Skipsea Castle was a Norman motte and bailey castle near the village of Skipsea, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Built around 1086 by Drogo de la Beuvrière, apparently on the remains of an Iron Age mound, it was designed to secure the newly conquered region, defend against any potential Danish invasion and control the trade route across the region leading to the North Sea. The motte and the bailey were separated by Skipsea Mere, an artificial lake that was linked to the sea during the medieval period via a navigable channel. The village of Skipsea grew up beside the castle church, and the fortified town of Skipsea Brough was built alongside the castle around 1160 to capitalise on the potential trade.
In 1221 the castle's owner, William de Forz, the Count of Aumale, rebelled against Henry III; the fortification was captured by royalist forces and the King ordered it to be destroyed. The remains of the castle had little value by the end of the 14th century and Skipsea Brough failed to attract many inhabitants. The castle passed into the control of the state in the early 20th century and various archaeological investigations were carried out between 1987 and 2001. In the 21st century, Skipsea Castle is managed by English Heritage and open to visitors.
History
Iron Age
The mound which Skipsea Castle was built upon a much earlier Iron Age structure of comparable construction to Silbury Hill in Wiltshire. Internal examination in 2016, through core sample drilling revealed seeds and other organic matter dating the period of construction to around 400 BC.
11th – 12th centuries
Skipsea Castle was built around 1086 by Drogo de Beavriere, a Flemish mercenary and the first Lord of Holderness, following the Norman conquest of England and the Harrying of the North. The region was on the frontier of Norman power and the lordship was intended to protect central Yorkshire against potential Danish raids across the North Sea. Skipsea formed the administrative centre of Drogo's huge estates, which stretched from the Humber to Bridlington, as well as serving as his caput, or principal residence.
The name "Skipsea" has Scandinavian roots and meant a lake that was navigable by ships. In the medieval period the site was an inland harbour, connected via a navigable channel to the North Sea, which in the 21st century is only around away. The surrounding region was referred to as an "island" during this period, due to the surrounding estuary and flood plains. The site of the castle was strategically important, as it lay on the main trading route through the marshes and was accessible by the sea; the castle had military and economic functions, being designed both to control the newly conquered Norman lands and to manage trade in and out of the inland harbour.
The castle took the form of a motte and bailey design, and a dam was probably constructed to turn the surrounding marshy, low-lying land into an artificial lake, called Skipsea Mere, in turn connected the channel leading to the sea. The complex had its own private harbour, and probably a boat yard and a fresh-water fishery. By the end of the 11th century a church had been built to the east of the castle across the mere, and the village of Skipsea soon grew up alongside the church. Drogo settled 10 knights on lands near the castle in an arrangement known as a castlery or castle-guard system, under which the knights helped to guard the castle in return for their estates, and one of them probably built his own smaller fortification at nearby Aldborough.
After the suspicious death of his wife Drogo fled England, and the castle was reassigned by William the Conqueror to Odo, the Count of Aumale. In 1096 it passed to Arnulf de Montgomery, but returned to the Aumales in 1102, who held it until 1221. Trade initially flourished and as a result William le Gros founded the fortified town of Skipsea Brough along the ridgeway just south of the castle, probably around 1160. The town was intended to bring in valuable revenue to the earls, but would also have helped to defend the castle on its most vulnerable, overlooked side. The castle-guard system lapsed, with the surrounding estates paying their rents in cash instead.