Mr. B. B. Woodward, F.S.A., in his lectures delivered here on “Norwich in
the Olden Time,” adopted this view of the earth works, which he believed
did not consist of three concentric lines of defence. He described the
Saxon fortress as probably no more than a strong palisade carried along
the inner edge of two great trenches and the top of the steep bank of the
small stream called the “Cockey;” the buildings consisting of a great
timber hall with offices and stabling. He believed that the Normans
strengthened the outworks, cast up the great mound, dug the vast inner
ditch, and reared the noble donjon, which, before the “restoration” of
its exterior, was a fine feudal monument. After the Norman period the
earth works, Mr. Woodward thought, underwent great changes. The
horse-shoe trench on the east side disappeared and was built upon. This
horse-shoe trench enclosed the Castle Meadow. Another smaller outwork
was formed on the south side of the original great southern trench, both
of the last named being crossed by bridges. In support of this view, Mr.
Woodward referred to the account given by Kirkpatrick, who, as we have
said, described the second ditch as lying between the great circular
ditch and the Shire house, which then stood near the old weighing house.
The old way from King Street had been disused because the growth of the
city had so greatly altered the defensive character of the fortress. In
addition to this, there were the names of two churches, one of which was
St. Martin’s, (originally called “on the Hill,”) but afterwards “at
Bailey” or “at the Castle gate;” and the other, St. John, now Timberhill,
but then “at the Castle gate.” Unless a way existed through the outworks
to the castle hill, these churches could not have been properly called
“at the Castle gate;” and as the “Bailey,” was the space enclosed within
the intrenchments of the Castle, the other name of St. Martin would be
quite inappropriate. The Buckes, in their view of the Castle,
represented a ruined building, like a bridge house, on the inner side of
the great southern ditch. Before the end of the last century, the level
of the south side of the hill was raised to form a Cattle Market.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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