The present hall was a part of the castle proper. It is an oblong structure, like Oakham and Winchester, composed of a nave and two narrow aisles. The nave lies north and south, and is about 60 feet by 25 feet, having gables at either end, and an open high-pitched roof. Since 1633, and perhaps earlier, it has been used for judicial purposes, and divided into three parts,—a civil and criminal court, and between them an entrance lobby, and above it a grand-jury room. To enlarge the courts, the old oaken posts or piers, with carved Norman caps, have been removed, the east aisle rebuilt or cased, and the west aisle walled off for retiring-room and passages. Its older parts also are concealed by panelling and partition-walls. The original south wall of the nave remains. In it are two round-headed windows, resting upon a string-course, or set-off in the wall, with a plain chamfered moulding. The windows are small and plain, and the recesses have but little splay. These are flanked by two slender detached octagonal shafts, possibly replacing cylindrical ones, with Norman capitals, and the head of each recess is surrounded by a single bold band of chevron moulding. There is a third and small window above, near the apex of the gable, with a recess of about 2 feet opening, all quite plain. Below is a small Norman door, but apparently a very recent insertion. It may, however, represent a way into the kitchen, which was at this end. The opposite or north end wall, forming the side of the civil court, appears also to be old, but is so plastered and pointed as to be inscrutable from the inside. It contains a large round-headed window, probably a modern insertion. From the outside the base of the wall seems original, and there is the jamb of a window in end of the east aisle. The wall of the west aisle, towards the river, is original, and is flanked at each end by a buttress, probably of Decorated date. In drawings of the last century this building is shown as an aisle, but it has been raised, and now forms a judge’s retiring-room behind each court, and a staircase between them. In the basement are offices. This aisle contains one original window near the south end, flat pointed, with plain jambs, and a head adorned by a single chevron band. The jambs have been renewed in brick. The hall-floor is on the ground level, but it has been largely excavated, and now contains a number of cells and vaulted passages to them beneath the court. These vaults show nothing ancient.