What is recorded here

Maidstone's Thurnham motte and bailey castle still stands on a sharp spur above the Pilgrim's Way, its conical mound rising beside a bailey wall that reaches 3.5m in places. The gatehouse keeps blocked Norman-style archways, while the shell keep leaves a proud ribbon of flint on the mound's edge. It is a compact, severe place where stone, earth and memory still hold their shapes.

The National Heritage List for England records Thurnham motte and bailey castle as a scheduled monument. The saved point comes from the centre supplied by the official record. Listing does not by itself mean that the public may enter the place.

Thurnham motte and bailey castle was built in the late 11th or early 12th century, likely by a Norman lord to establish control over the local area following the Norman Conquest. It is important as a scheduled monument, reflecting the strategic military and administrative use of such sites in the medieval period.

The historic-place record does not grant public access. Check current conditions and ownership before entering land or a building.