit a site must always be sought from the landowner or tenant.

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Books

  • Salter, Mike, 1998, The Castles and Tower Houses of Cumbria (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 38 (mention)
  • Perriam, Denis and Robinson, John, 1998, The Medieval Fortified Buildings of Cumbria (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 29) p. 198