England · Ruin
Barnwell Castle
Barnwell Castle is a 13th-century stone castle near the village of Barnwell in Northamptonshire. The quadrilateral castle retains substantial curtain walls and corner towers and is a protected Grade I listed Scheduled Ancient Monument. It stands on private land south of Oundle and survives today as a ruin.
Its prime
1265
Today
Ruin
As it stood in 1265
The shape it held in its prime.
A quadrilateral stone castle of mid-13th century form with high, thick coursed-masonry curtain walls reaching about 30 feet above ground and over 12 feet thick at the base. Three prominent cylindrical towers occupy the northeast, northwest and southwest corners, while the southeast corner is dominated by a twin-towered gatehouse set into the curtain wall. The masonry is pale local stone, the silhouette a compact square of towers and straight wall faces, set against open countryside with a tree-lined approach.
Its story
The story of Barnwell Castle.
A motte-and-bailey castle was erected at Barnwell in 1132. The stone castle followed in the reign of Henry III, built by the family of Berengar Le Moyne at the time of the Second Barons' War of 1264–67. It is quadrilateral, with cylindrical towers on the northeast, northwest and southwest corners and a twin-towered gatehouse on the southeast.
In the English Civil War the castle was used by its owner, Sir Edward Montagu, as an arsenal for the Royalist cause, and after the war the Montagu family built a substantial manor house, Barnwell Manor, nearby. Substantial parts of the castle remain — walls up to 30 feet high and over 12 feet thick — and the ruin is Grade I listed, a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and under private ownership.
Step inside
8 places to explore in 1265.
The record describes 8 distinct spots at Barnwell Castle — including 1 interior: gatehouse passage (interior). Create your own photoreal reconstruction and walk through every one — more scenes means more photos, more angles and more rooms of the immersive experience.
Create History
Recreate Barnwell Castle with AI to explore it.
The artist rebuilds it as it stood in 1265 — a photoreal walk that belongs to you alone. Pay with coins, no subscription needed.
Recreate Castle to Explore →Whose castle
Clans who held Barnwell Castle.
The families that held Barnwell Castle for a decade or more across its history — follow a name to its clan.
Le Moyne
The stone castle was built by the family of Berengar Le Moyne during the Second Barons' War, 1264–67.
Montagu
Held by the Montagus; Sir Edward Montagu used the castle as a Royalist arsenal in the Civil War.
